Area-51 R2, upgrading to RTX 2080 Ti

Area-51 (Late 2015) is not a proper model number, but I think it should be fine. 

How would we know? You are likely one of the first to try it.

Why do you expect a problem?

Bottleneck would be your only issue imo, assuming you are under a previous generation (or two) of intel or amd cpus.

You know, I hear this term "bottleneck" like it's some "deal breaker" problem.

Yet even in the worst-case scenario ... a new GTX-1070 into an old Aurora-R1 (2010) provides it with much higher gaming performance. I think every system has a bottleneck or "weakest link". 

https://www.dell.com/community/Alienware-General-Read-Only/Recommended-NVIDIA-graphics-cards-for-Alienware-Aurora-R1-2009/m-p/5590870/highlight/true#M92465

But yes, I agree that components inside a system should be "about" the same vintage for best compatibility. However, I'm seeing that lately this "age range" has increased to around 4 years. Apparently even longer with machines based on Intel's "enthusiasts class" platforms. 

The Nvidia RTX 2080 and 2080 Ti are open air cooler design video cards that will dump hot air into the case. A Blower style card would work better it is what all previous models of the Area 51 came with.

Post how it goes. I have Alienware area 51 R2 with a 5960x that I was thinking of upgrading

I have a late 2014 Dell Alienware Area-51 R2, Windows 10, 32GB DDR4 RAM, Three (x3) NVIDIA GTX 980 Ti (SLI), and  powered by a Dell 1500W multi-GPU power supply with "six" 6-pin connector spots available. Here is the problem: each 980 Ti video card uses "one" 6-pin and "one" 8-pin (6+2) connector. The PCI-express bus cable is PSU 6-pin & 6-pin, and the GTX 980 Ti GPU has "one" 6-pin, and "one" 6+2 pin connectors. The RTX 2080 Ti GPU uses "two" 8-pin connectors and will not operate from the low power "two" 6+2-pin GPU to "two" 6-pin PSU. I am getting error message 2080 TI - "Please turn off computer and plug in PCIe power cords."

Question: How did you fully power your new RTX 2018 Ti? What type of power cable did you use? 6+2 pin twice to "two" 6-pin power supply connectors?

Krage,

Since you have installed a 2080ti in an area 51r2 and had no issues, can you tell me which specific 2080 ti card you went with?  I'm going to do the same upgrade and if someone has already had success, it seems no reason to reinvent the wheel.

Thanks

Hello mymd2003,

i bought the Founder Edition via Nvidia website. 

I got a 3440x1440 monitor from asus at 100hz and i play mostly BF V reaching 98 fps almost steady (I use RivaTuner to lock fps to 98 to avoid screen tearing).
I play it on DX12 without DXR in multiplayer. DXR still cause some stuttering in certain moment and need to be fixed by DICE.

I got a nice leap from my previous 980ti SLI situation.

If you wanna know something more specific please let me know.

Cheers

Thank you. Very helpful.  Think I'll go with that.