My First time Posting so please be gentle...
 
I have decided to upgrade my PC from my current GTX660 to a newer GTX 970. I feel like the timing is right with the Witcher+Batman promo, all this talk of Maxwell v Kepler with hairworks and such, as well the prices are coming more into the range I am willing to spend. (~$350~)
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I have narrowed it down to two possibilities:
 
1. From Tigerdirect EVGA 04G-P4-2978-KR GeForce GTX 970 FTW ACX 2.0
Cost: $349.99-$25 Instant Savings with Free (4-9 Day) Shipping and No Tax-$20 Rebate-$10 Anniversary=$314.99
 
2. From NewEgg EVGA 04G-P4-3975-KR GeForce GTX 970 SSC ACX 2.0+
Cost: $349.99-$21.00 Promo+ I have the ability to use Will Call to pick card up+23.03 tax-$15 rebate=$337.02
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From my research using compare tools:
#1 has a faster Core and Boost Clock
#1 is listed as x16 while #2 isn't listed as such.
Some other differences are probably from the listing on the store page.
#1 Does not have tax
#2 Comes highly recommended
#2 I have the ability to get the card that day
#1 is less expensive by $22.03
#2 can apparently be overclocked more/better
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Unless I am missing/overlooking anything #1 is the clear winner...am I missing/overlooking anything?
Will I have buyers remorse if I purchase the less expensive (and apparently better) card? I am willing to spend the extra $20, but only if I am absolutely sure.
 
PCPartPicker part list so you can see the big picture:
CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97X-SLI ATX LGA1150 Motherboard
Memory: Mushkin Redline 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 500GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive
Case: Corsair SPEC-01 RED ATX Mid Tower Case
Power Supply: OCZ Fatal1ty 550W 80+ Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply (I know this needs upgrading soon)
OS: Windows 10 Technical Preview
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-05-27 23:41 EDT-0400
 

I meant to infer that it isn't listed as 16x, I was pretty sure it was.
 
Yes the 2978 is the FTW ACX 2.0 but the 3975 is the SSC ACX 2.0+
 
So FTW>SSC?
 
If I am understanding it properly, SC<SSC<FTW? So FTW would be the better/best series?

Makes sense. Thanks again for the help and insight.
 
A few users on reddit are convinced that the 3975 is the superior card could it be because I didn't include that it was the FTW edition?

From Reddit user :
 
"#2 is the way to go. Acx 2.0+ fixes alot of problems that the Acx 2.0 has. If I'm not mistaken, #1 has only a slightly higher clock(25mhz?) Which doeant really make a difference when you are going to overclock. Especially since #2 runs cooler and has a new higher power phase and target." "25 mhz isnt anything. you can add that in precision x and not have to change memory or voltage. also. 2.0+ is still fairly new. it only came out a couple months ago cause people had such a problem with 2.0." "Thats not all 2.0+ jas to offer. On top of the new power phase and target, they got a new custom pcb. Added a mosfet cooling plate, straight fully copper heat pipes (that's a big one), new fan bearings, dual bios switch. I stepped up from the old ftw to the newer ftw+, and i could tell the difference right away when i was oc."
 
I was hoping to get some cohesion from the two forums to make the decision easier. I have updated my reddit post to reflect the proper name of the card.

Well I again thanks for the input.
 
I am going to order the card on Friday so I will see what other input I can get but I think that the FTW card is going to be one to get it.

That is very helpful...I was looking for benchmarks and was having a hard time finding them.
 
Looks like the FTW is just ever so slightly better then the SSC
 

Hmm... that price difference is tempting to just go with the FTW...but perhaps I will get the SSC+ for now and keep an eye out for the FTW+ and perhaps use the step up program to my advantage.

LociceroA Welp, my local-ish microcenter has an Open Box SSC ACX 2.0+ for $297.96-$10 rebate=$287.96 and I had a chat person confirm I can get Witcher+Batman with it.

That's a nice discount on an open box! I got mine at MC a couple of weeks ago. Normally I do not buy open box as you never know how it was handled (or used/abused in overclocking) and possibly missing some accessories. But I'd have seriously had to rethink a savings of $50. That's what I call a score. Oh and if you have an average D/L bandwidth speed, be prepared to spend a few hours downloading the ~22GB for W3 through GOG. They break it up in 7 different download files (1 being a pre-game patch).  Batman is through Steam and you'll see it in your Games Library but you can't D/L it until it's released on 6/23.

The GTX 970 SSC, 3975 is the better choice between the two. The FTW model is an older version. The SSC (3975) and FTW+ are the revision cards that added straight pipe cooling, increasing the effectiveness of the air cooler and also they added a 8 pin power connector instead of a 6 pin so it could handle the boost clocks a lot better. I'd stay far away from the FTW model.
 
Here is a review that explains the changes:
http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/graphics/2015/05/08/evga-geforce-gtx-970-ssc-acx-2-0-review/1
 
Here is more info on the poor HFS design on the older versions:
http://www.eteknix.com/ev...sign-flaw-gtx-970-acx/

RainStryke
The GTX 970 SSC, 3975 is the better choice between the two.
 
Here is a review that explains the changes:
http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/graphics/2015/05/08/evga-geforce-gtx-970-ssc-acx-2-0-review/1
 
Here is more info on the poor HFS design on the older versions:
http://www.eteknix.com/ev...sign-flaw-gtx-970-acx/

Totally agree. The SSC is very very good.