ABS Challenger (ALI598) review: One of the best affordable pre-built gaming PCs I've used
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Better than manyABS Challenger (ALI598) review: One of the best affordable pre-congenital gaming PCs I've used
Newegg's ABS brand has plenty of options from which to choose, but the Challenger might exist the most bonny thanks to its affordable price. 
Source: Windows Central
PC gaming has been on the rise in the last couple of years as people spend more time at habitation, but landing the right hardware for a build — primarily the best graphics cards — hasn't been easy. That's where pre-built gaming PCs have excelled, as manufacturers could offer total systems for the cost of what a unmarried GPU was selling for on most markets. Newegg'southward Advanced Battlestations (ABS) brand has been garnering a positive reputation thanks to the use of non-proprietary parts, competitive prices, and solid workmanship. I have here the ABS Challenger (ALI598) mid-range PC for review, and I've been using it for the last week to meet what it's all nearly.
Newegg's house make
ABS Challenger (ALI598)
Bottom line: The ABS Challenger is a pre-built gaming PC that doesn't cut nearly as many corners as most others. It primarily uses retail parts, pregnant in that location won't be some funky proprietary hardware getting in the way of upgrades. Cable management is decent, it comes packed properly, and ABS customer service is quick to answer in the result of any faults.
Pros
- Uses retail parts, quality PSU
- Clean cablevision management
- Competitive pricing and good packing
- Fantabulous customer service via ABS
- Solid operation
Cons
- Some CPU libation issues (handled with RMA)
- Case lights aren't synced with CPU cooler or Fusion software
- Can't configure the system slice past slice
- BIOS tin can be catchy to update
ABS Challenger (ALI598): Price, availability, and specs
Source: Windows Central
The ABS Challenger (ALI598) has an 11th Gen Intel Core i5-11400F processor (CPU), 16GB of dual-aqueduct DDR4-3000 RAM, a 512GB M.2 PCIe three.0 solid-state bulldoze (SSD), and an NVIDIA GTX 1660 SUPER GPU. This is a self-bought PC; Newegg did not supply us with a review unit of measurement.
Hardware built into this PC appears to be non-OEM, significant it'south using actual retail PC parts. This isn't always the case with pre-built gaming PCs, equally many of the larger companies utilize cheaper versions of GPUs, memory, and coolers to cut costs. This isn't a boutique brand like the CLX Ra where you lot can cull every small-scale detail downwardly to the screws, but it's still a good choice for those who like to get inside their PC and tinker with the parts.
Newegg says the brand may vary on some hardware, simply that's still better than the usual OEM and proprietary parts. The GPU hither is Gigabyte'south OC 6G version of the GTX 1660 SUPER. The RAM is OLOy DDR4-3000 with a dual-aqueduct setup. And the SSD and motherboard are also fabricated by Gigabyte. The RGB CPU libation is made by Cooler Chief, and the case — though branded with an ABS logo on the front panel — is DeepCool's Matrexx fifty with three RGB intake fans and one RGB exhaust fan.
Source: Windows Central
The PSU, which in some pre-built PCs can exist downright frightening, is thankfully EVGA's SuperNOVA 550 GA. Within the shipping box is a zipped pouch which contains the documentation, disks, ties, and actress cables that normally come with the parts y'all'd purchase separately.
This PC, no thing the hardware that Newegg chooses to use to hit spec, is unremarkably gear up at a toll of $ane,200 just has been down to $ane,050 for a while. This keeps it competitive with the big manufacturers like HP, Dell, and Lenovo. Hither are the specs yous tin can look if you determine to opt for the ABS Challenger (ALI598).
