Conversation
アヅキデス 
coolbean@brain.worm.pink
lowk wish the dtx motherboard format were more common instead of micro atx
i want something short like itx but still 244mm wide to match most 2-fan gpus so no space gets wasted in a small form factor case that still has a normal gpu
i want something short like itx but still 244mm wide to match most 2-fan gpus so no space gets wasted in a small form factor case that still has a normal gpu
1
0
0
(im aware, single fan gpus arent that uncommon but i still loathe them so eat dirt)
1
0
0
like theres plenty of sff cases that are fairly lengthy to fit a regular or even big gpu but still use mini itx boards that cant fit 4 dimm slots and i think thats a waste
then again i also think its silly that we dont just.... finally wisen up and just put sodimm slots on the back of the board
idk maybe its time for the CTX standard that does this and puts sodimm slots right behind the cpu to optimise latency and covers like 3 different common sizes (170x170, 170x244 and 244x244, representing mitx, a somewhat cropped dtx and matx respectively)
fuck man i want to draw up a spec for this now
then again i also think its silly that we dont just.... finally wisen up and just put sodimm slots on the back of the board
idk maybe its time for the CTX standard that does this and puts sodimm slots right behind the cpu to optimise latency and covers like 3 different common sizes (170x170, 170x244 and 244x244, representing mitx, a somewhat cropped dtx and matx respectively)
fuck man i want to draw up a spec for this now
2
0
0
one moment i have to open freecad im ascending rn
0
0
0
@coolbean 2 dimm boards are usually where allt he ram speed records get set funny enough and i've only used more than 2 slots once when i built my mom an office pc from old stuff and slapped both 16gb kits i had in for funsies.
But yeah, itx is shorter than needed for most usecases, still wish the motherboard standard that used mxm succeeded for sff
But yeah, itx is shorter than needed for most usecases, still wish the motherboard standard that used mxm succeeded for sff
2
0
1
@snacks i actually use all 4 rn for 32gb which is why im concerned teehee
1
0
1
@snacks i dont know much about this ill be real
1
0
0
@snacks but i have realised that if im putting the ram on the back the extra width is somewhat unnecessary and that puts me in a bit of a crisis cause i dont have an excuse for 244mm width aside from.... going really crazy like shifting the cpu socket a bit to the right like btx did
1
0
1
@coolbean ram in server motherboards is usually top and/or bottom of the cpu while the vrm is right/left so the heatsink fins are parallel to the bottom. Leads to everything being aligned nicely so air can be blown over it left to right
2
0
1
@snacks i might need your input ur like actually smart about this. im really just trying to optimise for setups where the motherboard is in the middle of the case so the gpu can be on its backside with the fans facing outward pulling outside air through mesh or vents in the case directly
3
0
1
0
0
0
@coolbean crazy standard with angled pcie slot on the back would be cool for this
1
0
1
@snacks cause like... doing anything else is kinda fucking dumb its almost like the atx spec was designed before such a thing as the gtx4090 could even be concieved
1
0
1
@coolbean fans can draw air straight from the outside and putting it in non-angled would just create a bunch of empty space
1
0
1
@coolbean ok, hear me out: the 4090 is actually amazing for sff IF you watercool it. The motherboard is tiny
1
0
1
@snacks oh you mean angled like that, yea thats what i meant. like look up the sirius t50 to get a feel for the sort of layout im going for
1
0
1
@snacks the motherboard is upside down to minimise riser cable length lol
2
0
0
@coolbean yeah, risers are fucky. Had a gpu that just refused to work with them...
0
0
1
@snacks and yea, other side has the gpu mounted vertically drawing air from the outside just like god intended. i think thats the ideal way to mount a gpu. upon further consideration im putting upside down (so the pins are correct) pcie x16 slots on the back right at the top which again minimises distance to the cpu in the same way having sodimm on the back would. also the cpu gets to be central if i remove the dimm slots and can fit a proper 120mm fan
0
0
1
@coolbean i actually just had a good idea. If you put the ram slots of one channel on opposing sides of the motherboard you end up with perfectly even trace lengths, that would be pretty nice
1
0
1
@snacks does it improve performance? if so i might not eliminate the dimm slots on the front even though fitting that 120mm fan and heatsink WOULD make my day
1
0
1
@coolbean it'd improve perf a good bit if all slots are populated and hurt it a bit if only half of them are populated i think. Some motherboards do something similar by runnig the trace to the middle of both slots and then splitting instead of going to one and then the other but not common in consumer stuff because usually only half the slots are populated. Just thought it'd be elegant tbh
1
0
1
@snacks im thinking uhhhh. 4 sodimm slots on the back populating the middle with a pcie x16 slot at the top and maybe expansion pci(e) slots at the bottom but thats optional
2
0
1
@snacks or 2 since that would let you get even closer to the cpu socket
1
0
0
@snacks idk im just.... im thinking faster than i can draft in freecad
im thinking maybe itd be wise to base the design more on the btx spec
oh also a clear specification for heatsink mounting. leaving that for the socket to specify is frankly kind of ridiculous and while most coolers include brackets for both im still annoyed at it
im thinking maybe itd be wise to base the design more on the btx spec
oh also a clear specification for heatsink mounting. leaving that for the socket to specify is frankly kind of ridiculous and while most coolers include brackets for both im still annoyed at it
1
0
1
@coolbean if you make a proper sff standard might consider going 12vo too
1
0
1
@coolbean the ram is really far away and at an angle in btx tho. Really don't wanna copy that i think
0
0
1
@snacks why is that
im not really in the business for sacrificing power. if you wanna throw a watercooled 4090 at it thats a-ok with me
im not really in the business for sacrificing power. if you wanna throw a watercooled 4090 at it thats a-ok with me
1
0
0
@coolbean because youcre trying to send multi ghz signals over a pretty wide bus. More length adds capacitance and inductance and the angle means you gotta snake some around a bunch to get even lengths as at this frequency it does matter a lot that the speed of light is finite
2
0
1
@snacks anyway im trying to read the atx 2.02 spec rn and its in fucking inches i hate my life
2
0
1
@coolbean reading intel specs is never good for your sanity
0
0
2
@snacks i just want to know screw placement and the size of things like the io panel. like how wide is it on the board for instance
1
0
1
@snacks it literally does not specify. its up to the motherboard manufacturers and varies widely based on heatsink design
1
0
0
@snacks i dont have a motherboard with a huge io heatsink to measure so like.... im kinda stuck ngl
0
0
0