I just recently fitted an EK-Quantum Vector backplate to my RTX 3090.
However I realized during the fitting of the waterblock that there are several VRMs and VRAM on the back of the PCB that were originally attached to the back-plate of the stock cooler for passive cooling…
I realized as well that EK offers a backplate (I would include a link but I can’t post it) which they say is Asthetic but also provides “passive” cooling to these modules. Frankly if this is needed I feel ripped off and that EK has been seriously negligent sending out a cooler without including the backplate with it…
My question is do I need to worry about these? My personal thinking is normally VRMs I wouldn’t however memory seriously makes me hesitate. My last card was GTX 1080 which didn’t have any memory etc on the back of the PCB so I didn’t think it would be an issue. While they are fine for normal desktop operation they do get very hot to the touch during gaming…?
Don’t take entirely my word for it, but there seem to be a few “cheaper” 3090s were the backplate does not passively cool. However, I also know that these modules do get rather hot and cooling them naturally increases longevity. Just have a look at GN’s 3090 reviews, there aren’t that many of them. This should provide a better answer than anything I have written.
Went through all GN’s videos on the 3090 and there wasn’t much info on the thermals of the rear VMs, memory etc sadly.
Frankly I am tempted to buy a bunch of the heatsyncs for the Raspberry PI and put those on instead as they are probably a dam site cheaper than paying EK for the backplate…
Some do but there is no guarantee, the original one is also much bigger in area than the PCB and water block itself though.
I am tempted to modify it and place it in place using the thermal pads but don’t want to ruin the original back plate in case I need to send the product back or something…
So I ended up caving and buying the backplate so waiting for that to arrive. Would rather spend $40 on a backplate than the small risk of damaging an expensive piece of equipment…
In the mean time however, dodgy solution of using thermal pads with a cut up heatsink I pulled from a broken Wireless AP…
