Secretlab Magnus Pro Review | PCMag

Secretlab has consistently impressed us with its gaming chairs, and now it proves to be just as capable of making desks. The Magnus Pro is Secretlab’s sit-to-stand gaming desk, and it easily stands alongside Herman Miller’s motorized standing desks in terms of feel and build quality. It also stands alongside them in price, starting at $799. The Magnus Pro has the edge on design thanks to excellent cable management features including a power-routing pillar that eliminates wires running from the underside of the desk, a hinge-covered cable tray that runs the length of the desk, and a magnet-friendly metal desktop that works with an ecosystem of compatible accessories for desktop organization. It not only lets you work and play while sitting or standing, it can also help keep your space clear of dangling and tangled wires, earning it our Editors’ Choice award.

Design: Sturdy and Functional

Secretlabs offers the Magnus Pro in two sizes. The $799 base model measures 59.1 by 27.6 inches (LW) while the $949 XL version measures 70.0 by 31.5 inches. The desktop height can be adjusted as low as 25.6 inches and as high as 49.2 inches, a range that should cover the needs of most people.

The desk is a wide, flat slab of metal mounted on two sturdy motorized columns that sit on long, bar-shaped feet for stability. It’s balanced very well with only two supports, without a hint of wobble. It looks like a plain table, with a long slot in the back between the edge of the desk and the cover of the cable tray.

The Magnus Pro’s frame is steel, while the desk surface is MDF with bamboo laminate and a steel wrap on top of it. MDF generally isn’t as sturdy or durable as solid wood (which is much more expensive), but the bamboo and steel coverings improve the desktop considerably. The black steel wraps around the edges of the desk, protecting the edges and preventing the most likely problem that can arise from laminated MDF: peeling and cracking. Every surface you interact with is covered in steel, with only the underside of the desk exposing the laminate. Even then, the laminate seems sturdy (and unlikely to be subjected to the same sort of wear and tear the desktop will be).

The cable tray is a convenient trough mounted behind the desk, just under the back edge. It measures seven inches deep and runs almost the entire length of the desk, with square cutouts facing down on either end, and its own power outlet. A gap between the hinged cover and the desk lets you run any cables from the tray to the surface, or route cables between devices on the desk down and through the tray. 

(Credit: Will Greenwald)

The cutouts on the ends of the tray are useful if you need to run anything out of the desk, but they aren’t necessary for power. Instead, the desk’s left motorized pillar also serves as a power pass-through to an outlet in the cable tray. All you have to do is pop a power strip into the tray itself and you can power everything on your desk with a single cable running from the back of the left pillar. This is an incredibly helpful feature not seen on most other sit-stand desks, which usually require a power cable of some form running from the wall directly to the control box on the underside of the desk.

A control panel for adjusting height is built into the right side of the front edge. It’s a glossy black strip with a standby switch, a three-digit display, and backlit buttons. Green up and red down arrows directly adjust the desk’s height, three numbered buttons switch between presets, and an S button lets you assign the current height to any of the preset buttons. The display shows the desk’s current height in centimeters to the first decimal point, and it’s adjustable to within two millimeters. 

(Credit: Will Greenwald)

The buttons are very sensitive and I found my arm accidentally activating them when I worked near the right side of the desk, but this problem was easily solved by simply flipping the standby switch to the off position. This disables the control panel, which you probably don’t need when working normally. Flipping the switch back to press any of the buttons only takes a second, so it isn’t an inconvenience.

An Entire Accessory Ecosystem

You can use the Magnus Pro on its own, but Secretlab offers a whole ecosystem of accessories to consider. Many of these accessories take advantage of the desk’s metal top by using magnets to stay securely in place. It starts with a faux leather magnetic mat that completely covers the desktop and lets you personalize the look with a few colors (black with red stitching, black with black stitching, cream with brown stitching, or pink) or licensed designs like Cloud9 or the Joker. The black-and-red mat comes with the Magnus Pro for free, or you can opt for a different design for $79 to $99 (and often on sale for $19 to $49). Properly laying out the mat across the desk for the first time without any overhang or misalignment is tricky due to the strong magnets, but once in place, it feels very secure.

Single monitor arm with cable routing (sold separately for $149) (Credit: Will Greenwald)

To get the most out of the desk space, you can mount your monitors or even place your laptop on accessory arms. Secretlab offers single ($149), double ($249), and heavyweight ($349) monitor arms that clamp onto the back edge of the desk. The standard monitor arms support screens up to 34 inches and 17.6 pounds, and you can attach a $49 laptop mount on one for a convenient place to put your laptop. The arms are adjustable and can manually rotate, pivot, and change their height, and include conduits for running cables through them. A 32.4-by-11.6-inch desk riser that clamps to the back of the desk and can be used with the monitor arms is available for $99. The clamps on these accessories are steady but not bulky, and provide enough clearance for the cable tray’s hinged cover to open and close without getting in the way.

