How bad of an issue is GPU sagging and should we really spend on products like support struts?

[Schnipey]

My Gamerock 3090 Palit came with a really nice one!
(If you dont need the remaining pcie slots )

 

[Vayra86]

This is the first year I have used a gpu support. With these cards getting larger and heavier I decided why not...

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Wuut. 6x outtake fans? Are you building a vacuum cleaner? Or are some of those intake?

 

[67Elco]

Wuut. 6x outtake fans? Are you building a vacuum cleaner? Or are some of those intake?

3 exhaust, 3 intake

 

[Toothless]

Red Devil cards like.. require a support with the weight. 4.8 pounds.

 

[plat]

This is purely anecdotal but my ASUS DUAL rtx 4070 replaced my gtx 1080 Founders--same motherboard and everything. The 1080 weighed substantially more than the 4070 and I had it installed for about 3 years. No sag whatsoever. Currently, the 4070 is sitting snugly in there since end of April and no sag yet.

I'm always concerned about this--it's quite unattractive, even for a working class PC like mine, but I don't want any compromise to the slot it's in either. But I don't stress. Besides, the gpu is much lighter than the 1080. Even so, Amazon has some inexpensive braces and if it can't wait, I can find something around here to prop it up in the meantime. So maybe OP can look into an 8 USD anti-sag brace, even if it's not immediately needed.

 

[Dr. Dro]

I personally have serious concerns about sagging. Most high-end 40 series GPUs are very, very heavy and physically large. My card came with a support, but I figured the best way to run it was vertically - so I put my frame in bench mode. That way any and all pressure on the slot or PCB is eliminated.

 

[Princess Garnet]

This case was running unopened now for I think about 4 months. Dust is pretty much absent. -> also for that airflow topic lol

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Were our PCs separated at birth?

I never use the RGB lighting but I turned it on for the comparison picture to yours.

I had the G2 but I had to send it in for RMA and since it's long out of production, EVGA replaced it with a G5. But same case, same EVGA PSU, a Be Quiet cooler, a Radeon, and the hard drive cage removed. My support differs though. And on topic, yes, it's increasingly been a concern of mine to combat gravity with graphics cards getting bigger and heavier. I wouldn't feel comfortable using mine without support, and reading some other replies shocks me since mine is only half the wight of some others!? Yikes. I like the bracket Sapphire includes functionally, but it's a bit of a pain to install.

It's becoming more uncommon to see the Arc Midi in the wild these days! I don't ever want to have to replace this case. I'm dreading if I have to because finding non-glass side panels limits the choices a lot already. And yes! Dust doesn't exist for this case! My old graphics card was an EVGA GTX 1060 with a really tame fan curve and that card in this case just never picked up dust because it barely got cleaned throughout its seven years, yet it was never too dusty.

Speaking of the case and dust, how do you clean the filters? Fractal recommends washing it (I think... it's been years since I checked). Do you just do that? I've never washed mine (gasp?). I've always done my best with canned air or a vacuum although it never does a full job of it. I've sort of shrugged at it since it's not impeding airflow enough to cause it to overheat.

 

[Dr. Dro]

Were our PCs separated at birth?

I never use the RGB lighting but I turned it on for the comparison picture to yours.

I had the G2 but I had to send it in for RMA and since it's long out of production, EVGA replaced it with a G5. But same case, same EVGA PSU, a Be Quiet cooler, a Radeon, and the hard drive cage removed. My support differs though. And on topic, yes, it's increasingly been a concern of mine to combat gravity with graphics cards getting bigger and heavier. I wouldn't feel comfortable using mine without support, and reading some other replies shocks me since mine is only half the wight of some others!? Yikes. I like the bracket Sapphire includes functionally, but it's a bit of a pain to install.

It's becoming more uncommon to see the Arc Midi in the wild these days! I don't ever want to have to replace this case. I'm dreading if I have to because finding non-glass side panels limits the choices a lot already. And yes! Dust doesn't exist for this case! My old graphics card was an EVGA GTX 1060 with a really tame fan curve and that card in this case just never picked up dust because it barely got cleaned throughout its seven years, yet it was never too dusty.

Speaking of the case and dust, how do you clean the filters? Fractal recommends washing it (I think... it's been years since I checked). Do you just do that? I've never washed mine (gasp?). I've always done my best with canned air or a vacuum although it never does a full job of it. I've sort of shrugged at it since it's not impeding airflow enough to cause it to overheat.