| Category | Spec |
|---|---|
| Bone | Windows 10 Home Windows 11 available |
| Chipset | Intel B560 |
| Motherboard | Gigabyte DS3H AC-Y1 |
| Processor | 11th Gen Intel Core i5-11400F half dozen cores, 12 threads Upwardly to 4.4GHz |
| RAM | 16GB DDR4-3000MHz Dual-aqueduct (2x8GB) |
| Graphics | NVIDIA GTX 1660 SUPER 6GB VRAM |
| Storage | 512GB M.2 PCIe iii.0 NVMe SSD |
| Ports | Front: Two USB-A 2.0 USB-A 3.0 iii.5mm audio Rear: USB-C Three USB-A 3.2 (Gen 2) Two USB-A 2.0 DisplayPort 1.4 HDMI 2.0b Ethernet three.5mm audio |
| Wireless | Wi-Fi five Bluetooth four.2 |
| PSU | 550W 80 Plus Gold |
| Example | DeepCool Matrexx l |
| Dimensions | 18.ninety ten 8.27 x 17.32 inches (48cm ten 21cm ten 44cm) |
Competent build
ABS Challenger (ALI598): Blueprint and features
Source: Windows Primal
The ABS Challenger (ALI598) uses DeepCool'due south Matrexx 50 mid-tower case, with full glass front and side panels. It'due south a skillful-looking instance and it shows off the plentiful RGB within. You get iii 120mm DeepCool RGB fans on the front for air intake, too as some other 120mm RGB fan on the dorsum for exhaust. The instance has a large cutout on the summit that tin handle up to a 240mm radiator; the cutout has a magnetic filter on the top, removable for easy cleaning.
The front panel of the example is primarily drinking glass, with filtered cutouts on either side for air intake. Information technology doesn't appear that there's a whole lot of room here for air to motion, merely as we'll see during thermal tests, the case doesn't seem to hold onto a lot of hot air. The primary upshot is that the filters aren't removable, and cleaning can be a bit tedious due to the grid overlay. The bottom of the example has another filtered cutout for the PSU.
Source: Windows Central
There are seven PCI expansion slots on the back of the case. The covers are the punch-out type rather than being held in with screws; it's a bit inexpensive just non a huge deal. A hard bulldoze bay at the bottom of the instance in front of the PSU holds two iii.v-inch difficult disk drives (HDD), and a shroud covers everything upwards nicely. Equally for ii.5-inch storage, at that place are two mounts behind the motherboard panel and 2 more in the space betwixt the motherboard and front panel.
Ports on the front end of the example — thankfully not fastened to the front panel — include USB-A 2.0, USB-A 3.0, and ii 3.5mm audio jacks for headphones and microphone. The ability button has an LED nether it, and it seems to faintly blink. Information technology's annoying and I don't know how to disable it. In that location's also a button next to the ports that handles the case fan RGB lighting. The four case fans are synced together, and pressing the push swaps between the myriad modes and colors. Unfortunately, the CPU fan's RGB lighting doesn't sync up with the case RGB; it'south handled via Gigabyte'due south Fusion app.
Source: Windows Central
Opening the case reveals some respectable cable management. There's quite a fleck of room to work with inside the case, which helps, but overall it's a clean await. Cables are tied down behind the motherboard and even the front I/O bank isn't too messy.
ABS has gone with a Gigabyte B560 DS3H Air-conditioning-Y1 motherboard for this build. That extra AC-Y1 modifier apparently makes this board an adjunct of the regular version, making the BIOS harder to update. In that location are a bunch of Reddit threads discussing this issue, with some people finding a solution via ABS or other custom PC makers. This isn't platonic, just it appears that the BIOS can be updated with some extra piece of work. For many casual users the BIOS information technology ships with should work fine.
Source: Windows Central
The motherboard is better than a lot of others I've seen in pre-builts, nigh recently the Lenovo Legion Tower 5i. This Gigabyte board's VRMs and chipset take heatsinks, and at that place are two M.two slots for storage (1 PCIe 4.0 and one PCIe 3.0). Aside from the BIOS issue it'south a quality budget board. I did notice that the USB 3.2 header wasn't plugged in when I received the PC; no problem plugging information technology in for someone with a bit of experience, simply a fresh PC gamer might not know why the blue USB-A ports aren't working. The system does come with a quick-beginning guide that suggests checking all motherboard connections.
It's hard to imagine a gaming PC aircraft with one stick of RAM, simply indeed the Legion Tower 5i pulled it off. Thankfully, the ABS Challenger goes with a much more respectable 16GB of dual-channel DDR4-3000 RAM with CL16 timing. There are two extra DIMM slots for retentiveness upgrades.
