Cool GTX


You must establish proper contact before tightening the mounting hardware & have the thermal pads & wires out of the way

Keeping the cooler parallel & against the GPU die - is very important, always been this way
- Clean
- Apply TIM & Pads
- Route & connect wires
- Align & lay cooler on Card
- Install All screws loosely
- Tighten the GPU (4) screws - gradually in an X pattern - keep it parallel (flat against the GPU die)
- Work outwards from GPU die to tighten the rest of the screws - (working gradually in the X pattern)
edit for clarity

I have installed EK blocks on the 980 Ti, 1080, 1080 Ti, 2080 and 2080 Ti. The ONLY temp problem I have ever had was with the HC block on the 2080 Ti KPE. This isn’t an installation technique problem. There is a problem with the design of the HC block.

Other people are experiencing the same problem. There's quite a few posts here of people having problems with HC blocks and higher than expected temps. 
 
IMO, the problem is with the height of the block over the PCB and the mounting holes used by the block.
 
When compared to an EK 2080 Ti block, the HC blocks use longer standoffs increasing the space between the block and die. The standoffs the EK blocks use are shorter. To further illustrate this, with comparable cold plates, the EK block also uses .5mm thermal pads on the memory, compared to the 1.25mm pads on the HC. 
 
The HC blocks use the mounting holes which are spaced farther away from the die. IMO, this leads to inconsistent pressure of the cold plate on the die. This is likely why one user, when using a c-clamp during an install (!) was able to slightly improve temps, but still not in a way indicative of good performance for the full cover block. 50c is not an acceptable temperature for a full cover block when being run with a typical overclock in a reasonable ambient temperature. 
 
The standoffs in a EK block will fit a HC block but the cutouts on the HC KPE blocks will not fit over the inductors using the lower standoffs. I attempted this while troubleshooting my poor temp problem with my KPE HC block. 
 
I would imagine the HC blocks when installed in a controlled factory setting are capable of performing adequately, of course the definition of adequate performance can be debated. This is NOT the case when installed in a user environment as there are too many variables. Using best practices which I have used to install many other full cover blocks, the performance of my HC KPE block simply isn't there.
 
When I switched to a EK Supremacy GPU block, I now see temps which are exactly in the normal range for a water cooled GPU, which are temps in the mid to upper 30c range while gaming. 

what i failed to mention is i have issues with my hands and found it difficult to apply a little pressure as i turned the screws in. i basically used the clamp as a third hand to free up both my flawed hands to put the screws in. the temps in my attachment was with fans locked at 600RPM and pump locked at 1/4 speed and running AIDA 64 GPU stress for an hour. i just wanted to see where the temps would go locking all at min. speeds. after all said and done with set pump and fan curves, IDLE temp is 28c and gaming temp at around 43c. i also stated that i first had EK's block for the FTW3 and i had the exact same issue hence why i stated it was a user (me) issue and not a product issue. i am glad i had the issue with the EK block because it led me to the EVGA block which i like a lot more. 
 
this is just what helped me get the results needed is all, i only shared the clamp idea for those who also were getting fed up with breaking the block down and reapplying many times just to have to do it again and again. for some, they can apply TP to GPU, drop the block on and screw it down and it works fine. for others such as I and most likely a few others, a clamp might do the trick (please do NOT apply to much pressure, just enough to make contact of the block and the GPU and hold it there until all screws are in). 

Or a manufacturer has to design the product so it does not require the user to shotgun solutions to overcome design flaws. 
 
EK blocks simply don't have this problem. When you compare them, the difference is very obvious. The EVGA block sits higher off of the die and uses the screw holes along the outer perimeter of the GPU die. Even the EVGA AIO cards use the inner screw holes. 
 
Don't bury the problem with fluff and emoji. 

Yeah, then I read yours right below it. 

@CoolGTX Well it looks like I am going to be taking apart my loop to redo the thermal interface tape. I think @ bp7179 is onto something. While putting a more liberal thermal paste application brought down temperatures a bit, redoing the thermal tape on the block should definitely increase pressure between the cold plate and the GPU. Based on what I am seeing in tim spread, I could use a bit more pressure between the cold plate and the GPU. It is the equivalent of trying to close the door with a wedge in the way. :). I love the block btw. 

6dracing
I will be taking mine down for the 3rd time this weekend.  I will do the spread method on the gpu and the block itself to see if it helps anymore.  I will also try to get pictures of the gap between the gpu and the block if i can get a good one.  It looks fairly large but you guys can confirm that.  Everything looks to be mated down as far as it can go.  Maybe i just didnt put enough pressure on it though.

What are your results?
Unfortunately I have the same problem - high temp after adding the HC block on my FTW3.
I contacted EVGA in Germany and waiting now for a feedback. I would like to send EVGA everything and they should assemble the block for me.
 
What I'm reading here makes me sad and I almost regret having bought an EVGA card :-/

Agree with bp7178.  The cards are awesome.  Just getting these blocks to perform correctly can be a bit troubling.