Which 780/Ti for watercooling

[Nazzemannj]

Hi, I'm about to upgrade my almost 1 year old gaming rig with a custom WC system.

My current specs:
Case: Caselabs STH10
MB: ASUS Rampage 4 Extreme
RAM: 4x4GB 1866MHz Corsair Dominator GT
CPU: Intel i7-3930K (Corsair H100 cooler)
GPU: Gainward Nvidia GeForce GTX 680 4GB Phantom
2x Kingston HyperX 3K 240GB SSD
2x Seagate Barracuda 1Tb HDD

I'll be watercooling the MB, CPU and the GPU, all on one loop. But what I'm here for, is to find out what GPU I should get.

Ever since I built my first PC, I've had a minor brand loyalty towards Gainward. This of course influenced my purchase of the 680 4GB Phantom. And I was originally going to get the Gainward 780 Phantom. But now I'm wondering if I should go for another brand for the 780. Which model would you guys propose. I have been sniffing at the ASUS 780 DirectCU II OC as I've heard a lot of good things about it. Then again, I've also heard lots of good stuff about EVGA in general, so I'm quite uncertain here.

Also, would the extra money put into a 780Ti be worth it? If so which model.

When it comes to budget, it doesn't really matter that much. But I'd like it to be cost efficient. Also, I wont go for a 780Ti unless it is really worth it. I'll be OC the card as well, so that has to come into the cost efficiency deal. Because if a cheaper card can be OC to somewhat equal a more expensive one that is also OCed, then I see no point going for the more expensive one.

I'd like to hear your opinions on this matter before I pop my WC virginity, as I wont go through the hassle of changing the GPU for a while.

-Nazz

 

[tinytomlogan]

If youre watercooling you will be (should be overclocking too) but just make sure you get a reference PCB and then manually overclock yourself.

IE: dont bother paying for a pre overclocked model

 

[Nazzemannj]

Heya Tom, thanks for the reply. I was uncertain if a pre OCed card was even going to make a difference, as they are basically the same. I'll have a look around for prices to see if i find anything nice ^_^

 

[tinytomlogan]

Welcome to post your options dude tbh but if they are going under water then just get what you can out of them without actually changing volts (just use the % slider)

 

[WillSK]

If youre watercooling you will be (should be overclocking too) but just make sure you get a reference PCB and then manually overclock yourself.

IE: dont bother paying for a pre overclocked model

This actually leads me on to a question i've wanted to ask for a long time. How often are the non reference models upgraded in areas other than the cooler?

I mean cards such as the Classified and Lightning often get custom blocks released and so when I remove the cooler am I only getting a cherry picked card with unlocked voltage or are these cards custom in some other way??

 

[Kaapstad]

This actually leads me on to a question i've wanted to ask for a long time. How often are the non reference models upgraded in areas other than the cooler?

I mean cards such as the Classified and Lightning often get custom blocks released and so when I remove the cooler am I only getting a cherry picked card with unlocked voltage or are these cards custom in some other way??

The lightning and Classified PCBs are beefed up to handle the extra power but even so you can still get a card which is poor at overclocking on the GPU or VRAM.

A good example of this is the Asus Matrix Platinum HD 7970, normally they are quite good for overclocking but every now and then someone ends up with a right Lemon.