Powercolor 7950 PCS+, MSI R7950 Twin Frozr III, or Gainward GTX 680 Phantom

[Ninkasi]

Hello OC,

Putting together a new system with the components below:

Case: CoolerMaster ATCs-620B (Possible upgrade to SilverStone CW02)
Mobo: Asus Maximus V GENE
CPU: i7-3770K
Cooler: Thermalright AXP-140
RAM: 16GB (4 x 4GB) Ripjaws X 2133MHz
SSD: Intel 330 Series 120GB
PSU: Kingwin LPZ-550 Platinum
VGA: ????

I'm looking for a mid-high performer that doesn't use a lot of power or put out much heat/noise. This will be a multi-purpose box; HTPC, Media/Torrent Server, VM Server, and light gaming. I play WoW only a few hours (~20) per month and don't raid much, maybe once per month. I like the ATI ZeroCore feature as when not being actively used, I will switch off the TV and hopefully reduce the power usage.

So far I think my choices in order are:
1. MSI R7950 Twin Frozr III
2. PowerColor 7950 PCS+
3. Gainward GTX 680 Phantom

MSI is first due to the brand's rep and larger product range. PowerColor is harder to find, 2 OC'ers have had to RMA in past few weeks, and limited supply=long wait. The GTX is a buttload of $$$ ($800) compared to about $430 and $530. Is that price difference worth it in your opinion? What order would you put those cards in? Open to suggestions.

Cheers

 

[vixro]

If you plan on doing "light" gaming, then the 680 is overpriced and overkill so I'm not sure why it's in your list @ $499

 

[LoganG]

I don't know that any of those GPUs are what I would describe as being used for light gaming

 

[Ninkasi]

Thanks for the replies. The list was made based on the power supply I have purchased (550W) and the TDP of the cards. Most of the older generation cards are putting out lots of heat and high power requirements.

What about something like the Sapphire 7750 Ultimate then? Good enough for Cat?