Question about having two GPU with NO liquid cooling

Damrs · November 16, 2019

Hello everyone.

Can i have two GPU cards without liquid cooling?

About a year ago I have made my first build following along this video: Intel 7960X 16 Core Computer Build, Setup and Benchmarks for Video Editing - Hal 2.0

The intent was to have a powerful and upgradable desktop for years to come.

My main usage of this build is for photo editing with Photoshop, amateur video editing with DaVinci Resolve and 3D modeling and rendering with Blender and Cycles.

Add some casual gaming down time with old games like Civilization IV or Cities XXL.

This is my setup:

ATX Fractal Design R6 Blackout TG (2x front Intake Dynamic X2 GP-14, 1x rear exhaust Dynamic X2 GP-14)

Asus Prime X299-Deluxe

Intel Core I9 7900X 3.3Ghz

AIO Fractal Design Celsius S36 (intake)

32Gb Vengeance RGB (4x8Gb) DDR4 DRAM 3000Mhz C15

1x Samsung SSD 970 EVO 500Gb NVME M2 (Scratch disk)

1x Samsung SSD 970 PRO 512Gb NVME M2 (Windows 10)

1x Samsung SSD 860 EVO 1Tb SATA II (Storage)

Seasonic Prime 1000W

5x USB External Seagate HDD

1x Asus GTX 1080 Ti ROG Strix 11Gb GDDR5

and i want to add:

1x ASUS RTX 2080 Ti ROG Strix 11Gb GDDR6

The idea behind this is to have the RTX as my main GPU and only use both GPUs with Blender Cycles for short periods of time, like real time viewport rendering for material preview and couple of hours long final renders.

I have no problem with not being able to use NVLink or SLI (maybe later with another RTX) because the sole usage of both GPUs will be in Blender and the software can handle different GPUs for rendering with Cycles.

The RTX would be placed on the top slot and the GTX beneath it. The Thunderbolt card would be removed and the SSD placed elsewhere.

Thanks for the Feedback.

Flying Sausages · November 16, 2019

You can have two gpu with no liquid cooling. It will be much better if two gpu can get liquid cooling.

AndreiArgeanu · November 16, 2019

The only thing to worry about is whether you have the space for both cards and cooling, because if you put both cards close to each other, as neither cards are blower style it basically means that one card will have restricted airflow which means less cooling which means more heat. While water cooling would be ideal as not only does it keep the cards significantly cooler but also reduces the height of the card as well, however it is not a must by any means, just a suggestions if you have the money and the time to spend as it would make perhaps for a fun project if you are into that.

In your use case it is ok as long as you don't plan to use both cards over very long periods of time.

Also one last thing. You can find on ebay, or amazon or other websites, riser cables which would allow you to position one of the cards in an upright position in front of the case which would give the card better airflow but would also make for a better look as you showcase the card.