xfx 5770 or MSI 5770 hawk

[srp49ers]

Which one would you guys recommend the XFX with the egg shaped cooler or the MSI 5770 hawk. I can get the xfx for $10 dollars less, is the MSI worth the extra cost.

Most 5770s can reach good oc's anyways. does the MSI really offer more headroom, or is it just fluff.

 

[viivo]

I'd go with XFX just for the good warranty and customer support.

 

[JaYp146]

Regardless of the extra headroom, MSI's warranty support is nothing compared to XFX's. You can use MSI's AfterBurner utility to overvolt either card, but I'll take XFX customer support any day.

FWIW I have the XFX 5770, and have easily pushed it to 960/1300..

And before people start bitching about the egg cooler - it's quieter and more efficient than the V1 cooler. Anandtech review proved that much.

 

[happy medium]

WHich ever is cheaper. The hawk can overvolt and will reach 1000 core, 1400 mem.

 

[vital]

Regardless of the extra headroom, MSI's warranty support is nothing compared to XFX's. You can use MSI's AfterBurner utility to overvolt either card, but I'll take XFX customer support any day.

FWIW I have the XFX 5770, and have easily pushed it to 960/1300..

And before people start bitching about the egg cooler - it's quieter and more efficient than the V1 cooler. Anandtech review proved that much.

Isn't the difference like 1-2degrees? So why would the 58xx and 5970 stick with the V1 design?

 

[JaYp146]

Isn't the difference like 1-2degrees? So why would the 58xx and 5970 stick with the V1 design?

Oh I don't know, because they run A LOT warmer?

It's more than a couple degrees, if memory serves it's 3-5 C. It's also quieter..

WHich ever is cheaper. The hawk can overvolt and will reach 1000 core, 1400 mem.

With AfterBurner, any 5770 can be overvolted ...

 

[Dark4ng3l]

Except all non reference versions.

 

[vital]

Oh I don't know, because they run A LOT warmer?

It's more than a couple degrees, if memory serves it's 3-5 C. It's also quieter..



With AfterBurner, any 5770 can be overvolted ...

I don't get it.. If they ran A LOT warmer, wouldn't it be better for the 5970 to have the egg design since the closed design runs warmer?

 

[Dark4ng3l]

Anyways I have a Hawk and the cooler on it is brutal. At 75% fan speed overclocked at 1.35v and 1030 core it will not go over 70c period. This overclock crashes if the card hits about 74-75c so there is no way it would be possible to get near this with the phoenix or "egg" cooler. I have my fan settings in afterburner st so the card pretty much never goes beyond 68c.

I can vouch that it's a great card but the xfx is great too. I guess it depends on what you want but when I paid the premium for this card I did it because I knew I was getting 20% more speed than a stock card out of it as well as a MUCH MUCH better cooler.

 

[srp49ers]

Thanks for all the advice, I purchased the MSI hawk. After looking at some of the pictures of the cards, the MSI seems to have better components than the XFX non-ref design. MSI claims to have 7+1 phase power, anyone know whats on the XFX version (577X-ZNFC).

 

[llee]

I think you should go with the Egg cooler unless you have a really confined case like mine (Silverstone SG-05 MITX) where airflow control is crucial. In that case, go with a shrouded card so overall temps will be lower.

 

[arkcom]

The hawk doesn't actually have 7+1 phase power:

http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showthread.php?t=245986

It's still good though.

 

[Patrick Wolf]

And before people start bitching about the egg cooler - it's quieter and more efficient than the V1 cooler. Anandtech review proved that much.

Wha?

However in spite of the 5750’s lower power consumption, it doesn’t do so well here in terms of temperature compared to the 5770, coming in 4C hotter. We’re going to chalk it up to the egg cooler being unable to match the 5770’s shrouded cooler. This of course makes the fact that the 5770’s shrouded cooler is going to eventually go away all the more meaningful, as conceivably the replacement coolers would end up being less effective.

http://www.anandtech.com/show/2856/13

EDIT: After more research it would appear the egg coolers on the 5770 aren't the same as the 5750. Looks like the 5750 generally uses an all aluminum heatsink and base. The 5770 will usually have either a copper base with an aluminum heatsink, or a copper base and heat pipes w/ an aluminum fin array.

Looks like the cheapest non-PCS PowerColor 5770's use an all aluminum heatsink/base. PCS series have a copper base.

 

[vital]

So will all 5800 and 5900 series cards eventually move to egg coolers since it's the preferred choice for many?

 

[Patrick Wolf]

So will all 5800 and 5900 series cards eventually move to egg coolers since it's the preferred choice for many?

No, the 5800+ need better cooling than the egg provides. Most makers seem to opt for a shroud-like design with a bigger heatsink and a fan in the middle to push most of the air out the back. Although some have a more open design like this one. http://www.newegg.com/Product/ImageG...TI%20Eyefinity