ASUS ROG Strix Vega 64 Tear-Down, Cooler, & PCB

[@GamersNexus]

Our Vega 64 VRM analysis is done and will go up within the next few days! We might have another Coffee Lake piece first, but it's coming.

[@dogtime7061]

I heard from level1linux that the Vega 64 outperforms the 1080ti on Linux using open source drivers. I'm curious how it performs compared to a 1080ti on windows. Do you think that's something you can look into?

[@BeastOrGod]

You good chaps, not even mad about the stolen card? good show, good show

[@nathans3022]

Be careful. AMD says be careful or don't remove the TIM between the Vega die and HBM stacks as the interposer is very "fragile". lol. www.tomshardware.com/news/amd-vega-package-problem,35281.html

[@Wingnut353]

In general it is slower with the current drivers. I'd take level1linux with a grain of salt for now, give it another month or so for things to shake out on the open source drivers as they not yet stable and like he said FPS numbers don't meant a lot on unstable drivers as they can be broken in areas that speed up rendering but cause it to render incorrectly... I think the 1080ti is probably alot slower on Linux vs windows as well whereas the Vega card probably runs similarly on Windows and Linux. Nvidia tends to integrate with Linux graphics stack poorly as it is closed source... so things like slow 2d dragging of windows (like slide show) isn't unheard of even on a 1080ti.

[@noenken]

2.5 slots? Pfff, this is how it's done! forum.level1techs.com/uploads/default/original/3X/6/9/6991b11fbd7764ba61b1dc865b39a6d64345fc86.jpg

[@gabrielofpark]

I do like these tear downs i find them strangely satisfying. Thanks Steve.

[@rippeduprunway811]

That Tech Deals reference is the best thing I've seen all day

[@Sackboy612]

RippedUpRunway When did he say it? It's for late me and I'm planning to watch this tomorrow but I'm shocked that he mentioned tech deals!

[@rippeduprunway811]

After the end credits

[@Sackboy612]

RippedUpRunway Thank you

[@claimedlizard3209]

i laughed so hard lmfao

[@Sackboy612]

Hello and welcome to tech deeeaals!

[@tstokemb]

Either he's small or gpus are getting huge

[@gearz2570]

ikr

[@techyescity]

lol waiting now for the Tech Deals response :p, ohhh please be a diss track.

[@TechShowdown]

lol that end though

[@ZAGAN-OZ]

Thanks for sharing that. Would have left.

[@L2Xenta]

boner .

[@JamesSmith-dn8lb]

Where is teddy

[@MidnightBanshi]

That......was...EPIC!

[@heinzbecker691]

hello and welcome to tech deals😂👍

[@Arashmickey]

Great tech deal, tech deals guy!

[@StalewindFarto]

Tech Deals mentioned that he appreciated the ending. Pretty damn funny! Send him a shirt so he can review it.

[@Feralwarlord666]

considering how good the referenced pcb is I'm of the opinion that the aftermarket cards could get away with using a custom cooler on the reference pcb

[@mikecrapse5285]

owen barrett yeah, just need custom bios

[@blackknight50277621]

the ref PCB is the most optimized, AMD always overbuilds their ref PCBs, all of my beastly clocked 7970-290 were ref cooler/pcb ones

[@Mr1Tanker]

LOL at your Tech Deals imitation!

[@GamersNexus]

Why does everyone think everything is a beef? It's a joke.

[@smokeydops]

burgers are so common Steve, and they usually have beef on them

[@MidnightBanshi]

They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Loved how well he got TD's intro spot on!

[@StalewindFarto]

TD thought it was funny.

[@HectorDomino.]

Another awesome video from a awesome channel. Thanks a ton for Tear-Down videos Steve. These are really informative and helpful. Cheers!

[@WestCoastMole]

Thanks for the teardown. With the price of DDR Memory soaring out of sight HBM might actually start to look attractive.

[@Nesformers]

The card just looks absolutely gigantic in your hands. Awesome teardown though, informative and thorough.

[@kmg501]

All shipped items comes to me via a reception desk. Apparently that counts for something. Maybe you should setup a relationship with a local shipping/receiving company which are common in metro areas.

