Determining wattage use in a computer (for power supply)

[Flakk]

Hi, I was just wondering how I can tell how much power I would need to run the following rig:

- Asus P4P800 Deluxe w/2.4B P4 cpu
- AOpen GeForce FX 5800, 128mb 8x agp
- 512mb Dual DDR running @ 333mhz
- two 15gb Maxtor 7200rpm hds in Raid-0
- 80gb external Maxtor 7200rpm usb 2.0 hd
- Creative DVD 16x
- Creative CDRW 12x10x32x
- SB Audigy 2
- 20 feet of neon el-wire run on a 12v dc inverter
- 1 blue neon cathode light
- 4 or so case fans

most importantly I am curious as to the power usage of the Audigy 2 and the GeForce FX and 20 feet of el-wire... how much power do they use?

Is there any way I can add the wattage of all these things up and get a good idea of what I need? 430 watts doesnt seem to cut it for me

 

[cobo]

These have been posted before, but here they are again.
Choosing The Right Power Supply

Power Supply Wattage Calculator

Comparison of 21 Power Supplies

13 Power Supplies In The Spotlight

 

[Nebor]

WHy isn't it cutting it? Should be plenty.

 

[Flakk]

yeah i thought it would be too.. my only guess is it's cuz its a low quality power supply?

i have observed weird things when having ALL that hardware in. it really gives me the idea that its some sort of power shortage.

for example, pressing the cd rom drive or dvd drive results in it coming out very slowly or not at all. but when i take out a few things then its fine..

 

[slicksilver]

The FSP/Sparkle 350w at newegg should be 'nuff for you

 

[mechBgon]

A PowMax PSU... ewww, do I need to bust out my PowMax rhyme for you? 😛 Grab an Antec, Sparkle Power, or Enermax and you're on safe ground. I would go 350W or higher, and if it were mine, I'd get an Antec TruePower 430.

 

[Flakk]

thanks for the advice.. i may just buy one. i hope they're not too much

 

[Flakk]

Originally posted by: cobo
These have been posted before, but here they are again.
Choosing The Right Power Supply

Power Supply Wattage Calculator

Comparison of 21 Power Supplies

13 Power Supplies In The Spotlight

thanks for those! i found those very educational and interesting.. especailly the power supply calc 🙂