How much is enough? I got a gut feeling I'm pushing the edge...

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waldog

Gawd
Joined
Mar 25, 2002
Messages
598
How do you know how much power you will need when purchasing a PSU? Yeah I know, check the ratings on all the stuff, add it up, VxA=W, blah blah blah, there you have it. My problem is that I have been adding stuff to my rig over time, and I just dont know what kind of power my stuff will draw.

Here's what I got - I have a TT 420w PSU with 18A on the 12v rail. I have an Athlon XP2700+ on an Epox 8K5A2+, (4) 7200 rpm HDDs, (2) optical drives, 1G (2x512) of PC3200, a 6600GT vid card, Audigy II, Winfast TV Tuner card, SCSI card, and (2) 80mm case fans. Am I pushing it? Probably. But it is stable as hell - rails hold firm even under load. I just fear impending doom.

Questions are:
(1) Am I pushing it? Do I need to upgrade?
(2) If so, what to get?

I am quite pleased with the SPL of my current PSU, but I dont want anything louder. I do have money to spend, but preferably less than say $90 shipped. What do you guys think? What do I need?

TIA!

dog
 
does the motherboard have the 4-pin 12v connector? if it does, youre definatly pushing it. if it doesnt, youre fine.

explainage: if the board doenst have that conenctor, the processor is being run off the 5v line and the 12v is pretty much only for the video card and the HDD's spin up. if it has it, the vid card and processor are being run off the 12v, a reason for concern.
 
No the motherboard does not have a 12v 4 pin connector, HOWEVER, the vid card is an XFX 6600GT, which DOES have an auxillary 12v connector.

Too much?
 
nope. that 66 is probably drawing at 6-7a full load. a 6800 ultra draws about 11-12a

youre fine :)
 
Damn. I was hoping to spend some more money. That's OK, at least I can get some sleep tonight. Maybe I'll buy one anyway - just for the extra headroom. Thanks for the info lith.
 
i would get a new one just cuase TT psu's are subpar. mine blew up on me and took my neo2 with it, the day that my neopower came in the mail. boy was i pissed.

just get something good that you can keep for a few years :p

and youre welcome :D
 
waldog said:
Damn. I was hoping to spend some more money. That's OK, at least I can get some sleep tonight. Maybe I'll buy one anyway - just for the extra headroom. Thanks for the info lith.
Click to expand...

I'm working on upgrading from an NF2 system like yours to a 939 in the near future. My first purchase was a beefier power supply in the Enermax EG565P-VE


http://tinyurl.com/7vcwx
 
What would you guys recommend then? Need something half way quiet. I've heard good things about the Antecs, mixed reports on the Enermax, and more or less "cult" raves on the Fortron units - those that have em say they are one of the best. What do I look at?
 
OCZ Powerstream 520 or 600
Antec Neo Power 480
Antech Phantom 500
PC Power and Cooling (just about all of them)

That is a pretty tough crowd to compete with. Those are all good
 
renegade44e said:
I'm working on upgrading from an NF2 system like yours to a 939 in the near future. My first purchase was a beefier power supply in the Enermax EG565P-VE


http://tinyurl.com/7vcwx
Click to expand...

My next system will most likely be a 939 - after the prices drop. I need to buy a truck first. I dream about both....

I followed your link - I used that years ago on one of my earlier builds. I was actually looking for that page - thanks for the link! Unfortunately it looks like the calculator hasn't been updated at all since then. The info is still valid, just missing critical specs.
 
Treyshadow said:
OCZ Powerstream 520 or 600
Antec Neo Power 480
Antech Phantom 500
PC Power and Cooling (just about all of them)

That is a pretty tough crowd to compete with. Those are all good
Click to expand...


I will check the prices - as nice as it would be, I dont think the PCP&C stuff will fit my budget. Still trying to stay under ~$90. Tx!
 
Your 420 watt is fine in that system, just buy a new one when you upgrade.
 
tdg said:
Your 420 watt is fine in that system...
Click to expand...

Yeah, I've come to realize this. Now I am just looking for excuses to buy something. My motherboard is maxed out - no room to grow. I dont have enough for my new rig, nor can I justify a new rig. I CAN justify upgrading marginal equipment.

That Neopower 480 2.0 looks kick ass! And it can be had for $95 shipped? And it can possibly be used on my system of the future?? I like.

Does it come with all the cables you need? I also noticed it has a 24 pin ATX header - does it come with a 20 pin adapter? If so, I might just jump on it
 
waldog said:
Yeah, I've come to realize this. Now I am just looking for excuses to buy something. My motherboard is maxed out - no room to grow. I dont have enough for my new rig, nor can I justify a new rig. I CAN justify upgrading marginal equipment.

That Neopower 480 2.0 looks kick ass! And it can be had for $95 shipped? And it can possibly be used on my system of the future?? I like.

Does it come with all the cables you need? I also noticed it has a 24 pin ATX header - does it come with a 20 pin adapter? If so, I might just jump on it
Click to expand...
i got mine for 90 shipped months and months ago on teh forums, so just keep your eyes peeled.

yes, it comes with all the cables you need, and since its atx2.0 compliant wtih dual 12v rails, it will quite enough for anything you run (short of 7800SLI) in the next few years. it does come with a 24 to 20 pin adaptor, im using it right now :)

the best thing about it is that the 120mm fan in taht thing spins really slow and it is silent.
 
lithium726 said:
i got mine for 90 shipped months and months ago on teh forums, so just keep your eyes peeled...
...the best thing about it is that the 120mm fan in taht thing spins really slow and it is silent.
Click to expand...

$90, $95, $100, whats the difference? Budgets are made to be blown, that way you can justify not cutting the budget next time. And the 120mm fan is a definite plus. I had one in my old case and I loved it - very quiet and moves lots of air.

Kinda odd, but I got a call today on a dead PC. Checked it out, power supply is toast. I think I'll add a Neopower to the cart today. Then I will have a used TT 420 to sell for $30 installed. Saves her money, saves me money!

Tx again!
 
waldog said:
My next system will most likely be a 939 - after the prices drop. I need to buy a truck first. I dream about both....

I followed your link - I used that years ago on one of my earlier builds. I was actually looking for that page - thanks for the link! Unfortunately it looks like the calculator hasn't been updated at all since then. The info is still valid, just missing critical specs.
Click to expand...


Try this one

http://www.extreme.outervision.com/index.jsp

Very up to date and has an overclock function built in
 
Spectre said:
But tragically no amp per rail distribution is given limiting it's usefulness.
Click to expand...
Very true, but it does help me out - gives me a good idea what each component will use on average. I can take it from there. Thanks for the link!
 
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