MSI, EKWB Partner On Liquid-Cooled GTX 1080, 1070 Sea Hawk EK X Graphics Cards

[kcarbotte]

MSI revealed two more factory water cooled graphics cards today. The company partnered with EK Water Blocks to offer GTX 10-series cards with pre-installed full-cover water blocks directly from the factory.

MSI, EKWB Partner On Liquid-Cooled GTX 1080, 1070 Sea Hawk EK X Graphics Cards : Read more

 

[voodoochicken]

What's the point of dressing up the block unless you have some kind of riser card to show off that side of the card?

 

[kcarbotte]

What's the point of dressing up the block unless you have some kind of riser card to show off that side of the card?

Not every case has the motherboard sitting vertically. There are plenty of cases that place the motherboard tray horizontally.
There are also plenty of modders that use riser cables to place the GPU wherever they want.

 

[manleysteele]

I assume this is the same EKWB block that disables half of the available SLI. Yawn. It's especially confusing since it's obvious that all they would need to do to fix it is cut some plastic away.

 

[kcarbotte]

I assume this is the same EKWB block that disables half of the available SLI. Yawn. It's especially confusing since it's obvious that all they would need to do to fix it is cut some plastic away.

How about you wait until you know the facts before chastising them for it.
We have no idea if this block restricts SLI, and there's plenty of reason to believe that it won't be a problem for this card.

EK developed the GTX 1080 block before we knew about the new SLI bridge specifications. MSI and EK worked closely to create this block, so they likely adjusted for the SLI bridge. No reason to assume they didn't just yet.

 

[spoidz]

None of the pictures enlarge enough to really tell, but is there any metal at the Inlet Ports?

The picture makes it look like pure Plastic/Glass without even any metal at the bottom?

If that's how they do all of their

 

[cats_Paw]

The real question is, what will be cheaper?
Another brand GPU+separate block or this.

I actually plan to WC a 1070, but you can bet your ... hat that I will go for the cheapest option (within reason).

 

[ron baker]

Is it necessary for these cool running cards? More efficient than ever before.
Also tri + quad SLI no longer supported AFAIK...

 

[RedJaron]

None of the pictures enlarge enough to really tell, but is there any metal at the Inlet Ports?

The picture makes it look like pure Plastic/Glass without even any metal at the bottom?

If that's how they do all of their

Most of EK's blocks are plexi or acetal where the fittings go. The material is plenty tough for it, so long as you don't physically abuse the cards.

Is it necessary for these cool running cards? More efficient than ever before.
Also tri + quad SLI no longer supported AFAIK...

I have a similar thought about these. I think it's less about being "necessary" and more about being compatible out of the box with people's existing liquid cooling solutions when upgrading. With the way that power draw, heat, and dynamic clock speeds are handled in current GPUs, a LC setup helps the card perform more consistently and sometimes even on less power.

And you can run 3- and 4-way SLI with these, you just have to get the card unlocked. NVidia is just saying it's getting less and less useful to run more than two GPUs now ( unless you're chasing benchmark records ).


So, Kevin, when will Fritz and Thomas send me one of these for my review test bed?

 

[manleysteele]

I assume this is the same EKWB block that disables half of the available SLI. Yawn. It's especially confusing since it's obvious that all they would need to do to fix it is cut some plastic away.

How about you wait until you know the facts before chastising them for it.
We have no idea if this block restricts SLI, and there's plenty of reason to believe that it won't be a problem for this card.

EK developed the GTX 1080 block before we knew about the new SLI bridge specifications. MSI and EK worked closely to create this block, so they likely adjusted for the SLI bridge. No reason to assume they didn't just yet.

I took their word for it.

 

[jazzy663]

Part of me hates PC hardware, because I want to upgrade every year and I can't afford it.

 

[gondo]

Looks like EVGA has competition in the pre-waterblocked card division. And MSI has a great reputation for cards, and EKWB for waterblocks. Looks like a winner. EVGA has gotten flack for the quality, installation, and cooling capacity of it's waterblocks.

I'd get one if the price was reasonable. It should be cheaper than a seperate card and blocking it yourself since you're not paying for the heatsink/fan combo, and your getting MSI's buying power for the waterblock. You're just paying for the upgrade to a waterblock over a heatsink/fan. A waterblock should be cheaper than a heatsink anyways as there is more work involved in construction of a heatsink plus the cost of fans.