Which GTX 970 version to buy?!?!

[Lag]

I'm having trouble deciding which version to buy. the cheapest, (here in Norway), is about 65 dollars cheaper than the rest (EVGA ACX), and the MSI and Acus DCUII at same pricing.
EVGA GTX 970 ACX at 378 dollars, the MSI and Asus at 450 dollars. also the Gigabyte Windforce costs about 460 dollars. help is greatly appreciated.

 

[RJones31988]

Cause at the moment I'm looking to upgrade from my EVGA 750ti to either a 970 or 980. Unfortunately i have an AMD 6300 I'm working with but down the road I'm planning on switching to a nice Intel but at the moment just looking to get a 970 or 980. I did like what gigabyte and MSI had to offer in those cards. Any suggestions?

 

[Vellinious]

For air cooling? The Gigabyte G1, the EVGA 970 FTW+, or the Zotac 970 AMP! Core Edition would be the ones I'd choose from.

 

[RJones31988]

Thanks a lot for the information man. Zotac was my 2nd choice with galax being the first but I have read some bad things about galax. But I do like Zotac and Gigabyte.

 

[Vellinious]

The high end ZOTAC cards are performing very well.

 

[Rexer]

ye, but it also looks like the EVGA is the noisiest model of the GTX 970. Hmm, although I don't think it will matter much in my case. I use the HAf 922 with almost all the fans slots filled except for the bottom, plus a cm 212 evo with two fans.

I bought an EVGA 970 in October of '14. It was great. I just sold it to a friend who loves it.

 

[Guest]

ye, but it also looks like the EVGA is the noisiest model of the GTX 970. Hmm, although I don't think it will matter much in my case. I use the HAf 922 with almost all the fans slots filled except for the bottom, plus a cm 212 evo with two fans.

Personally, I would go with the MSI. If it's the dual fan version where the fans only spin when the gpu needs cooling and where each fan can spin at separate speeds. It costs less than the ASUS, which also uses similar fan technology, and is every bit as good.

I actually own the MSI GTX 960 4GB card for use in my old 2009 model Dell 435T XPS Core i7 940 computer, as that's as much card as my power supply will allow (475W).

 

[Ivan Rosic]

ow evga or asus ... i got msi and its not worth it if you buying try avoid MSI ... i got soo disapointed ... dont get me wrong its have gerat results but you need to be awere it have waranty sticker on screw bihand which means you cant remove heatsinks to clean it or put thatcard in costum loop or simply what i like after 1 years using just replace thermal past which is really stupid for today ( i know inno3d , asus and gigabit and evga dont have that ). Btw if you are ready spend 450 dollars on gtx 970 you should know you can then buy gtx 980 ... for exampel i got this offer http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127872 when i put it in my cart it shows me it sells for 469

 

[Guest]

ow evga or asus ... i got msi and its not worth it if you buying try avoid MSI ... i got soo disapointed ... dont get me wrong its have gerat results but you need to be awere it have waranty sticker on screw bihand which means you cant remove heatsinks to clean it or put thatcard in costum loop or simply what i like after 1 years using just replace thermal past which is really stupid for today ( i know inno3d , asus and gigabit and evga dont have that ). Btw if you are ready spend 450 dollars on gtx 970 you should know you can then buy gtx 980 ... for exampel i got this offer http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127872 when i put it in my cart it shows me it sells for 469

Well, I don't think it's fair of you to rag on MSI for your disappointment at losing your warranty coverage when you want to tamper with the card's cooling solution or replace thermal paste after only a years use. No matter what you say you know about the other card makers, it would be folly to allow the end user to alter the cooling solution and still offer a warranty.

And your link points to this: MSI Radeon R9 390X for $430... NOT a GTX 980. You a troll?

