Advice Regarding 7979 please

[dogmanstaruk]

Hi Guys

I've decided to do a partial upgrade on my PC by getting a SDD for booting/games, plus upgrading my GPU.

Without going into full detail the current basic specs of my machine are

i5 2500k clocked at 4.4 (can't seem to hit that elusive 4.5)
750w PSU
MSI 560ti

I've really been toying with the idea of switching over to the 7970 instead of automatically sticking with Nvidia.

This is the card I was originally going to order from OCuk, as it seems like a nice card.

Sapphire HD7970 Vapor-X GHZ

http://http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-303-SP&groupid=701&catid=56&subcat=938

However today I have noticed that this card from MSI is now available

MSI HD 7970 Lightning

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-152-MS&groupid=701&catid=56&subcat=938

I know that the lighting is only 20 quid more, but I am wondering if it is really worth it in real term performance with my current base set up with the 2500k clocked at 4.4. I am also slightly concerned as I beleive the 7970 can be power hungry which I assume would be even more so in the MSI card.

I will be running the card in 1080p on both my monitor, plus connected to my Samsung LED for media.


Thanks for any thoughts.

 

[Rusty0611]

First of all, the two cards have the same GPU in them. They're just clocked to different levels and via different ways.

The Sapphire card has the 'Ghz edition' BIOS on it which is basically just increasing the clock speed out of the box.

The MSI Lightning has the first edition 7970 BIOS on it however it is factory overclocked out the box.

In a theoretical example where both cards have identical silicon quality (i.e. they overclocked to the same level) they would perform identically.

So you should look at other things such as warranty, quality of cooler etc.

I don't think there's any point of the Ghz edition 7970 version cards.

I would personally get the MSI Lightning.

The Sapphire isn't a bad card per se, it's just overpriced for what is effectively the same as a standard 7970 with a new BIOS on it.

 

[Nickolp1974]

+1 on the lightning, great cooler and a looker!

 

[RogerMesenseless]

I'd go for the Lightning too.

 

[dogmanstaruk]

Thanks for the assistance guys

The Lightning it is.