GPU Brands. Who to look out for?

[MontanaFX]

I have been browsing the net for a GPU and have been bombarded with brand after brand of GPU manufacturers. I havent much idea as to whos cards are gunna over heat on me and which brands are known for quality.

All help is appreciated as always.

[screwballl]

Stick with the name brands: evga, msi, bfg, nvidia, ati (and a few others)

[Capper]

In all reality, like cards (same GPU offered by different companies) are basically the same......the only real difference is special aftermarket cooling used to replace the stock cooler, and some being slightly overclocked to stand out. ATI and NVIDIA always certify these companies to sell the cards, because their name is associated with them.

what will make cards better/worse is the warranty.....companies like XFX, BFG, eVGA, Gigabyte, ASUS, Sapphire and a few others offer good warranties that you don't have to worry about....if I was going to recomend you stay away from a brand, I'd say PNY....I've never seen anyone have a good experience with them.

[simple_inhibition]

visiontek is another good company. they are the only vendor in the ATi camp that offers a lifetime warranty.

[azianai]

another vote to stay away from PNY.
Customer service is non-existent.

[Dread]

Originally Posted by azianai

another vote to stay away from PNY.
Customer service is non-existent.

Agreed, PNY is NOT the same as others. And by not the same I mean they are not good.

[Quakindude]

Personally, I would narrow your choices down to EVGA, XFX and BFG. EVGA and XFX have the most flexible warranties while I've heard from others that while BFG doesn't have as flexible a warranty, their customer service is excellent. I can personally vouch for EVGA's customer service. And I've got some of their very old video cards still running. Including an EVGA ACS2 Ti4600 in my sisters computer.

[JazzyJake]

eVGA and Gigabyte are my personal two favorites, but this comes from an nVidia fanboy, due to my linux fetish.....(ATi + linux = nasty outcome, most often)

eVGA for performance, Gigabyte for their silent cards, or when there's a nice package or price and i just need a decent card.

[azianai]

i'd go EVGA, my 1st 8800 series card was an XFX 8800GTS 320MB thats working great for my little bro, i've gone EVGA 8800GTS G92, and now most recently the 9800GX2. EVGA's customer support was available for questions even at 1AM EST.

[screwballl]

I have heard good things lately about sapphire so they may also be worth looking into if you want to save a few dollars... I have a Sapphire X1950GT and 7300GT