22 amps enough on 12V line for oc'ed 3000+, 6800 Ultra?

[UzairH]

PSU looks generic but says: 3.3V: 28A ; 5.0V: 50A ; 12V: 22A

3.3V and 5.0V combined max. 280W

Will this psu be enough for a full rig containing MSI NEO4 Platimun, 939 3000+ @ 2.6GHz, 6800 Ultra, 2xSATA drives, the other usual stuff?

Particularly, is the 22A on the 12V line good for the next-gen gpu's such as R520/G70? Or will I have to buy a new one gor those later?

 

[GuitarDaddy]

Definately not! It MIGHT run at stock speeds if it is a very high quality unit with rock solid rails, but I doubt it. But since you intend to overclock it definately will not work.
Don't even try it. You most likely don't have enough molex connectors with that PS to even hook up all your stuff.

If you are going to overclock I would get at least a 500w. And not an off brand either, stay with the majors. Antec, Enermax, Seasonic,PC Cooling,Fortron,etc... There are several threads here listing PS's that work well with NF4 boards, check them out.

The 22A might meet the minimum spec for the motherboard, but
1. Generic PS's are always overrated, and can only acheive their max rating under unreallistic conditions like at temp of 30 degrees.
2. You always want some headroom over the specified minimum for the board, if not the PS is running under maximum load at all times and stability problems or failure become much more likely.
3. The 6800 Ultras are power hogs requiring two molex connectors just for the card, add a second one for SLI and you draw more power than any other type system.
4. Overclocking requires additional power

 

[imported_Kensai]

You'll need a new PSU for the future if you intend to use the same PSU.

 

[bjc112]

Well the 12V seems fine to me..

The Antec TruPower 430 has only 20A on the 12line.


280w Total seems just too low, but 12v rail looks good.

Newegg/Antec

 

[classy]

22 amps is enough, but being that its a generic ps doesn't bode well.

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

If it really puts out 22amp cleanly then you're ok, but if you're going to be overclocking and asking a lot from your PSU, invest in a good one and you wont have to worry about it dying and taking your rig with it possibly .

 

[AlabamaCajun]

Go for the dual 12V Psu, they run from $60 on up, but it's worth it. These PSUs use less power, run cooler and survive the surges that the CPU and that BadA$$ 6800 will be pulling. You'll need a 400 or better.
Cooler Master Real Power 450
Fortron Source 400 or higher.
PC Power and Cooling (One of the best if you can afford it).
OCZ Power Stream (More bling and mod cables if you like that.)
Also: Antec, Enermax and XCLIO make some good PSUs, but don't have the power factor correction that keeps the voltage close to true.

In the end, it's the 12volt rails that make the difference, most of you big usage is running on them. Split 12V gives your CPU (and Video on some units) a cleaner source of power.

 

[cbehnken]

Originally posted by: AlabamaCajun
Go for the dual 12V Psu, they run from $60 on up, but it's worth it. These PSUs use less power, run cooler and survive the surges that the CPU and that BadA$$ 6800 will be pulling. You'll need a 400 or better.
Cooler Master Real Power 450
Fortron Source 400 or higher.
PC Power and Cooling (One of the best if you can afford it).
OCZ Power Stream (More bling and mod cables if you like that.)
Also: Antec, Enermax and XCLIO make some good PSUs, but don't have the power factor correction that keeps the voltage close to true.

In the end, it's the 12volt rails that make the difference, most of you big usage is running on them. Split 12V gives your CPU (and Video on some units) a cleaner source of power.

Mostly good points, but read up on A-PFC sometime and you'll see it has nothing to do with the output voltage of a power supply.

 

[UzairH]

This PSU is rated at 500W. The 280W i quoted is for the 3.3V and 5.0V lines combined max. And I believe it is better than the standard generic run-of-the mill PSU's. Right now I am going to put a 6600 GT on it; I asked about 6800U because I want to put the next gen R520/G70 card on this system down the line.

Using a 6600GT, would it be possible to OC the A64 system using this PSU? Maybe later I'll import a good psu among the ones you guys have suggested (expensive proposition thogh).

 

[maluckey]

http://www.directron.com/fsp55060pln.html
Try this on for size. It is rated at 50c, continuous load, NOT PEAK!

that is over 36 amps continuous +12v under sustained load, with all rails loaded to their maximum sustainable. Most other PSU companies rate one rail at a time to failure, with minimum load on the others, all while being maintained to 25-35C. That means that only about 60 percent of it's rating is real-world useable to the overclocker. It's fine for Joe average who uses it for word processing, but not for someone who is serious and wants a long upgrade path.

 

[bjc112]

Originally posted by: UzairH
This PSU is rated at 500W. The 280W i quoted is for the 3.3V and 5.0V lines combined max. And I believe it is better than the standard generic run-of-the mill PSU's. Right now I am going to put a 6600 GT on it; I asked about 6800U because I want to put the next gen R520/G70 card on this system down the line.

Using a 6600GT, would it be possible to OC the A64 system using this PSU? Maybe later I'll import a good psu among the ones you guys have suggested (expensive proposition thogh).

That PSU will be more than enough.. It seems like it has rails just as good as the Antec, So I wouldn't worry.

