Worth looking at brand when shoping for 8800gts?

Title kind of states it all but to elaborate. I'm looking at getting an 8800gts with 320MB.

Going to pricewatch, I get:
eVga at $289
Leadtek at $291
Zogis at $320
Asus at $322

The first three I've never heard of so I'm a bit leary. I've had perfect luck with ASUS motherboards.

I'm building a complete new system. I've got a budget of about $1500(not including monitor) I'm sort of taking the Sharky value gamer and modifying it ;)

So, has anyone had any good luck with any of the previous three companies? Is it a waste of money to pursue the ASUS?

evga is actually a well known brand. They have a lifetime warranty and the step up program. BFG has a lifetime warranty as well I think, usually people pick 1 of the 2 brands because of the warranty.

here's info on the step up program.
http://www.evga.com/stepup/default.asp?switch=2

It's always worth looking at brands....no matter the hardware. Warranties, customer service, and product reliability history are all important. I've bought mostly ATI branded products lately, but the last video card I purchased was an EVGA 8800GTS and I'm happy with it so far.

Definately consider brands for warranties. I love Evga's lifetime warranty even if you overclock and install aftermarket cooling.:)

Leadtek is a decent brand. I've had 2 of their cards and loved them both. Out of all of those I've never heard of Zogis. Reminds me too much of "bogus". While known for their mobos, Asus never really shook the planet w/ their vid cards. XFX is another good brand. Gainward used to be THE brand to have. Now I'm not even sure if their around.

EVGA is awesome. Lifetime warranty, even if you sell it or use aftermarket cooling. Step-up program. Some of the best board. You really can't go wrong with them.

Asus and Leadtek are fine, but since EVGA is cheaper, go for it. Newegg has a superclocked EVGA 8800gts for $299.99, I have it in my desktop.

I just got an 8800GTS from EVGA with the machine I just put together. So far it is working great. Aside from a great price, I went with EVGA for the warranty, customer service and the reliability I heard about a lot.

The last leadtek card I bought was a Ti4400 and the card worked great. Eventually the card died some time later(~ a year). Leadtek still refunded my money.

Thanks for the heads up. Guess evga is gonna get my money.

The stepup program really isn't much to me since I don't seem to upgrade but once every 2-3 years :D

I've been happy with bfg...lifetime warranty...card was slightly overclocked version at the same price...and the fan is surprisingly quiet

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Originally Posted by LilJohn

Thanks for the heads up. Guess evga is gonna get my money.

The stepup program really isn't much to me since I don't seem to upgrade but once every 2-3 years :D

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Yeah, it's only helpful if we're close to a new release but you want a new videocard now, or if something new comes out soon after you bought your card. But you'll be very happy with EVGA - they're really on top of things.

As many people have already said, brand definitely matters. 2 to 4 years from now, you have a pretty good chance of having some kind of problem with your video card... whether it be the signal crapping out, or the fan spinning slower because of dust build-up, etc. It's good to have a company that will provide product support 2 to 4 years from now, and even better if they have a US mailing address.

Having said that, you won't be unhappy with your EVGA purchase.

ive always brougt cheapest brand high end cards and never regteted it.at the moment im using an oem 8800 ultra no brand that cost me £320 on ebay no box or instructions but you could tell it had never been used. i think thats about $640 and cheaper then a gtx over here in uk.ive also used ocuk value 6800 gt leadtek 4600 ti and what ever cheapest 9700 was at the time and never had a problem with any.however if your interested in warranty then evga is said to be about the best

Not that I'm biased or anything but I vote EVGA:D

I've never owned an eVga, but heard only good things from them. LeadTek made one of the best GeForce ti4x00 cards, but I haven't heard much from them lately.

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Originally Posted by Stryker5

Aside from a great price, I went with EVGA for the warranty, customer service and the reliability I heard about a lot.

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EVGA has the best reputation for these three important things: warranty, customer service, and reliability. The cards from company to company are basically the same (probably all manufacturered by the same manufacturer) but it's the support and the price that matter when it comes time to purchase.

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Originally Posted by Buckeye Kid

EVGA has the best reputation for these three important things: warranty, customer service, and reliability. The cards from company to company are basically the same (probably all manufacturered by the same manufacturer) but it's the support and the price that matter when it comes time to purchase.

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Thanks for adding something new to this thread: outlining the distinction between manufacturers. You're 100% right, of course.

You sure haven't been here long but are quickly becoming an asset to have around. Thanks Buckeye :)

I'd stay away from MSI. owned 2 and both went in for RMAs ...

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Originally Posted by bimbim18

I'd stay away from MSI. owned 2 and both went in for RMAs ...

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Agreed. Had a Msi Ti4400 and a Ti4600.Ti4400 started getting memory artifacts and the Ti4600 died when the stupid heatsink fell off.:mad:

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Originally Posted by soupnazi

the Ti4600 died when the stupid heatsink fell off.:mad:

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wow that sounds terrible...was there anything underneath it? or did it just fall harmlessly on the bottom of the case?

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Originally Posted by PointlesS

wow that sounds terrible...was there anything underneath it? or did it just fall harmlessly on the bottom of the case?

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Hehe...I made it sound worse than it sounds.:) Basically there are 4 pins (on on each corner of the heatsink). Somehow two of the pins on one side decided just to pop out so the heatink was kinda hanging there like an open door on the 2 remaining pins. After I rebooted, there was no signal so I opened the case and saw it just hanging there.:eek:

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Originally Posted by soupnazi

Hehe...I made it sound worse than it sounds.:) Basically there are 4 pins (on on each corner of the heatsink). Somehow two of the pins on one side decided just to pop out so the heatink was kinda hanging there like an open door on the 2 remaining pins. After I rebooted, there was no signal so I opened the case and saw it just hanging there.:eek:

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Ouch!