[SOLVED] GTX 1080 GPU Upgrade

[Nyphrodel]

I'm considering upgrading my gpu and I would like some advice on where I should go from here...?

My specs:

Alienware Aurora R7
Intel Core i7 8700
Windows 10 Home 64bit
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 with 8GB GDDR5X
128GB M.2 SATA SSD
2TB 7200RPM SATA HDD
460W APFC PSU Air Cooled Chassis
Tray load DVD Drive...

Thanks in advance

 

[Zerk2012]

From this it's a chore just to remove the original backplate.
https://www.dell.com/community/Alienware-Desktops/Aurora-R7-CPU-air-cooling-upgrades/td-p/6136442

 

[Darkbreeze]

But, that might not be necessary either. Coolers like the Deepcool Gammaxx 400 v2, are fairly short, so they should fit, and they usually reuse the existing stock backplate and mounting hardware adapters, some even simply unclasp or unpin and then pop right back in place. I'd look into it further if it become something the OP wanted to be sure of and move forward with.

 

[Nyphrodel]

Thanks Zerk, that's something I definitely plan on doing. I'll swap out the stock cooling fan on the same day that I install a new ps. Once I took a look inside for the first time and saw that little stock fan, I knew that was just the beginning...

If your using the stock cooler on that 8700 I would change it, that could be part of the problem.

You can run a stress test I bet it throttles.

 

[Nyphrodel]

I think this should be something that I do at the same time I upgrade the ps. I'm loath to go with liquid cooling because I fear that if it was to fail that I wouldn't know because I probably wouldn't hear it. If it's a fan replacement and it fails, I know I'll hear it. And, after some research I've actually discovered this type of cooling is somewhat (if not considerably) quieter and more effective. So, what do you think of this?: Noctua NH-U12A, Premium CPU Cooler

There is very little room for adding an aftermarket cooler in those Alienware cases. But certainly something better than the stock cooler could be found, if cooling is a problem, and I agree that it very well could be.

 

[Nyphrodel]

It is absolutely disgusting what DELL does to their customers. I understand it's a business and it's about making money, but in my opinion, this is probably one of the biggest problem of our time. Everyone is so damn desperate to be like the people they see on television and on social media...the perfect people who are always beautiful and traveling the world...they will do anything to make that almighty dollar, no matter the cost to others. So the corporations continue to grow and grow...Yes, it is a shame and an embarrassment. Moving on...

After consideration of all of the great information you've given me, I've decided to upgrade the ps and swap out the stock cooling system. I believe that these are the 2 areas that will improve my situation. I never felt that this system; especially this gpu, was delivering what it should. But once it's running properly, I think it'll be sufficient for what I'm playing now. It really is a great little card. As I continue to heal, my memory returns more and more and my confidence too returns. I believe by this spring, I'll be ready for one of the 30 series cards and a new vrr television.

My last problem is that I just can't find a ps. I really want to go with 850w so I'm prepared for whatever comes along as far as graphic cards and video games. I have searched but can't seem to find one anywhere. Also, will I need all of the additional cables as referred to in the previous link you gave me from the DELL forums?

This is the last thing that I ask of you and I will close this out.
Again, thank you.

See, there's your problem. That unit is only capable of a RATED 385w, per the label. Not even the 460 that it's advertised as. And you can bet that it's 100% not able to supply that 385w at 40°C. That rating is almost certainly at 30°C which is unrealistic for any power supply used in anything even remotely demanding like a productivity or gaming system that gets pushed hard a bit here and there. Much less any kind of solid gaming machine. It's a shame and an embarrassment that they even put those in a supposedly "gaming" system to begin with, but for OEMs they just don't care so long as the machine makes it out of the warranty period and if it doesn't, it is cheap to replace them with another one and send it back out.

Anyhow, it IS an ATX unit, so any standard ATX power supply SHOULD fit in place of that unit if you just want to replace the power supply and not have to worry about a whole case swap.

