Anybody own a Sparkle GTX 460?

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Nerkanistic

Weaksauce
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Aug 17, 2004
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Been looking at the local MicroCenter deal for the Sparkle 768 Fermi video card. I know that EVGA is generally the more popular ones, and quite a few people have that brand already for the 460. Does anyone own one of these Sparkle ones, and if so, how does it run stock?

Thanks!
 
I cannot speak for the Sparkle brand, but I just ponied up to get the 1GB variant by EVGA with the lifetime warranty. I do not regret it for a second... and EVGA offers a free BIOS upgrade for the card... a pretty nice upgrade if you ask me.
 
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The brands matter with support and warranty. Usually the manufactures copy the reference design and make few substitutions, if any.
 
Right... right I understand all of that, which is why I am considering the Sparkle for its lifetime warranty. Was just hoping to get some personal comments on how the noise and heating is for the Sparkle specifically.
 
I am a proud owner of the Sparkle GTX 460 1GB model SXX4601024D5SNM with the reference cooler. It is dead silent, like all reference cooler GTX 460 cards are. If you look at the pictures, you can clearly see the copper heat pipes typical of the stock cooler.

They released a revision with the model number SXX4601024D5UNM that has a different purple fan, and a solid aluminum heatsink that doesn't appear to heave heatpipes. There are very few reviews of this model, so I have no idea how the cooling performance is.

If you can buy the original SXX4601024D5SNM model with the stock cooler, I say go for it! But I would be hesitant about the newer model with the purple fan. Even if that's the same fan, a cooler without heat pipes would mean the temperatures would be higher, and the fan would have to spin faster. The stock heatsink is so amazing because the fan never has to spin above 40% to keep the card cool, even under full load.

That new cooler could have heatpipes, but they are not readily visible.

Getting the lifetime warranty was easy - just go to www.sparkle-usa.com, and register your card. Just create an account, and associate your card's serial number, and you're good to go.
 
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defaultluser said:
I am a proud owner of the Sparkle GTX 460 1GB model SXX4601024D5SNM with the reference cooler. It is dead silent, like all reference cooler GTX 460 cards are. If you look at the pictures, you can clearly see the copper heat pipes typical of the stock cooler.

They released a revision with the model number SXX4601024D5UNM that has a different purple fan, and a solid aluminum heatsink that doesn't appear to heave heatpipes. There are very few reviews of this model, so I have no idea how the cooling performance is.

If you can buy the original SXX4601024D5SNM model with the stock cooler, I say go for it! But I would be hesitant about the newer model with the purple fan. Even if that's the same fan, a cooler without heat pipes would mean the temperatures would be higher, and the fan would have to spin faster. The stock heatsink is so amazing because the fan never has to spin above 40% to keep the card cool, even under full load.

That new cooler could have heatpipes, but they are not readily visible.

Getting the lifetime warranty was easy - just go to www.sparkle-usa.com, and register your card. Just create an account, and associate your card's serial number, and you're good to go.
Click to expand...

Thank you! That was exactly the kind of comment I was looking for. Going to go to MicroCenter after work today.
 
I have the 1GB cards and they are quiet. I keep them OC'd at 880/1760/1950 @ 1.087v on air w/o air conditioning. They survived our 104 degree weather without a hiccup. You should enjoy them.
 
cageymaru said:
I have the 1GB cards and they are quiet. I keep them OC'd at 880/1760/1950 @ 1.087v on air w/o air conditioning. They survived our 104 degree weather without a hiccup. You should enjoy them.
Click to expand...

Which model, if I may ask? Does it have a purple or black fan?
 
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