ASUS today announced the Republic of Gamers (ROG) XG Station 2 external graphics enclosure. A successor to the pioneering XG Station by the company, which launched way back in 2007, this box has the connectivity to drive high-end graphics cards, and expand connectivity of your machine. The enclosure features a PCI-Express 3.0 x16 slot, and two 6+2 pin PCIe power connectors, with which it can supply the card with up to 500W of power. Its power supply can further provide up to 100W of power to recharge your notebook. The internal power supply meets 80 Plus Gold efficiency rating.
The ROG XG Station 2 connects to your notebook or desktop using Thunderbolt 3 (40 Gbps). It uses this bandwidth to drive not just the graphics card, but also a gigabit Ethernet controller, and a 4-port USB 3.0 hub. You can supplement the main Thunderbolt connection’s bandwidth with an additional USB 3.0 (5 Gbps) connection to your host machine. This isn’t necessary, but ASUS claims it will improve performance. The enclosure opens up at a vertical seam like an oyster, letting you easily install your graphics card. The walls of the enclosure are perforated, but a trio of 70 mm fans actively ventilate it. The enclosure also features RGB LED lighting, which can be managed using ASUS Aura software. ASUS plans to sell the ROG XG Station 2 from Q1-2017.
