by Hathor
What’s better than a monstrous PC gaming rig? Would be Two monstrous PC gaming rigs, generously packed into a single sturdy chassis for simultaneous gameplay and multimedia content generation.
Today, system integrator CLX Gaming and computer giant Intel announced an exciting collaboration through the towering Hathor (named after the Egyptian goddess), a fully integrated dual PC machine that aims to bring gaming, streaming and content creation together under a single aluminum device. roof for (supposedly) maximum performance and convenience.
The initial prototype apparently debuted at the Twitch Party and Creator Challenge Finale in October 2022, and now the Hathor is a fully realized product that can be purchased on the CLX website, starting at a measly $3,999. Get those wallets out, friends. It will be a bumpy ride.
Hathor is essentially a standalone gaming PC featuring two separate processors: an Intel Core i9-13900K, set to handle most gaming workloads, and a NUC 12 Extreme Compute Element, housing an Intel Core i9-12900 of 12th generation. PROCESSOR. The latter promises to autonomously take care of other demanding tasks such as streaming, editing or even running servers or home security.
What’s interesting is that both CPUs presumably share the same cooling, power, and GPU system for optimal convenience and efficiency. We’ll have to see how that fares in testing, as CLX recently sent in a decked out machine for me to review.
What’s great, though, is that you can outfit this particular dual system with something beefy like an RTX 4080 or even a 4090 for insane horsepower, so you can get 4K gaming at high frame rates while streaming to Twitch or YouTube on the NUC. included. Every streamer’s dream, I guess.
From the little I’ve played with the Hathor so far, I can definitely say that it seems like this is where game content creation is headed. The days of needing two separate PCs, one for running demanding games and one for locking down video and streaming at acceptable quality, may be over. The wild card for the Hathor will be thermals and performance. As in, the system can stay cool and pump out the necessary fidelity and frames while running independent CPUs and a monster graphics unit without, well, giving up.
Ambitious and promising are two words that come to mind, but I’m reserving the final verdict until I put the Hathor to the test. The real question is, how many Chrome tabs can I keep open while running Cyberpunk at max graphics settings in 4K? Stay tuned to find out.
