XFX or Gigabyte 6850

Gigabyte or XFX

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meow367

Geek Trainee
IMPORTANT: My main concern is NOT performance, these cards are both a huge step up from my previous GPU. My main concern is heat. Which one has the best cooling!

I'm buying A 6850 today, but I can't figure out which one to get.

My choices are

Gigabyte - http://ncix.com/products/?sku=58225&vpn=GV-R685OC-1GD&manufacture=Gigabyte
XFX - http://ncix.com/products/?sku=57284&vpn=HD685XZDFC&manufacture=XFX

Yesterday, I was sure I was going with gigabyte, and they were pretty much the same price. Now the Gigabyte took a $30 dive in the price, I'm wondering if this is because they aren't as well made? Or is it 'cause the XFX offers lifetime warranty, while Gigabyte offers 3 years?

Also, the gigabyte is factory OC'd, while the XFX isn't.

IMPORTANT: My main concern is NOT performance, these cards are both a huge step up from my previous GPU. My main concern is heat. Which one has the best cooling!
 
It's a tough call. Frankly, i don't think you'll get an answer unless a few people had experience with BOTH these cards. And the chances of the temperature difference being severely apart are slim, considering that both cards have 2 fans and run at around the same clock. The best you can do to get a close answer is checking out user reviews for both cards: XFX, Gigabyte. (click the feedback tab and read the reviews).
Skimming through both reviews, users reported temps of 40 at max load and some said 60 for both cards. But i wouldn't rely heavily on these comments since you would never know what kind of airflow their cases had. The difference in temps are relative.

Both XFX and Gigabyte are trusted names. And since these cards use the same processor, the only thing left for you to decide on are minor specs and price. The Gigabyte is OC'd, like you said, and runs just a bit faster. Also, it's cheaper! My vote is on the Gigabyte.

Remember, an estimate on which runs cooler will be nearly impossible to figure out.

And just before you go ahead and purchase this card, what ancient GPU did you have before? Because newer cards require seperate power connectors from your power supply. So make sure you have 2, 6-pin pcie connectors (looks like this). If you don't, you'll need a new PSU too.
 
Thanks so much for the help. I did end up going with the gigabyte, because of the price discount, and I had already known I would have to upgrade my PSU, most of the higher end cards out there I would have to anyways, so I decided to go for a 620Watt one, just to be a bit futureproof.
 
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