I need some help with my computer build. A friend put it together for me, but I don't want to bother them since they just had a baby. It's a small form factor case with a fan at the bottom. I recently bought an ASUS TUF Gaming RTX 5070 Ti, but I realized it doesn't connect to the case fan and it's too big for my setup. I'm returning it for a smaller option that will fit better. The case is a Ncase M1 v5.0, though I'm unsure if the case fans are the original ones. They seem compatible with my current NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080. Any advice on graphics cards with embedded fans or other options? My budget is around $1000, and I recently upgraded my PSU to 850W for my i9 chip. I'm not too savvy with hardware comparisons, so any help would be awesome!
3 Answers
Just to clarify, case fans don’t connect to the graphics card; they usually plug into the motherboard or a fan hub. The TUF 5070 Ti is normal size, but for that Ncase M1, you might want to check the exact GPU clearance. There's a chance you might need to remove the bottom fan if there’s a fitting problem. The GPU’s own fans will pull in air from the bottom, which can be better without additional turbulence from the case fans.
Definitely check your GPU length. The Ncase M1 is picky, and you generally want to stick to designs that are meant for small form factors, like the mini versions of the newer cards. And yeah, case fans are separate from GPU fans, which is why you didn’t find a connector. You’ll usually need to connect those directly to a motherboard header instead. Happy building!
Removing the bottom case fans sounds like a simple solution if the graphics card is too big. Also, for your future GPU choice, look for something under 270mm if you can. Cards like the ASUS Dual RTX 4070 or the Gigabyte Windforce 4070 are shorter and would be a great upgrade from your 1080, fitting nicely in that case. Just remember to check how long a GPU you can fit in there!
Good call! Those cards are definitely SFF-friendly, and you'll notice a huge performance boost. Just ensure you have the right cooling setup!
If you remove the bottom fan, just make sure there’s still enough ventilation. New GPUs draw a lot more power, and having good airflow is vital!