Which is the best GTX 970 card?

[AnthoRasher]

There are too many too choose from and I would like to know which one seems to be the best out of the bunch.

 

[jdw_swb]

I bought the Gigabyte GTX 970 G1 Gaming card....overclocked well out of the box and also goes further if you push it. The cooling is also good and it has a nice backplate.

 

[noob222]

I agree the Gigabyte card is the best on the market. It has better cooling which allows for better OC headroom

 

[Mac266]

Different cards are better for different people. Are you an extreme Overclocker? Then the EVGA FTW or Gigabyte G1 is the best for you.

Or do you simply want a card that is cheaper and performs well? Then pretty much any (except the EVGA ACX 1.0) GTX 970 will work.

 

[17seconds]

Focus on the best deals for cards that feature custom cooling and upgraded components. Basically look for anything that is non-reference. This will include nearly all models by Gigabyte, MSI, and Asus and select models from other manufacturers. Just because the card has a custom cooler doesn't mean it uses upgraded custom board components.

 

[jn_abe]

Go for one of the top end cards from:
Gigabyte
EVGA
ASUS
MSI
I have 2 of the higher end factory overclocked cards, the EVGA GTX 970 ACX 2.0 FTW and the Gigabyte G1 Gaming GTX 970. As in previous posts, I don't think there is a single 'best' card overall, but rather it is based on your build and situation. The EVGA I selected because of its small size and high factory overclock.; I have this card running in a small form factor PC that doubles as a media/theater pc for me. It's fans are pretty quiet (most of the new GTX 970s seem to have zero idle fans which means that they don't spin up until under load, which really helps the noise level). This GPU is a solid choice if you want a killer card right out our the box. The cons are that it is one of the most expensive at US$379. At $10 bucks less, The GIGABYTE G1Gaming GTX 970 is really well engineered, has a high factory overclock, and in my opinion, some of the best components. This has an 8 pin and a 6 pin power connector, rather than 2 X 6 pin like the EVGA and the rest, also other solid components giving it greater OC potential. Finally, and this may be important to you, the G1 has much more flexible monitor connections 2x DVI, 1x HDMI, 3x DisplayPort.. The EVGA has 2x DVI, 1x HDMI, 1x DisplayPort; Last thing to consider is what do you want to do in the future? Sticking with well a known brand, if you desire to pick up a second one later on to SLI, that shouldn't be a problem. Plus these tend to to retain resale value the best on ebay etc, if you might decide to sell it one day to upgrade to something else.

 

[redxmoonx]

MSI GTX 970 GAMING 4G is a really good one, i say go with MSI or Gigabyte. EVGA has weak componentry, doesn't turn off fans when not needed and still has misaligned coolers in the channel.

 

[jn_abe]

MSI GTX 970 GAMING 4G is a really good one, i say go with MSI or Gigabyte. EVGA has weak componentry, doesn't turn off fans when not needed and still has misaligned coolers in the channel.

I do like MSI. The MSI Gaming 4G was just too tall for my small form factor build! Will say that I haven't seen any fan idle problems on the EVGA FTW GTX 970 card, it idles at zero. EVGA did a firmware update in early Oct that seems to have addressed the issue. I bought mine after that.... http://forums.evga.com/EVGA-GTX-970-ACX-Firmware-Update-v11-m2228516.aspx

 

[redxmoonx]

MSI GTX 970 GAMING 4G is a really good one, i say go with MSI or Gigabyte. EVGA has weak componentry, doesn't turn off fans when not needed and still has misaligned coolers in the channel.

I do like MSI. The MSI Gaming 4G was just too tall for my small form factor build! Will say that I haven't seen any fan idle problems on the EVGA FTW GTX 970 card, it idles at zero. EVGA did a firmware update in early Oct that seems to have addressed the issue. I bought mine after that.... http://forums.evga.com/EVGA-GTX-970-ACX-Firmware-Update-v11-m2228516.aspx

that is true, but there still the misaligned issue, it was fixed but he might end up getting one of those

 

[kenny1007]

I say go EVGA. They are great cards. I have never had any issues with them except with a 670FTW that I OC to the point of breaking it and EVGA replaced it for a 770SC because by that time the 670 was out of stuck. EVGA had the best Costumer Support and Warranty out of all gfx cards. I will always pick EVGA for this very reason.