[@wargamingrefugee9065]

I couldn't figure out why this card had no memory. So, I went on the ASUS website and the card they displayed had memory modules exactly where I figured they should be located. Then, I came back to this video and confirmed the memory modules were absent. The lesson learned, thanks Google, is that H.B.M. means High Bandwidth Memory. The memory on this card is placed adjacent to the graphics chip and in contact with the heat sink. (All of that now makes sense with his statement that DDR5 memory has been done away with.) Good video, I was forced to learn, which is always a good thing. :^)

[@pickleadaykeepsthedoctoraway]

AMD was pretty much forced to use HBM due to power concerns. People aren't happy with power consumption on Vega 64, imagine how bad it would be if it used over 400w TDP...

[@wewillrockyou1986]

Strange that they wouldn't wrap the VRM around the side of the GPU package... I'd think it would allow much more consistent distances from the chokes to the package along the power plane and would use the board space a bit better.

[@neardood1]

Good to see asus kept its dual 4 pin fans. Handy feature that.

[@johntotten4872]

Great video. Hey Steve I was wondering which shirt was the unboxing shirt? ;) Paul mentioned it.... lol

[@mattfactor5278]

i have the same card. out off the box run hot and loud. undervolt it, the same thing, vrm was like in 110c, hbm in 85c, core at 75c and throttle a lot, i have meshify c case whit 3 noctua nf f12 fans at the front so airflow is not a problem. then i take the card a part. this yellow thermal pad is to nerrow and to thin, so i change it the same whit the pad under the face plate. then i take backplate down and put 2.5mm thermal pad on other side off the vrm acting as a passive cooling. put some thermal grizzly kryonaut paste on chip and hbm, put it back together and not vrm runs at 90c at max, core at 70c hbm at 75c. this is my second asus gpu and it is still one off the worst amd partner card, i have a asus strix 390. total garbage. run hot 94c. o asus is still expensive and bad build card for amd gpu-s. for nVidia is different story. so moral off the story: dont buy asus amd card. you are better whit sapphire or power color. whit asus you pay for brand and the rgb bling. keep good work steve. peace

[@xzibitionut7672]

I have same problem with vega 64 realy hot 90c

[@joaomarques7825]

Xzibit Ionut i have one saphiree and i dont have any problem

[@brianvo42]

someone is selling a asus vega 64 oc for $300 brand new, should I bite?

[@mattfactor5278]

@@brianvo42 yes and no. If you can get 5700 or 5700xt for similar price than no, but if 5700 and 5700xt are expensive in your regin than get rx Vega. But you need good psu for Vega

[@snactimusmaximus]

I can't help but feel like you were happy to talk about the dozen 1080ti's you've tested but apologetic for w/e reason for reviewing your 4th Vega... less if you count the model versions...

[@GamersNexus]

You're looking for something where it doesn't exist. We have only reviewed one Vega card and are very much looking forward to this one, but it was two months straight of non-stop Vega coverage, so yes, there was a bit of overload there for our audience.

[@snactimusmaximus]

Glad to hear it, genuinely! Edit: good video btw, thanks!

[@Alm8hoorOW]

I can’t help but feel like you’re an AMD fanboy. Fanboyism doesn’t make sense especially when it comes to technological devices. AMD aren’t your friends, they’re a business just like Nvidea. They want your money, period.

[@2boostedsilverado]

That @TechDeals ending was the Cherry to the pie.... lmao

[@David-mj7gz]

undervolting and overclocking benchmarks on this model?

[@GamersNexus]

Soon! Maybe not undervolting, but the rest.

[@David-mj7gz]

Awesome!

[@williamsrussell1]

buildzoid , is that him with the bird nest hair ?

[@RighteousBruce]

Steve seemed happier than normal lol

[@DestroyerFather]

nice looking Vega good video man

[@MazeFrame]

Aftermarket vega cards I could find: Asus Strix Vega56 Asus Strix Vega64 This is hell!

[@EvilWiffles]

Thank you for the new card!

[@kingofnfsfan]

I hope i can get a Asus Vega56 when it's out.

[@MrSeon123]

Asus could've made the VRM an L-shape, and made the PCB narrower. Why didn't they? Wouldn't it make more sense to make it easier for the air to flow past the PCB?

[@ActuallyHardcoreOverclocking]

it is still technically an L shape

[@MrSeon123]

I guess. But with like more of the phases on the short side. Does it make it easier for LN2 or something? Having more space?

[@Astravall]

I think it is because of the cooler Design. They use the same (? or at least a pretty similar) cooler as on the 1080Ti. Seams like the heatpipes would be in the way to cool an L-Shape VRM bank efficently.

