Galaxy VS Gigabyte quality, warranty, and customer serivce.

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Flogger23m

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Hello,

I am thinking of getting a new GPU. If I go the Nvidia route I will be going with a GTX 660ti or 670. I won't consider standard coolers (or any single fan) and will only consider the higher end dual or tri fan coolers, both of which Galaxy and Gigabyte offer.

If I were to pick either a 660ti/670 from one of these brands, which would you prefer? Consider build quality, reputation, warranty, and customer service. Performance is not of a concern since both will be roughly similar.

And are Gigabyte coolers quieter with the three fans, or louder?

Thanks for reading.
 
I wonder if my contributions had anything to do with the two brands proposed here, considering those are the two brands I'm always pushing when looking for the quietest coolers.

It's very close; I've owned the two cards back to back. Gigabyte was a bit cooler (never broke 60 degrees), while Galaxy was a tad quieter at higher fan speeds.

(One thing I regret was never trying the ASUS DCII 670 back to back against the two cards. I remember it also being whisper quiet in my friend's computer that I built, but the place also had some ambient noise).

The two both offer 3 year transferable warranties (Galaxy requires you to register the card to go from 2 to 3-year). Never had to deal with Gigabyte service, but Galaxy was nothing but professional and praiseworthy when I had an issue with a card - might have something to do with the fact that there's a Galaxy rep on here to help us out, and is pretty much a down-to-earth enthusiast himself like the rest of us.

I don't think you can go wrong either way, they're both fantastic cards.
 
Galaxies cards are pretty nice. Their CS and response is really fast.
The only downside is their card is defaulted for quiet vs coolness. So when stressed it can hit nearly 80c, but the fan still stays below 50%. Galaxy tells me their cards can handle 105.
With custom curve the card never breaks 60 and I keep the speed below 60%. 60% is where it starts to get audible (though not bad). Card is a bit loud at 75%, but not obnoxious.
 
Thanks for the replies. Seems like both brands have a good reputation, but more peoples input would be appreciated.

Zarich said:
Galaxies cards are pretty nice. Their CS and response is really fast.
The only downside is their card is defaulted for quiet vs coolness. So when stressed it can hit nearly 80c, but the fan still stays below 50%. Galaxy tells me their cards can handle 105.
With custom curve the card never breaks 60 and I keep the speed below 60%. 60% is where it starts to get audible (though not bad). Card is a bit loud at 75%, but not obnoxious.
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I am assuming these a GTX670s? I am looking for a low noise cooler (Corsair 550D case). I would be fine if I can set it so the card never goes above 73C. Seems like the 60% setting will be fine. A bit of noise is understandable.

I assume MSI Afterburner will work for either brand. I currently use EVGA Precision though I might switch to Afterburner.
 
I called Gigabyte customer service for a motherboard issue and I wasn't able to make out even one word the other guy was saying.
 
I used precision for the custom fan curve. I have it set to never go above 60% and it never actually gets to 60%.. stressed in heaven at (I used the heaven 228x228 window mode for stress test) at 55% the card stays 58c. In normal gaming use the card hit 73c with intense bf3, but the fan stayed below 45% and was inaudible. FYI my ambients are a bit higher so you may get even better results.
 
I would pick Galaxy just because they have an active rep here which shows me that they care about their customer service.

The Gigabyte WF3 cooler is nice but a little flimsy and is loud at higher fan settings. I've had 4 cards with it and it was pretty audible past 50% or so. I've never had the Galaxy cooler so I'm not sure how it stacks up. The Asus DCUII is a great cooler, although like the others it does get noisy at higher RPM, not much you can do about that. Bottom line is any of them will be quiet if you can allow them to operate at higher temps than you might feel comfortable with even though it doesn't bother the card.
 
I am leaning towards the Galaxy now.

A quick question about MSI - if I were to buy used is the warranty transferable? Looking at their webpage is says they go off of the bar code:

http://us.msi.com/service/warranty/#

But they do not explicitly mention if they only warranty the original owner or if they require the product to be registered to an account. If anyone knows more about their warranty I would appreciate it.
 
I've never had a problem RMA-ing an MSI card that was second hand. As long as the serial number is still covered it should be no problem.
 