I'll be honest, at this late date, I would advise against any 100 or 200 series Nvidia card, with the 30 series cards already here and the 3060/3070 supposed to be coming out in the next month or so, with better than 2080 performance probably at a lower price. It's definitely worth the wait IMO. I can't provide a lot of details on a 3060, because there have been a few problems with supply on existing 3080 and 3090 cards, a delay on the release of 3070 cards and not much information yet on the 3060 cards, but with both AMD's Big Navi coming very soon as well as these potentially 40-75% more powerful per dollar Nvidia cards, I can't see it making much sense to buy a 2070 or 2080, or even a 2080 ti, unless the price was ridiculously fabulous. And by that I mean costing like 200 dollars, which won't happen unless you bought a used card and only fools buy used cards IMO.

A 3060 or 3070 would make a LOT more sense, and would give you a lot more in return for your investment.

https://www.techradar.com/news/nvidia-geforce-rtx-3060-release-date-price-news-and-features

 

[Nyphrodel]

Oh my goodness forgive me, I just saw this post! I actually looked at the Deepcool Gammaxx 400 v2. If you think it's a better idea, I'll go with that instead. Just let me know what you think I should do...

But, that might not be necessary either. Coolers like the Deepcool Gammaxx 400 v2, are fairly short, so they should fit, and they usually reuse the existing stock backplate and mounting hardware adapters, some even simply unclasp or unpin and then pop right back in place. I'd look into it further if it become something the OP wanted to be sure of and move forward with.

 

[Darkbreeze]

The NH-U12A is a superb cooler, especially if we are comparing it to any stock cooler.

Should be more than enough for the 8700 so long as it will fit the constraints of the case. But, it is too expensive for what you are getting IMO.

I think this would be a much better alternative, and it is the exact same height as the U12A, but is about half the price. Also, I think it has better performance personally. Don't get me wrong, I like Noctua and run Noctua coolers in a lot of my machines and builds, I'm just not a fan of paying 100 bucks for a 120mm heatsink that doesn't really have the same performance as other 100 dollar coolers, which would all be too tall most likely to fit your case anyhow.

Thermalright is a high quality manufacturer and has been doing this for much longer than almost anybody else in the business.

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU Cooler: Thermalright MACHO Rev.C 84.97 CFM CPU Cooler ($54.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $54.99
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-10-15 03:37 EDT-0400

 

[Nyphrodel]

I apologise, but I just saw your post. Thank you for the info about the backplate and for pointing out the Deepcool Gammaxx 400 v2

From this it's a chore just to remove the original backplate.
https://www.dell.com/community/Alienware-Desktops/Aurora-R7-CPU-air-cooling-upgrades/td-p/6136442

 

[Nyphrodel]

Uh oh gentlemen, I seem to have a little egg on my face because this just may be a little too big. I didn't take into consideration the new ps and the placement of this new cooler: Noctua NH-U12A, Premium CPU Cooler

Then again, after looking at the dimensions of the Deepcool Gammaxx 400 v2, maybe it wasn't egg after all, maybe that was just a little sunlight on my face...

From this it's a chore just to remove the original backplate.
https://www.dell.com/community/Alienware-Desktops/Aurora-R7-CPU-air-cooling-upgrades/td-p/6136442

But, that might not be necessary either. Coolers like the Deepcool Gammaxx 400 v2, are fairly short, so they should fit, and they usually reuse the existing stock backplate and mounting hardware adapters, some even simply unclasp or unpin and then pop right back in place. I'd look into it further if it become something the OP wanted to be sure of and move forward with.

 

[cryoburner]

I didn't say they would only be worth 200 dollars new. At all.

Well, you did say "...I can't see it making much sense to buy a 2070 or 2080, or even a 2080 ti, unless the price was ridiculously fabulous. And by that I mean costing like 200 dollars, which won't happen unless you bought a used card and only fools buy used cards IMO. "
That does sound like you were implying any of those cards are not worth paying more than $200 for in any condition. : P And even used, something like a 2080 or 2080 Ti would be worth substantially more than $200.

