skreacher

dakkottadavviss
I'd definitely prefer the XC3 for step up. I have the 2080 Super FTW3 with a PC-O11 Dynamic. I have to force the side panel shut on the PCIe power cables. They put the power connectors on the very end of the card rather than recessing them like the Strix models do. My card is 139mm long and the XC3 is close to 30mm smaller, which would make it fit in my case. I also might be able to control my fan curve in MSI afterburner since the XC3 doesn't have the asynchronous fan control.

have you considering doing a vertical mount? it's what i ended up doing, I feel like it looks better and solves the side panel issue.. with intake fans at the bottom it creates fresh air to flow as well.

I did have to use the phantek vertical mount though, the lian-li one leaves the video card too close to the fans for it to work.

My case wasn't built in a time when vertical mounting a video card wasn't a thing. My case has a side panel fan as part of it's cooling system of the components inside the case and I water cool my video card, so vertically mounting the video card would block the fan's air flow to cool crucial components in my case, such as my two ASUS Hyper M.2 V2 cards. It's a simple and easy fix for EVGA, just also offer a XC3 card in the Step-Up as I asked nicely for them to do, problem solved. How hard could that be for EVGA to do? It wouldn't be hard at all, but EVGA has decided to stick to everyone by only offering their highest priced 3080 and 3090 cards in Step-Up so they can make more money instead of honoring their Step-Up to every customer. Right now I and many others have a ZERO Step-Up path that was guaranteed to us when we bought a EVGA video card as long as the card isn't the top tier card.

kram36

skreacher

dakkottadavviss
I'd definitely prefer the XC3 for step up. I have the 2080 Super FTW3 with a PC-O11 Dynamic. I have to force the side panel shut on the PCIe power cables. They put the power connectors on the very end of the card rather than recessing them like the Strix models do. My card is 139mm long and the XC3 is close to 30mm smaller, which would make it fit in my case. I also might be able to control my fan curve in MSI afterburner since the XC3 doesn't have the asynchronous fan control.

have you considering doing a vertical mount? it's what i ended up doing, I feel like it looks better and solves the side panel issue.. with intake fans at the bottom it creates fresh air to flow as well.

I did have to use the phantek vertical mount though, the lian-li one leaves the video card too close to the fans for it to work.

My case wasn't built in a time when vertical mounting a video card wasn't a thing. My case has a side panel fan as part of it's cooling system of the components inside the case and I water cool my video card, so vertically mounting the video card would block the fan's air flow to cool crucial components in my case, such as my two ASUS Hyper M.2 V2 cards. It's a simple and easy fix for EVGA, just also offer a XC3 card in the Step-Up as I asked nicely for them to do, problem solved. How hard could that be for EVGA to do? It wouldn't be hard at all, but EVGA has decided to stick to everyone by only offering their highest priced 3080 and 3090 cards in Step-Up so they can make more money instead of honoring their Step-Up to every customer. Right now I and many others have a ZERO Step-Up path that was guaranteed to us when we bought a EVGA video card as long as the card isn't the top tier card.

1. Wasn't talking to you about that, was commenting on the other posted with the same case I have.
 
2. You do have an upgrade path, get a new case. It just isn't the upgrade path you FEEL entitled to.
 
I am having a hard time understanding where you are coming from, based on your post history and build it seems you go big when it comes to performance, You seem to be someone who would actually be happy about the opportunity for better performance since the card is going to be water-cooled and the additional power from FTW3 will actually be put to use. I'm in the same boat so I actually prefer the FTW3 so i can put it on water.

But for some reason you've started this holy crusade against EVGA because they are not offering the base model which they never promised they would. You may want to read through this page - evga.com/support/stepup/
 
here are some highlights to save you a click. the Underlined sections were done by me for easier understanding.



STEP-UP INVENTORY - WHAT CAN I STEP-UP TO?
EVGA maintains a list of current graphics cards as well as motherboards available to Step-Up to. Products listed are mostly stock (not factory overclocked, or water cooled) due to stock limitations.
 