 

[UzairH]

Can anyone tell me how to measure and check the amps on the rails? Maybe using an ammeter? But that would load only one rail ata time. What if I try 3 ammeters on all three lines simulataneously? Or is there a better way which ensures that real-world load is applied? Damn I wish I had paid more attention in Electronics class

 

[Acanthus]

Generic PSUs are the worst thing created by man.

I have NEVER had a generic PSU last more than 1 year, most die in under 3 months.

 

[UzairH]

It comes with one year warranty, guess it *might* be ok. Anyone know how to stress test a PSU and check it amp rating?

 

[Acanthus]

The warrenty wont cover any parts it may take with it if it dies...

 

[Stoanhart]

You can't measure the rails without actually putting a load oon, unlike voltage. A voltmeter can be put between two points to measure the electrical difference. To measure amps, the ammeter has to be in-line, and you have to have a load on it. you could test it like this:

__________3.3v line_____|--ammeter--|______|Load|________ ground
|PSU |_____5v line______|--ammeter--|______|Load|________ground
|____|_____12v line_____|--ammeter--|______|load|_________ground

For testing the 12v line, you could put a whole bunch of HDDs or something on there until you reach the rated amperage, but you will need a lot of ammeters and have to add up all of the numbers since the ammeter needs the be between the psu and the HDDs, but you can't run 22A over one of those tiny molex cables.

I guess the best thing to do would be find something that takes 22a at 12v, and run it off of all of the yellow wire on the PSU. Then find someting that takes whatever you 5v line is rated for, and run it off of all of the red wires combined, and then see if it can handle it.

 

[ssvegeta1010]

That power supply is fine. Most others didnt read the post and thought the power was 280W, when that was just the 3.3V and 5V rails.
With the 12V rail combined, it is over 500W and that is perfectly fine for that computer and future upgrades.

 

[Duvie]

I agree it wont hurt to try it.....Just watch the rails when you start ocing and see if things look steady....look for boot problems, lockups when booting, and/r or spontaneous reboots as potential signs of power supply can't handle it...

 

[Rhoel]

You can try the OCCT stability test to see how your power supply handles a load. It lasts only 30 min, but gives you voltage and temp charts if your cpu can last. Here is a link to download. The site is in french, but the program is in english. Here is a sample chart of the ripple of my 12v line. You can actually see how your PSU reacts. Beware, it might prove your oc unstable.

 

[redhatlinux]

I'll throw in my 2 cents, GENERIC can be OK, just OK. I built a Duron system a few years back, just to play with Redhat, don't even recall the brand of PSU but my supplier had built and stress tested loads of systems. Power Supplies are absolutely IMPOSSIBLE for the 'average user', to test. Transient Noise can play havoc with components running at the speeds of today. Even the case that the PSU is contained in, will change the conducted emissions from the supply. Buy good ONCE, the investment in worth while.

 

[fstime]

22 is more than enough.

18A will run that fine.

 

[Insomniak]

Originally posted by: BouZouki
22 is more than enough.

18A will run that fine.

No.

25A minimum if you're pushing an Ultra.

 

[hippotautamus]

OCZ Modstream 520W \m/

Speaking from experience, generic PSUs are a bad idea. I was running 2 CD drives, 2 7200 rpm IDE HDDs, 4 memory modules, a heavily overlocked P4 and 9600 Pro all on a generic power supply (350w)
The system couldnt handle it and my largest hard drive undervolted. Too much amperage, not enough pressure = nice burning smell and a visit to the western digital RMA page. And since I was a little intoxicated at the time, a bit of crying as well lol.

 

[fstime]

Originally posted by: Insomniak

Originally posted by: BouZouki
22 is more than enough.

18A will run that fine.

No.

25A minimum if you're pushing an Ultra.

Nah, runs fine here.

The Thermaltake 420 watt PSU is GOLD,. I actually believe the rated 18A might be higher.

I have 3 friends with it and their rails are rock solid.

It has no problem pushing an Ultra/A64.

Edit: Just to show some love for the TT 420, it even has pots inside, which means it has ajustable rails like the OCZ powerstream exept they're inside the psu.

 

[maluckey]

Johnny Guru tested one of the Thermaltake 480 units on his site. It didn't do well. In all fairness, the FSP unit he tried to test was apparently dead on arrival.

I'm not too confident that this power supply will pass test one or three, since test one takes the 12V to 20A and test three up to 30A. As usual, I'm willing to give it a shot.

Thermaltake W0021 Zero Load Test One (367W) Test Two (302W) Test Three Full Load
12V N/A 11.79 12.34 FAIL FAIL
5V N/A 5.12 5.00 FAIL FAIL
3.3V N/A 3.41 3.41 FAIL FAIL
Efficiency N/A 75% 75% FAIL FAIL
Power Factor N/A .70 .69 FAIL FAIL

Temperature under load = 28.6C. Temperature after power off =46C..[/quote]

Not good in my book.

The Thermaltake you mention has no in-depth specifications on their website, nor are there any specifics about their testing or ratings methodology. I've seen various reviews of this PSU, but not one intensive review had many good things to say.

I have not seen many in the Overclocking community opting for Thermaltake PSU's of any size. I DO see them flocking to PC Power and Cooling, FSP (under various names), Zippy, Seasonic, and a few others. The reason is that these units do what they are advertised to do.