SLI question... mATX board... touching video cards?

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Pyrex238

Limp Gawd
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Jul 12, 2006
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I'm sure this is probably a commonly discussed thing, but I'm curious how exactly this is going to work. I have an evga 980ti classified (the biggest video card ever). I'm looking to add a second in SLI, however I'm staring at the PCI-E slots on my Maximus VIII Gene, and the top cooler's fans are going to contact the back plate of my lower card. How the hell would this ever work? Has anyone had success with a PCI-E ribbon/extender to drop a card one slot lower?
 
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Looks like it's meant for reference cards

Arranged for two, 2 slot cards in a matx case with only 4 expansion slots.

You could probably get a full sized case and a pcie riser but that kinda defeats the purpose of buying a small motherboard in the first place, does it not?
 
What case is your setup in?
You could probably use a PCI-E extender and drop it down 2 slots lower (assuming your case is big enough). I don't think one slot lower would work because the card wouldn't have room to plug into the extender with the motherboard being in the way.

You could still run them right next to each other, but the top card would definitely run hotter than the lower one. Reference cards are probably best in SLI situations like yours, but even then, airflow to the top card is still going to be limited.

If it was me, I would try it anyways and see how it works. If the top cards stays too hot, then I'd purchase a PCI-E extender and move things around.
Or you could always slap some waterblocks on those GPUs, that'd give you plenty of room :D
 
Should be fine, but expect increased temps, especially for the upper card...I had two Asus 780 Direct CU II's in SLI on my Gene V. I had to splay them apart ever so slightly (couple millimeters, maybe) while tightening down the expansion slot screws to prevent the fans on card 1 from rubbing against the backplate of card 2, but I never had any issues for the year and a half I ran that SLI setup. Card 1 ran load temps between 78-82C, while card 2 ran between 66-72C. Before I picked up the second card, load temps were 56-62C (depending on the game).




Here's an eVGA 980 Ti SC SLI setup in an X99 uATX build:
https://pcpartpicker.com/b/cRtJ7P
 
DraginDime said:
What case is your setup in?
You could probably use a PCI-E extender and drop it down 2 slots lower (assuming your case is big enough). I don't think one slot lower would work because the card wouldn't have room to plug into the extender with the motherboard being in the way.

You could still run them right next to each other, but the top card would definitely run hotter than the lower one. Reference cards are probably best in SLI situations like yours, but even then, airflow to the top card is still going to be limited.

If it was me, I would try it anyways and see how it works. If the top cards stays too hot, then I'd purchase a PCI-E extender and move things around.
Or you could always slap some waterblocks on those GPUs, that'd give you plenty of room :D
Click to expand...

I have it installed in a Thermaltake V21, which actually has a pretty decent amount of room for a cube case. I've never actually seen an extender up close, it would only have room for a few millimeters of depth (assuming there is no IC's in the way).

I did the custom loop game for the better part of 10 years, and I'm not sure I want to go back to that. The advent of AIO coolers brought me back, but constantly refilling reservoirs and the rare but ever present water leak that results in a smoked card is not something I'd like to revisit. I'm getting lazy in my 30's :)
 
DejaWiz said:
Should be fine, but expect increased temps, especially for the upper card...I had two Asus 780 Direct CU II's in SLI on my Gene V. I had to splay them apart ever so slightly (couple millimeters, maybe) while tightening down the expansion slot screws to prevent the fans on card 1 from rubbing against the backplate of card 2, but I never had any issues for the year and a half I ran that SLI setup. Card 1 ran load temps between 78-82C, while card 2 ran between 66-72C. Before I picked up the second card, load temps were 56-62C (depending on the game).




Here's an eVGA 980 Ti SC SLI setup in an X99 uATX build:
https://pcpartpicker.com/b/cRtJ7P
Click to expand...

That's a really cool build. I can't make out what case that is, but it looks like a Corsair Air 240. I bought that case (actually still have it in the corner) and my 980Ti Classifieds don't even come close to fitting, they were hilariously too large. So I must assume those 980Ti SC's are much smaller (less deep) than the classifieds? That or it's an Air 540 case, but it doesn't look like one. Either way it answers my question. I don't see how the top card doesn't burst into flames.

Taking the bottom card's back plate off would free up about 2-3mm of space, which honestly is substantial in preventing airflow given the margins, but I'm not sure how much of a bump it would have.

Not the best picture, but it's all I have at the office:

FrcIxc7.jpg
 
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It is an Air 240 in that build. I linked it to show the spacing between the GPUs. The Classified does have a taller shroud than the SC, so they would definitely not clear that particular chassis.
 
I honestly don't see how the top card gets any air flow being literally a few millimeters away from the other card. Just how much hotter do they run? Doesn't that cause them to throttle?
 
Airflow will be very constricted...expect at least a 20C load temp increase for the top card. That's from my own experiences with uATX multi-GPU, anyway.

I was hoping to ride out my 780 SLI and wait for Pascal or Pirate Islands, but the heat output has been a real bother. I really didn't want to get another 28nm 250W TDP card, but the 980 Ti can match or beat 780 SLI in some games, so I see it as a lateral performance move with a huge win in terms of lower power draw and heat output (single 250W vs dual 250W for around the same performance). Granted, I take at 1080p with adaptive Vsync 144 Hz, so a single 980 Ti will tide me over for quite some time to come.

If, for some really really really justifiable reason, I need a 980 Ti SLI setup with what I do, then I'd likely transition back to a compact ATX setup with a single expansion slot width between the GPUs just to keep the temps well under control.
 
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