The CyberPowerPC Gamer Supreme SLC8480A3 is a midrange pre-built gaming PC that packs grunt and style in equal measure. This machine is attractive, powerful, and one of the best gaming PCs you can buy right now for playing games from 1080p to 1440p.
It’s not a great choice if you’re looking for a compact machine that you can use at the office, and if you need to play games at 4K, CyberPowerPC offers other excellent alternatives. The SLC8480A3 also isn’t affordable, but realistically, we never expected a gaming machine packed with an AMD Ryzen 7 CPU, RTX 4070 Ti Super (16GB), 32GB DDR5 RAM, and 2TB PCIe Gen4 SSD to run anything under two grand. Competitors with similar specs including the Alienware Aurora R15 cost much more.
Beyond pricing, the Gamer Supreme SLC8480A3 sports a stylish case that’s easy to open if you ever want to, say, throw in some extra RAM sticks or swap out the GPU. Still, it’s hard to imagine why you might want to, considering that at the time of this review, there’s a GPU shortage and the Nvidia RTX 4070 Ti Super in our review unit sells at mark-ups of up to $1,000 in some places.
So, if you opt to upgrade your GPU – to maybe an RTX 4080 or RTX 4090, you might spend almost more than half the cost of the desktop itself. That means that the prospect of buying the SLC8480A3 purely to get your hands on an RTX 4070 Ti Super makes lots of sense right now.
In this review, we’ll look at the strengths and weaknesses of the Supreme SLC8480A3, and show you why it’s got more going for it more than just a stylish case and a beefy graphics card.
Design and Features
Our CyberPowerPC Gamer Supreme review unit comes with the all-new Phanteks NV5 case that combines a large glass window at the front and side with decent airflow, which is a neat trick you can’t find elsewhere. Part of the explanation is that this modern case skimps on optical drive mounts and the front IO panel has moved to the roof. The most significant design choice is the move to the fresh air intake on the right-hand side of the case, the same approach we’ve seen in the Corsair, Lian Li, and Phanteks NV7 cases.
The sleek aesthetic is partly due to the almost matte-black case. But, a larger part of the charm is the way CyberPowerPC managed to give the case some charm with RGB lights on the fans and intricate cable work than you’d find on many pre-built gaming machines. On top of that, the RGB comes through in a few ways so that you get a nice light show instead of just one or two small lighting zones.
The glass side and front panels allow for the lighting from the back and front cooling fans as well as the name on the graphics card to be easily seen. And, of course, the side panel lets you marvel and see the internals, which are cleanly installed.
Speaking of ventilation on this machine, I don’t think there are any issues with the thermals or even potential overheating. Along with the three front cooling fans, there are two more mounted on the roof, not forgetting the one at the back. Even pushing this computer hard doesn’t create a scene regarding internal temperatures.
When it comes to ports, you have plenty on hand, and I feel the selection is quite ideal. The top panel holds two USB 3.1 ports, a USB Type-C port, as well as a headphone and mic jack. Around the back, you have more ports; three USB 3.1 ports, four USB 2.0, 7.1 audio channels, and a LAN port, in addition to built-in Wi-Fi 5. On the RTX 4070 Ti graphics card, there is an HDMI port and two DisplayPorts for multi-monitor setups.
Also bundled into the package is a gaming mouse and keyboard combo, meaning you can run your games straight out of the box. A monitor isn’t included, you’ll have to buy it separately, something like Koorui 27E3Q is a recommended choice which, apart from being affordable, boasts a 2560 x 1440 resolution, 1ms response time, and a maximum 170Hz refresh rate.
Gaming and Graphics Performance
Our Gamer Supreme SLC8480A3 review unit has an AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D processor, 16GB Nvidia RTX 4070 Ti Super graphics card, 32GB of RAM, and a 2TB SSD. It’s well-equipped for mainstream gaming and content creation.
