>$20 PSU was this a good choice?

[alfa147x]

Eagle Tech Cool Power ET-PSCP 500 ATX12V 500W Power Supply 115/ 230 V CE, FCC - Retail

i got it for 16$ on the Egg 3

GA-P35-DS3L
G.SKILL 2GB 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400)
SAMSUNG 20X DVD±R DVD Burner Black SATA Model SH-S203B - OEM
SAMSUNG SpinPoint P Series SP2004C 200GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM
Intel E8400
GIGABYTE GV-NX72G512P2 GeForce 7200GS 256MB 64-bit GDDR2 PCI Express x16 SLI
thats the set up

 

[thecoolnessrune]

No.. No it's not.. IMO less than $50 = FAIL It will still probably run your rig.. But don't overclock..

Save the money and get yourself a Corsair 520HX.

 

[MarcVenice]

Erm, an earthwatts 430, corsair 450vx would both still be fine. Some cheaper fortron units would to. Heck with that videocard, the Earthwatts 380w is just fine !

 

[Billb2]

Originally posted by: alfa147x
Eagle Tech Cool Power ET-PSCP 500 ATX12V 500W Power Supply 115/ 230 V CE, FCC - Retail

i got it for 16$ on the Egg 3

Those cheep PSUs:
Will only put our their stated power just before they burst into flames.
When they burst into flames (or fail in any way for that matter) will send 50,000 volt lightning bolts into your computer since they lack (to save money) any overload protection.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...+500+500W+Power+Supply
Adding up the current spec'd on all the rails, and comparing this to the 500W spec, we see:
30A x 3.3v = 99W
35A x 5V = 150W
14A x 12V = 168W
14A x 12V = 168W
1.5A x -12V = 18W
2.5A x 5V = 12.5W
Total 615. .......yeah, sure, this is a good PSU????

So if the 3.3v, 5v, one of the 12v, the -12v and the -5v rails are maxed out,
30A x 3.3v = 99W
35A x 5V = 150W
14A x 12V = 168W
1.5A x -12V = 18W
2.5A x 5V = 12.5W
Total 447.5W
...that leaves 500W - 447.5W = 52.5W (not the published 168W!) for the remaining 12v rail. You can work out this scenario for any combination of rails and/or for your specific requirements. http://www.jonnyguru.com//forums/showthread.php?t=3137

If you do this calculation on a "quality" (i. e. $100+ PSU) you will see it's specs to be less, shall we say, optimistic.

 

[DSF]

I would consider that power supply to be dubious, but I disagree with the above poster that you need to spend over $100 to get a quality PSU.

 

[MarcVenice]

Nothing to disagree about, you CAN get qaulity PSU's for less then 100$, less then 50$ will be hard though, but you can still get some 'decent' units for under 50$, under 30$ is, before rebates, usually CRAP. But you can't take that as the holy truth.

 

[Billb2]

Originally posted by: DSF
I would consider that power supply to be dubious, but I disagree with the above poster that you need to spend over $100 to get a quality PSU.

I'm an overclocker pushing a high end system to the max and don't want to have any power supply issues, and I don't (except for $$$ ...LOL), but I use dual PSUs, a Thermaltake 680W and a PCP&C 1k.

For a "regular, everyday PC", I would agree...you just have to read the specs, and compare that to what you need. Checking some reviews is also a good idea too.

 

[Modelworks]

Higher quality PSU manufacturers probably spend that much on just the case and box.

 

[Zap]

It isn't necessarily the cost that makes me wary since there has been some disappointing expensive units and some decent cheap units. It is the quality that worries me. I don't associate Eagle Tech with "quality." Indeed in my mind I associate it more with "Deer."

 

[alfa147x]

So i found a coolermaster for 19$ AFR
im going to be RMA'ing the el cheapo

 

[JEDIYoda]

Originally posted by: alfa147x
So i found a coolermaster for 19$ AFR
im going to be RMA'ing the el cheapo

dude.....what brand if cooler master....
Some cheaper Cooler Master PSU`s were pure junk also

 

[alfa147x]

Originally posted by: JEDIYoda

Originally posted by: alfa147x
So i found a coolermaster for 19$ AFR
im going to be RMA'ing the el cheapo

dude.....what brand if cooler master....
Some cheaper Cooler Master PSU`s were pure junk also

original price 54.99

 

[Quiksilver]

He said brand(which he meant series) not price. In which for that price I'll assume its part of the 'extreme power' line.

IMO, I would skip on that too and pickup a Silverstone Strider ST400, at least with that their are reviews of it showing it to be good.
http://hardocp.com/article.htm...QzNCwsLGhlbnRodXNpYXN0

 

[JEDIYoda]

Originally posted by: alfa147x

Originally posted by: JEDIYoda

Originally posted by: alfa147x
So i found a coolermaster for 19$ AFR
im going to be RMA'ing the el cheapo

dude.....what brand if cooler master....
Some cheaper Cooler Master PSU`s were pure junk also

original price 54.99

There usually a very good reason you are getting a PSU at a very good price.....

mainly the reason has nothing to do with the compant doing you any favors...lol

 

[alfa147x]

Originally posted by: JEDIYoda

Originally posted by: alfa147x

Originally posted by: JEDIYoda

Originally posted by: alfa147x
So i found a coolermaster for 19$ AFR
im going to be RMA'ing the el cheapo

dude.....what brand if cooler master....
Some cheaper Cooler Master PSU`s were pure junk also

original price 54.99

There usually a very good reason you are getting a PSU at a very good price.....

mainly the reason has nothing to do with the compant doing you any favors...lol

This is the one i got
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16817171018

runs fine, not too loud, no vibration and has all the connectors i needed!
I have my E8400 OC'ed to 3.6 and its been fine for 24+ hours

 

[MarcVenice]

Some extreme units are seventeam based and are okay units. Some aren't, and just suck.

 

[CurseTheSky]

I have three of these so far, and other than semi-short cables, no cable sleeving, and no PCI-E connectors, I've been impressed: http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16817256019

If you want to spend a little more, this may be a good option too: http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16817256032

If you do go with either of those, remember to flip the input switch from 230v to 120v AC. They have a sticker over the connector for the power cable that reminds you.

 

[richwenzel]

after rebate i got a cooler master eXtreme power 550w PCAR for $10.00

after rebate i got a cooler master real power pro EMBA 850w for $60.00...

right now you can get a real power pro 750w from ZipZoomFly for $70 AR...

on these boards jonnyguru (who knows a lot lot lot more than me about this stuff) compared the extreme power series favorably with the antec earthwatts

the real power pro series has gotten very good reviews, the 850w has been tested to have 6 dedicated 12v lines, i can dig up the review if you want...

i have no opinion on cooler master psus except what I have read and how i have used them (my only gripe on the 550w was that there is no 8pin CPU plug, have to use a 4pin with the 20+4 pin)....the ones i have are very cool and quiet psus....

so i would say that you definitely can get a (very) good psu for under $100, and you can even get an able one under $20 if you are diligent

Rich