News PREBUILT: Zotac Launches 8.3L Magnus One Microtower

Zotac has launched a new line of microtower style PCs called the Magnus One. It’s an 8.3L sandwich style unit with an integrated 500W power supply. It supports up to an Intel 10700 non-k, RTX 3070, and DDR4-2933. The GPU appears to be a separate card, and there are 2 top mounted exhaust fans.



Other relevant stats include 2X M2 slots, and one 2.5 inch drive bay. Like other Z-boxes it has a front IO with card reader, and the Magnus One has 2.5Gbps. The GPU is upgradable so long as it’s a dual slot card, no

B&H Photos is currently has the highest end model at $1899 and the Zotac store lists it at $1999 but includes 16GB ram and a 1TB SSD.

ZOTAC - Mini PCs and GeForce RTX Gaming Graphics Cards | ZOTAC

ZOTAC - The original creators, pioneers, and manufacturer of Mini PCs and innovators of the fastest NVIDIA GeForce RTX Gaming Graphics Cards

www.zotac.com

Personal Thoughts: Curse you Zotac... just when I thought I was out, you pull me back in.

I have an EN1070. I like Zotac. I LOVE the look of this little machine. It gives me CCD MI-6 vibes if it was merged with a Silverstone FT-02, which are two of my favorite cases. The ram is a bit slow, but this is an Intel rig which is more forgiving to that. The cooling setup looks perfect. It’s like they’ve been spying on our forum. The case design looks awesome. It uses desktop class parts though I doubt the 10700 will get full boost. I really want this though.

 

[Arboreal]

That looks lovely, but way out of my budget by the look of it

 

[Revenant]

That looks lovely, but way out of my budget by the look of it

Zotac has a habit of that.

 

[dmitrybask]

Nice attempt to compete new Extreme NUC format. I hope someday Zotac will launch a cheap barebone for enthusiasts like Asrock A/X300.

 

[Revenant]

Nice attempt to compete new Extreme NUC format. I hope someday Zotac will launch a cheap barebone for enthusiasts like Asrock A/X300.

I would like to see that myself. I also wish I could get one with a Ryzen mobile CPU instead. The performance and power usage are second to none. Barring that, a standard Ryzen 5600X seems about perfect.

 

[LukeD]

I managed get my hands on the Magnus One and I must say im very impressed by the internals ... by most part.
The only major offender I can really spot is the fan, which is obnoxiously loud, but it does perform better under peak loads than a Noctua NH-L9i ... which blows my mind. It is noisy and it rattles a bit so I replaced it with a NH-L9i.

Also the motherboard doesn't support XMP for memory. So you need to get JDEC spec ram.

I'm also quietly hoping that due to the interchangeable nature of the system board that they come up with an AM4 version. A 5600x would be perfect for this setup. 10700 is too power hungry at peak (over 220w).
I've also ordered an 11400 CPU to see if it supports 11th gen CPUs.
If anyone is looking at buying a gaming PC I would highly recommend this. If you try to configure something from Dell along these lines it will be $100 more.

 

[Revenant]

I managed get my hands on the Magnus One and I must say im very impressed by the internals ... by most part.
The only major offender I can really spot is the fan, which is obnoxiously loud, but it does perform better under peak loads than a Noctua NH-L9i ... which blows my minds. It is noisy and it rattles a bit so I replaced it with a NH-L9i.

Also the motherboard doesn't support XMP for memory. So you need to get JDEC spec ram.

I'm also quietly hoping that due to the interchangeable nature of the system board that they come up with an AM4 version. A 5600x would be perfect for this setup. 10700 is too power hungry at peak (over 220w).
I've also ordered an 11400 CPU to see if it supports 11th gen CPUs.
If anyone is looking at buying a gaming PC I would highly recommend this. If you try to configure something from Dell along these lines it will be $100 more.

LukeD, you're my hero.

I've been very suspect of that cooler as it seems good for MAYBE 65 watts. Clearly a 10700 is too much. How much clearance is there between the CPU cooler and the side of the case? Do you think you might be able to mount something like an L65 or L12 or maybe the Alphenfone? How was the actual install of the Noctua?

I too am hoping for an AMD version. 5600X would be the natural choice for it, though I think it could handle the 5800X. I honestly wish I could drop a Zen 3 APU in it as those seem to run a bit cooler.

Edit: After getting your pics to load I can clearly see this system is using the NUC 9 Pro style....wow....Zotac might have OEMed the Nuc 9 now that I look at the two together. The mainboard isn't an Intel Compute Element, but the basic design is pretty spot on. Even the GPU length.

 

[LukeD]

I think there's about 3-4 mm of additional clearance between the side panel and cooler.
The stock cooler is 37mm, just like the Noctua. So you might be able to get away with a 40mm cooler at the most.
Install of the Noctua NH-L9i went perfectly smooth. No obstructions or modifications required. Just a straight swap.
I actually ordered a thin 92 -> 120mm adapter as I'm planning on mounting the Noctua 15mm x 120mm fan on the NH-L9i heatsink. I think that will yield the best results for now. Link to adapter
Im also planning on swapping out the 10700 with 11400 as I dont need that many cores and the 11400 peaks at 125w instead of 220w

 

[Revenant]

I think there's about 3-4 mm of additional clearance between the side panel and cooler.
The stock cooler is 37mm, just like the Noctua. So you might be able to get away with a 40mm cooler at the most.
Install of the Noctua NH-L9i went perfectly smooth. No obstructions or modifications required. Just a straight swap.
I actually ordered a thin 92 -> 120mm adapter as I'm planning on mounting the Noctua 15mm x 120mm fan on the NH-L9i heatsink. I think that will yield the best results for now. Link to adapter
Im also planning on swapping out the 10700 with 11400 as I dont need that many cores and the 11400 peaks at 125w instead of 220w

I did not know that adapter existed, and now I must buy one.