 

[Vellinious]

ow evga or asus ... i got msi and its not worth it if you buying try avoid MSI ... i got soo disapointed ... dont get me wrong its have gerat results but you need to be awere it have waranty sticker on screw bihand which means you cant remove heatsinks to clean it or put thatcard in costum loop or simply what i like after 1 years using just replace thermal past which is really stupid for today ( i know inno3d , asus and gigabit and evga dont have that ). Btw if you are ready spend 450 dollars on gtx 970 you should know you can then buy gtx 980 ... for exampel i got this offer http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127872 when i put it in my cart it shows me it sells for 469

Well, I don't think it's fair of you to rag on MSI for your disappointment at losing your warranty coverage when you want to tamper with the card's cooling solution or replace thermal paste after only a years use. No matter what you say you know about the other card makers, it would be folly to allow the end user to alter the cooling solution and still offer a warranty.

And your link points to this: MSI Radeon R9 390X for $430... NOT a GTX 980. You a troll?

I know EVGA will honor the warranty even after the installation of a water block. I've RMAd cards that had been water cooled for over a year. I'm not sure about MSI, but most card manufacturers won't reject the RMA because you removed the stock heat sink...now if you screwed something up, and the card was physically damaged in the process of you doing that, then it's on you.

 

[Ivan Rosic]

ow evga or asus ... i got msi and its not worth it if you buying try avoid MSI ... i got soo disapointed ... dont get me wrong its have gerat results but you need to be awere it have waranty sticker on screw bihand which means you cant remove heatsinks to clean it or put thatcard in costum loop or simply what i like after 1 years using just replace thermal past which is really stupid for today ( i know inno3d , asus and gigabit and evga dont have that ). Btw if you are ready spend 450 dollars on gtx 970 you should know you can then buy gtx 980 ... for exampel i got this offer http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127872 when i put it in my cart it shows me it sells for 469

Well, I don't think it's fair of you to rag on MSI for your disappointment at losing your warranty coverage when you want to tamper with the card's cooling solution or replace thermal paste after only a years use. No matter what you say you know about the other card makers, it would be folly to allow the end user to alter the cooling solution and still offer a warranty.

And your link points to this: MSI Radeon R9 390X for $430... NOT a GTX 980. You a troll?

oh no trolling i was looking somthing for my frend and copy wrong link .... here is right http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814487161 today is lower (450 dollars for gtx 980). Its not just MSI but its fair to rag them .... i usuly not doing that but this year i wqas upgareding cpu and i really whanted whill doing that make new thermal paste on gpu to. If all brands would do that then i woudnt say anything but most brends not doing thos things ..... and i was just advacing hem to avoid generly brands who doing that. After all today costum loops mostly ppl doing whit 980ti .. can you imagine how sucks losing waranty on 650+ dollar gpu only becose you buy brand who doing that ... (btw for nvidia gpus i find only MSI,Asus and PNY doing this)

sory guys for my bad english

 

[rustyweasle]

Hi thought id put my ten pence in ..i have a msi 970 gaming running at 1500mhz boost, memory at 7250mhz running an 34"lg 3440x 1440 21.9 screen 4790k @4.6mhz on asus maximus formula vii z97 it runs titanfall at 55-60fps.. bf4 and bf3 at 60fps never goes above 67degrees cant hear it till the fans reach 70% (profile set in after burner) awsome card couldnt want for more from a single card, also cant see the need for sli as my screen only does 60 fps
no glitches solid as a rock ..well pleased with it ..worth every penny

 

[Justin Ulysse]

Just buy the one that is best for you and the best cooling for whatever you are doing

 

[rustyweasle]

MSI doesn't have HDMI 2.0 sadly. That is why I am thinking of going for the ASUS

WHY bother with hdmi u should be using display port at this quality +resolution quality potential

 

[Rexer]

What about the Galax 970? Anyone have any feedback on this card?

Well, If it's not made in America, you can rule the first suspicion out. I almost typed, 'most any Nvidia GeForce 970 should give you great performance. But I decided to rule that out because of some of the poor cooling configurations I've seen. So I venture to say, if it doesn't look like it has a stock Intel processor fan, it's probably good. Make sure it's warranted and has RMA permissions.

 

[rustyweasle]

MSI gtx 970...good stuff... my first msi card I have been asus all the way as they are quality,,but the msi does not disappoint ...cant hear it over my water pump..clocked to 1494mhz(24/7) @110% no extra volts,67 deg max temp during battlefront 3440x1440 LG screen @50-60 fps what more do you need??
was thinking of upgrading to 980ti but cannot warrant the extra cost as it plays all the new games on high/ultra
all the fluff about one is better than the other I think it only a few MHz oc and fps so go for what fits your budget
BUT do consider performance - noise - cost...as noise and cost wont matter as long as your If getting the performace you wont care about the others!!

