Test Zotac GeForce RTX 4080 Super Trinity: A high-performance graphics card in a very compact package

The Zotac GeForce RTX 4080 Super Trinity is a high-performance, yet compact graphics card from Nvidia’s new “Super” range. This card stands out by virtue of its rather reduced size compared to its competitors, but its performance is not to be outdone. It’s true that graphics cards are getting bigger all the time, but Zotac is keeping a tight rein on its size. Let’s see what it’s like in the full Zotac 4080 Super Trinity review.

Design of the Zotac GeForce RTX 4080 Super Trinity

If graphics cards tend to look the same, Zotac’s cards have their own design, slim and not too aberrant in size. The card does, however, bear a striking resemblance to other references found on other models, such as the previous RTX 4080 Trinity, which I tested on its release. Here, although the card looks excessively like the other one, it’s well thought-out: not only is it a decent size, but it’s also not too heavy, which means it fits nicely in a computer, without necessarily needing an extra stand. However, Zotac does supply a stand to hold the card securely. On the other hand, it’s not always possible to use it. Yes, it’s handy, but it’s not the support supplied with MSI’s imposing RTX 4070 Ti Suprim X.So it’s strictly useless in my Corsair case, which I’ll talk about again in a dedicated test. On the graphics card, as always, you’ll find the brand’s logo on the front panel, which is clearly visible when the card is installed. An attractive “ZOTAC GAMING” logo, by the way, which is backlit with LEDs of decent power. That’s a good first point in terms of aesthetics, if you ignore the size of the card. With this, more to the right, the traditional “GEFORCE RTX” logo, present on all cards.We can also note the presence of the power connector, as well as a cable supplied with it. This is Nvidia’s new ATX 3.0 / PCIe 5 connector, although it requires three PCI cables. This extension cable is certainly very practical, but it is also aesthetically pleasing. Only one cable connects to the graphics card, but the other three are clearly visible underneath. There’s also no switch here to put the card in silent or performance mode. Surprisingly, on this RTX 4080 Super, you’re always in performance mode. So much the better, since that’s precisely what it’s designed to do, so if it’s surprising, it’s nevertheless good news, since the usefulness of such a switch seems to me to be highly debatable with the competition.On the top, you’ll find the backplate, with a few slogans and a Zotac logo, but nothing really exceptional. Perforations at the end of the backplate allow air to pass through properly. Indeed, where there’s no PCB, there’s no point in leaving the backplate closed – manufacturers seem to have understood this.Below this GeForce RTX 4080 Super Trinity are the three fans, each 90 mm in diameter. These effectively cool the GPU, which doesn’t seem to overheat according to my tests. Each fan is equipped with 11 blades, ensuring good cooling of the card. When you turn the card over, you’ll find the PCIe connector for direct connection to the motherboard, and on the other side, the 4080 Super’s output connectors. These are :

• 3 DisplayPort 1.4a connectors
• 1 HDMI 2.1 connector

This is all you need for a graphics card. The manufacturer could have added a USB-C DisplayPort, but this is not the choice made by the majority of manufacturers, so there’s nothing wrong with that.

Zotac GeForce RTX 4080 Super Trinity specifications

Zotac GeForce RTX 4080 Super Trinity performance

With its new graphics cards, Nvidia isn’t promising a revolution: the manufacturer has simply increased the number of CUDA cores on its cards, as well as the number of AI and Ray-Tracing cores. But Nvidia hasn’t stopped there: the cards’ base frequency has been increased very slightly, from 2205 MHz to 2295 MHz. Similarly, the boosted frequency has been increased from 2505 MHz to 2550 MHz.These evolutions are minor, but this is a Super 40 series, and by no means a disruptive new range, arriving on the market to smash everything in its path. In fact, we’ve also noted some price evolutions, with a lower price, which is a very good thing: the MSRP price has in fact been revised downwards compared to the classic 4080, which isn’t a bad thing. In the end, what can we expect with the “Super” version of the 40 series cards? Just a simple refresh, which doesn’t deliver significantly higher performance, but does bring a breath of fresh air to the range. Nvidia has never claimed to remake the world with this range of cards, so let’s see what happens. Here’s the configuration with which we tested this graphics card:

• Motherboard: MSI MPG Z790 Carbon Max WiFi
• Processor: Intel Core i9 13900K
• RAM: 2 x 16 GB Corsair Dominator Titanium
• Case: Corsair 6500X
• Power supply: Corsair RM1000x Shift

A pretty solid configuration, allowing you to run all your games without any worries, and not risk bottlenecking the card.

Less powerful than a previously tested RTX 4090, notably from Asus TUF, it still delivers very decent performance. However, on certain benchmarks, it sometimes performs significantly better than any of its competitors, and sometimes even better than the RTX 4090! This is quite astonishing, after all, it’s only a few scores on 3DMark – nothing is more revealing than several hours of gaming. But here, the benchmarks are already very encouraging, with good performance to show for it. What’s also interesting is the DLSS part, with very slightly improved performance here, but nothing too earth-shattering either. Depending on the card, however, there may be peaks or troughs in performance that I can’t explain. The Zotac RTX 4080 we tested previously struggled in 4K with DLSS 3 enabled, while this card performed exceptionally well on FireStrike Ultra, so not everything is the same. But we can see a little more in gaming, with really good performance on the three games tested, all with DLSS enabled of course.

