Novel Idea for Motherboards

[Joshua]

Will make building harder for Novices, something like that must be pretty finicky and need precision. I'm sure motherboard manufacturers have looked at possible ways of customizing a motherboard further, and some things are just impractical.

[Art Vandelay]

I wouldn't say hard but i see your point. Ordinary people that use PCs will be afraid to do such an intervention.

It's a bit finicky. With motherboard coolers that have heat pipes, it's not going to be an easy job to get 2 or 3 heat sources mounted to the cooler properly. Some motherboards also use TIM on the south bridge and PLX (if they have one), which would make it even harder to do.

 

I really don't see them selling different colored heat sinks. A normal user is never going to do that.

[ofr057]

i just wish someone would make a beige or tone deaf motherboard to go with my beige 900d

[Art Vandelay]

i just wish someone would make a beige or tone deaf motherboard to go with my beige 900d

Are you going for the 1990s IBM look to your PC?

[unidentical]

I like the idea, not even swappable heatsinks but if you could bolt on accents like the corsair dominator platinum with the replaceable light bars, just with a little alan key, that would be super slick.

[gliliumho]

I actually thought about making the back panel customizable so we can just put whatever ports that we need. Like some people would prefer 2 ethernet ports instead of like 10 USB 2.0 ports or some other stuff.

[vkadurin]

I actually thought about making the back panel customizable so we can just put whatever ports that we need. Like some people would prefer 2 ethernet ports instead of like 10 USB 2.0 ports or some other stuff.

I don't think it is possible.

[Hyydrah]

So while I was showering before I had an amazing idea that I'm unaware any motherboard has done. So before I say what it is I'll saw what my inspiration was.... (oh the suspense :)

Now we all know Corsair makes fans now right? We all know that Corsair's AF and SP have those replacement rings? (blue, red, white)

Well here is the idea that I'm interested in hearing everyone's thought (would be awesome reading what Slick/Linus would say) on.

What if motherboard manufacture's included swappable coloured plates for the heatsinks ie: Northbridge and Southbridge much like the rings on Corsair's fans that the end user could either paint/anodize and than install onto the heatsink?

So there it is thoughts?

Personally I would consider a ROG board if the heatsinks weren't red. The board would preferably have matte black pcb/dimm slots/sata ports/pcie slots but that's alot to ask for :)

So discussion??

Have them be purchasable much like how Corsair sells multiple cable colors for their PSUs. Also, motherboards typically have colored PCI-E slots for instance, so simply switching the heatsinks would result in a strange look on most motherboards.

[That Norwegian Guy]

Including many heatsinks in the package will increase the price. But maybe selling different color heatsinks separatelly is not a bad idea.

 

What's worse is that it's incredibly environmentally unfriendly, borderline morally reprehensible. Though the OP was talking about covers, presumably in plastic, which I could understand.

[Optimus Prime]

Just letting you put metal trims of different colors on the heat sinks would be better than letting you replace the whole heat sink. Replacing motherboard heat sinks is pretty hard to do.

 

 

I like the idea, not even swappable heatsinks but if you could bolt on accents like the corsair dominator platinum with the replaceable light bars, just with a little alan key, that would be super slick.

 

Yeah I said PLATES not the whole heatsink itself. So the colours of the actual heatsink but the heatsink remains the same. Sort of like clipping on a plate that goes over the heatsink or into a special slot.

 

 

What's worse is that it's incredibly environmentally unfriendly, borderline morally reprehensible. Though the OP was talking about covers, presumably in plastic, which I could understand.

 

Fair enough, even if they only allow you to remove the coloured "plate", the end user could colour it themselves if they desired

[Art Vandelay]

What's worse is that it's incredibly environmentally unfriendly, borderline morally reprehensible. Though the OP was talking about covers, presumably in plastic, which I could understand.

Well, it's probably about as environmentally unfriendly as drinking bottled water.

[That Norwegian Guy]

Well, it's probably about as environmentally unfriendly as drinking bottled water.

 

Not really, copper is one of the most wasted resources on earth, it is deprecated in huge quantities every year and one day VERY SOON we are simply going to run out of it, so optional heatsinks made out of it is like the most bonkers request I've ever heard.

 

Of course, Aluminium is still an option - and in later years it has taken over much more. But motherboards are one of the few things that still often use copper for cooling.