I bought two Galaxy 680 cards that had a rebate. I applied for the two rebates and was denied. Needless to say I was upset. The reason it was denied was because my purchase was outside the rebate purchase time frame. I was right on the edge of TWO rebate windows. One rebate ended Dec 30, $20 each, the other started Dec 31, $30 each. I ordered my cards on Dec 30 and Amazon shipped them Dec 31. When I went to Amazon they linked me to the Dec 31 rebate form so I used that. Galaxy used the date I ordered the cards, Dec 30so they denied my claim. I replied to the email and got no reply.

I then decided to call Customer Service and explain that I used the wrong rebate form and that I now had the correct one. The operator was very nice and she agreed with me and tried to approve my rebate. Unfortunately the deadline for the correct rebate ended before I mailed in my UPC code so it was denied AGAIN. She said she would speak to her supervisor about getting my rebate approved. Well, I got an email from Galaxy saying my rebate WAS approved for $40. I just wanted to let people know that Galaxy support went out of their way to help me out and I am now a customer for life
 
OP - I have a Galaxy GTX-560 2GB. It runs nice and cool and is pretty quiet. Can barely hear it at load. I haven't had to ever RMA it, and so far I'm impressed with the build quality.
 
I have had good luck with Galaxy. Their rep on the [H] forums has been quick to reply to my questions and my only RMA experience went smoothly..they even upgraded me from a 480 to a 580. Galaxy is definitely my first choice when it comes to nvidia cards.
 
Thanks for the replies everyone. After looking around I decided on an MSI as it was the cheapest.

Hopefully I will be able to test it out soon.
 
You got the MSI? It's probably the loudest non-reference 670 you can get -- it's still fairly quiet, but at similar fan levels to the other cards when at load, it has a bit of a whine to its pitch which makes it sound louder than it really is.

Well, it's not a bad decision in any case, I just wouldn't have made it myself. Hope you enjoy the card.
 
Based on reviews Ive seen the Gigabyte is rated quietest out of the 660's. Its also one of the coolest.

I have one and its silent even when playing a game, its the first card Ive never been able to hear.
 
I just ordered the Galaxy GTX 660 GC from amazon (best price with rebate!) and have been poking around for their reputation as well. I've never bought a Galaxy product before, but from what I can tell they're pretty stellar. Having a rep here is amazing!
 
Flogger23m said:
Thanks for the replies everyone. After looking around I decided on an MSI as it was the cheapest.

Hopefully I will be able to test it out soon.
Click to expand...

I have two MSI GTX 670/OC models.
They are excellent.
The fan is nothing more than a quiet whoosh, but is noticeable at high fan speeds, but I've put up with a lot more.

I've had a bunch of MSI GPUs and never had a single issue, in fact they are generally my first choice, although I usually end up watercooling them.
 
magoo said:
I have two MSI GTX 670/OC models.
They are excellent.
The fan is nothing more than a quiet whoosh, but is noticeable at high fan speeds, but I've put up with a lot more.

I've had a bunch of MSI GPUs and never had a single issue, in fact they are generally my first choice, although I usually end up watercooling them.
Click to expand...

Does the fan ever push above 60% during the hot months? And if so, is it rather loud? I am assuming yours is the Power Edition with 1082 Boost (I think that was the correct MHZ).

I would have bought the Galaxy, but it was $40 more (though same after rebate) but I would rather not play around with mail in rebates. Though it looks like they are rather reliable in that department as well.
 
blank said:
I just ordered the Galaxy GTX 660 GC from amazon (best price with rebate!) and have been poking around for their reputation as well. I've never bought a Galaxy product before, but from what I can tell they're pretty stellar. Having a rep here is amazing!
Click to expand...

Awesome. The 660 GC is a great card and I think you'll be pleased with it. Just shoot me a pm if you ever need help with anything.
 
Flogger23m said:
Does the fan ever push above 60% during the hot months? And if so, is it rather loud? I am assuming yours is the Power Edition with 1082 Boost (I think that was the correct MHZ).

I would have bought the Galaxy, but it was $40 more (though same after rebate) but I would rather not play around with mail in rebates. Though it looks like they are rather reliable in that department as well.
Click to expand...

My 670s are these: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127675

They run very well at 1200- 1250 clock speed when OC'd by Afterburner.

The reference coolers are noticeable and with auto cooling BIOS settings will go over 60%.
But like I said it's more like a low pitched whoosh.
I didn't like it so I watercooled them. But it's not unbearably loud by any stretch. No leafblower of hair dryer noise.
 
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