RTX 3090 compatible motherboard options available.
RTX 3090 compatible motherboard options available.
I’m searching for a motherboard that supports two RTX 3090 graphics cards. I have a 4-slot NVLink setup and have faced some issues: NVIDIA SLI support, PCIe lane availability. Should the board include SLI capability? I prefer AM5 platform with Intel, and I’m not looking for threadrippers. Any suggestions?
You may need to examine dedicated workstation boards. Consumer boards no longer accept SLI because Nvidia has stopped providing support and does not add it to driver updates.
You're likely using an older platform, possibly a workstation or server setup. It's been discontinued and no longer receives updates since 2021, so you'll need to rely on outdated drivers. Games that worked before have been patched or stopped being maintained, which has made performance much worse compared to when it first launched. Current games that supported it either had fixes removed or aren't being kept up to date.
I made a serious error in my explanation about the NVLINK bridge. I’ve learned a lot from forums, and some users say it’s separate from the motherboard and should function. Others claim NVLINK doesn’t work on Windows, which I don’t mind—I plan to use it as an AI workstation on Linux systems. Right now, I’m not sure what to do.
I don’t use the NVLINK bridge as an SLI device. I plan to run it on a Linux machine. Others have different views: some think it won’t work, others believe it will on Linux, and a few say it won’t function without SLI support. Some claim it might work on certain motherboards. I’m unsure what to do. Many suggest professional setups, but that would cost more for me.
Even so, your initial idea about the motherboard you need is still valid. Consumer-grade boards no longer offer this kind of compatibility. You should consider server or workstation options instead. Brands like Asus, Asrock, and Gigabyte provide workstation models you can check for support.
Also, I'm not sure about your experience with 3090s, but they have only half the memory on the back of the board without cooling. Those units quickly reach 108°C under any reasonable load and bottleneck issues. I’d strongly advise against placing two next to each other. If you really need that GPU power, consider a prebuilt model from a reputable supplier like Supermicro—they’ve optimized everything for smooth performance.
You don't have to rely on that link. The nvlink on the 3090 isn't an NVLink—it's just another bridge, essentially. For any computer, the bridge wasn't needed at all; it was mainly for gaming purposes. Just skip the comments and use it without the bridge, as it won't make a difference.