So as our video cards got enormous and heavy in the past few years, there's very little supporting all that weight. I'm concerned more for the PCI-E slot itself than the card. Aesthetically, it also looks unsightly to have your card clearly sagging down in an otherwise, nice, taut build. I'm currently using a couple black zip ties from the top of my case (Corsair 760T) down to the heat pipe on the corner of my 970. You can barely see it but I may use some fishing line instead (to be even less noticeable). What other methods do you use to support your card(s)?
My Vapor-X is also huge. I've noticed sagging and im using something like this (home made) http://mnpctech.com/gpu-support-bracket/mnpctech-single-gpu-support-bracket-black.html
A back plate is a good option. My video card is absolutely massive in size, and is the biggest GPU I've ever seen, or even heard of. Luckily it comes with a back plate from Zotac, otherwise it would be sagging big time.
contrary to popular belief, backplate does next to nothing to combat sagging and when reviewers say that "this backplate is so sturdy card has no sagging blabla" they are almost always wrong, as sagging increases with time due gravity and constant high temperatures when gaming. all my gpus had next to no sagging when new, but after a month they all sagged at least 1cm at the far end. like poster above said, just use zipties, they are perfect to support your gpu and counter sagging. i also used fishing lines for this, they are very strong and almost invisible if you have side window.
Most PCBs have holes on their edges. Strategically placed zip ties will help a lot. I have a vertical case (Raven RV03), so this is the kind of problem I don't have.
Few layers of black (or some other colour, if case isn't black) heat shrink tubes over the zipties and they look much better for sure, believe me Personally, bare zipties (even black) are fugly as hell for me, especially if case has an plexy window on the left side. With a little effort and few heat shrink tubes over every ziptie they looks much much better, like a prefabricated black tubes. Guess those without case side windows wouldn't care much to mask the zipties, but although most of my builds are without side window I still prefer clean look and to mask everything I coluld even if the case is closed from every side as a coffin.
Well, something like this. Too bad it seemed to be a limited run as a gift for motherboard + graphics card bundles in TW only. I guess a nicely painted and carved chopstick would do too. Edit: Apparently they sell a Gigabyte (which is nicer as it has no labels) version for around $30. Seems to be the same one from the 3X 980 kit.
Before my current GPU, I had two EVGA GTX 980 FTWs. Both of them sagged after a few months, and they had no back plate. I've had my Zotac GTX 980 Ti Amp Extreme for about 3 months now, and it has NO SAG whatsoever, and it's a much larger and heavier card than the EVGA GTX 980 FTW. I can only attribute this to the presence of the back plate..
Oddly enough, I've got the impression that full cover waterblocks also might help battling the sagging, although I can't really compare it directly (haven't got two same cards with only one being under water).
I think backplates can help, but they only help against PCB warping/sagging along the middle of the graphics card (or prevent HSF mounting pressure warping). Backplates will NOT help if sagging is caused by PCB warping/sagging along the PCI-E port or if the PCI-E port itself is deformed due to weight + heat. Furthermore, some backplates are bolted only to the PCB while some are attached to the PCB and the expansion slot bracket.
I love that (MSI) support pictured above! May have to look into that. As mentioned, zipties, even black ones like I'm using, do still look kind of bad when you spent tedious time making your case all pristine. I may try that heatshrink to make it look more like a wire, matching other stuff better. I do like how backplates keep the card from warping. Then my only concern is the weight is still there, overstressing the PCI-E slot. In fact, there's now additional weight with a metal backplate installed. I created a build last week using a cube style case for the first time. I like how the motherboard lays down flat and the GPU sits on top of it. Sag will never be an issue in that rig.
yup zipties seem to be working fine for me, I am only worried now that it may melt since its too close to the heatsink
Use a piece of acrilic. I have a inverted ATX case ... sagging is not a issue for me, but sometimes if i move the case, my cards get disconnected and the system crash.
