Which 7900GT should I buy?

[notsobig]

Hi, I'm thinking of buying 7900GT for a while now, but hearing all horror stories on the net(artifacts/black screen etc)I'm still kind of hesitating. Is there any particular model that I should avoid or I should look for? I'm interested in getting Gainward 512 MB model because I heard they use original board layout so it won't be affected by this known 7900GT bug(although it's bit pricey), but is it true? Does any of you had bad experience with it? Also will extra 256MB ram improve my gaming experience therefore worth extra 50 quid? Thanks for all your inputs.

[scrandman]

Can't think of why the Gainward wouldn't be affected, as no one will official give an explanation of the problem (other than nVidia blaming the manufacturers for overclocking the cards).

I'd avoid XFX if I were you - their customer support is hit or miss.

Evidently eVGA have got th4e best press in terms of admitting there is an issue and trying to help their customers. BFG get a reasonable write up too.

I'm pretty sure there was a post either here or in the 2D/3D graphics forum that at least one manufacturer claims to have nailed the problem and is now shipping "fixed" cards. I can't remember who it was though, although I believe it was eVGA of BFG. Try searching the forums a bit to find out more.

[notsobig]

Thanks scandman, and I'm sorry, I didn't notice there was 2d/3d graphic forum. I should've posted there. Well I'm not sure myself but many people now say this bug is due to low quality memory voltage regulator found on the back of the card which most 7900GT reference board use. And from what I heard only exception is Gainward 512 MB model because they use their original board design to accommodate extra 256MB ram....but maybe this is just a rumour. Anyway, I'm sorry I think I was bit too nervous, this is kinda big money for me to spend so I just wanted to make sure. I think I'll go for either Evga or Gainward. Thanks again

[Madafwo]

The cheapest, thats all, don't bother with pre overclocked, if you want it clocked, do it yourself, the extra ram might make a different but for the price you pay, go for a GTX instead.

[Clunk]

or you could grab an x1900xt for 240 from savastore and avoid the 7900 series bug completely

[notsobig]

Thanks. But GTX owners also suffer from similar problems aren't they? Yes, I considered buying X1900XT instead but my PSU is bit too weak to run it you see(neopower480) and probably needs replacing which will cost me another 60-80 quid so I came to the conclusion it's not worth it.

[Clunk]

yeah, the gtx have the same problems, i sent my xfx one back for a refund and i have been unable to find any evidence of any working 7900gtx available at the moment, i even did a post asking for people with working gtx to post the make and model, and there was only one, and he later wanted to swap it for an x1900xt so its not looking good.

[notsobig]

Well that sounds awful. So you bought x1900xt instead? How is it performing? Better than GTX?

[Clunk]

going to grab one this week, i hear that they are noisy and run hot, but its going to be watercooled anyway so that doesnt matter to me.

check out some reviews, they seem to just beat the gtx by a bit, but they have more eye candy. will soon see

[notsobig]

Ok, thanks. And good luck to you

[Inferi]

I own a BFG 7900GT OC (factory overclocked, 256MB RAM) and no problems with it so far, other than a bit noisy (which I knew it would be). Various 7900GTs for around £160 + VAT. This doesn't mean though you won't have any problems, just telling what I've experienced so far - IANAL.

I second the XFX support "hit and miss".

[Clunk]

I own a BFG 7900GT OC (factory overclocked, 256MB RAM) and no problems with it so far, other than a bit noisy (which I knew it would be). Various 7900GTs for around £160 + VAT. This doesn't mean though you won't have any problems, just telling what I've experienced so far - IANAL.

I second the XFX support "hit and miss".

will it run 3dmark06 without artifacts on the deep freeze scene?

[notsobig]

Thanks for your input Inferi, well it's good to know the card is working well for you, thing is it is very rare that people with a good card come out with "My 7900GT is working well without any glitch" type of post because usually they are quite happy with what they have and too busy playing theier favourite games I guess. So I tend to see more posts from people having issues with the card which kind of makes me worry. From what I read defected cards are only about 10 percent of all cards that are shipped, so probably it's not really that bad judging from that figure, but many hardware related forums on the net are now flooded with complaint from defected 7900GT owners you see, so I don't know, I'll probably go safe and get myself 2 7600GTs instead and run them in SLI. I really wanted to go for a one card solution...but buying 7900GT seems bit too risky to me and it seems there's no alternative card that meets my requirement at the moment.

[ajones]

I'll probably go safe and get myself 2 7600GTs instead and run them in SLI.

First time I've ever heard SLI referred to as a safe bet

I wouldn't advise this as the best option. IMHO, get the best single card you can afford before you start considering SLI.

[notsobig]

Yes, but I have no other options you see And I have ran SLI system for last 11 months glitch free so at least I can say SLI isn't that bad. Only thing I don't like about it is that you can't use all available pci slots because usually one of my graphic card blocks it. Since one of pci slot is already occupied by my soundcard, I will be forced to use my low quality usb wireless network adapter but again I have no choice.

[ajones]

What are you running at the moment?