 

[thedouggle]

Gigabyte G1 and XTREME edition graphics cards are hand-picked and rigorously tested to support higher overclocking and better temperature tolerance. On top of that, Gigabyte prints their own PCBs [I'm currently unable to find a source, maybe someone can help me] for their cards, they dont' just strap their own cooler on a reference design. The XTREME Gaming edition takes it one step further and applies an "aerospace" coating that protects against moisture, dust, and corrosion. The RAM modules on all of their cards are of the highest tier, resulting in more stable memory OC of VRAM.

To top all of this off, you can call and get a human being on the phone, who will respect your warranty and will [for almost any reason] send you out a new video card with a return label for your defective product.

The best part of it all, is even if you buy them used, if you call and give the serial number they can tell if the warranty is still good, and you don't need a receipt or proof of purchase to have a valid warranty.

Best company ever, I get everything I can from them.

 

[Manish Tewari]

I'm having trouble deciding which version to buy. the cheapest, (here in Norway), is about 65 dollars cheaper than the rest (EVGA ACX), and the MSI and Acus DCUII at same pricing.
EVGA GTX 970 ACX at 378 dollars, the MSI and Asus at 450 dollars. also the Gigabyte Windforce costs about 460 dollars. help is greatly appreciated.

1. Used EVGA GTX 970 SSC ACX 2.0 for a day and it started coil whining. - heard other similar issues Not recommended.

2. My first choice would be Strix DCUII, "SOLID performance", it's built very well with a metal fan shroud and a backplate followed by MSI - which does look cooler but I would rather have the backplate and metal shroud over color.

- Both are good performers.

- Either way, MSI or ASUS, you would be happy - get the one that is cheaper - if the difference in 10-20 bucks get ASUS 😀

 

[GMIKE420]

Msi has fan problems I would go with asus.

No it does not ive been running it for a year overclicking it with the MSI app. Card is great have zero complaints. And there customer service is always available.

 

[Guest]

ye, but it also looks like the EVGA is the noisiest model of the GTX 970. Hmm, although I don't think it will matter much in my case. I use the HAf 922 with almost all the fans slots filled except for the bottom, plus a cm 212 evo with two fans.

I would, personally, go with the MSI card. The ASUS would be my second choice. Both tend to be quieter cards since their fans only run when the video cards need more cooling. Don't know about the ASUS card, but do know that the MSI fans are also independent of each other, meaning they will run at different speeds depending on how much cooling is needed.

 

[Guest]

Sorry 😛 I'm going with your solution and save the money for something else 😛 sometimes I have to argue with myself to get to the already obvious answer 😛 thanks for helping me make up my mind 😀 (also have OCD, which doesn't help when deciding on a purchase xD).
Edit: in the end, I landed on the MSI because neither the Asus or EVGA was in stock when I purchases the card. But I must say I'm super happy that I went for the MSI!! super cool design 😀
They should however fix the "down-clocking" issue with multi-monitor setups. I thought my card was defect because I had high Idle temperatues. the solution to this was to install Nvidia Inspector.

You made a good choice. I'm running a MSI GTX 960 4GB in an older first gen i7 computer and it's fantastic. Very quiet and absolutely solid performance.

 

[Intel_I7 3770]

MY STRIX 970 IT'S 1500mhZ CORE CLOCK! GREAT OVERCLOCK nVIDIA!

 

[Ivan Rosic]

Go for Evga ... other 3 you mention are better but not that much better to spend extra 100+ dollars , for 400 you can get Evga hybrid who is surly runs more cooler then any of those http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&DEPA=0&Order=BESTMATCH&Description=evga+970+hybrid&N=-1&isNodeId=1

 

[Rexer]

Nvidia 1070s and 1080s are coming out! Reference editions called 'Founders Edition' are going to be launched in June. We're going to 1600mhz stock clocks hang on to your pennies. Woo, hoo!