Unpacking the WireView:
The packaging of our copy of the Wireview 12 is similar to that of Thermal Grizzly’s other products. It’s enclosed in a plastic pouch in the brand’s colors, which is visually very effective. All Thermal Grizzly products are delivered in a closed envelope, with a zip to close it after opening. The idea is certainly to optimize preservation. On the back, you’ll find technical data in no less than 10 languages.
We also received two Kryonaut Extreme thermal paste kits, which we’ll be testing during our next liquid nitrogen session.
Once the pouch has been opened, we find a small box bearing the Thermal Grizzly logo, containing our WireView 12 and an instruction manual. We’ll see later that, although the WireView has just one OLED screen, it can display several types of data. This consumption meter was developed in collaboration with Jon alias Elmor, who also has his own store (ElmorLabs) where we’ve already purchased several products, including the KTH thermometer.
There’s a male and a female 12VHPWR connector. This is a bridge between the power supply cable and the graphics card, which will allow various information to be read. Its shape is not insignificant, since its U-shape is also designed to optimize power cable routing. If your GPU is positioned horizontally in your case, it will rest on the backplate of your graphics card.
The OLED screen is clearly visible, as is a push-button on the side for navigating the various options offered by this WireView. All you need to do is follow the instructions to find out how to access all the data.
The WireView: one tool, but several models!
The WireView comes in several models, depending on the number and type of supply connectors: 6-pin, 8-pin or 12-pin. What’s more, it’s available in “Normal” or “Reverse” versions. It’s the notch position of your power connector that determines which version you need. The “Normal” model corresponds to what we’re used to having, i.e. the notch is oriented towards the inside of the PCB.
If the notch is facing the inside of the PCB, then you’ll need to turn to a “Reverse” WireView. This is perhaps the trickiest part, because if, like us, you want to use it to compare graphics cards, you’ll need each model, and then the bill could be high. You’ll understand better when you see the installation photos.
WireView 12 installation:
Nothing too complicated, just plug the WireView module directly into your graphics card’s power connector. Make sure you order the one that’s compatible with your graphics card. Here you can see it installed on our NVIDIA RTX 4060 Ti in Founders Edition.
Please note: as Thermal Grizzly clearly states, if you use an adapter with three 8-pin connectors on the 12VHPWR module, the 3 8-pin cables must be independent cables and not Y-shaped. In our case, no problem, as we’re using a 12VHPWR cable directly from our Corsair power supply.
A long press moves you vertically, a quick press horizontally. It’s really easy to get the hang of. By default, you’ll get a real-time display of consumption, but you can also get more details on the next screen (consumption, voltage and amperage), then minimum and maximum consumption and finally average consumption.