Classified vs Lightning

[gloo69]

I can decide which would be better. A evga gtx 680 classified or msi gtx 680 lightning. I do plan on going 2 way sli sometime in a few months
but I can't decide on these two cards. Would it be better to get the classified for sli for the blower style of heatsink?
Games I'll be paying will be bf3, crysis 3, and skyrim with has much mods I can throw at it.
Also I wanted to know what happens if a game uses more vram than your gpu has?
I just need some opinions on these two cards or maybe some recommendations. Thanks1

 

[hero1]

I say got ahead and grab the Sapphire HD7970 Dual-X. It has awesome cooling and lots of room to OC plus is better priced compared to what you are considering. On top of that, AMD cards have 3GB vRAM which is pretty much the sweet spot right now when it comes to games that take more than 2GB vRAM. And the 384-bit bus is even better. So, the choice is yours, 2 x7970 CF will cost way less than 2x680 SLI and will have the capabilities to handle future titles due to vRAM amount.

 

[hero1]

However, if your heart is set on getting Nvidia card I say grab the eVGA classified. Better get something with lifetime warranty even if it's limited compared to 2-3, depending on the other manufacture. Lighting is also a great card but I think it should come down to price. And if none of them feels great in your mind then turn to the red team and browse around and stay far away from jet engines aka XFX cards.

 

[gloo69]

I'm leaning towards the lightning dude, seeing as it has the same clock speeds and I won't play with 3 monitors but I do like the fact that the classified has a blower fan but msi still has a great cooler. I think msi is what I'll go for. I wish they still had the 7970 version of the lightning or the matrix from asus but all are discontinued. I did look into 7970's like His iceqx2 and I did see the xfx but I read way to many bad reviews about it which sucks as it does look like a beast of a card.

 

[vmem]

lightning is a better card with a better designed cooler and custom PCB. however, hero has a point with the lifetime warranty so it's up to you. to play it safe or to burn bright for 2-3 years (and go into the unknown after )

 

[gloo69]

Ahh true true, I like the warranty but I do like msi's cooler and price as I can buy some games when I do my build haha what about going sli with the lightning? Will the gpu reactor get in the way. and my mobo is an asus sabertooth z77.

 

[hero1]

I'd steer clear from XFX. They suck. I had one and had to return it. Grabbed the 2 Sapphire's and I am not looking back. Go with MSI if you like the look of it and saves you money, chances are it will last a long time but I wish all manufacturers followed the eVGA model with lifetime warranty. I know XFX does but only on DD cards and they suck at fan noise. You can SLI the lightning since your board has enough space between the PCI-E slots. So you are good to go.