Realistically, once the 3060 and 3050 (or whatever they end up calling it) are readily available (probably some months down the line), it might be possible to find some used 2070s for not much more than $200, but I suspect they might still outperform Nvidia's ~$250 card. And plenty of people will likely still find value in paying over $300 for a used 2080, and over $400 for a used 2080 Ti. And once stock of 30-series cards is readily available near their suggested prices, pricing for some 20-series models may also drop to match their 30-series counterparts. Not long after the 2060 SUPER launched, for example, it was possible to find some new 2070s with slightly better performance go on sale near the same price point. The 2080 Ti will probably maintain a premium over the 2070 due to its extra VRAM though.

This makes no sense man.

Why would ANYBODY want to buy a 2080 ti for 500 dollars, knowing that you're not going to find one at that price new, only used, when you are going to get no warranty with it, but a full warranty with a 3070 that outperforms it or at least performs as good, AND supports some things not supported well on the 2080 ti. It just doesn't make sense really, at least, to me it doesn't.

If someone needs a card right away it could make some sense. Availability of 30-series cards is almost nonexistant at this time, and will probably remain that way for months. And we don't even know for sure yet whether the 3070 will manage to match the 2080 Ti's performance. Some cards will also still be covered by warranty, and at this time, 20-series cards are only two years old most.

 

[Darkbreeze]

Yes, thanks for making my point for me. I wouldn't buy a 20 series card at this late date unless I could get one for around 200 bucks, and I can't get one for around 200 bucks unless I buy one used, and I don't buy used cards, so what does that tell you?

But, I also DO agree that with the problems with availability, it might be a necessity if there is REALLY a NEED to buy it now. If not, then waiting until after the holidays, Christmas at the least, will probably allow for some inventory to become available and the supply chain to actually get it going to consumers. All of which is assuming that the problems with supply aren't strictly due to poor yields, which is what I said would happen two months ago based on an early article I read, plus some additional research, and then everybody told me I was nuts. If it's due to yields only, then it could take until deeper into the 1st quarter of next year before availability becomes more realistic.

If so, then, IDK. I guess you bite the bullet and buy a 20 series card or look at big Navi.

 

[Nyphrodel]

AWESOME! I have placed my order for the Thermalright MACHO Rev.C CPU Cooler. It'll be here Saturday. I'm so happy! But I KNOW that the true problem with this setup is the power. I've had it for almost 2 years now and I didn't really start using it to play again until recently because I couldn't use a mouse for any extended period of time. When I held it, my hand would almost instantly get freezing cold and go numb and I could barely use a controller either, for any period of time because I just could not hold it. It took me almost 9 months to learn to write again because I couldn't grip a pen/pencil. Aah...chemotherapy, they call it 'The gift that keeps on giving' and they were not joking. But now I'm ready to play, play and play some more! I'm trying to catch up and I'm giving it my all, BUT! I noticed that my textures are barely even loading in No Man's Sky. This really should not be a problem for this particular graphics card to run this game smoothly and I've been really bummed. But now I'm starting to get very angry...

So, this was the reason for wanting to upgrade in the first place. But all in all I think we've figured it out, don't you? All that's left is the power supply. Any luck in that area? As I said, I couldn't find anything but I know you know places that I've never even heard of before, so my fingers are crossed. Just point me in the right direction.

Oh, and thanks for saving me a nice chunk of money on that cpu cooler

The NH-U12A is a superb cooler, especially if we are comparing it to any stock cooler.

Should be more than enough for the 8700 so long as it will fit the constraints of the case. But, it is too expensive for what you are getting IMO.

I think this would be a much better alternative, and it is the exact same height as the U12A, but is about half the price. Also, I think it has better performance personally. Don't get me wrong, I like Noctua and run Noctua coolers in a lot of my machines and builds, I'm just not a fan of paying 100 bucks for a 120mm heatsink that doesn't really have the same performance as other 100 dollar coolers, which would all be too tall most likely to fit your case anyhow.

Thermalright is a high quality manufacturer and has been doing this for much longer than almost anybody else in the business.

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU Cooler: Thermalright MACHO Rev.C 84.97 CFM CPU Cooler ($54.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $54.99
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-10-15 03:37 EDT-0400

 

[Darkbreeze]

So, I'm not really sure what still needed to get sorted out as far as the PSU was concerned. I think we established that it IS an ATX power supply, which means pretty much anything will "fit" so long as it's an ATX unit and isn't terribly long because even though ATX standards govern the width and height being a specific dimension, the length can vary somewhat. Usually that's no issue, but maybe could be in that system?

