ManBearPig
The thing is though, the Ti versions and better cards are from Nvidia and have them to blame, not eVGA, this is a different situation.  No other company has had to release 3 different versions of the same card because they kept on making it better and in such little time.  Like aronh17 said, the other companies came out with the card that they meant to right from the start.  No other company came out with a ACX 1.0, then ACX 2.0, and now much better versions of the top 2 cards.  Plus these were the things people who originally bought the FTW (myself included), payed $50 extra over reference to get.  And now they are telling us that they came out with a much better version with great features for $30 cheaper.  You can see how this would make people mad right?  I am a HUGE eVGA fan (look at my mods rigs, anything that can be bought from eVGA, I have), but even I can't defend them on this.  To say the least, I would be very disappointed if they didn't offer us original FTW owners a chance to step up to the new FTW+.

ManBearPig
Are you really saying that you would rather have a cheap piece of metal over ALL the improvements the new SSC has while also paying $30 more?  Even buying a back plate separate, the new SSC is cheaper than the FTW and is the superior model.  As it stands now, we FTW users payed more and received an inferior model (pay more get less).  I have no issues with the cooler, what I have issues is the OCing potential of the card.  The WHOLE reason why people spent $50 more for.  From my point of view it looks like eVGA just rushed out cards as quick as they could while using old stock to make a quick buck.  The only thing different the FTW has over reference is the better cooler, dual BIOS, and of course higher clocks.  This is very disappointing for a FTW model.  FTW used to mean something, my 670 FTW was great because it actually was much better than reference with a 680 PCB.  They made a real reason to own a FTW over reference for people who like to OC.
 
The only video cards and mother boards I have ever owned are eVGA.  I have eVGA's 1600 G2 power supply, even got the Pro SLI Bridge and an eVGA carbon mouse.  I have my friends buy eVGA mobos/GPUS.  This is coming from a big eVGA fan.  This is the first time I truly have been very disappointed with eVGA.  They still have time to make it right, but time will tell.
 
Oh and those wondering if the new models light up LEDs, Jacob has said no they don't. https://twitter.com/EVGA_...tus/547831253295460352

ManBearPig
The new SSC does not come with a back plate while the FTW+ will.  That memory MOSFET cooling plate is on the front of the card, not the back plate.  And yes there were pictures of the new SSC with a back plate, but they never said that it actually comes with one.  A little misleading, but not false advertisement.
 
https://twitter.com/EVGA_...tus/547831253295460352

ManBearPig

the_real_maverick
Not going too far off topic, but why don't they have any coolers for the 9xx series that have the sweet looking LED cooler like the 780ti did?  I wanted to pick one up for that reason only, even if it was reference

The 980's have LEDs, but the 970's don't (970's can't even light up their own Pro SLI Bridge).  As to why not?  Cutting corners for cost is the only reason I can think off.

Dakutagawa

aronh17

the_real_maverick
I pulled the trigger on the new GTX970 SSC yesterday.  As long as no issues arise like coil whine, all should be fine and I won't regret my purchase.  Why cry about a small clock increase when you can simply overclock yourself? 

Are you saying the regular 970 FTW will overclock with the FTW+ no problem? Because I can assure you the FTW+ will clock way higher, even the SSC will over the FTW. They can draw a lot more power with a 6+8 pin setup. Also which is why they should offer a step up, because the SSC outdoing the FTW which is their top model is not what should be happening.

Just because it has a 6+8 pin power delivery doesn't mean that it will overclock any better.  Just look at reviews for the MSI Gaming or the Gigabyte G1 that both have the same power delivery and are limited to similar overclocks as cards with less phases/pins.  Ultimately when overclocking its gonna be a silicon lottery issue more than power delivery.

aronh17

Dakutagawa

aronh17

the_real_maverick
I pulled the trigger on the new GTX970 SSC yesterday.  As long as no issues arise like coil whine, all should be fine and I won't regret my purchase.  Why cry about a small clock increase when you can simply overclock yourself? 

Are you saying the regular 970 FTW will overclock with the FTW+ no problem? Because I can assure you the FTW+ will clock way higher, even the SSC will over the FTW. They can draw a lot more power with a 6+8 pin setup. Also which is why they should offer a step up, because the SSC outdoing the FTW which is their top model is not what should be happening.

Just because it has a 6+8 pin power delivery doesn't mean that it will overclock any better.  Just look at reviews for the MSI Gaming or the Gigabyte G1 that both have the same power delivery and are limited to similar overclocks as cards with less phases/pins.  Ultimately when overclocking its gonna be a silicon lottery issue more than power delivery.

There's obviously a reason why EVGA is re-releasing these cards then. And since it's their high end released again, I can guarantee you they will clock higher. My FTW is always limited by power and downclocks in a lot of games under it's max boost clock. I've already seen the new SSC pumping out better Firestrike scrores at stock clock than my overclocked FTW. Why? They are not limited by power. Obviously my GPU will hit max boost no problem in a game like Counter Strike, but not in a game like Crysis 3.