Going nuts trying to find a PSU, could use some advice

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Abunai

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Mar 27, 2005
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When planning out a new PC I think Ive had the most trouble deciding the PSU of all things. Im not an experienced system builder and it just seems like I get lost in all the talk of wattage, amperage, dual rail, stability, efficiency, decibels...ahhh! I just want a quality unit that'll give me stable performance (especially during my OC'ing foibles). Any nudge in the right direction would be most appreciated. (I apologize for my newbness if this falls into any ad nauseam territory on here, searchy mostly brought up recent SLI related questions.)

Here's what it'll be running. A64 3500+ (Winchester), MSI K8N Neo2 P, 6800 GT AGP, 1024mb ram, DVD burner, 1 or 2 SATA HDs, 2 or 3 case fans.

Mild to medium overclocking is likely.

Here's the thing, Im looking in the $50-65 range. I realize you get what you pay for but thats about as far as I can go for a PSU at this point.

I turned up the X-Clio 450w on newegg, but the dual rails, excellent (?) price and name brand made me a little wary. Whats the deal with dual rails, do they improve/compromise performance in any certain aspects?

Here's the X-Clio...
http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProductDesc.asp?description=17-189-003&depa=0
 
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Tiorapatea

Member
Oct 7, 2003
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Honestly, I would spend more on the PSU for this type of use. How about this Seasonic for $76? 80% efficiency, active PFC, 22 Amps on the single 12V rail, very quiet operation.

I've looked at a lot of Enermax and Fortron PSUs for you but it seems the discounted models are all a little light on the 12V rail - but maybe you could scrape by with this one.

I agree the whole PSU issue is very cloudy these days.

Edit: the dual rail thing is supposed to provide cleaner power for the CPU (better for stability and OC'ing). The CPU gets power from a dedicated rail so it is isolated from the greatly fluctuating power-draw of other components, especially video cards. That said, a _quality_ single-rail psu should be able to deliver clean power anyway. The problem with dual rails is that right now it is hard for the consumer to know how much power individual components are likely to draw from each of the two rails - I think it may be the case that psu design and motherboard design will both influence this in addition to the obvious influence of the components themselves. Also, those interested in SLI have to deal with the fact that many dual rail psus can not supply enough power to deal with two high-end graphics cards on top of other components. This is not because of anything inherent in a dual-rail design but merely a result of the fact that actual psus seem to have too low a rating on the 12V rail that will have to deal with these components.
 
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Abunai

Member
Mar 27, 2005
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Thanks for the suggestion Tiorapatea, and the dual rail explanation. I know its worth paying a little extra for quality assurance, its just I dont wanna start that snowball where I add a little here a little there and I end up with a $150 PSU. :) If something half that can at least do the job I dont mind missing any extra perks.

Only question I have about that Seasonic is the 22A on the 12V rail. Is that enough?
 
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ts3433

Platinum Member
Jun 29, 2004
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XClios are actually quite nice bargain PSUs. They're made by Channel Well, the same folks that make many Antec and Enermax PSUs.
 
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FastEddie

Golden Member
Oct 9, 1999
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I'm curious. Why does everyone "looking for a good psu" think that a low amperage dual rail psu would even come close to filling the bill---especially for an Sli rig? None, I repeat, none of the current dual rail psu's have been designed with Sli in mind. Take a look for yourself, here's the current ATX12V Power Supply Design Guide, ver. 2.01
These dual rail psu's that are available now don't even come close to being adequate for NF4/Sli. You can "get by" with two or three of the available units now, but not when running 6800 Ultra's.

I'd stick with a single rail psu for the time being. And you really want one rated at/above 26a on the 12v rail. ;)
 
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ribbon13

Diamond Member
Feb 1, 2005
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Rail2's voltage goes to pin11 which feeds the PCIe bus... but I'll say this... trying to spend a maximum of $65 on a PSU for a SLI rig is nothing short of spectacularly stupid.
 
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FastEddie

Golden Member
Oct 9, 1999
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Originally posted by: live2game
He dosen't have a sli rig he has agp
Click to expand...


I'm just Dual Rail punch drunk. :D
The psu I linked to has the hybred 20+4 pin connector, so will work well.
 
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FastEddie

Golden Member
Oct 9, 1999
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Originally posted by: ribbon13
Rail2's voltage goes to pin11 which feeds the PCIe bus... but I'll say this... trying to spend a maximum of $65 on a PSU for a SLI rig is nothing short of spectacularly stupid.
Click to expand...


