Kinda tempted to strip the Gigabyte GTX 670! It looks like the heatpipe is simply clamped in place between the heatsink and memory cooling plate. If that's the case then I reckon a thorough clean and coating of Artic Silver 5 would work quite well at reducing temperatures. Along with some Arctic MX-4 on the GPU core itself. Have to be careful removing the fan shroud from the heatsink for this entire operation though!
I think I'll either buy the Gigabyte or get the cheapest card I can find + an Arctic Cooling Accelero Thanks for the link btw
I'm gonna go for the Asus DC II if they ever hit Newegg. Hey Bindi, make that happen for me, would ya?
here's a review if you haven't seen one. that cooler does look pretty impressive http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/ASUS/GeForce_GTX_670_Direct_Cu_II/4.html
Hmm. For me, it's up between ASUS, EVGA and GIGABYTE. They all look REALLY good. The ones I want are all out of stock at Scan, so I'll wait and see. I don't think I need a 4GB card. to be honest, the main complaint seems to be that it runs out of VRam when playing BF3 + Cry2 on ultra-uber-max at 1080p+ and while at 1080p, i don't play either.
I'm really tempted by the Asus. I'm almost OCD about having a quiet system and the reviews seem to suggest it's the quietest. OCUK is listing stock from the 15th, I don't know if their service has improved but I've been put off by negative comments in the past.
The Gigabyte swings it for me because we're looking at a close enough reference 680 design to make it compatible with an EK water block and backplate. Also the stock cooling is effective and it's all housed on a nice blue PCB to match my ASUS P8P67 Deluxe.
Its true though - I have long thought this about ASUS. Obviously the blue sells for you or you wouldn't use it or maybe if it is the product people are after and not particulary the colour (I personally don't like it at all), but it doesnt match anything of your other products. Same goes for the TUF to some extent, but I guess that a different niche. RoG boards look nicer and do match, but not all people want to spend that much or have no need. Ditch the retro blue and pick other colours that match your range (black and white or something) to still differentiate between your product tiers? I know its not that simple though and people have different opinions to mine...
I'd want an all black or all white motherboard. EVERYTHING. With the markings as stickers I could remove. Would make a very cool computer if you installed one of the black Phantom cooled graphic cards.
I'd just be buying the cheapest TBH.. The stock coolers seem to give enough headroom to give a decent OC.. Or, actually I'd just buy which ever one is actually in stock..