Secretlab offers magnetic organization accessories for additional cable management as well. Square cable anchors ($25 for three) and longer rectangular cable sheaths ($35 for two) securely attach to the desktop with magnets, letting you run any wires from the built-in tray to your keyboard, mouse, phone, or anything else you need to keep plugged in on your desk. If you have a lot of wires to organize, you can get a $49 bundle with three anchors, two sheaths, and 10 Velcro ties, or a $74 bundle with nine anchors, two sheaths, and 20 Velcro ties.

Desktop with riser ($99), magnetic anchors ($25 for three), and magnetic sheath ($35 for two) (Credit: Will Greenwald)

Power is handled by the Magnus Pro’s left pillar, but if you use a wired Ethernet connection you’ll have to either run the cable directly up through the cutout on the tray or get the $49 magnetic Ethernet cable extender. It’s a telescoping attachment that sticks to the left pillar right above the power cable connector, running up to neatly come out into the cable tray without any dangling wires.

If you want a full gaming experience with RGB lighting, you can get the Nanoleaf-powered $79 MagRGB light strip. It magnetically attaches to the back edge of the desk to shine programmable colored lighting into the tray for a pleasant ambient effect that appears to be built right into the desk. However, the light strip isn’t nearly as secure as the other magnetic accessories and is prone to falling if it isn’t completely flat with all of the magnets in contact with the metal. This means you can’t easily use it with the monitor arms or the desk riser. You can still attach the strip to the back of the cable tray’s hinged cover, but this will make the light shine on the wall behind the desk instead of the as-designed accent lighting on the desktop itself.

Other accessories include a desktop PC mount for $89 that attaches to either pillar and supports towers 14 to 21.5 inches tall and up to 55 pounds, a headphone hanger for $29 that snaps onto the underside of the desk with a magnet and provides a wide hook to hang your headphones, and a $39 surge protector that has six power outlets, three USB-A charging ports, and a USB-C charging port. The surge protector doesn’t really do anything fancy with magnets or clamps or desk-specific design; it’s just a power strip you can order along with the Magnus Pro if you’d like.

(Credit: Will Greenwald)

These accessories can quickly add up if you want to go all-out when equipping your desk. Secretlab sent us a desk riser, a single monitor arm, a magnetic cable management bundle, a laptop mount, a headphone holder, an Ethernet extender, and a light strip for testing with the desk, and together they total an extra $503. With the exception of the light strip not being able to work as intended when using the monitor arm or desk riser, these accessories are all cleverly designed, well-made, and disappear seamlessly into the desk. They certainly aren’t vital to using the desk, but are nice, if a bit overpriced. They aren’t even that much more expensive than comparable third-party desk accessories; $150 for a single-monitor arm seems about in line with similarly rugged mounts, though dual-monitor arms can generally be found for closer to $190 than $250.

Sitting, Standing, and Saving Space

You absolutely need assistance when putting the Magnus Pro together. It ships in two large boxes and weighs a total of 125 pounds (or 150 pounds for the XL version), and a big part of that bulk and heft is the one-piece desktop. Assembling the desk involves placing the desktop upside-down, attaching the two motorized leg columns to the desktop and the two feet to the leg columns, then bolting on the cable tray. After that’s done, get someone to help you flip the desk right-side up; it’s too big and heavy to turn it over from a single lifting point without risking damage to the desk or your floor. Finally, you can screw the flip-up cover to the cable tray and start setting up all of your equipment, wires, and desk accessories.

I’m 5’11” and I found the desk to be most comfortable at 33 inches when sitting and 45 inches when standing. The desk’s motorized pillars take 11 seconds to switch between these two positions, and 20 seconds to cover the full height range. The movement is smooth, and shouldn’t jostle anything on the desk.

The Magnus Pro at its lowest and highest positions (Credit: Will Greenwald)

Secretlab’s excellent build quality is on display in all parts of the desk. The frame, mechanism, and desktop are all rock-solid and feel like they’re built to last.

Cable routing is simple and convenient thanks to the long cable tray in the back of the desk. I could place a fairly wide surge protector in it, along with my monitor and laptop’s power bricks, and a power adapter for a gaming headset base station. I especially like the hinged cover for access much more than the grommets found on most desks with cable management features, because it lets you run wires anywhere into or out of the cable tray instead of needing to rely on a few fixed holes (usually with plastic covers that easily pop off).

