Choosing a 680! Evga FTW or galaxy soc white edition

[SMG_07]

Hello

so a bit of a back story, i ordered an asus 680 directCU II top from ncix more than a month ago and they don't know when the cards will arrive and i have gotten sick of waiting, so exploring other options lead this these cards here

-EVGA 680 FTW 2gb
-Galaxy 680 Soc White Edition

those 2 cards are the main thing i wanna get , I'm just concerned about how well made is the galaxy and is the SOC a good card or not , EVGA is just awesome but it seems very stock to be honest (yes i am a clueless moron but please tell me why those cards are good , i dont see why evga ftw is different than then normal one)
if i were to order the evga i would have to wait 2 weeks to get it from ontario but the galaxy is available to get from here

also i should mention the other cards available just in case they're a better option
- GigabyteGTX 680 OC windforce
-MSI 680 Twin Frozr III OC

 

[ilysaml]

Hello & Welcome.
There are no reviews out there for the Galaxy SOC, but according to specs it provides the highest OC settings out of the box and a better cooling, also the EVGA FTW is highly binned and allow for great overclocking but you'll sacrifice heat.

Also there's nothing wrong about the Gigabyte Windforce or the MSI TFIII, actually this is a hard choice. If you seek the highest OCing go with the Galaxy then the FTW, for better cooling you can go with either the Windforce or TF III, And I recommend the Windforce from all of these.

 

[SMG_07]

my concern about the galaxy is that the reviews in newegg aren't so ...nice

http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814162106

some cards broke under pressure and had to RMA it

 

[ilysaml]

So you might go for the FTW if u still want the high OC or the Gigabyte, also the DC II is decent.

 

[SMG_07]

also the EVGA FTW is highly binned and allow for great overclocking but you'll sacrifice heat.

sacrifice heat? does the card run awfully hot compared to other cards? would you happen to know what the idel and load temps are? also thank you for answering so quickly

 

[fantastik250]

It's because the graphics card is a reference card. Compared to the other brand cards, those other cards have custom-built heatsinks. The EVGA FTW version is one fan and will run hotter.

 

[AidanJC]

Are you planning on SLI in the future? The heat levels change dramatically when another card is thrown into the equation. If you plan to utilize SLI, go with a reference design card.

 

[ilysaml]

sacrifice heat? does the card run awfully hot compared to other cards? would you happen to know what the idel and load temps are? also thank you for answering so quickly

Normal reference edition idles 34C and loads 78C, for the OCed FTW you can expect it to load @ 80C.

 

[SMG_07]

Are you planning on SLI in the future? The heat levels change dramatically when another card is thrown into the equation. If you plan to utilize SLI, go with a reference design card.

No im not planning to SLI , also i should mention my computer specs just in case :lol:
CPU: i5 2500k
Cooler: Coolermaster Hyper 212 evo
MOBO: Gigabyte Z68X-UD3H-B3
RAM: Kingston HyperX 8GB 1600
SSD: Patriot Wildfire 120Gb
HDD: WD Caviar Black 1TB
PSU: SilverStone OP series 1000W Evo
CASE: thermaltake Level 10 GT

 

[SMG_07]

Normal reference edition idles 34C and loads 78C, for the OCed FTW you can expect it to load @ 80C.
http://images.hardwarecanucks.com/image//skymtl/GPU/GTX-680-SC/GTX-680-SC-87.jpg

Holycrap that's HOT! no way im gonna get this now! ... maan now im just confused with my options all over again

 

[fantastik250]

Just get a card with a custom heatsink fan, some already suggested Gigabyte windforce, or MSI Twin Frozr

 

[ilysaml]

Holycrap that's HOT! no way im gonna get this now! ... maan now im just confused with my options all over again

Asus Direct CU II, Gigabyte Windfroce 3X or the Twin Frozer III.
And I recommend the Gigabyte, if you doesn't like its look you can go with the TF III, Asus has some software bugs don't know if it's solved or not.
The only card that has positive feedback is the Gigabyte Windfroce.

 

[SMG_07]

Asus Direct CU II, Gigabyte Windfroce 3X or the Twin Frozer III.
And I recommend the Gigabyte, if you doesn't like its look you can go with the TF III, Asus has some software bugs don't know if it's solved or not.
The only card that has positive feedback is the Gigabyte Windfroce.

hmm im very drawn between the MSI and the Galaxy right now!

i am thinking of getting the galaxy because its already clocked really high and i dont intend to mess with the clock , however i read that its extremely load when fans hit +70%
the quote from overclockers.com

But in case you HAVE to raise it above 60%....beware....it's unbelievably loud. Louder than Gigabyte 680 Windforce 3X at 100%.

how does the MSI card handle in term of noise and head load?

 

[ilysaml]

Here's a review
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/MSI/GTX_680_Twin_Frozr_III/
28db idle and 39db load, this numbers extremely good, it's extremely quiet.
It got 9.4 from 10, recommended by techpowerup.

 

[SMG_07]

Here's a review
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/MSI/GTX_680_Twin_Frozr_III/
28db idle and 39db load, this numbers extremely good, it's extremely quiet.
It got 9.4 from 10, recommended by techpowerup.

I think i have made my mind , i will be going with the galaxy card for these reasons :
highly overclocked out of the box or better clocked than the Msi , Don't wanna touch that either way (and if something were to happen i can just return it without losing money on shipping because the ncix store is very close to me)
Two 8 pin connector , msi have one 8 and one 6
3 fan = assumed better cooling ( also removable fans for cleaning dust)
White PCP looks sick
also i don't know about the MSI but Galaxy has 3 years warranty

ilysaml dude! Thank you so much for your help. You're awesome

 

[ilysaml]

If I were you I'd take the feedback a little bit with seriousness since there's no reputable review of it out there.
it uses 2 8 pin connectors cuz it's highly overclocked.

And yea thank you too, I know xD

 

[SMG_07]

If I were you I'd take the feedback a little bit with seriousness since there's no reputable review of it out there.
it uses 2 8 pin connectors cuz it's highly overclocked.

And yea thank you too, I know xD

The reason im not taking the review seriously is that the card is already clocked so highly at 1200 and 1267 boots clock , and they guys decided to overclock it even more, im not going to do the same mistake

 

[ilysaml]

Ok like you see.

 

[SMG_07]

Best answer selected by SMG_07.