reference image if you have no idea what I’m talking about:

I know this is a minor nitpick, but it’s something that annoys me.

I got this graphics card mostly because it was the best deal on Amazon at the time (gpu shortage), and I also thought it looked decent from the images they had. However, when I actually installed it, all I see is the relatively unattractive looking black metal backplate with some white text. The other side is always the side shown in the promotional images too - not a single one of the pictures in the Amazon listing even shows the side that you’ll be seeing 99.9% of the time. Do they think everyone hangs their PCs above them from the ceiling, or has open-air testbenches? Why do they never even bother with the other side? I know they want the fans on the bottom so the cooling is better, but the air in front of the CPU shouldn’t be that bad, a lot of cheaper GPUs don’t need that much cooling, and a ton of people have watercooling now anyways so the CPU radiators just go on the sides.

  • fuckwit_mcbumcrumble@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish
    40·
    6 days ago

    Fans are only on the bottom because pci (and then pcie) cards are upside down because they wanted to maintain physical compatibility with ISA cards back in the 90s.

    The BTX standard wanted to fix that, but it never took off.

    • papalonian@lemmy.world
      7·
      6 days ago

      Interesting. I always assumed it was because the pcie slots were below the CPU, and the protocol was designed to avoid dumping hot GPU exhaust air into the CPU heatsink. Shame that BTX never went anywhere, but makes sense given the established market for ATX-variant cases.

      • fuckwit_mcbumcrumble@lemmy.dbzer0.com
        1·
        6 days ago

        A lot of modern gpus are flow through designs where they dump hot air right in front of the CPU. If the GPU was flipped it would be sucking air away from the CPU.

        The up side to ATX pointing the GPUs down is you can make the heatsink as big as you want. With BTX the GPU heatsink will start running into the CPU.

  • adarzaEnglish
    27·
    6 days ago

    if you want to showcase the gpu, look for a case with vertical gpu mount option. pics

    or one that opens on the other side, where the mainboard sits cpu end down/slots end up. same expansion card orientation as the old failed ‘btx’ form factor; which i still have a couple of.

  • notabot@lemm.ee
    17·
    6 days ago

    Put the side back on your case, and then you don’t have to look at it. ;)

  • makyo@lemmy.worldEnglish
    12·
    6 days ago

    Yeah I don’t get it either. Got this one because it was stupidly blingy. Guess what side this is?

    Image

  • Voyajer@lemmy.world
    61·
    6 days ago

    My GPU has a decorative cover that magnets into the backplate but honestly I prefer seeing the PCB

    • frezik@midwest.social
      7·
      6 days ago

      The backplate does provide some cooling on higher end cards. I have a water block on a 3080 and it’s not recommended to run it without a backplate.