The board also comes with congenital-in Wi-Fi five and Bluetooth iv.2 capabilities, which is very much appreciated. There are ii external antennae that can screw onto the back of the board to boost signal pickup. The motherboard has two USB-A 2.0 ports, DisplayPort, HDMI, iii USB-A 3.2, USB-C, RJ45 Ethernet, and 3 3.5mm audio jacks. The GTX 1660 SUPER adds another 3 DisplayPort and an HDMI.
Crushes 1080p
ABS Challenger (ALI598): Performance and gaming
Source: Windows Central
I ran these performance benchmarks before doing anything else to the organisation, as I didn't want to disturb the build that ABS put together. Many people are going to unpack their PC, plug information technology in, and wait information technology to work, then that'due south what I emulated hither. The PC came properly packed, with a larger box and enough of bubble wrap around the actual PC box. Inside the tower itself was a balloon bag to go along all the installed hardware in place, and there were no signs of shipping damage.
Booting the PC puts yous into the standard Windows setup. This model comes with Windows x, though it's possible to upgrade to Windows 11 if desired. Whereas the big manufacturers generally include an annoying amount of bloatware in their pre-builts, the merely sign of anything out of the ordinary here are desktop shortcuts to Newegg and ABS websites every bit well every bit the Gigabyte app center.
I ran some synthetic benchmarks offset to see how the organization compares to other PCs we've recently tested.
Everything is in line hither, with steady functioning in the range of hardware norms. The motherboard does back up PCIe 4.0 storage if yous'd like to upgrade with something faster from our all-time SSD list. There's a 2d G.2 slot with PCIe three.0 if you want to double upwards drives.
Synthetic benchmarks are a proficient indicator if a PC is belongings its own against similar hardware, but the real test is with in-game performance. The Core i5 CPU and GTX 1660 SUPER GPU are all-time suited for a quality 1080p gaming experience, though I also tested some games at 1440p to see how the system fares. Notation that the GTX 1660 SUPER doesn't support DLSS or ray tracing. I ran these tests with most in-game settings maxed out. I didn't make whatsoever major compromises to boost numbers.
Far Cry 5 (1080p): Avg. 90 FPS, Min. 78 FPS, Max. 104 FPS
Far Cry 5 (1440p): Avg. 63 FPS, Min. 56 FPS, Max. 73 FPS
Red Dead Redemption 2 (1080p): Avg. 43 FPS, Min. 34 FPS, Max. 55 FPS
Fifty-fifty high-performance PCs accept a difficult time running Red Dead Redemption 2. At that place's enough of room to tweak settings to heave frame rates to a higher place the average that I got hither. It's not unrealistic to expect 60 FPS at 1080p without making the game look like a mess.
Shadow of the Tomb Raider (1080p): Avg. 91 FPS, Min. 64 FPS, Max. 150 FPS
Shadow of the Tomb Raider (1440p): Avg. 59 FPS, Min. 45 FPS, Max. 91 FPS
Information technology'south evident from these numbers that the system can handle 1440p if needed, though it excels at 1080p.
Source: Windows Central
I wanted to see how well the case keeps things cool, equally the front glass console doesn't announced to offer a whole lot of airflow. I planned on running a 30-minute stress examination with the system fully loaded. However, well-nigh seven minutes into the examination I started seeing some CPU throttling, with overall temperatures budgeted the 97C marking. Not ideal. I let the test go on a scrap longer with the idea in mind that I'd check the stock thermal paste application and redo it in one case things had cooled downwards. However, around the 15-minute marking the libation began making a loud rattling noise due to the high RPMs. I cut the test brusk, the RPMs dropped, and it went back to running quietly.
ABS customer support was piece of cake to deal with and promptly sent out an upgraded CPU cooler replacement.
The initial examination saw thermal throttling of the CPU hit 17% at the highest betoken, though information technology more often than not moved betwixt five% and 10%. At the decision of the examination, CPU cores sat effectually the 98C marking while the GPU saturday at about 70C. Ambient case temperature never exceeded 32C, so it seems like the front fans are getting enough air. A beefier organisation would probable have those temperatures ascent, but at that place's e'er the opportunity to put more fans along the peak of the example.
