Zotac ZBOX MAGNUS EN980 SFF PC Review - An Innovative VR-Ready Gaming Powerhouse
by Ganesh T S on August 25, 2016 8:00 AM ESTGaming Benchmarks
The gaming credentials of the GTX 980 are quite impressive. It is a bonafide high-end desktop GPU in the NVIDIA Maxwell series (GM204). The version in the MAGNUS EN980 is not crippled in any way despite the size of the unit. The GPU should easily be able to support even 4K gaming.
For the purpose of our mini-PC benchmarking, we chose four different games (Sleeping Dogs, Tomb Raider, Bioshock Infinite and DiRT Showdown) at three different quality levels. Note that the main aim here is not to show that the GTX 980 can play the latest and greatest games (which it can do). Rather, it is to compare against other gaming-focused mini-PCs that we have evaluated before.
Sleeping Dogs
Tomb Raider
Bioshock Infinite
DiRT Showdown
The Talos Principle
GRID Autosport
The graphs speak for themselves. The MAGNUS EN980 blows every other gaming mini-PC to smithereens. Tt does have a slightly bigger footprint and much higher power budget compared to the rest of the systems in the above graphs. But, that shouldn't take away any sheen from the immense gaming prowess that can now be obtained in a SFF machine.
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Oxford Guy - Saturday, August 27, 2016 - link
"As for 70 dB - note that it is at maximum stress, and with the microphone placed right on top of the unit. It is unlikely that the unit will be subject to that much load, and even if it is, it is probably some intensive game or the other - the audio from those titles will easily drown out the fan / pump noise.It is also important to stress that it is a rough estimate - the readings were not carried out in a soundproof room and no special care was taken during the recording of the graph. I can say subjectively that is is much more silent compared to any other non-watercooled desktop PC I have seen or built. I encourage you to check it out in person if you can (or, you can pitch this to the SPCR guys and they will provide you a more reliable verdict that can be the final word - after all, that is their speciality)."
So you're saying the load noise reading that we need to see, the usual one, just isn't in the article. Instead, we were given an academic reading that doesn't really tell us anything useful?
mr_tawan - Friday, August 26, 2016 - link
I think I saw some youtuber (Linus, if I'm not mistaken) dissemble this system.The_Assimilator - Friday, August 26, 2016 - link
Thanks, it's https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Qu7qckqulY - much more informative.fanofanand - Thursday, August 25, 2016 - link
$1845 for last year's tech. *Yawn*milkod2001 - Friday, August 26, 2016 - link
Zotac caters for IT noobs with zero clue what is inside. Plenty out there so it might sell quite well. The rest can build 4K ready PC monster for that price.Wineohe - Friday, August 26, 2016 - link
Yes the effort put forward for this review should have been saved for a Pascal variant.kyuu - Friday, August 26, 2016 - link
Way too expensive given the components and it's barely smaller than a mITX case. But I guess someone must be buying these overpriced boutique systems since they keep making them.AnnonymousCoward - Saturday, August 27, 2016 - link
My mid-tower is significantly quieter, cooler, faster, cheaper, and has 1TB SSD. (well duh, but it's worth saying)Btw Page 1 could have used a picture with a known object like a soccer ball to show relative size.
Calista - Sunday, August 28, 2016 - link
What's the point in creating a tiny box if it demands a huge external power brick?Namisecond - Monday, August 29, 2016 - link
Would LOVE to see Anandtech review and compare these machines with the most recent iteration of the Alienware Alpha.