Any chance of taking a tape measure and getting an idea of what the existing unit's length is and then where it goes to see what it looks like the maximum length it will accomodate would be?

And if there were other concerns with the PSU, please feel free to refresh my memory.

 

[Imposted]

I have added an image to my earlier link: Alienware Aurora R7
I opened up the ps and found the specs decal right away. I've left a few of the other images just in case we need to look at them sometime later on down the line.

The post by 'YoungSpeccy' on the DELL forums was very helpful. Do I honestly need that many additional cables? And secondly, I was looking at a 750w ps with the expectations of some head room. From your previous posts it would appear that you would agree, but if I should go for an 850, I will.

Also, I've read that the GTX 1080 is a pretty nice little card and that I'm not going to see that much improvement going from a GTX 1080 to an RTX 2070 (maybe 10fps) and that moving to an RTX 2080 would be a wiser choice. I would suspect an RTX 2080 would probably run better with an 850w ps, especially if I want to use an Oculus too. Your thoughts?

Let me give you a good tip on buying prebuilt pcs: NEVER EVER BUY FROM ALIENWARE, they are expensive, not worth it, and the specs they put for the amount of money isn't worth it, whenever you bought that pc, you could've built one for better and cheaper.

 

[Nyphrodel]

Thank you. And you are absolutely correct, I could have built one for less, but considering my brain function after 6 months of chemotherapy, 30 days of radiation on my lungs and additionally, 28 days of prophylactic brain radiation, I've not been up to the task. It's taken me almost 4 years to get to where I am today and that's still not back to where I was and I probably never will be, but at least I can play my games again. As far as my pc goes, at this point I feel I can at least swap out parts for a few upgrades. I never expected to get this far, so I'm content to take what I can get and be thankful that I'm alive. But mark my words: I WILL build my next system! Although I'm sure I'll need a little help from a friend or 2 here at Tom's (you hear that @Darkbreeze ?) I'll be sure to post it for all the world to see.

Btw, I purchased this system directly from DELL 2 years ago and I managed to pick it up on sale for $1200 brand new. I don't think that was too bad, do you?

Let me give you a good tip on buying prebuilt pcs: NEVER EVER BUY FROM ALIENWARE, they are expensive, not worth it, and the specs they put for the amount of money isn't worth it, whenever you bought that pc, you could've built one for better and cheaper.

 

[Nyphrodel]

You are correct, I wasn't sure about the dimensions and they aren't listed when purchasing. I thought maybe there was somewhere you knew to look for specific standard dimensions for an ATX ps. So, mine measures 5.5"w x 5.875"l x 3.375"h (does that sound about right?) and I am looking at this ps: Corsair RMX Series, RM850x I took your advice and went with the 'x' and I thought it may be a good idea to go up to an 850w so I'm ready for future upgrades on that graphics card. I always want the extra headroom, right?

So, I'm not really sure what still needed to get sorted out as far as the PSU was concerned. I think we established that it IS an ATX power supply, which means pretty much anything will "fit" so long as it's an ATX unit and isn't terribly long because even though ATX standards govern the width and height being a specific dimension, the length can vary somewhat. Usually that's no issue, but maybe could be in that system?

Any chance of taking a tape measure and getting an idea of what the existing unit's length is and then where it goes to see what it looks like the maximum length it will accomodate would be?

And if there were other concerns with the PSU, please feel free to refresh my memory.

 

[Nyphrodel]

Is that a little low in price or am I imagining it? I saw many others that were of course higher but I also believe the model I chose is not standard is it? I seem to remember the prices of ps being MUCH higher 8-10 years ago when I was still able to work on my pc...I need to take some time and pull my thoughts together...some days are good and others, not so good. Thank you so much for helping me.

So, I'm not really sure what still needed to get sorted out as far as the PSU was concerned. I think we established that it IS an ATX power supply, which means pretty much anything will "fit" so long as it's an ATX unit and isn't terribly long because even though ATX standards govern the width and height being a specific dimension, the length can vary somewhat. Usually that's no issue, but maybe could be in that system?

