HELP PLEASE - Minimum PSU requirement ?

[Darkranger]

Does any of you helpful ppl know what the minimum PSU req is for the P4 cpu's.
To be more precise, I have a Micro ATX case with an older 145watt sparkle PSU (no P4 power connector)
and would like to set this up with :-
P4 Celeron 1.7Ghz
Abit BG-71 mATX Mobo

Will this work ???

Thx in advance, sorry if this info is already on here, but I did a search a came up with zip.

 

[xpdude]

Trash the mini-case and pick up a mid-tower with at least a 350w PSU. Gives you more room for upgrades too. I got great bargains on cases with PSU at www.directron.com!
XPDUDE

 

[slunk]

Screw that! mATX is the way to go, but I don't know about your situation. It might work. Hopefully someone around here will better answer your question, without trying to sell you something.

 

[TimeKeeper]

You might need a new Power supply. If I remember it correctly, I read it somewhere that P4 2.0 only require 150Watts (continue combine powersupply of 3V+ and 5V+, roughly speaking more or less of 250Watt ps)

And I really wouldn't worry about mATX case. I have recently convert all my PC to mATX, because I fed up w/ the PC took up so much space. Better upgrade space? All I need is 2 external 5" bay + 2 internal 3" bay. 1 PCI for sound card, 1PCI for network card, 1 PCI for firewire card and 1 AGP. What else do you really need?

 

[meefmah]

Your PSU won't work with the Abit motherboard. The Abit requires an ATX12v PSU(square 4pin connector). A PSU with a +12v rating of at least 15amps may save you some headaches.

 

[Bovinicus]

If you really want to pick out a good PSU, you must get down to the more technical aspects of supplying power to your system. One of the more important factors is how much wattage can be supplied via the 5v and 3.3v rails. These two are the most important parts of the PSU. This power goes to your memory, cpu, and any AGP/PCI cards if I am not mistaken. 12v pertains to whatever is connected with the molex connector. So, a 300W PSU will be sufficient, just make sure there is somewhere around 200W for the combination of the 5v and 3.3v rail. I have a 300W Sparkle capable of 165W between those two rails which is enough to power my system (The Moobox) to 100% stability. You can find this kind of information of the PSU manufacturer's website.

 

[Darkranger]

Thx for all the replies...

I had a feeling the PSU was not up to it

 

[Darkranger]

Trash the mini-case and pick up a mid-tower with at least a 350w PSU. Gives you more room for upgrades too. I got great bargains on cases with PSU at www.directron.com!

This upgrade was for a third system, so not interested in any other cases thx...

Just a spare mATX case that I thought I could put to good use.

Looks like it will need a PSU upgrade but not sure if it's worth the cost???
could probably buy new case with adequate psu for same price...


as for the 12v square connector - is this really needed, I read elsewhere you could get away withought it ???

Your PSU won't work with the Abit motherboard. The Abit requires an ATX12v PSU(square 4pin connector). A PSU with a +12v rating of at least 15amps may save you some headaches

 

[Jhhnn]

The problem with buying an upgrade psu is that it'll cost almost as much as a whole new Matx case with appropriate psu. If you really want to use the case you have, check with these guys, they carry Fortron/Source (Sparkle) sfx and ps3 supplies of 180W, should be sufficient.

PowerOn

There are actually 2 slightly different styles of sfx, be sure to order the right one. If your case has a PS3 unit and is more than 14" from front to back, then you may be able to use a standard atx 12v supply. Two out of three dimensions are the same, as is the mounting.

Enhance also manufactures 200w sfx units of good quality, couldn't find a vendor just offhand. In any event, you want a supply showing the "12V" suffix, or that is listed as p4 compliant. There are adapters available, too. Some boards don't requre the atx12v plug, but it's probably a good idea to use it.

Might want to check out the Enlight and FongKai Matx cases from Directron, for example. they both have decent 300w psu's. I personally think the Enlight is Yewgli, and that the psu in the fongkai is noisy, but they'll both do a good job. Should eliminate any concerns about sufficient power, that's for sure.....

 

[meefmah]

Darkranger: The Abit board you referenced, requires an ATX12v connector. You could find an adapter, but why? Your current PSU is insufficient and needs to be replaced. Why not get a PSU that is designed to work with the board?

Determine the type of PSU that will fit your case and get a quote for a suitable replacement. If it's more than $70us, I would consider getting a case/PSU combo. They can be found for less than $100us. Sometimes much less.

Some microATX cases have a standard ATX PSU. 6" x 5-5/8" x 3-3/4".


This is from Intel:

Pentium® 4 Processors
Power Supply Requirements

System design based on Pentium® 4 processors will require a new power supply. A new superset of the original ATX power supply is now defined and called, "ATX12V."

