What are some of the best graphics card brands, and what are some of the worst?

[Chubsmagee]

I know most card manufacturer's make quality products, but I want to make an informed decision when purchasing.

Are there any card manufacturer's I should NOT buy from?

Are there any card manufacturer's that you would recommend?

 

[Gam3r01]

For which? Nvida or AMD, or both?

 

[Chubsmagee]

Both

 

[Gam3r01]

Nvidia: ASUS, EVGA, MSI. Usually the top 3 contenders.
AMD: Sapphire, ASUS, MSI. Again, top 3.

Gigabyte is alright for both.
Galaxy has some nice HOF cards, but they are expensive.

There arent really any brands that should be avoided, but some have sub par cooling, (XFX for example, has had thermal issues)

 

[hunterj]

For NVIDIA I prefer Asus or EVGA.
For AMD I prefer Asus again and MSI.
Gigabyte is another well known brand but I have no experience with them so I cannot comment about their quality.
The only Galaxy card that I like is the White hall of fame edition but it is crazy expensive.
Asus would be my first recommendation. They have great customer service and the products to back it up.
I would stay away from XFX and PNY if you could

 

[someguynamedmatt]

You can't go wrong with either Asus or EVGA. Those two are definitely the top-tier manufacturers with proven quality in both hardware and customer service. I've also always had good luck with MSI's video cards and motherboards, and a lot of other people would agree.

Never actually purchased a Gigabyte, but I've heard horrible things about their customer service on numerous occasions, and would probably look elsewhere, though the hardware is probably alright. Galaxy makes fairly inexpensive cards - except for the HOF series - and I can't really comment on build quality; they seem to be average at best. Sapphire has been around for a long time, but again I've never owned one, and would probably buy an Asus or EVGA at the same price point regardless. I used to like HIS cards back when they didn't look like the designers went ham on the cards' cooling shrouds... I'm sure it's still the same hardware, but it seems there are better options these days.

I probably wouldn't buy a PowerColor card... maybe I'm wrong, but I've always seen them as the 'budget' brand that stands as a last resort. I apologize to you owners out there that I just offended.

Ultimately, there are a lot of 'decent' companies out there (HIS, Gigabyte, XFX, Sapphire...), but the problem is that when the same thing from a company that's been proven as reliable (EVGA, Asus, MSI) is available at the same price point, there's no reason not to take the latter. At least, that's just my opinion.

 

[alexthegeek21]

gigabyte and evga make great nividia cards, I have used both.

 

[Cons29]

if you buy mid range to high end, usually they offer good quality cards (almost any brand), if it is too cheap then i would not buy it. stick with well known brands and you should be safe.
just note that you don't always have to buy asus, sure they have good ones buy too expensive, you can buy other brands for a cheaper price but equally good in performance and reliability

 

[PreyTheSun]

My XFX Radeon HD 6950 2GB has lasted me 4+ years and still counting. I'm able to play Dying Light on full load at 1080p with a 24" Acer monitor. After this year, though, I'll have to upgrade.

I'm looking to get an Nvidia GPU from EVGA. I've always been drawn to them.

For AMD, I would say XFX. I've had no complaints, . My XFX ran Skyrim on full load, all mods updating graphics through in and through out back in 2011/2012.

 

[Boogle]

Gainward is by far the worst. Their card failed after 1 month and their customer service is outright rude.

 

[umbrokhan786]

so best manufacturer is Asus and Gigabyte.
i got XFX card should have read this first before buying a graphic card, i thought they all have the same chipset so i though it didn't matter which one you get.
just hope XFX fan doesn't burn out, hope it last 5 years+ years.
i always thinking the fanless graphic card are better then fans. i think heatsink is better to last longer.

 

[En Chom]

Believe me or not...PALIT is also good brand for me...even if its stand as a cheap graphic card..i have been use my PALIT 9600GT from 2008 till now and still no problem at all...the only toll its take is the new game required 5.0 shader graphic card...

 

[GuilhermeT]

I got a XFX 280X.
The hardware is good, but the BIOS is crap. It looks it was programmed by baboons.
I tried XFX support for an updated BIOS but it was as bad as the original.

I had to edit the power profiles and disable ULPS to make the card usable.

Don't buy XFX, they don't know what they're doing.

 

[Wind Rider]

Gigabyte no, 50/50 u get coil whine.

 

[zym258]

I know most card manufacturer's make quality products, but I want to make an informed decision when purchasing.

Are there any card manufacturer's I should NOT buy from?

Are there any card manufacturer's that you would recommend?

Do not buy gigabyte graphic card. I bought one gigabyte graphic card for myself and it only lasts 2-3 years. I bought one for my wife and it didn't last long either. So I will never buy gigabyte graphic card in the future.

The gigabyte graphic card costs me about $300, it was not a cheap graphic card by the way.

 

[Wind Rider]

Well used now gtx 1070 g1 gaming and i can say the gpu is amazing, OC is superrior and the card is pretty queit and the coil whine gone... Im loving this card. Im definetly next year gonna buy another card for SLI