6800GT brands?

[The Green Bean]

Is there any difference barring the Asus model between any 6800GT from any brands? Ive had a couple of freinds tell me that Inno3D and PNY just "suck" - I is there a difference on the card itself apart from the HSF? memery??

 

[The Green Bean]

another stupid question - Does Ocing void the warranty? Like how can they even tell if it has been OCed?

 

[Bateluer]

Most 6800GTs are identical. Some manufactorers, like BFG, factory OC the card. Companies like Gainward warranty their GTs to Ultra speeds on their Golden Sample line. Usually they only difference between GTs is the HSF, and a lot of vendors just use the standard reference cooler.

I don't know anything about Inno3D, but PNY doesn't build a bad card. Its just a standard reference design, nothing more.

 

[Rhin0]

Last PNY card I've had experience with had the heatsink fall off (yes, fell off for no reason) and it ruined a soundblaster card too. Fried the video card immediately so that is about $700 in damage right there total. Sent the card back to PNY... Oops we lost it, too bad.

Same with VisionTek, they f'ed us on a 450 dollar card too. Oops sorry we can't warrantee it even though it is technically under warranty. Send it to us and we will give you a 20 dollar credit towards another card. HAHAHA SCREW YOU VISIONTEK. That is why i'm afraid to buy BFG, looks like next visiontek to me.

Since Abit quit making awesome OTES cards i'll be stuck with an ASUS

 

[Bateluer]

Originally posted by: hatim
another stupid question - Does Ocing void the warranty? Like how can they even tell if it has been OCed?

Yes it does void your warranty. And yes, it is possible to tell if its been OC'ed . . . with an electron microscope.

http://forums.anandtech.com/i/...-icon-small-tongue.gif</a>" border="0"> Although, I wouldn't put it past vendor's to start using some sort of embedded chip to record OCing attempts.

If you OC your card, and frell it up, then you have no business RMAing the card. All you do is drive up the prices of video cards and overburden the delivery companies.

 

[The Green Bean]

Originally posted by: Bateluer

Originally posted by: hatim
another stupid question - Does Ocing void the warranty? Like how can they even tell if it has been OCed?

Yes it does void your warranty. And yes, it is possible to tell if its been OC'ed . . . with an electron microscope.

Although, I wouldn't put it past vendor's to start using some sort of embedded chip to record OCing attempts.

If you OC your card, and frell it up, then you have no business RMAing the card. All you do is drive up the prices of video cards and overburden the delivery companies.

SO then ive seen a few people on newegg say BFG has a lifetime warranty and it OCs well :/ :/ :/ :/

Another question: Does using a below par PSU fry your PC? Or any possibility of doing that?

 

[KBtn]

First off I agree with the posters that most of the 6800 GT cards are pretty much on par with eachother. And yes, OCing the card will void most warranties. As far as a sub par powersupply...YES! it can and often does cause serious issues with your syetem. A bad power supply can cause anything from random rebooting and freezes to actually burning up the motherboard and/or components. A quality power supply will regulate the voltages and provide enough clean power to keep all the components running smoothly. Powersupplies are the most overlooked items when building a new system. That old powersupply you got at a garage sale or off ebay just wont cut it these days. Remember, today's systems require a lot more power. A powersupply should be no less than 350w these days, and in a system loaded up with peripherals and drives you need to have even more wattage. Seach the internet for reviews before buying anything, but a new powersupply could just be the upgrade you need.

 

[The Green Bean]

Originally posted by: KBtn
First off I agree with the posters that most of the 6800 GT cards are pretty much on par with eachother. And yes, OCing the card will void most warranties. As far as a sub par powersupply...YES! it can and often does cause serious issues with your syetem. A bad power supply can cause anything from random rebooting and freezes to actually burning up the motherboard and/or components. A quality power supply will regulate the voltages and provide enough clean power to keep all the components running smoothly. Powersupplies are the most overlooked items when building a new system. That old powersupply you got at a garage sale or off ebay just wont cut it these days. Remember, today's systems require a lot more power. A powersupply should be no less than 350w these days, and in a system loaded up with peripherals and drives you need to have even more wattage. Seach the internet for reviews before buying anything, but a new powersupply could just be the upgrade you need.

I have a cheap 350W 20$ PSU.
Ratings are 3.3 -28A, 5 - 35A, 12- 16A.

Should I run my GT with this? :/
Or get a new PSU?

 

[Xed]

get a new psu

 

[The Green Bean]

Originally posted by: Xed
get a new psu

Antec 350W Truepower enough? Or 480W of the same?

 

[The Green Bean]

and if my PSU screws up; Am I entitled to a RMA from my mobo/proc/Video manafaturers?

 

[Xed]

Personally I'm partial to ocz powerstreams, mine is very stable and it comes with a 5 year warranty. I can't speak for all the other brands but I know a few people who's 600w blew up and fried other components got them all replaced by ocz. There are other good brands of course, look for a good 12v line.

 

[imported_Harbinger]

if you want factory-warrantied out of the box overclock on 6800gt your only true options are bfg and gainward. and damn that gainward 6800gt GLH model is sooooo sweet. 400/1200 1.6ns memories must rock hard. fortget about ultras and get one I wish those were around when I bought my "normal" 6800gt golden sample 2 months ago ..

Just a note, gainwards 6800gts are big and lousy dual slot cards. If you want quiet operation are you are on a tight case/barebone or something forget about it

 

[Ryland]

I just used my BFG warranty about a month ago when the fan on my old TI4600 was acting up. They sent me out a brand new card and I shipped my old one back to them.