This Gamer Supreme’s competition includes the MSI Aegis RS, which we reviewed with a Core i7-13700KF, and the Alienware Aurora R15 with a Core i9-13900F. Both have an RTX 4070 and RTX 4070 Ti, respectively, but come with the same 32GB RAM as our review unit.
It handles titles like Cyberpunk 2077 and Battlefield 2042 fluently, with the former hitting over 170 fps on high settings. However, it gets a little shaky for Cyberpunk 2077 when you kick up the resolution to 4K, dropping the framerate to 43 fps
On Assassin’s Creed Mirage, the frame rate drops when played at 4K as well but the framerate is still an excellent 84 on average. This tracks with the focus of the SLC8480A3 being on 1080p and 1440p gaming, so having it run at 4K resolution isn’t ideal condition.
On Shadow of the Tomb Raider (highest preset), the SLC8480A3 achieves 205 fps at 1440p and 109 fps at 4K. That’s less than the RTX 4090-toting Alienware Aurora R15 and MSI Infinite RS 13NUI-421US. Still, the CyberPowerPC Gamer shows off strong generational improvements over last year’s Gamer Supreme which we’ve reviewed with an RTC 3070 Ti graphics card.
Productivity Performance
Beyond gaming, the Gamer Supreme SLC8480A3 is an excellent choice as a productivity workhorse, provided you’re not bringing it over to the office. The AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D is one of the fastest gaming chips available and easily shines well beyond more expensive competitors from both Intel and AMD’s own lineup.
In as much as it costs much less than its competitors, it’s still 12% in gaming and productivity than Intel’s flagship Core i9-13900K. The Ryzen 7 7800X3D comes with the newer Zen 4 architecture and a much higher 5.0 GHz peak boost, helping to assure a steadier blend of performance in productivity workloads. To that, it adds 32GB RAM and 2TB SSD storage, which is almost double the storage you’d find on most midrange gaming machines.
That’s a real grunt to run most of your productivity tasks without slowing down. If possible, you can pair it with a high-refresh monitor like the Samsung Odyssey G55A (1ms, 165Hz) and you’ve got yourself a powerful combination for gaming and productivity tasks. If you’re a professional creative or artist, a higher-end configuration is better. However, for the hobbyist who wants to game and stream, edit a few YouTube videos, or dive into 3D modeling, this midrange Gamer Supreme configuration is a perfect choice.
CyberPowerPC SLC8480A3 Review: Verdict
In a lot of ways, I think the CyberPowerPC Gamer Supreme SLC8480A3 is the perfect gaming PC for someone looking to run modern titles at 1080p or 1440p, finish up media creation tasks, and not spend lots of money.
You can get one like our review unit for less than two grand, and you’ll still enjoy the brawn of an RTX 4070 Ti Super in a sleek, midsize case that lights up and looks great on a desk.
The case itself is easy to open when you’re ready to do a few upgrades, but even if you never upgrade it, this PC has enough power to play the latest games at good framerates for years to come. Plus, it arrives well-packaged with a serviceable mouse and keyboard.
But if you’re looking for more power out of your prebuilt gaming PC, you’ll likely be better off saving up a bit more and spending on slightly pricier competition like the Alienware Aurora desktops. That way lies blissful 4K PC gaming greatness.
Recommended Configuration
Alienware Aurora R15 Gaming Desktop - AMD Ryzen 9 7900X, 32GB DDR5 RAM, 1TB SSD + 2TB HDD, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 16GB GDDR6X, Dell Service Included, Windows 11 Home - Black
$2,087.94 in stock
The Review
CyberPowerPC Gamer Supreme SLC8480A3
The CyberPowerPC Gamer Supreme SLC8480A3 is a stellar gaming PC that packs the most powerful components you can afford in an attractive, easy-to-open chassis that boasts spectacular RGB lighting.
PROS
- Great 1440p performance
- Stylish design looks good on a desk
- Quiet, even while gaming
CONS
- Wi-Fi 5, not Wi-Fi 6E
Review Breakdown
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MSN SCORE
