Intel Alder Lake has arrived and is about to transform the PC gaming landscape. System builders are eager to show off what they can do with Intel's new gaming powerhouse, especially when paired with Nvidia's high-end graphics cards. We have already seen new systems from Corsair and HP using the same Core i9 12900K that is in this machine, but Velocity Micro took a different approach than those two systems and put this Raptor Z55 through a 5.1GHz All-core overclocked (this is a P-core, with the E-core clocked at 4 GHz) and shipped pre-baked. As we will soon see, this is an amazing feat.

However, it is not cheap. The machine is priced at $4,999.

This is comparable to the $4,700 HP Omen 45L or the $4,999 Corsair One i300. These are definitely high-end systems, and system builders are still figuring out the best way to make money while showcasing Intel's Alder Lake capabilities. Don't be put off by their prices, as these builds can be configured to fit your budget and needs.

Another thing to keep in mind is the ongoing silicon crisis, which makes it difficult to assign a reasonable cost to systems that use high-end graphics cards. In other words, how much should the RTX 3080 Ti in this system cost?" While the release price is known, you absolutely cannot get the EVGA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti FTW3 Edition in this machine for $1,200 right now. In fact, you won't find it anywhere. It's basically hard to avoid inflation on today's graphics cards; DDR5 RAM has similar problems.

So forget about the cost for a moment and instead enjoy what Velocity Micro has created with this system. This is a machine for the future. It's overclockable right out of the box, cools wonderfully, has a surprisingly understated aesthetic, and is roomy enough for later expansion. Basically, it's a 4K monster that you can buy today and enjoy for years to come.

All specifications feature a number of recognizable brands, from the aforementioned EVGA graphics card to the 2TB Samsung 980 Pro PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSD. The case and CPU cooler are both Velocity Micro brands, the former a custom-built aluminum case with ample space for cooling and side windows to view all the expensive hardware.

The Raptor Z55 is equipped with two fans on the roof and exhaust on the rear as well as a triple fan radiator for the CPU cooler. This radiator is mounted on the side to draw air in through the grille on the right side of the case, but this side window does not extend far enough forward to really show this off.

Velocity Micro has obviously put a lot of time and effort into getting the acoustics of this machine right. The triple-fan CPU cooler means a quick return to normal temperatures.

In our tests, the 5.1 GHz overclock produces very impressive results, sometimes reaching 111°C. This is quite hot, but you honestly wouldn't know it from the sound of the rig running. It should be noted that the rig does not reach that temperature during gaming, with a maximum temperature of 100°C and an overall average temperature of around 60°C, which is quite low, but it is still surprising that it can get so hot.

If you haven't already figured it out, this is a very fast machine, and the overclocking of the CPU, coupled with the overclocked RTX 3080 Ti (boosted to 1,800 MHz versus 1,670 MHz for the standard RTX 3080 Ti), makes for a particularly powerful pair. If you play games on this machine, you'll have no problem cranking all settings up to the max at 4K.

Horizon Zero Dawn hit an impressive 91 fps at 4K and Metro Exodus with RTX ray tracing turned on hit an impressive 78 fps. Hitman 3's Dubai level hit an average frame rate of 127 fps. The Dubai level of Hitman 3 recorded an average frame rate of 127 fps. All three of these scores topped the benchmark chart, outperforming the HP Omen and Corsair One machines, which is impressive considering the former is powered by an RTX 3090, while the non-RTX-powered Metro Exodus was slower than the Corsair One.

If you're looking at more serious number crunching as well as gaming performance on this machine, the good news is that the combination of 32GB of DDR5-5200 and an overclocked 5.1GHz equates to an impressive throughput. Cinebench R20 broke the 10K barrier for the first time and the X264 benchmark also broke through with an impressive 81 fps.

However, the Hitman 3 CPU test lagged behind the other two machines, as did the Cinebench R20's single-core performance. This suggests that the all-core overclocking is not enough to prevent single-core performance from reaching the 5.2 GHz heights at which the chip itself manages its clock. Still, single-core performance is rarely required these days.

If there is a problem with this Raptor Z55, if anything, it is that it is a bit too modest. There is no doubt that it is a great machine, but that is mainly on the inside. And while that may be enough for many buyers, it lacks that "something special" that makes it really stand out from the ever-growing crowd of high-end machines.

Having recently reviewed the Corsair One i300, this compact PC stands out for me. So despite being inferior to this machine in many benchmarks (albeit by a few percent at most), I can recommend this system at this price. After all, looks do matter.

Not that this machine is lacking in performance. But when you're looking to spend $5,000 on a high-end PC, pure logic alone isn't always enough, and it's clear from the Raptor Z55 that Velocity Micro knows how to build a gaming PC.