help choosing a 580 card

[HeXen]

My MSI gtx 280 has the dreaded cap whine and is horrible. Considering upgrading to a gtx 580 but i want to make sure i avoid that at all costs.

So what would be a good brand?
GIgabyte has the free Mafia game coupon, but i don't have good experiences with gigabyte.
How is Galaxy or Sparkle?

 

[RavenSEAL]

My theory has always been: ASUS, Sapphire, Gigabyte, EVGA or Nothing.

The GPU is all the same, only thing that will vary will be stock clock and possibly cooling design.

Best 4 manufacturers IMO.

 

[videogames101]

Galaxy and Sparkle are considered low tier manufacturers, no?

 

[RavenSEAL]

Galaxy and Sparkle are considered low tier manufacturers, no?

Yes

Sparkle and PowerColor are low tier.
XFX and Galaxy are Mid-Tier
Gigabyte and ASUS are Mid-High tier.
Sapphire and EVGA are High tier.

That's my opinion...

 

[AstonM89]

Without a doubt, eVGA. Best VGA manufacturer out there, great customer support and lifetime warranty.

 

[HeXen]

evga is sold out

 

[RavenSEAL]

Go with Gigabyte then

 

[HeXen]

i have alot of bad experiences with GIgiabye. had 3 different models of their "ultra durable brand mobos all die in under 1 year and their last graphics card i got from them always had artifacts, even if i underclocked it or changed drivers. they don't allow bios updates aparently

anyways, i read that this cap whine can happen on any card. so i guess its a luck of the draw?

 

[toyota]

I hope you have a really good system to put a 580 in.

 

[BTRY B 529th FA BN]

I think Sparkle is big in Europe... not 100% sure

 

[Mistwalker]

Anecdotal but both 580s I received died within the first month, both Gigabyte.

Honestly though, if they're all reference boards you should only be looking at software and warranty support.

 

[tweakboy]

EVGA over ASUS only because they have the 90 day step up program.

anything else is cheap pcb and of lower quality. Thank you

 

[toyota]

EVGA over ASUS only because they have the 90 day step up program.

anything else is cheap pcb and of lower quality. Thank you

gee which color pcb did you say was low end?

 

[HeXen]

step up program? lol i kinda doubt Nvidia releases anything better within 90 days. especially when you hear about it some 6 months in advance.

Anecdotal but both 580s I received died within the first month, both Gigabyte.

stuff like that can make one biased against such companies. like i never buy Antec either, flukes or not, too expensive to risk on historic fails. Gigabyte, hailed by some is supposed to be in the top tier, but they had their chances with me, never going Gigabyte anything for quite a long time.