[Art Vandelay]

Not really, copper is one of the most wasted resources on earth, it is deprecated in huge quantities every year and one day VERY SOON we are simply going to run out of it, so optional heatsinks made out of it is like the most bonkers request I've ever heard.

 

Of course, Aluminium is still an option - and in later years it has taken over much more. But motherboards are one of the few things that still often use copper for cooling.

Aren't most motherboard heat sinks made out of aluminum?

 

Besides, motherboard heat sinks don't use much metal, compared to things that are normally made out of copper.

[That Norwegian Guy]

Aren't most motherboard heat sinks made out of aluminum?

 

Besides, motherboard heat sinks don't use much metal, compared to things that are normally made out of copper.

 

Maybe now they are. Haven't really been sifting through many recent generation motherboards. But back in the Core2Duo days I'm sure every single motherboard was mostly copper. Like my Asus P5E. But so many motherboards have painted heatsinks these days. I bet the ROG boards are copper, just because of the price.

[Optimus Prime]

Aluminium would work, imagine linus going gaga over anodized heatsink accents?

[Froggyy0]

Angled connector on the motherboard is only good when you plug your cables in from behind the motherboard tray (in a case that supports routing the cables that way). It would be much much worse for people who don't run cables that way to use angled motherboard connectors than it would be for the rest of you to use the straight connector.

Angle-able connectors. I've seen them on USB cables, basicly, just a hinge.

[Froggyy0]

I'd like to see 90 degree 24 pin connectors. All black MoBo's (Black PCB and Black Heatsinks) That you then buy the coloured heatsinks and replace them!

[Optimus Prime]

I'd like to see 90 degree 24 pin connectors. All black MoBo's (Black PCB and Black Heatsinks) That you then buy the coloured heatsinks and replace them!

thats an ideal world, this one isnt. we come close with the z77 mpower (which was my mobo inspiration)

[mumbojumbogumbo]

Best idea for a motherboard would be a right angle 24pin, I DONT UNDERSTAND WHY THEY DONT DO IT

 

Angled connector on the motherboard is only good when you plug your cables in from behind the motherboard tray (in a case that supports routing the cables that way). It would be much much worse for people who don't run cables that way to use angled motherboard connectors than it would be for the rest of you to use the straight connector.

 

I'd like to see 90 degree 24 pin connectors. All black MoBo's (Black PCB and Black Heatsinks) That you then buy the coloured heatsinks and replace them!

 

You guys are all completely missing the big point. All 24-pin headers and USB headers are placed differently on every motherboard. Which means that they won't line up with the cable mounting hole in every case, which would look really bad and the cable will have to bend a significant amount to get it into a cable routing hole.

 

Let's take my set up as an example:

 

Notice how the 24-pin cable is not next to a hole. If my D3H had a right-angled 24-pin plug, the 24-pin would be extremely awkward to route properly. You could say that I could route the 24-pin cable around the whole tray, but unless your 24-pin cable is custom sleeved, most stock cable sleevings are super stiff and it will not go around the tray comfortably.

[gliliumho]

I don't think it is possible.

Maybe the ports will have to be attached to slots connected to USB controllers while HDMI will be connected to CPU. 

Will probably need a lot more engineering and cost a lot more on controllers and so on.

[Guest]

Moved to motherboards

[BeyondNight]

Well its a good idea, but would cost a lot to have multiple coloured hunks of metal, and anyone that really wants a different heatsink colour can just take them off and either anodize them or paint them, id be more interested in things like leds  that are integrated being switchable and PCB covers like on the sabertooth boards in different colours.

[joelthezombie15]

Or just an ALL white motherboard thats all i ask. i can read i can figure out where to put ram.

[joelthezombie15]

I'd like to see 90 degree 24 pin connectors. All black MoBo's (Black PCB and Black Heatsinks) That you then buy the coloured heatsinks and replace them!

BAM... http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813188120

 

right angle 24 pin

[Optimus Prime]

Well its a good idea, but would cost a lot to have multiple coloured hunks of metal, and anyone that really wants a different heatsink colour can just take them off and either anodize them or paint them, id be more interested in things like leds that are integrated being switchable and PCB covers like on the sabertooth boards in different colours.

the advantage would be that it would simplify and make it more accessible for the end user but your points are valid