Any chance of taking a tape measure and getting an idea of what the existing unit's length is and then where it goes to see what it looks like the maximum length it will accomodate would be?

And if there were other concerns with the PSU, please feel free to refresh my memory.

You are correct, I wasn't sure about the dimensions and they aren't listed when purchasing. I thought maybe there was somewhere you knew to look for specific standard dimensions for an ATX ps. So, mine measures 5.5"w x 5.875"l x 3.375"h (does that sound about right?) and I am looking at this ps: Corsair RMX Series, RM850x I took your advice and went with the 'x' and I thought it may be a good idea to go up to an 850w so I'm ready for future upgrades on that graphics card. I always want the extra headroom, right?

 

[Darkbreeze]

The only way you'd need an 850w unit is if you know for sure you are going to spend the extra money on an RTX 3080 or 3090. There are no other single graphics cards currently in production that require more than a 650w unit, for the whole system, except in cases where some amount of extreme overclocking of the system is involved OR if you are running an inordinately high number of hard drives/SSDs, plus 7 or more fans, plus lighting and controllers, plus a high TDP CPU and graphics card combination like a 9900k with a a 2080 ti.

A 750w unit should be more than enough for most use cases, even with all of that being in play, again, not if you plan to order an RTX 3080 or 3090 though. If you plan to get one of those cards then an 850w unit that is high quality makes sense.

In any case, the RMx units SHOULD fit. They are 150mm long from what I can see and it would seem that your current unit is 150mm long as well, or close enough to it to not matter. The RMx and HX units are very high quality. So are the Seasonic Prime models.

 

[Nyphrodel]

I was on my way to purchasing the 750w ps but I was really disappointed because I was going to have to wait until the end of the month for it to arrive, but I could pick up an 850w tomorrow, which by the way, is the same day that my new cpu cooler arrives. My daughter then reminds me that this way I can run my chassis lights along with anything and everything else I feel like running all at the same time now. Turns out my daughter and her father (my ex) then surprised me by telling me that they're going to buy my choice of an RTX once they're a little easier to get a hold of at the 1st of the year (if I'm lucky). So, I ordered this: CORSAIR - RMx Series 850W 80 Plus Gold Modular Power Supply Turns out it's a little shorter in length than the 750w too.

Thank you for EVERYTHING! You have given me the most help I have ever received on this forum, or any for that matter. Thanks for pointing me in the right direction - I feel very comfortable knowing that you've given me sound advice and that you'll; in essence, be looking over my shoulder tomorrow when I put everything in place. I'll let you know how it all turns out. Fingers crossed that I don't blow the whole dang thing up!🥰

The only way you'd need an 850w unit is if you know for sure you are going to spend the extra money on an RTX 3080 or 3090. There are no other single graphics cards currently in production that require more than a 650w unit, for the whole system, except in cases where some amount of extreme overclocking of the system is involved OR if you are running an inordinately high number of hard drives/SSDs, plus 7 or more fans, plus lighting and controllers, plus a high TDP CPU and graphics card combination like a 9900k with a a 2080 ti.

A 750w unit should be more than enough for most use cases, even with all of that being in play, again, not if you plan to order an RTX 3080 or 3090 though. If you plan to get one of those cards then an 850w unit that is high quality makes sense.

In any case, the RMx units SHOULD fit. They are 150mm long from what I can see and it would seem that your current unit is 150mm long as well, or close enough to it to not matter. The RMx and HX units are very high quality. So are the Seasonic Prime models.

 

[Nyphrodel]

This was truly the biggest help out of all of the information that I have been given regarding an upgrade. Once I increase my power supply and install a better cooling system, I think I might find that I can get some use out of this very capable little graphics card after all. I personally don't feel like it has performed for me the way that it should, so hopefully I'll be pleasantly surprised until I get that new 30 series card at the new year.

