Looking for a quiet 7800

[antikewl]

Hello

I'm looking to upgrade my rapidly aging Asus 6600GT Extreme with something a little more powerful to allow me to run games well at 1920x1200. I own an Asus A8N-SLi Deluxe so I'd like to stick with an Nvidia card.

The things is that I want a graphics card that's quiet! Is there such a thing as one that's powerful *and* quiet? I was looking at the XFX cards as I've heard good things about them but I've just read that they're noisy as hell with their fans often running at 100%.

Any other suggestions?

 

[antikewl]

Thanks for all your comments, guys. Based on your responses, and on reviews I've read elsewhere, I'm going to give the BFX 7800GTX OC 256Mb a go.

Cheers!

 

[antikewl]

Lol. Back to the drawing board...

 

[antikewl]

The Leadtek sounds interesting. It hasn't had quite as many good reviews as the BFG and XFX cards but it's certainly quieter. Probably dues to having such a large heatsink!

The size doesn't bother me as I like to keep a slot free next to the gfx card anyway.

 

[antikewl]

Get a BFG 7800 and put a Zalman V700-CU on it. They are superb and very very quiet!!

The only reason I haven't gone for this option yet is because I'm not too comfortable with dismantling the cooler on a gfx card. It *probably* invalidates the warrantee. How easy is it to do?

That said, I'm going to have to replace the chipset fan on this A8N mobo before it craps out so I'll get some practice with that...!

 

[antikewl]

If your looking at paying the high price for the leadtek Extreme 256mb...You most likely be better off this paying the extra bit more and get the faster 7800gtx 512mb.

Price: £279.95 (£328.94 Including VAT 17.5%) Leadtek 7800GTX 256MB
Price: £339.95 (£399.44 Including VAT 17.5%) Leadtek 7800GTX Extreme Edition 256MB
Price: £394.95 (£464.07 Including VAT 17.5%) Leadtek 7800GTX Extreme Edition 512MB

I didn't want to pay more than £300 +VAT so I'm kind of stretching my budget already with that. :/

 

[antikewl]

I think I'd rather get one that's out-of-the-box quiet(ish) rather than mess with the heatsink. Esp when buying such an pricey card!

Chapparal: I think you're right about getting a standard Leadtek GTX. I could spend that extra few quid on taking my gf out for dinner or something. Is the extra £60 needed for the extreme edition not worth it in terms of performance gain?

 

[antikewl]

I've done a little research on Google and couldn't find anything on people with faulty Leadtek 7800GT(X)es. Maybe it was just a problem with 6800s?

 

[antikewl]

Just noticed that the Leadtek GeForce 7800 GTX Extreme Edition 256MB has the larger heatsink where the regular version doesn't. Wouldn't this larger one be quieter than the one on the regular edition?

 

[antikewl]

Ok cool. Thanks for everyone's input on this. I'll most likely stump for the Leadtek GeForce 7800 GTX Extreme Edition 256MB as I can't really stretch to the 512Mb. I'm stretching to the Extreme as it is!

 

[antikewl]

Cool and good luck

Thanks! :/

 

[antikewl]

I think you will be very impressed with it...(very nice card)
It should give over double the fps then your getting from your 6800gt.

Let us know how much better it is then your 6800gt went you get it..

I'm currently using a 128Mb 6600GT so the stats should be even better! WoW should look awesome with a 7800GTX at 1920x1200.

 

[antikewl]

The Asus doesn't look like it's due out for some time over here anyway. A shame.

 

[antikewl]

I now have my Leadtek 7800GTX Extreme 256Mb -- and it's a monster of a card. Physically, at least!

I'll be installing that over the weekend, along with some other maintenance upgrades (replacing the CPU and chipset heatsinks on my A8N-SLi Deluxe, and adding some acoustic padding to the case).

I'll let you know how it all goes, and what I think of the card, when it's done.

 

[antikewl]

Well I've had the Leadtek 7800GTX in for a few days and it's running a dream!

Thanks to everyone's help and suggestions, the gfx card is no louder than my old Asus 6600GT Extreme and really pulls its weight. Was running HL2: Lost Coast at 1920x1200 maxed out and still getting great fps. The card didn't break a sweat and was still pumping out cold air.

 

[antikewl]

Yeah, the Leadtek 7800GTX 256 has the same *monster* heatsink/fan as the 512 so I guess is made to run a little quieter than a regular heatsink.