[@Mike_Hogsheart]

Somebody once told me AMD's gonna roll me I ain't the sharpest tool in the shed It was looking kinda strange with it's VRMs arranged In the shape of an L on it's circuits …

[@Nanorisk]

This PCB layout is almost identical to a Strix 1080ti, sans the memory chips around the chip. Rearranging the chocks will mean a different PCB layout and heat sink design, that’s too much work for very little gain.

[@Orderdrake]

Man i hope they make a 56 strix.

[@Puliscisubito]

At less than 450€ would be perfect

[@TheMrFagan]

I have what I believe is a reference model 64. It does not want to work. He got scammed by Newegg believing it was new and it wasn’t. The card only works with my custom fan curves, but fights to stay on under maybe 1/4 of its max load. Without the fan curve it doesn’t usually crashes just at idle. When I start a game, without the fan curves it crashes. If I play the game (csgo) I have to cap the fps at 130 or else it will black screen. Maintaining the 130 fps the fan must be sitting from 80-100 percent which sounds like a small RC jet engine or something. I’d be grateful for some help, I replaced the therm pads and applied new paste which didn’t help. I have new drivers ( tried Arden and pro drivers) updated mb bios.. still having same problems. The board is a meg x570 unify, 3950x on it, 64gb 3200 MHz ram, 1000w platinum psu. I suspect the case airflow isn’t sufficient. If I use my old gtx 960 the pc will run for days but has turned off before which I’d assume is due to the case ventilation. I set a thermal limit on the cpu (85c) and it hasn’t turned off with the 960 since.

[@oldgamergene5712]

Loved the video - but hey, I am used to seeing big chips of memory - so where are they - what is this n00b missing?

[@EFRANEED]

pls...Test the Poseidon, i would like to see to see how it does against all the others 1080 ti.

[@fraserskomorowski2311]

Will you test liquid metal TIM as an option of this card?

[@mkgriff1492]

Fraser Skomorowski Did you not see the GPU die. It's surrounded by small compactors.... What will happen if you get liquid metal on them? You get a fried GPU.

[@alexli1614]

Would like to know if there will be a performance review for this card, after the tear-down and VRM analysis videos?

[@letholetho7843]

not every mosfet is probably cooled, be sure to check the toppest mosfet's temp.

[@peterconnell2496]

While you have the cover off, can you find any evidence of an nvme port on the circuitry of the card? There is provision for them in the vega spec, and as we see in the vega pro ssg cards.

[@SzymekCRX]

2021 and I'm still buiyng them :)

[@cidjonas]

That was a funny ending XD

[@BoredErica]

When the coolers are tested btw, are the clocks/power targets held constant?

[@billsamoy]

Coil whine is a major factor for those cards. The Asus strix Rx 580 was a total disaster in terms of acoustics during mid-high load. Hope they do it right this time.

[@Dangerman-zg3ui]

Will the review include undervolting results?

[@catgone]

15:15 you should use that intro lol

[@Javierm0n0]

That's a lot of empty space at the top. Not sure why they didn't flank the gpuwith the vrm

[@Pienimusta]

3:09, call 911, shots fired

[@lykourgakhs]

im early.. so lets drop a like.. add to watch later.. and go to sleep..

[@bradmoye4286]

Does anyone by chance know where I can find the actual LED RGB pad that goes on back of the backplate for replacement, etc? Any help would be greatly appreciated. It is the white pad that is on the backside of the backplate that allows the RGB to shine through the cutout logo. I want to find about 6-8 of them if possible and would like to string them together for a project. Is this possible? Thanks

[@richiec7700]

Could adding mass thru a thermal pad contacting the chokes help to reduce coil whine?

[@Najvalsa]

Any word on when you guys're going to get the Nano?

[@scottkailey1]

I know you no....when is the Asus am4 mini itx strix motherboard going on sale. I have the cash in hand and ready to buy so I can finish my nano s build.

[@swayingGrass]

Can you dunk the radiator on Vega hybrid mod in ice water like Kyle and see how much it gains (or lose for power leakage)?

[@vxbosskroniksxv6267]

cool, now you have this and the reference vega 64, run them in crossfire to see how they run!

[@clintronnow264]

LMFAO!!! It would appear "Tech Deals" has been invited to join the cool kids club? ;)

[@jackbarrett3599]

Clint Ronnow Tech Deals is a g.

