Radeons w/out shims
 

Hello all,

I just got myself a new Radeon 9600 (Sapphire) and noticed that it does not have a shim on the core. Does anyone know if this is a new development, or have Radeons been shipping without the shim for some time now?

I'm certainly not complaining, it saves me a step when I replace the HS. :D

Is it new? Or refurbished or resold after being fixed at the factory ?

Brand new, from newegg about 2wks ago.

Then I dunno. All the ATI's I've seen have shims.

9600 np/pro/xt do not have shims

But im quite sure all 9800/9700/9500series still have them

Chances are its to cut costs. Maybe ati made the 9600 core a bit stronger somehow or figured core crushing wasnt that big of problem?

I'm sure it's to cut costs. :D
Apparently chipped corners on the die are not as big of a concern--mine has a rather large HS that's only mounted with two plastic pins. Maybe they figure it can't "rock" far enough without running into the RAM, to cause any damage?

I attached two images of the card to show what the HS looks like. The springs on the plastic pins are VERY weak, and easily let the HS tip if even the smallest amount of pressure is applied.

Theres just not enough pressure involved to crush it.

On a cpu theres alot of pressure but on a gfx card only those little springs that you mention. Ati probably relised that the shim caused more problems than it solved.

Possibly--I was actually referring to the pressure applied to an edge or corner, should the HS get 'tipped.' I'm sure many of you remember the whining that went on when the socketed Athlons/Durons got released...