The verdict

Idle power
Minisforum MS-S1 Max idles lower (11W vs 20W) - cheaper to run 24/7.
Local AI
Minisforum MS-S1 Max has a PCIe slot for a low-profile GPU - the other needs a DIY build for local LLMs.

Which wins for each job

Job GMKtec EVO-X2 Minisforum MS-S1 Max
Plex / Jellyfin ~5 streams ~5 streams
Frigate NVR add a detector add a detector
Proxmox / VMs 54,895 PassMark 54,895 PassMark
Firewall / router 2 NICs 2 NICs
Local AI / LLM no slot PCIe GPU slot win

Approximate - capacity estimates from curated specs, the same logic as the recommender. Verify against your exact setup. Prices move; check the retailer.

Full specs

Spec GMKtec EVO-X2 Minisforum MS-S1 Max
Price (list) $1,799 $1,999
CPU AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 395 AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 395
Cores / threads 16 16
PassMark 54,895 54,895
iGPU Radeon 8060S (RDNA3.5) Radeon 8060S (RDNA3.5)
NICs 2 2
NIC model Realtek 2.5GbE dual Dual 10GbE
RAM max (GB) 128 128
M.2 free 1 1
PCIe slot none x16
Idle (W) 20 11
TDP (W) 140 130