Newb question: Does the manufacturer matter?

[boevad 1]

I'm thinking of buying a GeForce GTX 970. With 5 or so manufacturers making the supposedly same card, does the maker really matter and if so, which should I consider?

 

Thanks,

Dave

[RamonB 449]

I'm thinking of buying a GeForce GTX 970. With 5 or so manufacturers making the supposedly same card, does the maker really matter and if so, which should I consider?

 

Thanks,

Dave

Yes it does. Same as Car or Watch Brands.

 

Even though the nVidia chip might be the same:

• Some manufacturers use lesser quality components, other use high quality for the rest of the GPU.
• Some spend less on R&D others spend much more time and resources.
• Some cards will overheat, others won't.
• The spectrum is very wide from low to high end cards, even from the same manufacturer.
• Some provide great warranty and support, others don't.
• etc.

 

On the other hand some manufacturers will charge more money for similar products, to keep their brand "exclusive".

 

Cheers.

[martin-w 3,235]

Yes it does matter, just as it does with any product, be it a fridge, car, washing machine or TV.

 

Some makes are more reliable than others with better support if things go tits up.

 

My vote goes to EVGA, great product great support.

[Bert Pieke 7,584]

Asus is pretty solid as well

[vc10man 732]

 

 

My vote goes to EVGA, great product great support.

Fully agree. Never ever had one of theirs go down, and have an 'ancient' GTX460SE still running strong in a PC in Dubai. Bought a 970 of theirs. Compared to Gigabyte, whose 650 was not only faulty, but Gigabyte's service from their Ca., service point, was abysmal to say the least.

[boevad 1]

Fantastic. Thanks for the feedback.

 

Dave

[Angelo Cosma 61]

I have always considered EVGA to be the best of the best. Yes, they are slightly higher in cost then any of the other brands, but their EVGA step-up program along with their customer service and warranty / tech support can't be beat.

 

I have used EVGA cards exclusively since my 8800GTX which was years and years ago and have never had a bad experience with any of them. Had a 270gtx, 560Ti, 780Gtx, 980GTX, and 980Ti. All of them EVGA including my power supply. They get my vote over ASUS or BFG for sure. 

[martin-w 3,235]

The EVGA ACX 2.0 and 3.0 cooling is top-notch.

[Poppet 703]

 

 

My vote goes to EVGA, great product great support.

 

Yes,  I have only ever owned EVGA and never had any problems. 

[swiesma 625]

My vote goes to EVGA, great product great support.

 

I vote for EVGA or Asus.

 

Had an EVGA before my ASUS 970 and a new Asus is on its way (because Asus offers higher clock speeds and the AURA lighting, pretty important ;-D ).

They have both very good support (EVGA even better) in my experience. And the best cooling.

[captain420 3,099]

Another vote for EVGA as well! Very high quality card!

[boevad 1]

So I'm starting to think that maybe EVGA is the way to go? ; )

[swiesma 625]

So I'm starting to think that maybe EVGA is the way to go? ; )

 

You won't make a mistake with this decision.

[DaveCT2003 1,820]

Also be sure to check the outputs on the rear of the card to ensure they match up with your monitors (if you have more than one) otherwise you may also have to purchase one or more adapters. These days I don't think it's an issue for a single monitor.

 

Best wishes.

[martin-w 3,235]

As usual when buying a new graphics card... make sure you have sufficient PSU wattage and importantly, amps on the 12 volt rail, or rails if it's multi-rail.