Graphics card manufacturers.

[saint7269]

Hi all. I was wondering about some of the graphic card company's that I don't really know about. I'm going to be upgrading soon and I want to know if I should stay away from some manufacturers. I know MSI, XFX, EVGA and the other bigger names and in general the quality I'll be getting from them. The ones I don't really know about PowerColor, HIS, SAPPHIRE, VisionTek, DIAMOND. Sapphire seams to get good marks though. I don't know if I'll stay with AMD or go back to Nvidia. So your input on both chip sets is welcome. I'm running 2 5770 MSI HAWK's atm. So I will be going 7870/Nvidia equivalent when I upgrade.

 

[DM186]

Well in this order EVGA, XFX, MSI, are the top dogs and Gibabyte, Asus, and Sapphire are in there group. HIS, Zotac. Visiontek, and Galaxy are in there group. The ones I don't know anything about is Powercolor and Diamond. Well I hope this help a little and good luck.

 

[saint7269]

Thank DM186 that helps. Anyone know about Powerecolor or Diamond and what group they should be in? I'm probably not going to go below the second when I do get a new card though.

 

[simon12]

If you but a reference card (one with the standard fan on it) then the only difference between the makes if the warranty and what accessories you get with them. If you buy one with a custom cooler then they vary from card to card as well as make to make so check reviews for specific cards. Lesser known brands tend to only do reference cards.

 

[graemevermeulen]

What you guys must understand is that all of the boards are made in the same place. The actual PCB and GPU chipset all come from the same factory and these are under AMD/Nvidia's direct supervision.

These cards are then shipped to the respective manufacturers (EVGA, MSI etc).

The cooler can either be reference or a manufacturer's own unique cooler (if the card is overclocked).

The only difference will be the sticker you see on the card. Peel the stickers off and they will all look the same regardless of "manufacturer".

Some companies like Gigabyte will make their own cards with higher end PCB components but these are clearly stated when you buy the card.

 

[saint7269]

What about the other components that go on the board? I make PCB's for a living, but we don't put the components on in my plant. We do have plants that do that though. So dose say EVGA use there own components? I see in some descriptions of GPU's say that they use "Military Class Components". The PCB's I make are for Aerospace and defense. So when I see "Military Class Components" I'll put that GPU on the short list.

 

[DM186]

There are a lot of differences in each manufacturer. Yes thay have the same board but they get the board then they add all the other stuff like coolers for example. They OC it. They add things to it.

So the point is there are good manufacturers and bad. Some do shotty work and some take pride in what they do. EVGA, XFX, and MSI are to be the top sellers in the GPU's market.

The rest you get what you get. Not only do they add stuff it is the the warranty and customer service. EVGA gives life time warranties and most of XFX cards have life time as well. MSI has a good customer service base.

So yeah there is a difference in the manufacturers. The point is Yes they all have the same chip and they have the same board. Its the add on the makes it different. OP I hope this helps.

 

[saint7269]

Best answer selected by saint7269.