Sapphire 7770: standard ghz edition VS Vapor-X ghz edition

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Aaron Robbins

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Oct 20, 2013
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I'm contemplating these two cards. They're roughly 20 bucks apart. The build I'm planning is budget enough, but I'm just curious: would the 20 bucks extra for the Vapor X make that much of a difference? Would I be getting better performance compared to a standard 7770 ghz edition card? P.S. Idk if it matters but here's the build list (including a standard ghz edition card):

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/22RD5
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/22RD5/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/22RD5/benchmarks/

CPU: AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($95.98 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.98 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Asus M5A78L-M LX PLUS Micro ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($44.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($32.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7770 GHz Edition 1GB Video Card ($85.38 @ Newegg)
Case: NZXT Source 210 Window ATX Mid Tower Case ($44.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Thermaltake TR2 600W ATX Power Supply ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $356.30
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-11-16 20:18 EST-0500)
 
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Avro Arrow
What Adam said is true, the Vapor-X is better than the reference design for the reasons he stated but it's still a terrible value. Sapphire has you "paying for the name" with the Vapor-X. Let's look at the Vapor-X HD 7770 for a second:

Sapphire Vapor-X HD 7770 1GB - $120 (-$15 mail-in-rebate):
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102993

I must admit, compared to most of the other HD 7770s, that is one sweet-looking card, but who cares about looks? The thing will be inside your case and you'll never see the thing. Vapor-X is a fantastic overclocking and cooling solution combo but there are others that give you almost the same performance like HIS IceQ, Gigabyte Windforce and MSI Twin-Frozr. As a matter of fact...
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Adam Ferrick

Adam Ferrick

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May 8, 2013
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Do you mean Vapor-X vs. Reference design? If you do then the Vapor-X is better.
Realistically, the different brands of 7770 would only average a few frames more than the reference design, but the true potential of the 3rd party coolers comes in the cooling power, noise, and overclockability. The Vapor-X would run quieter and cooler than the reference model and would allow for a better overclock.
 
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Avro Arrow

Avro Arrow

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What Adam said is true, the Vapor-X is better than the reference design for the reasons he stated but it's still a terrible value. Sapphire has you "paying for the name" with the Vapor-X. Let's look at the Vapor-X HD 7770 for a second:

Sapphire Vapor-X HD 7770 1GB - $120 (-$15 mail-in-rebate):
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102993

I must admit, compared to most of the other HD 7770s, that is one sweet-looking card, but who cares about looks? The thing will be inside your case and you'll never see the thing. Vapor-X is a fantastic overclocking and cooling solution combo but there are others that give you almost the same performance like HIS IceQ, Gigabyte Windforce and MSI Twin-Frozr. As a matter of fact, newegg has an MSI Twin-Frozr that you might be interested in:
MSI Twin-Frozr Radeon HD 7850 2GB - $140 (-$30 mail-in-rebate)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127663
Now, here we are, looking at a Vapor-X HD 7770 with only 1GB of VRAM vs a Twin-Frozr HD 7850 with 2GB of VRAM for an extra $20. After rebates, that price difference narrows to $5. I can guarantee you that the Twin-Frozr HD 7850 can be overclocked to about the same speed as an HD 7870. The Vapor-X HD 7770 can be overclocked to about the speed of a vanilla HD 7790. Now you see why I say that the Vapor-X isn't a good value. Get the HD 7850. All the fancy gadgets thrown onto a card can compensate for the last numbers being 50 instead of 70 but they cannot compensate for the difference between 77xx and 78xx. The MSI Twin-Frozr HD 7850 is worth the price difference from the vanilla HD 7770 but the Vapor-X HD 7770 isn't.
 
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Aaron Robbins

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Oct 20, 2013
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Could I throw a vanilla 7770 or better yet a 7790 in there for now and upgrade to something even better down the road? I feel like for my build and my budget its a great value. but then again that's what i've heard. I still got my foot in the door with this stuff.
 
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Avro Arrow

Avro Arrow

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Well thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed it! :D

Well I'll point something out to you. I don't know why you use pcpartpicker because it's about as accurate as a SCUD missile. It says that the Sapphire Radeon HD 7770 GHz Edition is $85.38 at newegg? It isn't. The Sapphire HD 7770 GHz Edition at newegg is $110 and $95 after rebate:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814202023
I just noticed that when I was looking back at it. The HD 7790 is also $110 but no rebate:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161434
That means that the HD 7790 is a better buy than the Sapphire HD 7770 at only $15 more. It also means that the HD 7850 is the best buy of all with an after-rebate price that is exactly the same as the HD 7790. If you want an HD 7770 and nothing else, get the HIS iCooler HD 7790 for $100 ($80 after rebate):
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161402
That card will have superior thermals and acoustics compared to the vanilla Sapphire card and costs $15 less. The way to shop for a video card is to not be focused on one maker. In my life, I've had ATi, nVidia, Powercolor, Palit, XFX, Gigabyte and ASUS video cards. They're all more or less the same, I just choose whichever gives me the best price. I don't care what they look like or what decorations they have because I never see them. I want them to perform. I don't think that the Gigabyte Windforce cards that I have are the nicest-looking HD 7970s out there. I got them because they were cheaper than almost everything else and the performance review on the card was nothing less than stellar. If they were $330-$350 like all the other HD 7970s at the time, I would be running twin Powercolor cards right now. Ignore the brand and look at the specs because the heart of every video card is made by ATi or nVidia, not the board partner.
 
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Adam Ferrick

Adam Ferrick

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So basically, as Avro said, it comes down to price-to-performance.
If you REALLY want a 7770, http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161402 HIS iCooler
If you don't mind stepping it up $20, http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127726&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&cm_sp=&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID= MSI 7790
An additional $10 from that http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127663&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&cm_sp=&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID= 7850
I suggest the 7850 for $109. Heck, it's $5 more than the Vapor-X 7770 you were thinking of! ;)
 
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Aaron Robbins

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It was a particular model of 7770 ghz edition that was that price. 15 dollar rebate plus a little shipping. I think the 7850 is definitely appealing. However, if you can find one that comes with a free game then find it. Otherwise. The 7790 looks good to me. I can save up money and get a better card down the road. Like I said just need a starter card.
 
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Avro Arrow

Avro Arrow

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Well that's the easy part. ALL HD 77xx cards come with one game and ALL HD 78xx cards come with two. I was really laughing because the HD 79xx cards come with three and I got two cards. The games I chose were Tomb Raider 2013, Saints Row IV, Far Cry 3, Hitman: Absolution, Sleeping Dogs and Deus Ex: Human Revolution. Of those, Saints Row IV and Far Cry 3 are my favourites with Tomb Raider and Hitman: Absolution not far behind.
 
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