Yes, I like to see about 100w MORE than what the system is probably going to use under a full load. If you can estimate that the system will use about 350-450w, then a 550w unit is a good choice. If you have plans to overclock anything, then you'd want to add another 100w and a 650w model would be a good choice. It really depends on the hardware and the usage, but in general using the recommendations at the following link, then adding another 100w to those recommendations IF you plan to overclock the CPU and graphics card, are a good idea.

http://www.realhardtechx.com/index_archivos/Page362.htm

If you have no plans to manually overclock anything to any significant degree, then a good unit based on those recommendations is a fine choice for practically any configuration around the graphics card the recommendation is made for there.

A person can pretty easily estimate the actual needs of the system themselves if they wish to though.

For example, if you are running an i7-8700 which Intel says is a 65w part, but we KNOW that it can use up to ~117w under a full load due to review data. So, 117w max for the CPU.

Then, you have a GTX 1080, which on average will use UP TO 75w for the slot, and it has only a single 8 pin for most models BUT some models have up to two 8 pins, so we'll go with the dual 8 pin selection which means 150w maximum draw per 8 pin for a total of 375w potentially just for the card.

Add to that the 117w of the CPU and you have 492w theoretical maximum power draw, so far. The rest of the system including the motherboard, USB ports, SATA power cables for storage devices, fans, lighting, etc. might well run up into the 100w range. Likely no where near that much, more like maybe 50w, but we'll say 75w just to split the difference and play it safe. If you had five or more storage drives, a bunch of external USB devices, 7 case fans, the CPU cooler, four sticks of RAM, and an extensive number of LED light strips, we might opt towards the higher number but that isn't the common system PLUS we're going to pad the number a bit towards the end anyhow just to be safe.

So now, we have 117w for the CPU, 375w for the graphics card, 75w for the rest of the system, for a total of 567w. Let's add another 100w to that in order to ensure that there is plenty of headroom to accomodate any spikes in power consumption, which definitely happen, and to help ensure that when the system is running at full load we are not exceeding about 80% of the power supplies maximum capacity, so that it runs in the "Goldilocks zone" where it has the best ripple, voltage regulation and efficiency performance. Generally, about 40-80% of the units capacity is where you want to land when running it under a load and for me, 60-80% of capacity is even better because a lot of units are much less efficient when running at a significantly low percentage of the units overall capability. In truth though, I'm a lot more concerned with the unit not exceeding 80% of the units maximum capacity so that the numbers for ripple and voltage regulation stay in the units most promising range.

Nobody wants to see high ripple or poor voltage regulation, which are unlikely anyhow if it's a very good unit, but which become more of a concern when you get up to using 80-100% of the units capacity on a mediocre or poor quality unit, but to some degree even on a very good one.

So, enough of that ramble, we are now looking at a total of 667w including the extra 100w we added. Technically, this configuration could probably run fine on a 550w unit, as per the most common recommendations.

For our estimate, even though we end up above the 650w mark by about 17w, we can reasonably assume that a 650w is a really good fit for that system because the 117w we got for the CPU was taken from it's usage while running Prime95 during a torture test, and we are never going to see that kind of usage under real world conditions, so anything from 650w-750w is a good choice. If I was buying a Seasonic Prime Ultra Titanium for that system usage, I'd probably feel great about a 650w unit. If I was looking a somewhat lesser quality Corsair CX model, I'd probably want the 750w unit.

Having some additional overhead in terms of not using a PSU that barely covers the capacity needs has one additional benefit as well. It is going to run much quieter under most conditions, even while under a full load, than it would if you only had about what the system needs or only slightly higher. Not having a noisy PSU is a good thing, both for your sanity and for the life of the PSU and it's fan as well. So, win-win in that regard.

 

[Darkbreeze]

It is my pleasure and I'm very hopeful as well that this will turn out to be a significantly better experience for you than it has previously. My only real fear or reservation is that the CPU cooler won't have any interference issues due to your case design. My recommendation would be to also get some decent thermal paste to go with the CPU as well, for two reasons.

One, the stock paste that comes with the cooler is ok, but there is not much there and you may need to do more than one installation to get it right, OR if the cooler won't fit, you may need to use it for the stock cooler or whatever you end up using. Always good to have a little extra paste on hand, just in case, when dealing with cooler installations and upgrades.