I contacted ABS live chat client support like any other PC buyer to come across what they'd recommend doing with a CPU cooler acting this manner. After explaining the event, the amanuensis informed me that a new CPU cooler would be mailed out promptly. Not only that, just it would as well be an upgrade to the electric current cooler with some thermal paste added in. The whole exchange lasted nigh 12 minutes. I received a paid return characterization for the troublesome cooler and the new one was shipped to me express. Parts ship out broken all the time, and it's great that ABS doesn't mess around with replacing hardware in its PCs.
Lots of options
ABS Challenger (ALI598): Competition
Source: Windows Central
There are a lot of pre-built gaming PCs from which to choose these days, though as I mentioned in my 2022 pre-congenital gaming PC retrospective, the market can be hard to navigate. The all-time desktop gaming PCs differ greatly in build quality, operation, and price, plus in that location'south the issue of enthusiasts finding something that can be upgraded.
The bigger manufacturers have certainly had to up their game as more than light is beingness shed on the corners being cut. At the forefront is HP with its Omen 30L and Omen 45L PCs. These PCs come with a lot of configuration options, allowing you to choose more closely what you desire your PC to look similar. Prices are competitive, build quality is good, and the hardware is mainly non-proprietary. The larger Omen 45L has a unique Cryo Chamber cooling arrangement that separates the CPU radiator for even better thermals.
If yous're more interested in keeping things in line with what you'd await building your own PC, Skytech is another builder that primarily uses retail parts as if you'd purchased them separately in a store. Like ABS, in that location are a bunch of different types of Skytech PCs in various price ranges and operation levels. And on that note, ABS PCs come in a bunch of dissimilar flavors; if the Challenger (ALI598) isn't quite what you're looking for, a quick Newegg search brings enough of alternatives.
Worth checking out
Should you lot buy the ABS Challenger (ALI598)?
Source: Windows Central
Who it'southward for
- Those who desire to relish PC gaming primarily at 1080p
- Those with about $1,000 to spend on a new PC
- Those who want a pre-built that doesn't employ proprietary parts
Who it isn't for
- Those looking for 1440p or 4K performance
- Those who adopt deeper configuration options
The ABS Challenger (ALI598) isn't without faults, but I would still recommend it to anyone with most $ane,000 to spend on a 1080p gaming PC. I don't like the odd motherboard version with catchy BIOS updates, but the board itself is higher quality than what goes into a lot of even more expensive pre-builts. The RGB lighting doesn't quite all sync up together, but at least there'due south a lot of information technology shown off nicely through the glass side and front panels.
The CPU cooler malfunctioned subsequently a couple of days of use, but that'due south not the fault of ABS. Regardless, a better cooler is on the way, shipped express and consummate with thermal paste to get the replacement job done. Your customer support experience might differ, but I'one thousand happy with my encounter.
A lack of proprietary parts is always something to look out for, and indeed the Challenger is much closer to something you'd put together yourself. The included pouch contains the actress cables, zip ties, screws, and documentation that comes with this hardware when purchased separately, making it easier to upgrade in the future. Cable management is practiced, and save for an unplugged USB header, it looks similar the organisation was put together past someone who knows what they're doing.
Performance is in line with what's expected from this level of hardware, and the PC ran some heavy games with respectable frame rates at 1080p with in-game settings nigh maxed out. The Challenger won't hold you back from enjoying modern titles. And equally an added bonus, it ships with a mechanical keyboard, gaming mouse, and mousepad bundle (Hermes E1C). It'south not the absolute best gaming keyboard I've seen, but information technology'southward a large step upwardly over the usual junk that comes with pre-congenital systems. If you have almost $ane,000 to fire on a new PC, definitely consider the ABS Challenger.
Newegg's house brand
ABS Challenger (ALI598)
The ABS Challenger is built well, with good cabling and retail parts. Operation at 1080p is fantabulous, and the case has a ton of RGB lighting that can be seen through the glass side and front panels. Equally far as affordable gaming PCs go, this one is easy to recommend.
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Source: https://www.windowscentral.com/abs-challenger-ali598-review
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