Are most power supplies similar?

[tyl998]

Assuming the printed specs are same or very similar, how do the performances of the PSUs from the various campanies differ? For example, I've seen many people recommend Corsair and Antec (and to a lesser extend Cooler Master, Seasonic, Thermaltake, Enermax, and Silverstone), but is there a particular strength of each of the brands? Like, for example in general might [and I'm just making things up for hypotheticals right now] Antec units be more reliable overall whereas Corsair units are better if you MUS HAVE that triple-SLI and overcloked CPU and you want to make sure no overheating happens on your unit?

Or is each individual product line within the companies different enough to warrant its own strengths and weaknesses? Being new to the whole DIY scene, there're just SO MANY CHOICES to make, and I'm afraid I'll be overloaded with information. I need some filtering help

I personally probably won't using SLI or Crossfire, but want to reserve the ability to do so in the future. Guess I can always upgrade my PSU when I get a second graphix card or something.

 

[Rifter]

power supplies vary greatly in quality, as do many electronic components. For PSU's generally the higher quality units will have less voltage fluctuations under differnt loads and be more efficient across wider power ranges.

Alot of electrical components are very voltage sensative so having a rock solid PSU with little to no ripple will help prolong the lifespan of everything connected to it. And since a PSU is pretty much the only thing in your computer that has the ability to fry everything else connected to it you might as well buy a quality one.

What system are you building and we can reccomend a PSU.

 

[theAnimal]

PSU's should be bought based on the performance of individual models, not by brand. Check for reviews at sites like jonnyguru and hardocp.

 

[Rifter]

PSU's should be bought based on the performance of individual models, not by brand. Check for reviews at sites like jonnyguru and hardocp.

I agree with this, every manufacturer has good and bad models. jonnyguru has great PSU reviews.

 

[tyl998]

Well, I'm not sure whether I want an i5 750 or an i7 930 yet, but my graphix will come from a single Nvidia GTX 280. I'll probably have at least 2 hard drives and one DvD-rom drive. I'll want to use thie rig for gaming.

 

[bucd]

Get one for a reputable brand like the ones you listed. I would look for the 80+ cert as well and then at power requirements based on the system you will be using it for.

For what you listed, i would say a 500w good quality psu would be good enough. If you plan on sli/cf then you will need more power.

Example of one system that i had:
Asus P6T SE
i7 920 @ 3.6ghz
1 x dvd burner
1 x 60gb SSD
1 x 500gb hd
1 x 1tb hd
2 x 5770 in crossfire
This ran fine on a Corsair HX520.

If you have plans of sli/cf i would say at least 650, depending on what card you going with, this will vary quite a bit from mid to high end cards.


-D