[@camhuyen6346]

by any chance do you think this will fit with the NZXT kraken g12?

[@Person.aMedia]

I see screws on the DVI Port, does anyone know if I can remove the DVI thing so I can make this only take up 1 expansion slot on the case without damaging it?

[@khmergodhobbies]

would it be safe to liquid metal the die and hbm?

[@kwedog2373]

LOL l love the ending...that was so wrong...but so funny. LOL

[@callyscaddy]

does anybody know the hole distance of the gpu mounting holes? i want to install a watercooler on it... thanks in advance !!

[@JarrodsTech]

Ha you should do an intro from someone different at the end of each video :P

[@colestowing8695]

no sudden random cat?

[@MrKZdemos]

vega 64 + custom pcb + custom cooler + rog = $750 =TECH DEALS

[@billsamoy]

Apparently Asus added two vega 56 strix versions on their website. no prices, clocks, ETA yet ofc. www.asus.com/Graphics-Cards/AMD-Series-Products/

[@evilqtip7098]

❤❤❤❤❤❤ WoW JUST INCREDIBLE TECH UN- USED..

[@allothernamesbutthis]

does anyone use passmark performance test? getting between 15200 to 16200(oc) with asus vega64, also is pci-e4 beneficial to these cards.

[@TheQuikMix]

As someone who was waiting for this generation of AMD cards, I was terribly disappointed by Vega 10. I hope Vega 11 turns out better in early 2018.

[@vacuumandgaspressurecoexisting]

b-but does it get over 44 megahashes when mining ethereum?

[@TechDunk]

Benchmarks?

[@MrMiryks]

The black box is too small, we still could see you fingers moving.

[@rexyoshimoto4278]

I'm one year late. I missed the fun.

[@GhostMotley]

In theory all Vega 64 dies should have the epoxy resin covering the interposer, AFAIK only the ones that use SK Hynix HBM don't, Vega 64's should be using Samsung HBM.

[@ccdani2]

Hi , any idea when will it be available?

[@CarlosRamirez-nf9zj]

Carlos Carlitos I don't know my friend

[@Pienimusta]

I don't want to even see the final price of this card. Probably same as cheaper end of 1080ti if it follows regular Asus pricing.

[@nerdMike]

Huge!

[@luispedro4045]

There goes the warranty xD

[@Ferox63]

People have been reporting many of these Strix cards are having issues with High vrm temps due to thermal pad that isn't making full contact. Was curious if you guys noticed any of these issues with yours. Would be nice to see some testing done on these cards with Minus pad 8 2mm vs 3mm on the vrm. www.reddit.com/r/Amd/comments/96l9da/strix_vega_fixing_the_horrendous_vrm_heat/ imgur.com/gallery/GZJnFY2

[@Oderius]

Bulzoid talks about the Vega VRM's temperatures in this video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/jmqtqZh_prueq7M Besides, I've read that there is a fixed version of the Strix cards, where the heatsink is extended over the VRM: imgur.com/PDCZRpm I hope it helps. I'm thinking about the Vega 56 and 64 and the Sapphire Nitro+ is quite expensive compared to the Strix. EDIT: this is the video where a user posted the image: kzbin.info/www/bejne/l6qWZWCdg6uKbq8

[@Ferox63]

The problem isn't with the cooler, it is that the yellow thermal pad is not thick enough to make good contact with the vrm. Look at the links i provided.

[@Oderius]

@@Ferox63 My mistake, I overlooked the imgur link.

[@Satsujiin]

the only reason im watching this is to see how i would tear down and paint the casing white lol

[@TheSocialGamer]

I just ordered the faster Sapphire Radeon Nitro+ RX Vega 64 8GB HBM2 Dual HDMI/DP. Only going for $525 on Amazon.

[@Ensue85A]

"Don't plug it in, tear it apart!"

[@TommyThousandFaces]

So much PCB wasted because they wanted to make the PCB config like the GDDR5 equipped cards

[@EquilibriumAlchemist]

The card I wanted before it became unobtainiam.

[@nguyentranvy]

actual sick of waiting for this card ship to australia

[@gregwx]

LOL Tech Deals ending hahaha. Yeah... Vega 64 is meh at this point. I love Strix models, I'm waiting for the 56 one... but yeah the price it definitely the deciding factor

[@ewitte12]

I don't know what both AMD and Nvidia are thinking releasing cards with 10+% performance deficit just due to ineffective cooling solutions.