Not sure what stores you have locally, or what they carry, or if you have to order online, but I like Thermal Grizzly Kryonaut, Noctua NT-H1 or NT-H2 and Arctic MX4, as being about the best all-around choices for thermal paste without getting into the difficult stuff like diamond or liquid metal, which to me don't offer enough improvement to be worth the hassle of installing them or the extra cost.

When you get ready to install the cooler I would remove the stock cooler, clean the top of the CPU off with a paper coffee filter or microfiber cloth (Not paper towels, rags or anything else, because they will all leave micro particles on the surface of the CPU heatspreader or the bottom of the heatsink) and then do a dry run installation with the cooler to make sure it is going to fit and not interfere with anything. Be sure to install it so that the fan is on the side of the heatsink closest to the front of the case and is blowing through the heatsink towards the back of the case. Looking at that post from earlier, it seems it might be a little bit of a PITA dealing with the backplate, but it's absolutely doable so long as there isn't any interference issues with the heatsink itself not clearing anything else inside the case.

 

[MJS WARLORD]

Hello , judging by the dates on the threads this seems like an old post but it has appeared in todays pages so i would like to offer this advice for what its worth.
I got a gtx 1080 when it first came out , i had it put in the custom built rig that i was ordering.

The first thing i would do is replace the power supply , as you can see from my build i have a 650w supply and the "build checker system" said that was 10% more than you need , this would allow for sudden performance peaks. So without you realising it , your card could be under performing , its a bit like an under powered car engine that is not good enough for the cars gearbox.

I once burnt out a card AND the power supply because the psu could not meet the demands of the card.
If your using the nvidea experience software get rid of it and do manual driver download then custom install and untick the experience tab or you will get it again.
Have you seen their is a overclocking program on the driver disc , DONT use it , i wrote to the makers as i was not sure how to use it and the individual who wrote back said that .... under load the 1080 has the ability to oc itself.

With my current build i can run anything at all settings maxed out and with reasonable temperatures

The tower COOLERMASTER HAF-X FULL TOWER GAMING CASE, the tower is massive.
The cpu is Intel® Core™i7 Six Core Processor i7-6800K (3.4GHz) 15MB Cache.
The motherboard is ASUS® ROG STRIX X99: ATX, USB 3.1, SATA 6 GB/s.
The ram is 16GB HyperX FURY DDR4 2133MHz (4 x 4GB) ....
The graphics card is 8GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1080 - DVI, HDMI, 3x DP - GTX VR Ready!
The main drive is 480GB HyperX SAVAGE 2.5" SSD, SATA 6 Gb/s (up to 560MB/sR | 530MB/sW) for windows and all the items you can’t chose where they install.
The second drive is 960GB HyperX SAVAGE 2.5" SSD, SATA 6 Gb/s (up to 560MB/sR | 530MB/sW) for my steam client games and all other games.
The dvd/blue ray is 24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM.
The power supply is CORSAIR 650W CS SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET.
The cpu cooler is Noctua NH-D15S Ultra Quiet Performance CPU Cooler, this is huge!

 

[Darkbreeze]

Hello , judging by the dates on the threads this seems like an old post but it has appeared in todays pages so i would like to offer this advice for what its worth.
I got a gtx 1080 when it first came out , i had it put in the custom built rig that i was ordering.

The first thing i would do is replace the power supply , as you can see from my build i have a 650w supply and the "build checker system" said that was 10% more than you need , this would allow for sudden performance peaks. So without you realising it , your card could be under performing , its a bit like an under powered car engine that is not good enough for the cars gearbox.

I once burnt out a card AND the power supply because the psu could not meet the demands of the card.
If your using the nvidea experience software get rid of it and do manual driver download then custom install and untick the experience tab or you will get it again.
Have you seen their is a overclocking program on the driver disc , DONT use it , i wrote to the makers as i was not sure how to use it and the individual who wrote back said that .... under load the 1080 has the ability to oc itself.

