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MSI Vortex cylindrical gaming mini tower is now available

by Mark Tyson on 17 March 2016, 09:31

Tags: MSI

Quick Link: HEXUS.net/qaczhe

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MSI has started to ship the Vortex miniature tower PC. HEXUS first saw this Apple Mac Pro inspired, 10.5-inch tall, 6.5 litre, cylindrical PC back at CES 2016 in January. Despite its diminutive stature, the MSI Vortex packs in an unlocked Intel Core i7 6700K processor, up to 64GB of DDR4 memory, SSDs in Super RAID 4, and up to dual Nvidia GeForce GTX 980 GPUs in SLI. Keeping it all cool is the MSI 360° Silent Storm Cooling technology solution.

Big claims abound with MSI's release of this gaming focussed tower PC. MSI various claims that its Vortex "redefines compact gaming desktops," is designed to be "minimal in footprint but maximum in performance," and "shatters the misconception that bigger systems deliver more power and performance". As you have read in the introductory paragraph MSI does indeed fit in an excellent selection of performance components in its 6.5l capacity chassis.

A big part of what makes the Vortex possible is its cooling solution. The MSI 360° Silent Storm cooling tech creates a vortex-shaped wind path by capturing heat from the bottom of the unit and circulating it upwards. MSI claims the cooler is both efficient and quiet. Another custom component that enables the MSI design is the built-in 450W 80 plus Gold power supply.

Regular HEXUS readers will already have a good idea of the practical capabilities of this system and MSI suggests it would be perfect for both 4K and VR applications, for bedroom gaming computer use, or as an entertainment station in the living room. Other features that could help win your hearts and minds include; Killer DoubleShot X3 connectivity, Nahimic Military X Gaming audio technology, Thunderbolt 3 connectivity, plus lighting and system control via the MSI Dragon Centre Dashboard and App. The support for up to six monitors gives the system added flexibility. Furthermore, comprehensive upgradeability options, as offered by the Vortex system, could be important in years ahead.

The MSI Vortex is available starting at $2,199.99.



HEXUS Forums :: 11 Comments

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Just a minute… are those 980m chips.. ie the mobile version, not the real 980? Massively incongruous to say a desktop computer has dual gtx 980 in SLI if so.
kalniel
Just a minute… are those 980m chips.. ie the mobile version, not the real 980? Massively incongruous to say a desktop computer has dual gtx 980 in SLI if so.

I guess the
built-in 450W 80 plus Gold power supply
confirms it. NVidia's specs call for a 500W PSU if a single desktop GTX980 is used.
Let's not forget that nvidia have now started doing a mobile oriented version of the GTX 980: e.g. http://hexus.net/tech/reviews/laptop/91052-msi-gt80s-6qf-titan-sli/

Given that's also an MSI machine, I see no reason to think that they're not using the same GPUs across both devices, so the Vortex probably uses the mobile SKU of the full-fat GTX 980….
I presume it's this thing?
http://hexus.net/tech/news/graphics/86639-nvidia-releases-geforce-gtx-980-gaming-laptops/

It might be easier to cool two of these than a single desktop version in an enclosure like that
From Hexus, back in September:

“Nvidia reckons the new GTX 980 is approximately 35 per cent faster than the GTX 980M that it replaces at the top of the mobile stack. Performance is practically analogous with the desktop part, as you would expect, though it does fall off a few per cent if the supporting Intel CPU cannot muster the same throughput as an overclocked K-series processor on the desktop.”

http://hexus.net/tech/news/graphics/86639-nvidia-releases-geforce-gtx-980-gaming-laptops/