Game performance

So, performance isn’t bad, but in the benchmarks, which were carried out identically to the rest and on several occasions, performance is excessively changeable. However, it’s never “bad”. The card always manages to offer something decent, the rendering is of high quality and we can only appreciate the performance, however, starting with Cyberpunk, we notice a few weaknesses.

It’s easy to play with, but performance sometimes lags behind other cards in different ranges. This is particularly true of games like Forza Horizon 5, where I was able to repeat the benchmarks several times in a row, in two very similar configurations. But Zotac’s card pays for its compact size, to the detriment of its performance. Indeed, when compared to Asus ROG’s Strix model, performance can sometimes be quite different, but it’s all a question of cooling. In any case, the Zotac GeForce RTX 4080 Super Trinity remains a good model, which has the advantage of costing less than the competitor’s model mentioned above. Admittedly, the cooling isn’t as good, but the card remains much more compact. It also has the advantage of fitting into more cases, which is important depending on your configuration choices.

Cyberpunk 2077

Not every game is an absolute value in terms of performance. Here, on Cyberpunk, a game that consumes both GPU and CPU resources, performance is sometimes better, sometimes worse, than on Asus’ competitor. However, the Zotac GeForce RTX 4080 Super Trinity holds its own, delivering almost identical, if not generally better, performance, which is a very good thing – points gained for this card with its compact look.

F2 2022

On F1 2022, performance is adequate for gaming in all cases, but is not on a par with the aforementioned competitor. In any case, the card delivers very good performance for gaming, whatever the situation, allowing you to play with a 4K 144 Hz screen without any worries and enjoy the game to the full. If you want even more fluidity, a 1440p slab will do the trick.

Shadow of the Tomb Raider

On this game, the Zotac GeForce RTX 4080 Super is right in the middle of what you’d expect from such a card. If we compare it again with the Asus ROG competitor, performance is similar, or even sometimes to the advantage of the Zotac card. It delivers exceptional performance, especially in Full HD, with frame rates that are sometimes aberrant, over 700 fps at maximum. Which doesn’t help much in itself, but only serves to justify the GPU’s high performance.

Assassin’s Creed Mirage

Zotac’s model has a few weaknesses when it comes to more demanding games. Indeed, while performance is good, as soon as the card is heavily used and starts to heat up, its performance slows down. However, it’s not bad: we can reach a maximum of 178 fps in 4K Ultra HD, which is still very decent.

Forza Horizon 5

On Forza Horizon 5, the difference in performance between Zotac’s RTX 4080 Super and the Asus ROG is clearly evident. Performance is still good enough to play with exemplary fluidity, but it’s not up to the level of the well-cooled competitor. It’s a shame, but there’s nothing dramatic about it, as the quality of the game remains ideal.

Alan Wake II

On Alan Wake II, with Path Tracing enabled, performance is not exceptional with this GPU, as the game in question is very resource-hungry. On average, therefore, we find ourselves at less than 100 fps in 4K Ultra HD. However, it’s still perfectly playable, and with the type of game that Alan Walk II is, between 100 and 144 fps, it’s not always easy to feel the difference.

Temperatures and power consumption

In view of the card’s compact size – I was very surprised myself when I took it out of the box – it’s advisable to have a well-cooled PC. Indeed, with three front fans, it’s no luxury. For good reason, the Zotac GeForce RTX 4080 Super tends to heat up quickly. Having done a heat-up test with OCCT, in 2 minutes, for 100% use, it was stabilized at around 80°C. This is important, so making a card with a compact size is all very well, but making a card that cools efficiently seems to be a better option. As for power consumption, Zotac recommends a 750 watt power supply with this RTX 4080 Super Trinity. The card itself can consume up to 320 watts, which is what OCCT actually displays.However, the card tends to lower its frequency and power consumption at times, so as not to overheat. There are therefore a few drops in frequency, but nothing dramatic either.

Zotac GeForce RTX 4080 Super Trinity connectivity

The Zotac GeForce RTX 4080 Super Trinity connects to the motherboard via a PCIe 4 or 5 slot, or an earlier version if you have an older card. I wouldn’t recommend this, however, as performance will be degraded, with a chipset that can’t keep up.On the power supply side, it features the traditional 600W PCIe 5 / ATX 3.0 connector launched by Nvidia, allowing you to connect it either with this connector and a direct cable, supplied with your power supply, or with three PCI cables, linked to a power strip that combines everything in one on arrival. For my part, I opted for the first option, which is more discreet inside the case.In terms of outputs, the RTX 4080 Super Trinity offers 3 DisplayPort 1.4a connectors, which can support an output of up to 7680 x 4320 at 60 Hz, in other words, 8K. But given the number of 8K panels on the market and the performance of current 8K cards, I can only recommend a 4K panel. Finally, there’s an HDMI 2.1 connector, which flanges the image in 4K at 120 fps on the other hand, but also offers 8K at 60 Hz in HDR.

Zotac GeForce RTX 4080 Super Trinity : Reviews

The Zotac GeForce RTX 4080 Super Trinity pays for its compact size, sometimes to the detriment of its performance. Nothing dramatic though, this card is still very good for playing any game up to 4K Ultra HD.Its compactness is all the more appreciable, as is its clearly visible RGB touch on the card’s edge. The stand supplied with the card is interesting, and the multi-socket is always there for users who don’t have a power supply with a 600W ATX 3.0 connector.