With my current build i can run anything at all settings maxed out and with reasonable temperatures

The tower COOLERMASTER HAF-X FULL TOWER GAMING CASE, the tower is massive.
The cpu is Intel® Core™i7 Six Core Processor i7-6800K (3.4GHz) 15MB Cache.
The motherboard is ASUS® ROG STRIX X99: ATX, USB 3.1, SATA 6 GB/s.
The ram is 16GB HyperX FURY DDR4 2133MHz (4 x 4GB) ....
The graphics card is 8GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1080 - DVI, HDMI, 3x DP - GTX VR Ready!
The main drive is 480GB HyperX SAVAGE 2.5" SSD, SATA 6 Gb/s (up to 560MB/sR | 530MB/sW) for windows and all the items you can’t chose where they install.
The second drive is 960GB HyperX SAVAGE 2.5" SSD, SATA 6 Gb/s (up to 560MB/sR | 530MB/sW) for my steam client games and all other games.
The dvd/blue ray is 24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM.
The power supply is CORSAIR 650W CS SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET.
The cpu cooler is Noctua NH-D15S Ultra Quiet Performance CPU Cooler, this is huge!

Your reply is completely irrelevant to the content of this thread, which is based around an Alienware Aurora R7, and is not an old thread but a current one that is actively being worked. What your build can do is great but it really has very little to nothing to do with what this thread is about and it would be appreciated in the future if you could be bothered to READ the thread, in it's entirety, before posting, just to be sure that what you are posting is actually something that is usefully relevant to that thread. Not an arse chewing, just a heads up. Thanks.

 

[COLGeek]

Please don't hijack the topic away from assisting the OP with her issue. Thank you.

 

[Nyphrodel]

I considered not responding to this post, but I always say thank you when someone takes time out of their busy life to help me. So, thank you for your contribution, but unfortunately I've already received the power supply advice from three other posters. If you'd have read the entire thread (a very short 2 pages) you would know that and you would also know that another poster was actively helping me work through my issue. So no, this is/was not an old post. I only point this out because my new ps had just been delivered and I was busy installing it when I rec'd notification of your post. I stopped in the middle of my project to read your post thinking new info might be helpful...sadly, it was not.

Not to say that I'm not impressed by your awesome setup and how you can run anything with the settings 'maxed out', but this information does not help me (OP) at all.

I have picked a solution and I am happily following the advice I was given.

Hello , judging by the dates on the threads this seems like an old post but it has appeared in todays pages so i would like to offer this advice for what its worth.
I got a gtx 1080 when it first came out , i had it put in the custom built rig that i was ordering.

The first thing i would do is replace the power supply , as you can see from my build i have a 650w supply and the "build checker system" said that was 10% more than you need , this would allow for sudden performance peaks. So without you realising it , your card could be under performing , its a bit like an under powered car engine that is not good enough for the cars gearbox.

I once burnt out a card AND the power supply because the psu could not meet the demands of the card.
If your using the nvidea experience software get rid of it and do manual driver download then custom install and untick the experience tab or you will get it again.
Have you seen their is a overclocking program on the driver disc , DONT use it , i wrote to the makers as i was not sure how to use it and the individual who wrote back said that .... under load the 1080 has the ability to oc itself.

With my current build i can run anything at all settings maxed out and with reasonable temperatures

The tower COOLERMASTER HAF-X FULL TOWER GAMING CASE, the tower is massive.
The cpu is Intel® Core™i7 Six Core Processor i7-6800K (3.4GHz) 15MB Cache.
The motherboard is ASUS® ROG STRIX X99: ATX, USB 3.1, SATA 6 GB/s.
The ram is 16GB HyperX FURY DDR4 2133MHz (4 x 4GB) ....
The graphics card is 8GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1080 - DVI, HDMI, 3x DP - GTX VR Ready!
The main drive is 480GB HyperX SAVAGE 2.5" SSD, SATA 6 Gb/s (up to 560MB/sR | 530MB/sW) for windows and all the items you can’t chose where they install.
The second drive is 960GB HyperX SAVAGE 2.5" SSD, SATA 6 Gb/s (up to 560MB/sR | 530MB/sW) for my steam client games and all other games.
The dvd/blue ray is 24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM.
The power supply is CORSAIR 650W CS SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET.
The cpu cooler is Noctua NH-D15S Ultra Quiet Performance CPU Cooler, this is huge!