Waterblock installation:
Removing the cooling system:
Well, it is now time to install this Eisblock Aurora Acryl GPX-N waterblock. Please note that we have previously performed a series of tests in order to measure the benchmark performance. The idea is also to measure the temperature of the different components of our NVIDIA RTX 3080 Founder Edition. Before starting the installation of the Alphacool waterblock, we have to remove the original cooling system of our graphics card.
Given the complexity of the task we will detail as much as possible this disassembly. We start by removing the magnetic covers of the backplate with tape. Then we remove the cover with a plastic tool. We recommend the small ifixit kit at 9,99 € to have all the necessary accessories.
Then you have to remove the eight screws of this backplate and come to separate it smoothly. It remains only to remove the four screws of the PCIe bracket.
Then we can move on to the removal of the boards and connectors. Take a plastic tool. Unlock the connectors and pull on the cables by passing the tool underneath.
The board is almost disassembled, it remains only to remove the fixation of the radiator by going gradually in a cross.
To disassemble, put pressure on the PCB and let gravity do the rest, the radiator will come off by itself.
A cleaning and it is good. To remove traces of thermal paste, you can use a charcoal eraser. This also works well for cleaning anodized aluminum radiators stained by thermal paste.
Waterblock installation:
Let’s now move on to the assembly of the waterblock. First of all, we have to put the thermal pads in place and then spread the thermal paste on the chip.
Then you need to place the PCB on the waterblock and tighten the screws crosswise gradually. At this stage it is better to disassemble it again to judge the application of the thermal paste. If everything is good we can go back and place the thermal pads and the backplate. The PCIe bracket is placed between the PCB and the backplate.
Here is an example of a good application of thermal paste. We take this opportunity to congratulate Alphacool for the perfect contact with the chip.
The waterblock is now mounted. This one makes the card very compact. It will be perfect for use in a small SFF configuration. The only problem is that the backplate protrudes a lot. It is therefore impossible to access the locket on the motherboard because of this. A notch in this area would have been welcome.
