EarthWatts 500W for a 5870?

[jvroig]

Positive review:

So there we have it. The Antec EarthWatts EA-500 500W power supply doesn't put out as much power as a lot of the power supplies we've been seeing lately, but it does put out enough for any one video card no matter how high end, and I would venture to say that it could easily support a pair of Nvidia 7x or ATI x1900 cards

http://www.bjorn3d.com/read.php?cID=1048&pageID=3092Googling for more reviews results in a literal avalanche of praise. There was one rotten tomato though, but I disregarded it since it was obviously misinformed, stating that it might not be able to handle then high-end cards such as the 8800GTS.

I also came across a link to Tom's Hardware forums about a thread that asked if the Earthwatts 500 is enough for a 5870. Assuming you only have a stock Phenom II X4 940, two HDs, one DVD drive, would the EarthWatts 500 be good enough for the 5870? I'm pretty sure it won't have a problem with the little brother, the 5850, but the 5870 is in almost a different power envelope of its own, so I doubt it.

The Earthwatts 500 is bundled with the Antec Sonata III which I am considering to purchase, which is why I am interested in its capabilities and limits.

Thanks in advance.

 

[SparkyJJO]

No problem.

 

[HOOfan 1]

Better than an HEC without APFC....

 

[jvroig]

Better than an HEC without APFC....

Yeah, I saw this was one of those PSUs you recommended in my earlier thread. Do you think this can run a 5870?

 

[HOOfan 1]

Yeah, I saw this was one of those PSUs you recommended in my earlier thread. Do you think this can run a 5870?

with the other components that you said you were running, most certainly

 

[jvroig]

That's fantastic. Thanks, HOOfan1. By the way, can I get away with adding perhaps another HD? I'm pretty sure it won't matter that much, since it's on a different rail, but I'm not really an expert in power supplies and would greatly appreciate any feedback.