Graphics Cards

• EVGA generally only releases reference versions of its products (NVIDIA reference-clock speeds and performance) to the Step-Up list. Due to stock limitations or other factors, EVGA will sometimes release models featuring a factory overclock or non-reference PCB to the Step-Up list. We do not encourage customers to try to "wait and see" if a factory overclock model is available if you are nearing the end of your Step-Up period, because this is not a consideration EVGA takes into account when determining Step-Up models. However, you are always free to wait until the end of your Step-Up period to make your choice.
• Step-Up is limited to pre-approved graphics cards only and can only be used for exchange to a different and higher performing GPU.
• Products known to have a limited availability will not be made available to the Step-Up program. (Limited availability determined by EVGA.)
• Customers who received their EVGA graphics card as part of a complete computer system are not eligible - except for those listed on our approved .

skreacher

kram36

skreacher

dakkottadavviss
I'd definitely prefer the XC3 for step up. I have the 2080 Super FTW3 with a PC-O11 Dynamic. I have to force the side panel shut on the PCIe power cables. They put the power connectors on the very end of the card rather than recessing them like the Strix models do. My card is 139mm long and the XC3 is close to 30mm smaller, which would make it fit in my case. I also might be able to control my fan curve in MSI afterburner since the XC3 doesn't have the asynchronous fan control.

have you considering doing a vertical mount? it's what i ended up doing, I feel like it looks better and solves the side panel issue.. with intake fans at the bottom it creates fresh air to flow as well.

I did have to use the phantek vertical mount though, the lian-li one leaves the video card too close to the fans for it to work.

My case wasn't built in a time when vertical mounting a video card wasn't a thing. My case has a side panel fan as part of it's cooling system of the components inside the case and I water cool my video card, so vertically mounting the video card would block the fan's air flow to cool crucial components in my case, such as my two ASUS Hyper M.2 V2 cards. It's a simple and easy fix for EVGA, just also offer a XC3 card in the Step-Up as I asked nicely for them to do, problem solved. How hard could that be for EVGA to do? It wouldn't be hard at all, but EVGA has decided to stick to everyone by only offering their highest priced 3080 and 3090 cards in Step-Up so they can make more money instead of honoring their Step-Up to every customer. Right now I and many others have a ZERO Step-Up path that was guaranteed to us when we bought a EVGA video card as long as the card isn't the top tier card.

1. Wasn't talking to you about that, was commenting on the other posted with the same case I have.
 
2. You do have an upgrade path, get a new case. It just isn't the upgrade path you FEEL entitled to.
 
I am having a hard time understanding where you are coming from, based on your post history and build it seems you go big when it comes to performance, You seem to be someone who would actually be happy about the opportunity for better performance since the card is going to be water-cooled and the additional power from FTW3 will actually be put to use. I'm in the same boat so I actually prefer the FTW3 so i can put it on water.

But for some reason you've started this holy crusade against EVGA because they are not offering the base model which they never promised they would. You may want to read through this page - evga.com/support/stepup/
 
here are some highlights to save you a click. the Underlined sections were done by me for easier understanding.



STEP-UP INVENTORY - WHAT CAN I STEP-UP TO?
EVGA maintains a list of current graphics cards as well as motherboards available to Step-Up to. Products listed are mostly stock (not factory overclocked, or water cooled) due to stock limitations.
 

Graphics Cards

• EVGA generally only releases reference versions of its products (NVIDIA reference-clock speeds and performance) to the Step-Up list. Due to stock limitations or other factors, EVGA will sometimes release models featuring a factory overclock or non-reference PCB to the Step-Up list. We do not encourage customers to try to "wait and see" if a factory overclock model is available if you are nearing the end of your Step-Up period, because this is not a consideration EVGA takes into account when determining Step-Up models. However, you are always free to wait until the end of your Step-Up period to make your choice.
• Step-Up is limited to pre-approved graphics cards only and can only be used for exchange to a different and higher performing GPU.
• Products known to have a limited availability will not be made available to the Step-Up program. (Limited availability determined by EVGA.)
• Customers who received their EVGA graphics card as part of a complete computer system are not eligible - except for those listed on our approved .

