Which 5970 is the best bet?

[rockitman]

Finally, Newegg has a bunch of different 5970's to choose from. They range in price from $700 to $750.

None of them come with free games either.

Of all these brands, which one makes the sturdiest 5970?


HIS
PowerColor
XFX
MSI
Sapphire
Diamond.

 

[DarthPiggie]

Sapphire is the best brand for ATI cards; stick with that. In order after that is Diamon, XFX.

 

[jonnyboyC]

since they all have 2gb, and all are based on the stock cooler, i would base it on price and warrenty, personally i would go with xfx because of their lifetime warrenty, besides price and warrenty the only real difference is the sticker they have slapped onto the cooler

 

[megamanx00]

All reference cards are exactly the same except for the sticker slapped on them. The only difference is the bundle and warranty. If you want something different there is the uber Sapphire 5970 4GB which is overclocked and has a huge cooler. Other overclocked 4GB 5970s will be out soon, but finding them will be difficult since they are all limited runs.

 

[borisof007]

Finally, Newegg has a bunch of different 5970's to choose from. They range in price from $700 to $750.

None of them come with free games either.

Of all these brands, which one makes the sturdiest 5970?


HIS
PowerColor
XFX
MSI
Sapphire
Diamond.

JonnyboyC has a good point, XFX's warranty is the best among the choices so I would highly recommend it. Not to mention their support is better than HIS's and personally I've had bad experiences with Sapphire's products. All of the products should run equivalently, so it really is what the warranty is like, what comes with the package, and the price. I've also noticed that XFX's 5970 is a tad bit more expensive on newegg (719 compared to 699) but the extra $20 for a lifetime warranty is completely worth the money.

 

[rockitman]

Thanks for the info guys. I was leaning toward the XFX just because of that lifetime warranty. Only problem I have is with the reviews on Newegg for this card. Many owners are reporting that this card runs very hot!

Would all 5970's run at the same temp or are some better than others?

 

[borisof007]

All of the 5970's run hot. Use MSI Afterburner to adjust the fan speed manually (or to create a charted temperature to fan speed ratio that's a little more robust than the standard settings). I use a GTX 285 right now and I make sure it's always running at 75% fan speed. Before I did that, I used to get polygonal issues in L4D2, but no longer!

Another option would be to grab an aftermarket cooler, but then that voids your lifetime warranty. Liquid cooling is a VERY viable option too, as you can OC the card to a crazy level, but that's only if you're comfortable with doing that. : )

 

[rofl_my_waffle]

Hmm their price is still high. Last week I saw it for $650 CAD

 

[Mousemonkey]

All reference cards are exactly the same except for the sticker slapped on them. The only difference is the bundle and warranty. If you want something different there is the uber Sapphire 5970 4GB which is overclocked and has a huge cooler. Other overclocked 4GB 5970s will be out soon, but finding them will be difficult since they are all limited runs.

Have you seen the price of that Sapphire card?

 

[JackNaylorPE]

Finally, Newegg has a bunch of different 5970's to choose from. They range in price from $700 to $750.

Still $100 - $150 over MSRP....hopefully when supply outstrips demand, customers will be able to avoid the price gouging.

If ya can stomach that, I'd say XFX or Saphire.

 

[jonnyboyC]

sapphire is right at 699 so that won't be a problem, xfx is right at 719 so it's twenty bucks for lifetime over a 2 year. but if you don't care for the lifetime then definitely go with sapphire

 

[nico75-1983]

Sorry guys, but where did you notice that XFX provides lifetime warranty for the HD5970?

I have always seen "2" years.

 

[jonnyboyC]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150460

look under specification then at the bottom

 

[Mousemonkey]

Sorry guys, but where did you notice that XFX provides lifetime warranty for the HD5970?

I have always seen "2" years.

If you are outside of the US then it's two years.