Such a nice, clean build with excellent cable management, I love it congrats

 

[R0H1T]

I don't wanna post the "bad cable" management pics inside a spacious case, any ways this is what I use ~

Spoiler

 

[Hyderz]

my school desktop gpu has a 3-4 degree on the end... but it still works... just tried resident evil 2 remake the other day..
not gonna bother with making it straight with some support pillar since the machine is gonna retire in 2025 when the w10 supports end

 

[Avro Arrow]

It completely depends on the card because some cards have a design that circumvents the need for support struts.

I don't know who else does this but ASRock builds their cards with strong steel spinal brackets that eliminate sag. My ASRock RX 7900 XTX Phantom Gaming OC is a big, heavy card but it doesn't sag at all:

The black steel part on the left with the two screws is ASRock's spinal bracket and it is fastened to the I/O plate with two more screws.

As you can see here, the spinal support bracket runs more than half the length of the card (where most of the card's weight resides) and it holds the card perfectly rigid.

I don't know what other AIB partners use something similar but I'd be shocked if ASRock was the only one who does this.

 

[cvaldes]

I use the Lian Li ones that mount onto the motherboard standoff's. Can't see it when installed unless know where to look & know it is there (if aesthetics are key). Holds my 3080ti level perfectly & cannot slip as fits into actual screw holes on the "meccano" strip.

I have one of those as well.

However it only fits on ATX motherboards and it does not provide any support to the leading edge of the card (the top of the GPU). Still it's better than nothing and the aesthetics are arguably better than a stack of Lego bricks or a cocktail straw.

It also requires a motherboard that provides adequate clearance underneath support strut. My ROG Strix B550-E accommodates it but I'm not sure if every single ATX motherboard will.

 

[Frick]

Red Devil cards like.. require a support with the weight. 4.8 pounds.

My card weighs 2.41Kg (5.31 pounds) and it has very little sag.

 

[Ware]

I think it's not a bad idea to support a heavy GPU. I wouldn't spend too much on it, and sometimes there is a cheap fix...
Meshify C with built-in GPU support...

Before putting a 140 under the GPU, I had cut the top off an old 120 fan and attached it to the fan mount point for a GPU support.

Most cards with good backplates are stiff as hell now, but you're hanging 3-4 pounds off a really a flimsy piece of metal at the back and putting stress on the socket in 2 directions and then exposing it to repeated heat cycles. I haven't seen a failure from warping, but I have seen many GPUs and MBs become warped and I try to avoid this condition in my personal equipment.

 

[Vario]

I'd just say prop it and never think about it again. Props don't cost much (or anything because there's probably some random object in your vicinity that can prop it).

 

[Toothless]

My card weighs 2.41Kg (5.31 pounds) and it has very little sag.

I have your card. It weights less than the Red Devil just by holding both cards so someone somewhere messed up.

 

[harm9963]

Why take a chance ,not me , when you spend almost $2000 !

I'd just say prop it and never think about it again. Props don't cost much (or anything because there's probably some random object in your vicinity that can prop it).

I just use what came with my 4090 .

 

[freeagent]

I use the one that came with my case, but modified it a bit so that I can use sata ports if I need to

 

[Steevo]

My card came with a tension bracket that does the same thing.

 

[P4-630]

I prefer GPU's that don't sag... Mine doesn't...

 

[Toothless]

I prefer GPU's that don't sag... Mine doesn't...

I've had smaller cards than yours sag. In reality anything can be a bit droopy.

 

[P4-630]

My previous GTX 1070 did sag a bit though...

 

[freeagent]

I have been lucky, my 970FTW, 980 Classified, 3070Ti and 4070Ti do not need support, but my 580 MP was really bad.

 

[Princess Garnet]

It completely depends on the card because some cards have a design that circumvents the need for support struts.

As you can see here, the spinal support bracket runs more than half the length of the card (where most of the card's weight resides) and it holds the card perfectly rigid.

My personal concern isn't just with the card itself bending a bit (though that is also a concern), but more with all the weight these larger and heavier cards are putting on the PCI Express slot.

Apparently my current one (just under 1,600 grams) is maybe but half of what some of the very heavy ones are, and I'm still concerned to the point I wouldn't use it without support. Anything that extends the length of an ATX motherboard and then about a quarter more of that length beyond, and is three slots, that is the point where I'd not want to go without support.

 

[arbiter]

My previous GTX 1070 did sag a bit though...

my GTX1080 which had this one since 2017 hasn't shown any signs of sag.
as note its "EVGA GeForce GTX 1080 SC GAMING ACX 3.0"
Any sag issue likely be more like from the ones with massive coolers on them which likely be the high end cards like 4090. If i had one i would probably get a piece of wood cut it down to be probably half inch by half inch. get some rubber feet pads for each side to give support down to the bottom of my case. That is just me being little more paranoid on things like that and heat then most.