How loud is the PSU under load?

 

[LukeD]

How loud is the PSU under load?

I haven't tested It extensively as I've just been doing CPU stress tests up until now, but since its 500W platinum it should stay fairly quiet. So far I haven't heard the fan of the PSU turn on at all.

 

[Revenant]

I haven't tested It extensively as I've just been doing CPU stress tests up until now, but since its 500W platinum it should stay fairly quiet. So far I haven't heard the fan of the PSU turn on at all.

Thanks for the info. Keep us updated, and congrats!

PS: I'm typing this on my Zotac EN1070 that I upgraded from a 6400T to a 6700T.

 

[LukeD]

PS: I'm typing this on my Zotac EN1070 that I upgraded from a 6400T to a 6700T.

Awesome ! I wish the Magnus One supported 9th gen CPUs. They were so much more efficient than 10th and 11th gen.
I've got a retail 9900T which would be ideal in this box.

 

[LukeD]

@Revenant Here are a few tests I ran on the setup with various CPUs and coolers. Im still waiting on the 11400 which should arrive next week. It will be interesting to see if there is a performance boost without much added noise + power, especially that the 10600 runs memory at 2666, 10700 at 2933 and the 11400 at 3200.
The Magnus One doesn't support XMP so your memory needs to be JEDEC compliant to run at best speeds, which is a shame.
I'm hoping the 11400 will work and it will be the best performer. In the meantime I would highly suggest switching to a 65W TDP CPU like the 10600 (non-K) and a Noctua Cooler is a MUST !
Note the Max dBA! It's SHOCKING how bad the stock cooler is ! its as loud as a jet engine, makes the system completely unusable imho.

 

[REVOCCASES]

@Revenant Here are a few tests I ran on the setup with various CPUs and coolers. Im still waiting on the 11400 which should arrive next week. It will be interesting to see if there is a performance boost without much added noise + power, especially that the 10600 runs memory at 2666, 10700 at 2933 and the 11400 at 3200.
The Magnus One doesn't support XMP so your memory needs to be JEDEC compliant to run at best speeds, which is a shame.
I'm hoping the 11400 will work and it will be the best performer. In the meantime I would highly suggest switching to a 65W TDP CPU like the 10600 (non-K) and a Noctua Cooler is a MUST !
Note the Max dBA! It's SHOCKING how bad the stock cooler is ! its as loud as a jet engine, makes the system completely unusable imho.

Did you manage to get the 11400 running?

I found an pretty good offer for the i3-10100/RTX3060 version and considering an CPU upgrade in the future.

 

[LukeD]

Did you manage to get the 11400 running?

I found an pretty good offer for the i3-10100/RTX3060 version and considering an CPU upgrade in the future.

No. I tried editing the bios but couldn't get an 11th gen to boot.
The best CPU you can get for the Magnus is 10600 (non-K) version. It will be the best balance of performance / cooling (noise)

 

[REVOCCASES]

No. I tried editing the bios but couldn't get an 11th gen to boot.
The best CPU you can get for the Magnus is 10600 (non-K) version. It will be the best balance of performance / cooling (noise)

That's good to know. Thank you for trying it, would have been great if that had worked...

 

[Revenant]

So Zotac bought…ahem…won the “Red Dot Award” for the Magnus One. This is a “prestigious” award that requires winners to purchase a package ranging from $3,000 to $6,000 within one week of winning. The awards fall into many categories of testing, none of which mention benchmarks, thermals, noise, and cooler quality. However, this was clearly mentioned:

You have the option of booking a Red Dot Network membership in addition to the Winner Package. Membership costs 200 euros per annum. Winners of the Red Dot Award: Product Design 2021 receive direct access to the communication platform and do not have to apply for it in advance.

*The Winner Package costs vary depending on the size of your product and the exhibition space required. The exhibition team may decide to present large products as a film or a poster as appropriate.

 

[codinghorror]

Check out my Zotac Magnus One mods -- this turns it into a surprisingly quiet machine!

Zotac Magnus One mods

I'm a huge fan of the Magnus One.. until I get my hands on Beast Canyon, I think it's the NUC to beat in terms of power to size ratio. I love Phantom Canyon but the RTX 2060 is a tad too underpowered for 4k these days, and that power brick.. sheesh. Excellent review at AnandTech...

smallformfactor.net

Also I had to update the BIOS and the GPU BIOS to get the "Resizable BAR" optimization and HDMI output compatibility.. I tried to hook this machine up to my OLED TV via HDMI and I could not get it to work at all (!) until I updated both BIOS and GPU BIOS.

 

[Eugen]

Hello!

Will anyone be able to confirm the proper functionality of the "T" series processors (10500T and 10700T) on Zotac Magnus One (ECM53060C)?