Is it worth it to buy pre-overclocked video cards?

[iamtrout]

Just wondering. I mean, they're all based on the same reference board design. If I supply my own cooling, is there any reason to pay extra to buy a pre-overclocked card?

 

[Extelleron]

Not really. Heavily oc'd cards may be speed binned, but generally, in say the 7900GT's case, if XFX has their version @ 560/1650, you'll be able to get it there with a stock 450/1320 card as well, especially on water.

 

[iamtrout]

Thanks, that's pretty much what I thought. Getting a card that happens to overclock abnormally high is still pretty much a crapshoot, is it not?

I'm also wondering... I'm going from my 6800NU to hopefully a 7900GT (when they get in stock) and I'm absolutely blown away by the fact that the BGA memory on the 7900GT isn't cooled, or even in touch with a heatsink for that matter! When I overclock the 7900GT will I still have to get some cooling on the memory?

 

[Golgatha]

Originally posted by: iamtrout
Thanks, that's pretty much what I thought. Getting a card that happens to overclock abnormally high is still pretty much a crapshoot, is it not?

I'm also wondering... I'm going from my 6800NU to hopefully a 7900GT (when they get in stock) and I'm absolutely blown away by the fact that the BGA memory on the 7900GT isn't cooled, or even in touch with a heatsink for that matter! When I overclock the 7900GT will I still have to get some cooling on the memory?

I think a VF700 is good for this application. You can use the RAM heatsinks or just let the air blow through the fins to cool the RAM chips. VF900 would work too, but it is just more expensive and overkill for the 7900GT IMO.

 

[Crashedout]

I am in the exact same position as you. 6800NU to a 7900GT water cooled. I plan on buying the best deal I can find. Right now since none are in stock, that is hard. I am leaning to Leadtek but that is personal preference.

 

[Scorpion]

Originally posted by: Extelleron
Not really. Heavily oc'd cards may be speed binned, but generally, in say the 7900GT's case, if XFX has their version @ 560/1650, you'll be able to get it there with a stock 450/1320 card as well, especially on water.

This tends to go against my logic. I thought XFX gets select chips from nVidia, or they test them themselves to see what speeds they are stable at, and that's how they determine which OC model they go in. So if you buy a 450/1320, then that lends me to believe that it was tested and wasn't capable of going into the higher clocked models, thereby limiting it's OC potential. But I could be wrong...

 

[imported_ST]

Originally posted by: Scorpion

Originally posted by: Extelleron
Not really. Heavily oc'd cards may be speed binned, but generally, in say the 7900GT's case, if XFX has their version @ 560/1650, you'll be able to get it there with a stock 450/1320 card as well, especially on water.

This tends to go against my logic. I thought XFX gets select chips from nVidia, or they test them themselves to see what speeds they are stable at, and that's how they determine which OC model they go in. So if you buy a 450/1320, then that lends me to believe that it was tested and wasn't capable of going into the higher clocked models, thereby limiting it's OC potential. But I could be wrong...

I am in agreement with you Scorpion...I see more and more "superclocked" 7900GTs overclock better than *standard* 7900Gts, especially when volt modded. My theory is that from fab to package die assembly, all the parts are speed binned this time around to sell as much dies as possible, with the best ones going to the 7900gtxs, and the rest trickling down thereof...

 

[firewolfsm]

eVGA doesn't speedbin and still gets its OCs almost as high as XFX. Most of the other companies pay nVidia a little extra to get speedbinned cores but i don't think it matters much. There was a 7900GT round up and the eVGA was only 20MHz lower than the XFX in core but 30MHz higher in memory.

 

[Scorpion]

Originally posted by: firewolfsm
eVGA doesn't speedbin and still gets its OCs almost as high as XFX. Most of the other companies pay nVidia a little extra to get speedbinned cores but i don't think it matters much. There was a 7900GT round up and the eVGA was only 20MHz lower than the XFX in core but 30MHz higher in memory.

In my mind, you can't have a good business model unless you are doing this. I have to think that eVGA is speed binning somewhere. They either pay nVidia to do it, like XFX, or they do it in house. I suppose they could go ahead and put all the chips on the boards, and then test them afterwards, but somewhere they're being stressed to see which "catagory" they'll go in. It makes more sense to speed test them and put them into the highest category that they're stable in. To me it makes more sense to test them prior to the board, as well as the memory, to make sure you get high OC cores with high OC memory. Just my thoughts...

I'd be really surprised if you were to get a "vanilla" 7900GT and OC it to higher OC models. I'd say you would be quite a lucky person if that happened.

 

[CVSiN]

Originally posted by: Scorpion

Originally posted by: Extelleron
Not really. Heavily oc'd cards may be speed binned, but generally, in say the 7900GT's case, if XFX has their version @ 560/1650, you'll be able to get it there with a stock 450/1320 card as well, especially on water.

This tends to go against my logic. I thought XFX gets select chips from nVidia, or they test them themselves to see what speeds they are stable at, and that's how they determine which OC model they go in. So if you buy a 450/1320, then that lends me to believe that it was tested and wasn't capable of going into the higher clocked models, thereby limiting it's OC potential. But I could be wrong...

this is exactly how its working with XFX at least.. XXX are all cherry picked cores.

for once it looks like XFX is going to have the top dog. kinda scary. always leaned away from XFX but thier new double lifetime guarantee + this news really gives me new faith in my XFX 7900GT XXX version

 

[russki]

I bought a Biostar, of all brands, 7900GT and so far I easily clocked it at 550/1600 and havent even tried higher.
I would say pre o/c'd cards are a waste of money, for example eVGA cards are all the same, the higher clocked ones just have a different BIOS. There are so many people reporting that they have gotten a 450/1320 card from eVGA and all the company did was ask the user to flash a different BIOS.

 

[blurp]

This page pretty much says it all. No matter from where u start off, they end up more or less at the same speed.