2 non-ref 4770's (Saph/HIS)
 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814102853
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814161300

Which cooler would perform better? Would it be wise to buy one of each and crossfire them?

Notes: I couldn't find much info on the iCooler III (HIS) cooler, but the Accelero L7 has pre-applied MX-2.

Just grab the Sapphire.
Its cheaper and the AC cooler looks better.

Either cooler will be fine for a 4770.
Get the Sapphire because it's cheaper.

Spend a little extra and get the full-fat 1GB, 800 shader 4870?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814150436

I have a pair of 4770s and wouldnt buy 2 again. The ones I have are the XFX ones with the fancy coolers and they dont run that cool, one is plenty at 1920 X 1200, they seem to be just as hot as the 4830 cards (the 4870s are WAY too hot for me)

I've done alot of research rabout temps on the HD4770 cards and though the XFX card has that exhaust style cooler it doesn't cool very well. Normal reference cooler cools better.



OP be careful which HD4770 you get as some of the newer ones are locked and are hard to over clock.

I like the Sapphire one you posted but I'm not sure it over clocks well. The Power Color is similiar and I think it can be over clocked(not sure).

If you want to play it safe I kow the RED Sapphire card is built well and can be decently over clocked.

Just be prepared to flash BIOS to Asus Top. After market cooling is worth the money on these cards for great cooling.

These cards are extremely cool if done right. Search TPU for Furmark temps on HD4770.

Gigabyte 1GB looks sweet but the price is too high right now. Might want to wait till the price comes down and get that one.

Key here is picking one that can be overclocked.

Do you actually realize that the cooler on that XFX is the reference cooler?
Although no almost body follows that reference design.

It is unlikely that 4770s are "locked", those incidents looks more like bios bug or "clock hole".
There are just certain clock speeds that the card crashes, it should just be a bios bug.

Edit: Damn you XFX, good that I don't buy your cards. (The cooler is cut down crap)

concerning the xfx: not exactly like the ref. cooler:
no heatpipe nore ram heatsink
http://www.motherboards.org/imagevie...1897_p3_11.jpg

Okay. The cooler is a cut down version.
Anyways, the point is ATi have 2 reference design coolers, and no AIB as far as I know use the dual slot back exhaust version.

Back on topic, the Sapphire seems to be the better buy.
None of the 4770 I saw come with ram sinks.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150369

It does have connections for a 4 pin PWM fan though. That would be a plus for aftermarket fans.

PWM is overrated

Well said.

For the OP, I say get the Powercolor.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-170-_-Product

W1z did a review on it and its looks impressive.
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/P...70_PCS/33.html

good cooler but not that impressive IMO!
the reference retail card can hit 1ghz once flashed to asus top bios...
those cards with a different pcb will not be compatible with asus voltage tweak...not a good deal hence!

Do you realize that the OP states that he is getting non-reference cards?
I doubt he wants to swap cooler to OC.
Yes the reference cards can hit 1Ghz core, but that requires some serious cooling.
Moreover, when doing crossfire you are always limited by the lower clocking card anyways.

my CF is not concerned by any lower clocking card!
both work @1000/1100 @1.239v using smartdoctor (asus & connect3d)

I second this. And I wouldn't get two 4770's, just get a single 4870 or 4890. Or even better, get a single 4770 now(I'm liking that Sapphire one!), and get a 5770 when they get cheap!

I'll also agree, for $25 more you get a significant increase in performance, and you get an XFX which has a double life time warranty.

At least we can agree on something. :toast:

I had a 4770 in my hands earlier today (XFX) it's a very solid product

Sapphire finally admitted they can't make a fan and brought AC to the rescue! I noticed that on the 4670 too. Pretty big fan for such a small card.

The one with the reference or non-reference design?

the Design AMD originally Intended to have

It's not the one that AMD originally had. It's a crippled version that doesn't cool as well as the other standard 1st generation heat sink.

I'd get the PowerColor because it has better cooling and may be able to be over clocked.

I really like the Sapphire with improved cooling HDMI but I have read it has problems over clockingl.

Gr... I saw the read just now after a little Googling about the Sapphire 4770 w/ the blue PCB not being able to overclock. I wonder if it's hardware or software related... Now you have me reconsidering which card to get all over again!