Eh, no. There is nowhere in the Step-Up guarantee that you may have to buy a new case in order to use the Step-Up program. Plus EVGA has a card that doesn't require me to change my case. Also I love the case I have and will not change to accommodate EVGA's lack of offering a card they actually have that will work in my and many other's cases.

kram36
 

Eh, no. There is nowhere in the Step-Up guarantee that you may have to buy a new case in order to use the Step-Up program. Plus EVGA has a card that doesn't require me to change my case. Also I love the case I have and will not change to accommodate EVGA's lack of offering a card they actually have that will work in my and many other's cases.




By your logic, there is no guarantee on their site that any video card they sell will fit in your case. Imagine all the SFF (Small Form Factor) people coming in and rioting cause the Kingpin edition doesn't fit in their tiny case??

skreacher

kram36
Eh, no. There is nowhere in the Step-Up guarantee that you may have to buy a new case in order to use the Step-Up program. Plus EVGA has a card that doesn't require me to change my case. Also I love the case I have and will not change to accommodate EVGA's lack of offering a card they actually have that will work in my and many other's cases.

By your logic, there is no guarantee on their site that any video card they sell will fit in your case. Imagine all the SFF (Small Form Factor) people coming in and rioting cause the Kingpin edition doesn't fit in their tiny case??

Wow, that was a stupid post. I'm not even sure how to respond to such a stupid post, but I will try. A person using a SFF case is already using a smaller card, they would never expect a Kingpin card to fit in their case as they never built their system to accommodate such a card. I have a case that will use a normal size video card easily, EVGA does sell that card, but is refusing to put it into Step-Up. I'm not asking EVGA to redesign a current card to fit my case, I'm asking EVGA to offer a card they do make and sell that will fit in my and many other's cases to be included in the Step-Up.
 
Now I will offer this as another reason the XC3 should be in the Step-Up, besides just the fact the FTW3 Ultra gives a ZERO path for Step-Up for many people beside me. With the FTW3 Ultra, the yield on chips to make that card will be lower based on the clock speed that card requires. The XC3 on the other hand doesn't required the clock speed of the FTW3 Ultra cards, so there should be more XC3 cards available due to the clock speed requirements of the FTW3 Ultra cards. So the lack of availability of the XC3 cards as an excuse to not be in the Step-Up doesn't pass the smell test.

kram36

skreacher

kram36
Eh, no. There is nowhere in the Step-Up guarantee that you may have to buy a new case in order to use the Step-Up program. Plus EVGA has a card that doesn't require me to change my case. Also I love the case I have and will not change to accommodate EVGA's lack of offering a card they actually have that will work in my and many other's cases.

By your logic, there is no guarantee on their site that any video card they sell will fit in your case. Imagine all the SFF (Small Form Factor) people coming in and rioting cause the Kingpin edition doesn't fit in their tiny case??

Wow, that was a stupid post. I'm not even sure how to respond to such a stupid post, but I will try. A person using a SFF case is already using a smaller card, they would never expect a Kingpin card to fit in their case as they never built their system to accommodate such a card. I have a case that will use a normal size video card easily, EVGA does sell that card, but is refusing to put it into Step-Up.
 
Now I will offer this as another reason the XC3 should be in the Step-Up, besides just the fact the FTW3 Ultra gives a ZERO path for Step-Up for many people beside me. With the FTW3 Ultra, the yield on chips to make that card will be lower based on the clock speed that card requires. The XC3 on the other hand doesn't required the clock speed of the FTW3 Ultra cards, so there should be more XC3 cards available due to the clock speed requirements of the FTW3 Ultra cards. So the lack of availability of the XC3 cards as an excuse to not be in the Step-Up doesn't pass the smell test.

