Which 7870 to buy?

[futurefields]

I am leaning towards the Sapphire brands as I have had great luck with my Sapphire 6850.

I am leaning towards the OC model
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814102983

but am wondering why the non-OC model is the same price
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814102981

and if there is any difference in the card besides the slight OC on the OC model.

and then there is the more expensive Flex card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814102996

what's going on with that card with the $30 higher price?

and if anybody has heard about different models having better binned GPU's than the other.

Thanks guys!

 

[Red Hawk]

The HIS IceQ 7870 is definitely the best deal if it ever comes back in stock.

Those Sapphire 7870s don't seem worth it. You can get a Gigabyte 7870 with a 100 MHz overclock for $259.99, $239.99 after rebate.

the "Flex" card seems to have to do with multi-monitor functionality: http://www.sapphiretech.com/Flex/FleX_Eng_home.html

 

[cmdrdredd]

The Flex model is only worth it if you require two DVI ports.

The OC model comes up as $280 and the stock one is $260.

Why not consider an MS HAWK card? It's $239 after rebate.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814127681

 

[Isura]

Forgive my ignore, but what exactly is the benefit of these pricey OC cards? I picked up the Sapphire 7770 1 GB GHZ edition for $120. I can easily overclock it above the specs on these OC cards in the OP. Is it the additional memory, better cooling? The 7770 stays below 50C on 3dmark06 for me.

 

[Arkadrel]

what exactly is the benefit of these pricey OC cards?

Higher quality components, better cooling solutions (this means quiter, less hot gpu's).
Its not so much the fact that their shipping with a slight OC, its stuff like the components/cooler that matter.

Its also why I dont much approve of brands like XFX that usually cut corners to make cheaper cards.
Knowing you get good quality > price/warrenty
(you wont have the hassel of RMAing, if the card is well made)

The cooling solution on the IceQ is really good (but you ll pay for it, it wont be as cheap as other models).
So it ll stay quiet even when you manually overclock it higher.

 

[kazryv]

I bought the xfx brand 7870 double dissipation because it was only $214 at the time... so far its working pretty well... I have lightly overclocked it to 1075/1300 and it is rock solid stable. Haven't had time to overclock it further and test it but for now this is good enough, nothing that I have played has been all that taxing on the system (guild wars 2, ffxiv, bf3). Bought the xfx because of price and lifetime warranty (though who cares about the warranty, I will likely replace in 2 years anyhow).

 

[HydroSqueegee]

i just picked up the HIS 7870 while it was 220. fantastic card. pretty darn quiet to boot.

 

[RussianSensation]

$250-265 for a 7870 by Sapphire? Sounds too expensive to me. At that point I'd just get a Sapphire 7950 DX and overclock it. HD7870 isn't a great overclocker, while 7950 is. That $50 extra will buy you 20-30% higher performance. Otherwise look for a $220-230 deal for a 7870.

 

[raghu78]

the HIS Iceq HD 7870 for USD 220 (USD 200 after mail in rebate) is the best deal and the card to get. If you want another brand the Gigabyte HD 7870 OC (1.1 Ghz) is a good card for USD 260 (USD 240 after mail in rebate)

 

[Silverforce11]

$250-265 for a 7870 by Sapphire? Sounds too expensive to me. At that point I'd just get a Sapphire 7950 DX and overclock it. HD7870 isn't a great overclocker, while 7950 is. That $50 extra will buy you 20-30% higher performance. Otherwise look for a $220-230 deal for a 7870.

How times have changed... when GPUs in the past manage to get 20-30% OC, it was considered pretty damn good.

 

[Isura]

How times have changed... when GPUs in the past manage to get 20-30% OC, it was considered pretty damn good.

comparing apples to oranges. the 7000 series is absurdly underclocked at stock. no reason except marketing that these cards should be below 1ghz stock.

 

[futurefields]

$250-265 for a 7870 by Sapphire? Sounds too expensive to me. At that point I'd just get a Sapphire 7950 DX and overclock it. HD7870 isn't a great overclocker, while 7950 is. That $50 extra will buy you 20-30% higher performance. Otherwise look for a $220-230 deal for a 7870.

So quickly you forgot my PSU thread

I am using an Antec VP-450 power supply and don't want to chance running and 7950 off of it

and I dont want to upgrade the PSU




anyways, this may seem trivial but when I add up brand reputation, reviews, card aesthetics and everything, the Sapphire brand seems the best too me

XFX - hate the way the cards look, hate the love it/hate it rep the brand has

HIS - hate the way the card looks... im 30 years old so i like my components to look less like the LED-transformer ridden monstrosities

Gigabyte - I see a lot of RMA's/Issues with Gigabyte stuff IN GENERAL and I also don't like the triple fan design.

Sapphire - Consistently good reviews. Consistently good looking, mature-looking products. Well performing cards. I'm willing to pay the premium.


Too me, Sapphire is the EVGA of AMD cards, they are simply a head above the other manufacturers.

 

[Face2Face]

MSI?

 

[futurefields]

Even the MSI cards have some weird aesthetics.

Sapphire is literally the only company that makes AMD cards that don't have like some weird color scheme or a gaudy looking cooler.

 

[Face2Face]

Tf3 looks sharp. Only alum shroud around. Just saying....

 

[lehtv]

MSI R7870 Hawk $240 AR.

Sapphire is literally the only company that makes AMD cards that don't have like some weird color scheme or a gaudy looking cooler.

I beg to differ... :s

 

[balane]

I just ordered this Asus HD 7870 thanks to Russian's post in the Hot Deals section.

http://www.superbiiz.com/detail.php?name=AS-787DGD5

I used the coupon code SCRIMMAGE (Expires 9/10) for an additional $10 off which, combined with free shipping, got the card to me for a total of $223.49 and I get a free copy of Sleeping Dogs.

The only better deal I've seen is the HIS card for $199.99 at Newegg after MIR but it wasn't in stock and I needed a card pronto. (Plus, I worry if that HIS card will fit in my Micro ATX case.)

 

[futurefields]

I beg to differ... :s

its black on blue whats not to like?

 

[Face2Face]

its black on blue whats not to like?

So is the 7870 hawk?

Either way, just buy the Sapphire they are great cards as well.

 

[futurefields]

I also heard the HAWK is huge. Not sure if it would fit in the Antec 300.

Anyways I decided I am just going to stick with my 6850 until something big happens ($199 7870)

 

[jacktesterson]

I also heard the HAWK is huge. Not sure if it would fit in the Antec 300.

Anyways I decided I am just going to stick with my 6850 until something big happens ($199 7870)

I just bought my 7870 at $199 AR

 

[lehtv]

So is the 7870 hawk?

Exactly. And in my opinion the Hawk looks simpler and more elegant, while Sapphire looks more like a toy

 

[jacktesterson]

Exactly. And in my opinion the Hawk looks simpler and more elegant, while Sapphire looks more like a toy

Qualities I really worry about in my video card purchases

 

[futurefields]

Well they all use the same chips so you basically buy the one you like looks the best right

 

[balane]

I don't have a window on my case so I don't give two craps what a video card or anything else inside looks like. I'll never see it.

I look at things like cooling power, noise levels, manufacturer reputation for service and quality of electronic components used.

From my perspective it seems preposterous to even consider a video card's physical appearance one way or the other when making a purchasing decision.

If placing a Strawberry Shortcake doll inside my computer made it perform better I would have no issues doing that.