The new +12V power connector enables the delivery of more +12 VDC current to the motherboard. The presents of the +12V 4-pin connector indicates that the power supply is an ATX12V. The absence of the +12V 4-pin connector indicates that the power supply is an ATX.

Increased +12VDC output is due primarily to the higher power conversion and transmission efficiencies of +12VDC relative to +5VDC or +3.3VDC. Components on the motherboard having unique voltage requirements are expected to be powered by DC/DC converters of the +12VDC power supply output.

An ATX power supply supports motherboards that rely on DC/DC conversion from +5 VDC and +3.3VDC. However, an ATX12V power supply supports motherboards that rely on DC/DC conversion from +12VDC, +5VDC, or 3.3VDC yielding more application flexibility for future platforms.

ATX12V power supplies should be backward compatibility to existing ATX motherboards. ATX12V power supplies are expected to maintain the +5VDC and +3.3VDC output capability.

My take on it:
The number of motherboard components with voltages other than 3.3v or 5v, will typically be converted to and run from the +12v supply.
The number of these "unique voltage" components and the number of +12v peripherals should be a major consideration when determining the neccessary +12v rating.

Previous experience has taught me not to skimp on the +12v rail for a PSU running a P4.
I had a 350 watt PSU with a +12v rating of 10amps, the system would randomly reboot and fail to start.
A 300 watt PSU with +12v rating of 15amps runs the system flawlessly.

Just my very drawn-out 2 cents, sorry.
So, take care, good luck and all that...............I'm out.

 

[Darkranger]

THX to everyone for the replies, the info has been most helpful, I knew you guys would know this stuff.

Looks like it will be a new case with a decent PSU though.... probably not worth the hassle or cost of just upgrading the PSU.

THX again...

Neil.

 

[LucJoe]

Since there's already a thread about this stuff, i guess i'll see if you guys can help me out here. I have a Gateway pos case, running a classic athlon 750 system, and it has a 235 watt power supply. I'm dying to upgrade, but I'm scared that if I put anything more powerful in there, then the system will lockup and restart a lot. Will this little power supply be enough to handle anything faster?


Thanks in advance

 

[jsares]

I've got a P4 gBox (CF-S868) it's a small form factor system that uses a 150W (115v ~ 240v) Aluminum PSU and it does have the 4 pin P4 connector. It's a very small PSU about half the size of a mATX PSU.

Here's my config:

CASE: gBox/CF-868 Silver
MB: CFI-S86 VIA P4M266
CPU: P4 1.6A Northwood
RAM: 256MB Crucial PC2100 DDR 2.5CL
VID: ATI 8500DV 64MB AGP
HD: Western Digital WD1200JB 120GB 7200RPM 8MB Buffer
DVD: Creative 5X
SND: Creative SB Audigy
SPK: Creative Inspire 5300 5.1
NIC: Onboard Realtek 8139 10/100
MIC: Labtec Verse-704 USB
KEY: Logitech Cordless Freedom Optical
MOUSE: Logitech Cordless Freedom Optical

I have no problems with power and have run a GeForce4 Ti 4200 as well as the Radeon. I think the issue is the quality of the PSU in addition to it's listed wattage. I'm not an expert when it comes to PSUs but if the manufacturer says the PSU will work for a P4 you should be ok. Just avoid really cheap POS units.

 

[meefmah]

Darkranger:
It costs nothing to shop online. Please don't dismiss the upgrade without looking.

LucJoe:
I used to have an Athlon T-Bird 1.3/100 w/Delta 250 watt PSU and 2 HDDs/2 opticals, 512MB RAM, GF2ultra.
+5v=25amps
+3.3v=14amps
+12v=8amps
I had it for a 6months then gave it to my sister. It's still works.


jsares:
Intel recommends a minimum +12v rating of 8amps.
To be recommended, a manufacturer need only meet the minimum.
This may or may not be sufficient for a configuration, but IMHO, a PSU that specs higher will further minimize the possibility of power related problems.
When they chose the PSU for your box, the manufacturer knew the motherboard, cooling and maximum peripherals/add-ins.
That's a big advantage and the reason your PSU is efficiently tailored.
For the hobbyist, it's easier to stick an overkill PSU in there and be done with it.
In my previous post, I mentioned a PSU with a +12v rating that is 25% higher than the minimum and still insufficient.
YMMV (succinct cop-out)

 

[Trader05]

I have an older Antec 300w in my Inwin Case right now...I currently have:

Asus p4b266-c (not using the p4 square plug)
512mbs ram
1.6a@2.1
ibm 60gxp 60gb
WD 30gb
Gainward GF4 4200
Sb Audigy
Toshiba dvd 16x
Plextor 24x
Nic Card

Im running fine, my 12v voltage is 11.9-12v. With a 150w psu i would upgrade to a 300 or better to be on the safe side!