[@_Agosto_]

Vega AIB cards are probably going to be shit.

[@mograine7998]

If it wasn't for bitcoin miners jacking up the prices, RX Vega would be selling a LOT better, and would get more favorable reviews.

[@RBsRealm]

Would dis fit in a node 202

[@zerocks88]

I bought a reference vega 64 and I'm in a big state of regret haha it's so fucking hot xD

[@KTSpeedruns]

But... does it run notepad?

[@crzces7500]

Reiden Lightman Please wait for the drivers to mature. Fine wine and all that. In 4 years this will be the best midrange card on the market.

[@3rdGenGuy]

in 4 years it will be horribly outdated and basically useless SO what a hd7970 is today.

[@crzces7500]

Nic Not putting the 7970 down (I almost bought a used 7990 last month as I wanted one so bad when they released, but at $1000 it was a bit out of my price range at the time. The used ones I found on eBay were $225 each)... Anyway, as well as the 7970 and 390/x especially, I think the Vega will age even better as it's just so far ahead of what we use now. Essentially what they did with the FuryX, but this time they have enough RAM to hold up, especially in the Frontier. I wish I was better with Linux, as the V56 and V64 are much faster on the Linux kernel, beating the 1080ti handily in most games. Level1techs did a vid on it. For whatever reason the kernel employs parts of the card much better than Windows does. Strange, it's usually the Windows drivers that work better.

[@3rdGenGuy]

the 7970 is so shitty that even these "next gen" consoles offer better quality. 7000 series is shit anything below the GTX 900s series is also shit

[@Denasdc]

Not An Argument. My 280x (7970) says otherwise :*

[@totinospizzarolls4737]

3:00 😂😂😂

[@yassinejad2838]

liquid metal that shiat xD

[@pickleadaykeepsthedoctoraway]

Pretty sure the liquid metal would eat up the aluminum very fast (see gallium on aluminum cans, it takes little time to eat through it).

[@wakesake]

MUCH BETTER VRM cooling direct cooling No shitty thermal pad, then simple aluminium bracket, then another thermal pad and then the fins of the cooler itself Thats how it is on the 1080Ti and its fucking terrible considering the crazy price of the graphic card The good thing with Vega..you cant kill it with fire ;) Dual Bios on Vega is a HUGE + over the 1080ti Retention bracket looks like shit on the Vega card , they should have made it within the back plate and put a thermal pad behind it to make use of the currently useless back plate Please Change the Thermal Paste with Liquid Metal hmm metal I..I , just to compare the thermals with the referent A$u$ paste Cant wait for the full review & make it a detailed one

[@ckjl7704]

it's pronounce as "ar...Sues"

[@kmg501]

I can't wait until this LED fad is over..

[@CoderMonkeyNathan]

It's the Computer/Tech version of 70's Disco. People are drawn to colorful lights no matter how terrible it looks.

[@kmg501]

haha, good analogy.

[@CoderMonkeyNathan]

I didn't say this card looked bad, I'm referring to the RGB fad in general.

[@mgw5377]

It's almost like you can't disable it

[@RealRaynedance]

Is anyone calling this STRIXty Four yet?

[@_Epictetus_]

Dear god, when will dvi just die!?

[@gnrtradepro]

That ugly ass MSI card in the TT ad, damn. 2007?

[@stels6532]

очень не аккуратное отношение к вещам

[@jalsiddharth]

Small request Steve, can you please handle your hardware a little more gracefully? I know these things are robust and stuff, but .....

[@GamersNexus]

It's not a flower. The thing is fine. We work with hundreds of components annually and haven't killed anything from "handling."

[@rinhato8453]

Siddharth Nair I always handle parts gently simply because I'm terrified of breaking something. If I did it as a job I would probably have more confidence in the strength of stuff.

[@jalsiddharth]

Gamers Nexus lol I get that and completely agree with you neither have I implied you're breaking stuff.. It just doesn't look great when at the starting of the video you're spinning coolers around and hitting the card on the desk two times. I know you do this for a living and can't pussy foot around everything.. The least you can do is not show those shots.

[@indifferenceofficial4060]

They do it to make little girls cringe. Personally I love seeing hardware take a bump. The hints in the name, it's Hard.

[@GamersNexus]

You think a cooler that gets blasted with 450W of heat can't handle being moved on an anti-static mat?

[@UnknownUser-fg3fs]

lol Vega