BFG 6800 GT OC? Or Leadtek Winfast A400 6800 GT?

[leech]

Well, so far as yet, I can't find even a release date for the Leadtek card (which I'd really like, since it has a nice quiet heatsink on it) or should I get the BFG one? It's overclocked by default and has a lifetime warranty... and apparently is available already. Also the BFG can be had for $400USD, and I haven't seen a price (except on a japanese site that listed it at $540USD) for the Leadtek.

So how loud is the BFG? It has just the reference design heatsink on it, with a big BFG painted on. It's clocked 20mhz higher than the standard GT, but one review said they had clocked it stably to 435Mhz !!! Considering the Ultra is at 450Mhz... Looks like that would be one killer card.... but how loud? I don't want one of those leafblowers in my system....

Leech

[Helevitia]

I haven't read anything on the Leadtek yet. The BFG looks mighty tasty and I despise Nvidia.

[xortam]

Seems pretty loud to me but I haven't compared it to other cards of its caliber. I picked one up thinking I would return it when the X800 became available but now I'm wondering if I shouldn't keep it. I haven't tried any games with it yet except for a few seconds of Quake III.

[leech]

I'm mostly wanting it due to the Linux support. Well, and now from everything I've seen... which is only that HardOCP benchmark... Is that the 6800 series spanks the competition in Doom 3.

Not that it really matters much.. Actually I tend to think that's due to nVidia having the best OpenGL drivers. Guess I'm going to order the BFG, either today or tomorrow. If it's too loud, I'm sure later on I can get a third party heatsink for it that is much quieter.

Leech

[xortam]

I hope you plan on using the digital interface because the analog isn't very clear with this BFG card ... though I'm used to my Max on a CRT.

P.S. I should point out I'm comparing the BFG on a 23" 19x12 LCD versus my Max on 22" 12x10 and 19" 10x7 CRTs. I don't recall how much better my Max looked on the LCD versus the BFG, though the Max can't reach 19x12. I'll have to yank the LCD back into my office some day and compare the PQ via analog some more on these two cards ... though I'm mainly digital in the HT room now anyway so its a moot point for me.

[KeiFront]

I'm planning on buying the leadtek (respectable brand and a copper custom cooling), only downside they're unavailable overhere, noone has them in stock. Goes for almost all 6800. Only the club3d, point of view etc are available.

[leech]

yeah, seems the standard 6800 can be found, and same with even the Ultra. But the GT is like a freaking ghost...

I wanted to go with the Leadtek as well, but I see no release date for it. So I was thinking the BFG...

Well, I have two 21" CRTs that I generally have at 1600x1200 or 1280x1024... so how would the quality be on those... actually, right now the right monitor has some ghosting, and I'm not sure why.... especially since one of the selling points of the Parhelia was "Best 2D IMAGE QUALITY....) The one on the main connector looks flawless, it's just the others when connected to that external cable may have some noise in it or something.... oh well... Any ideas when Leadtek will release their GT?

Leech

[KeiFront]

Have you already tried another monitorcable?
I have no idea when the Leadtek is going to be available. But I've got time. I certainly don't want to buy a Club3d or Point Of View card. I don't know how good the BFG brand is I never heard of it before.

[leech]

The BFG brand is overclocked by 20Mhz by default, but they have a lifetime warranty on it (apparntly a real one, unlike the PNY 'lifetime' warranty, which is only for the product lifetime.) Other than that, I think it's almost just the standard reference board.

I think the problem with the ghosting isn't the monitor cable, because I had ghosting on both of these monitors when they were on the second connector.. I think it's the Y splitter thing for the Parhelia's monitor 2 and three that is messed up.

Leech

[xortam]

The Bjorn3d site really liked the BFG. I also have read good things about them in various forums. Check out the Bjorn3d review of this card.

Conclusion
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I think it's really great that BFG decided to offer its entire 6800 line as OC cards. A lot of buyers who don't feel like messing with overclocking or don't understand it will really be happy that this overclocked-out-of-the-box option is available to them. While other companies will probably offer already overclocked cards, BFG really does a great job of marketing and pushing its OC line, and I think this round of cards will gather more attention than ever to BFG, and deservingly so.

The BFG 6800 GT OC is a great card. Yes, it is expensive at $400+, but you get what you pay for. The performance is great, and you can more than likely count on it overclocking even more than its preset overclock values. It will of course run even hotter then, but as long as you keep your case cool, which you should try to do anyway, then I don't see it as a problem. Most users would be more than happy though just keeping it at its default overclocked speeds, and then you get the awesome lifetime warranty to fall back on. Oh, and don't forget 24/7 tech support. These are great extras that make up for the weak bundle.

If you can't quite afford to spend $500+ for the very highest of the high-end cards, then you should definitely put the BFG 6800 GT OC at the top of your consideration list. It's an awesome card with plenty of power.

Pros:

+ Excellent performance
+ Already overclocked
+ Good overclocker on top of preset overclock
+ Lifetime warranty and 24/7 tech support
+ Not too noisy
+ Reasonable power requirements

Cons:

- Expensive
- Relatively large card (length-wise)
- Runs pretty hot
- Weak bundle

Final Score: 9 out of 10 and the Bjorn3D Golden Bear Award

I'll also attest to the length of the card being an issue. I have just a fraction of an inch of space available at the end of the BFG.

[leech]

How much longer than the Parhelia is it? I still think I want to go with the Leadtek one... but I guess it all depends on which one I can find first....

Leech

[Admiral]

I'll be getting a Leadtek 6800 GT in a week or so.
Don't know how elusive they are in the US, but I just held one in my hands at work today, was drooling all over it

[leech]

So from what I had read, it takes two slots just like the Ultra does? They're VERY elusive in the US. Can't find one anywhere....

Guess I'm going with the eVGA one. I should have it tomorrow.... one left in stock....

The guy kept trying to pimp the Ultra on me... Sorry, I don't need/want something that'll suck all the power from the rest of my system...

My Antec Tru550 PSU should be enough to power it, but I do have two 10k rpm Ultra 160 SCSI drives to power as well....

Anyone know how important it is to let the 6800 GT have it's very own power lead?

Leech

[Admiral]

Yup, it has the big cooler just like the ultra.