The Shim: Design error or potential overclocking discourager?

[FleshEating Bob]

Anyone but me wonder if the shim on the 9700/9500s, which is, in most of the cards, too thick to allow the TIM to be replaced with AS3, while putting the GPU at risk of chipping if removed, was intended by ATi to discourage potential OCers who don't have the $$$ to replace their card if they damage it while removing the shim? After all, if the shim was intended to keep the core from being crushed, why not use an IHS, which would both protect the core and allow the use of a thermal paste like AS3 rather than a crappy thermpad? Or better yet, why not just make the shim thinner so it will both protect the core and not leave a space between the HSF and GPU?

 

[fiji]

its not that hard to take the shim off, so its no real biggie

 

[1-Man-Army]

y dont u just sand the thing down and put it back?

 

[FleshEating Bob]

I'm not asking how to take it off, I'm wondering if ATi intended it to discourage paranoid folks from OCing their video cards. Obviously, if that was the purpose, it didn't do a very good job of it, but I just wonder...

 

[1-Man-Army]

oh maybe ur right or they made a mistake

 

[MassiveOverkill]

They miscalculated the height of the shim. I bought another Radeon 9500 np 128 for my GF and the shim on that one was thinner, so that the HS actually made direct contact with the GPU.

 

[FleshEating Bob]

What if that's just what they WANT you to think?

Or, more likely, I'm just starting to see conspiracies in the computer industry like I do everywhere else...

 

[tweaker]

I looked a acouple of diferent cards and it looks like either the specs are a bit different from being assembled at different locations or it is just poor quality control. or, some other dark obscure reason for the differences. The conspiracy contimues... I don't think any of the manufacturers want us to OC anything anymore. They should because they get a lot of their new ideas from places like this! I would bet a buck to a donut on that one!

 

[1-Man-Army]

ya i hate ppl who is starting to take away o/c i no intel might do it, that then nivdia then ati then every one

 

[BaD CrC]

I removed the shim of my 9800Pro with no major difficulties but with major sweat on my front head!
No HSF or WB can fit on it with the shim on.