I've used that Athena Power 500W unit in about fourteen Sli builds, all working flawlessly. It comes highly rated by Tyan for multi-processor/server/workstation applications. They don't give their recommendation lightly. And ribbon13 paying $250 for a psu because it's got "Sli" in the name and has two pci-e power connectors is in the spectacularly stupid category. ;)
 
Puffnstuff

Puffnstuff

Lifer
Mar 9, 2005
16,187
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My ps is sli rated and it's $179 at newegg. Just remember that you get what you pay for.
 
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FastEddie

Golden Member
Oct 9, 1999
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Originally posted by: Puffnstuff
My ps is sli rated and it's $179 at newegg. Just remember that you get what you pay for.
Click to expand...


Just curious. You're only running 6800GT's, but have you had any of the Machine Check Exception Errors. I know of four or five peeps that have, but they are running 6800Ultra's. ;)
 
Puffnstuff

Puffnstuff

Lifer
Mar 9, 2005
16,187
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I actually had that problem a couple of times while I was running a msi k8n neo4 plat but not with the abit.
 
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imported_Soldier

Member
Feb 6, 2005
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Originally posted by: AbunaiI just want a quality unit that'll give me stable performance (especially during my OC'ing foibles). Any nudge in the right direction would be most appreciated.
Click to expand...

No one on the planet makes a power supply as good as PC Power and Cooling, no one. OCZ power supplies are a second best. Everything else is an also ran product, many of those units your looking at on NewEgg are bargin bin junk that wont stand the test of time with a high end PC. The PCPC units put out 34/38A on the 12v rail....compair that to the NewEgg supplies youve looked at, its no contest.

http://www.pcpowerandcooling.com/produc...wer_supplies/highperformance/index.htm
 
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imported_Soldier

Member
Feb 6, 2005
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Originally posted by: FastEddie
And ribbon13 paying $250 for a psu because it's got "Sli" in the name and has two pci-e power connectors is in the spectacularly stupid category. ;)
Click to expand...

And paying 90 dollars for a power supply you want to run thousands of dollars worth of components, with stability at all levels of performance, also earns it own special name....which starts with "dumb" and ends with a$$.
 
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FastEddie

Golden Member
Oct 9, 1999
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The PCPC units put out 34/38A on the 12v rail....
Click to expand...

That's part of my argument---you don't need 38a on the 12v rail for an Sli box. 28a to 34a will run any sli configuration you put together. The major problem is most peeps are buying psu's based on the marketing, rather than the dynamics. No doubt the PC&PC supplies are the absolute best, and great for braggin' rights but they are by no means the only solution that works. I've built FX55/dual 6800Ultra sli rigs with the Athena Power 500W psu. Worked without ANY problems--not a single one. The clients who those rigs belong to oc the processor and graphic adapters--they are extremely happy with the quality I provided them at the cost they paid. If that makes me a dumb a$$, of well. At least I'm not in denial about being one. :D
 
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Abunai

Member
Mar 27, 2005
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I deserve to take my lumps, trying to skimp on the PSU is bad. ;)

Ribbon, what do you think of the 22A on the 12v rail for the Seasonic? I know Im only running AGP but the GT is hardly a conservationist, and I plan on OC'ing the CPU as well as the GPU.
 
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Merovingian

Senior member
Mar 30, 2005
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Why mess around? Get a coolermaster stacker for $150 that can house two PSU's inline to combine the power, then you can get any two psu's; the real power 450 from the same company serves up 450W for $60, two of those gets you 900w of power for a cool $60 or two 350W for $85 for 700W of power. Just a thought, and about those two raid 0 raptors you were thinking about, don't do it. Also, get good quality ram to match that awsome system your building =)
 
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imported_Soldier

Member
Feb 6, 2005
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Originally posted by: FastEddie
The PCPC units put out 34/38A on the 12v rail....
Click to expand...

That's part of my argument---you don't need 38a on the 12v rail for an Sli box. 28a to 34a will run any sli configuration you put together.
Click to expand...

Your making a major mistake by equating SLi and lower power requirements. The power requirements of SLi based cards are no less on the power supply, they simply direct additional current through the PCI-E slot to handle the cards load. The cards still pull a lot of power, especialy in SLi. Not to mention all of the other components that still need to be powered such as drives, case fans, and overclcoked CPU's that still pull their full load of power regardless of slot type on a motherboard.

 
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