There’s a power outlet next to the cable tray (Credit: Will Greenwald)

Typical cable ties can keep the mess in the tray to a minimum, but if you have any wires running to devices on the desk itself, the magnetic cable management accessories are incredibly helpful and prevent the space between the hinge and the desktop from becoming its own tangle. I used a cable sleeve to securely route my keyboard and microphone’s wires straight back into the cable tray before winding them up through the monitor arm my laptop sits on, which keeps the desk surface reliably clear of loose, wiggling wires. I also used cable anchors to hold a pair of USB-C cables in place near the back of the desk to charge my devices while I work. The magnets in the anchors and sleeve both stay in place on the magnetic desktop and don’t shift at all without some intentional force. The monitor arm’s conduits easily handled three fairly thick cables, and their own magnetic covers kept them from dangling or even being very noticeable at all.

The desk mat is thick, sturdy, and offers absolutely no wiggle once it’s placed on the desktop. Its faux leather feels flat and smooth with a very slight texture, and it’s incredibly easy to wipe clean and remove to more thoroughly wash, or even replace if it gets damaged. Despite my somewhat rough habits with furniture, I saw no scuffs or scratches after a few weeks of use, and any dirt easily rubbed off. I made sure my cat didn’t jump on it, though; like Secretlab Titan EVO chairs with leatherette (or any chairs with leatherette for that matter), I can’t guarantee that cat claws won’t harm the material.

Secretlab vs. Herman Miller Standing Desks

The Magnus Pro is the first sit-stand desk I’ve seriously analyzed, but for direct, hands-on comparison, I took a close look at Herman Miller’s style-minded Jarvis and gaming-focused Motia desks. Depending on your preferred configuration, the Jarvis is priced fairly close to the Magnus Pro starting at $745, while the Motis is a few hundred dollars more expensive at $1,035 and up.

Both desks have similar weight capacities, height ranges, and adjustment speeds as the Magnus Pro, and their constructions also share steel frames and laminate MDF desktops (though the Jarvis is also available with a solid bamboo desktop). They also have cable trays mounted on the undersides, but they aren’t quite as conveniently designed the Magnus Pro’s tray. The Jarvis just has a wire basket and uses conventional circular grommets on the desktop for routing cables. The Motia’s cable tray is more solid but it doesn’t have any routing to the top of the desk, so wires have to hook behind the back edge. Both desks require that power is connected to a control box on the underside of the desktop instead of the base of one leg like the Secretlab desk. The Motia also only has a simple up-down control lever rather than a control panel with shortcuts like the Magnus Pro and the Jarvis. Neither Herman Miller desk has a magnet-friendly metal surface.

The Herman Miller Motia gaming desk, showing wires running from the desktop (Credit: Herman Miller)

Herman Miller’s standing desks are well-made and comparable with the Magnus Pro in general build quality and feel, but Secretlab’s desk far excels in terms of convenience and desktop organization. The power pass-through in the left support pillar is one of the biggest factors, since it can completely eliminate any loose power cable between the cable tray and the floor. The cable tray’s design is also better, since the hinged cover offers flexibility in routing wires without letting them drape over the back edge of the desk. The metal desktop and Secretlab’s magnetic organization accessories further reduce clutter on your desk, with the cable anchors and sheaths almost eliminating the tangle of charging cables I previously had to deal with. 

Herman Miller offers few accessories for either desk besides monitor arms, and while you can always get third-party cable management and RGB lighting products, Secretlab’s accessories integrate perfectly with the Magnus Pro’s design. The only real advantage Herman Miller’s desks have over the Magnus Pro is their standalone style, because desk mat options aside, Secretlab only offers the Magnus Pro itself with an all-black desktop and frame, while the Motia is available in black or white and the Jarvis comes in multiple finishes and a choice of black, white, or silver frames.

Verdict: A Standout Sit-Stand Desk

The Secretlab Magnus Pro is a fantastic sit-stand desk that should be a top choice for gamers and anyone looking for a well-designed workspace that’s easy to organize. It quickly and smoothly transitions between your preferred sitting and standing heights, and feels just as sturdy and luxurious as motorized models from Herman Miller. Moreover, it’s loaded with features and compatible accessories to help you maximize your workspace and keep cables tidy. It’s expensive, and you have to spend more on accessories to get the most out of it, but the Magnus Pro easily earns our Editors’ Choice award and is well worth the price if you can afford it.