I mean, we are just gonna sit here and talk in circles all day.. Let's take feelings out of the equation and talk about some facts, really can only refer you to this. - You are free to use the "Wait and see" option

Graphics Cards

• EVGA generally only releases reference versions of its products (NVIDIA reference-clock speeds and performance) to the Step-Up list. Due to stock limitations or other factors, EVGA will sometimes release models featuring a factory overclock or non-reference PCB to the Step-Up list. We do not encourage customers to try to "wait and see" if a factory overclock model is available if you are nearing the end of your Step-Up period, because this is not a consideration EVGA takes into account when determining Step-Up models. However, you are always free to wait until the end of your Step-Up period to make your choice.

skreacher

kram36

skreacher

kram36
Eh, no. There is nowhere in the Step-Up guarantee that you may have to buy a new case in order to use the Step-Up program. Plus EVGA has a card that doesn't require me to change my case. Also I love the case I have and will not change to accommodate EVGA's lack of offering a card they actually have that will work in my and many other's cases.

By your logic, there is no guarantee on their site that any video card they sell will fit in your case. Imagine all the SFF (Small Form Factor) people coming in and rioting cause the Kingpin edition doesn't fit in their tiny case??

Wow, that was a stupid post. I'm not even sure how to respond to such a stupid post, but I will try. A person using a SFF case is already using a smaller card, they would never expect a Kingpin card to fit in their case as they never built their system to accommodate such a card. I have a case that will use a normal size video card easily, EVGA does sell that card, but is refusing to put it into Step-Up. I'm not asking EVGA to redesign a current card to fit my case, I'm asking EVGA to offer a card they do make and sell that will fit in my and many other's cases to be included in the Step-Up.
 
Now I will offer this as another reason the XC3 should be in the Step-Up, besides just the fact the FTW3 Ultra gives a ZERO path for Step-Up for many people beside me. With the FTW3 Ultra, the yield on chips to make that card will be lower based on the clock speed that card requires. The XC3 on the other hand doesn't required the clock speed of the FTW3 Ultra cards, so there should be more XC3 cards available due to the clock speed requirements of the FTW3 Ultra cards. So the lack of availability of the XC3 cards as an excuse to not be in the Step-Up doesn't pass the smell test.

I mean, we are just gonna sit here and talk in circles all day.. Let's take feelings out of the equation and talk about some facts, really can only refer you to this. - You are free to use the "Wait and see" option

Graphics Cards

• EVGA generally only releases reference versions of its products (NVIDIA reference-clock speeds and performance) to the Step-Up list. Due to stock limitations or other factors, EVGA will sometimes release models featuring a factory overclock or non-reference PCB to the Step-Up list. We do not encourage customers to try to "wait and see" if a factory overclock model is available if you are nearing the end of your Step-Up period, because this is not a consideration EVGA takes into account when determining Step-Up models. However, you are always free to wait until the end of your Step-Up period to make your choice.

Asking for the XC3 card to be added to Step-Up is better then the "wait and see" and EVGA was talking about the option for the factory overclock model availability , not the standard model cards on the "wait and see" part.
 
Do you have an opinion as to which card should actually be more available due to the needed clock speed the FTW3 Ultra requires? Shouldn't there be more XC3 cards available?  Does that pass the smell test to you?

Kram, I'd suggest you start your own GPU company and run the step up program the way your fantasies tell you it should play out. I would...except I'm 90% sure you cant actually comprehend what you read.

tayback longleg
Kram, I'd suggest you start your own GPU company and run the step up program the way your fantasies tell you it should play out. I would...except I'm 90% sure you cant actually comprehend what you read.

Why would I do such a thing when EVGA already offers a Step-Up program? Just because EVGA is not honoring their own Step-Up program? I think me asking EVGA to honor their Step-Up program is a much easier path for me.

In an ideal world, EVGA would add all 3080/3090 models to the step-up program but it's their program and they can choose how it runs. We are at their mercy and the vast majority of people are fine with that.