How much power is enough?

[jo4re]

HI All,
MY Dad needs a new ps. He has an Athlon Xp 2000, WD HD and a Radeon 9800 pro GPU....nothing too spectacular. I was thinking anything above 400 watts is ok. Any advice on a good one? I am happy with my Enermax and thinking of getting him the same.

Thanks,
Joe

 

I think 350 watts (from a QUALITY power supply) should be plenty.

 

[Zepper]

I agree with jumpr. And it depends mainly on your mobo which 350-400W PSU you should get. If your CPU is powered from the 12V rail (P4-12V connector) then the output should be weighted toward the 12V rail(s) - these are mostly newer designs. Whereas, if the CPU is still powered by the 5V rail, then the power should be weighted to the 5V rail - these are mainly older designs. 12Amps of 5Volts = 5 Amps of 12 Volts.

Sparkle/Fortron just brought some of their new lines into the states and their specs look great. Remains to be seen if they are as reliable as their older siblings, but they are unlikely to be total dogs...

.bh.

 

[UsandThem]

Link

A quality 350w unit is plenty for that setup.

 

[jo4re]

Any suggestions as to brand? I don't mind paying decent money but don't want to break the bank on an old rig. FWIW the mobo is an Asus A7V333.

 

[tjpark1111]

a 3200+ venice w/ a 6600GT runs with a quality 250 watt(seasonic), so yours maybe 200?

 

[python023]

http://extreme.outervision.com/index.jsp

 

[UsandThem]

Originally posted by: jo4re
Any suggestions as to brand? I don't mind paying decent money but don't want to break the bank on an old rig. FWIW the mobo is an Asus A7V333.

Antec, OCZ, Seasonic, and Enermax are the ones I have used and all are good quality. There are others, but I have never used them, so you will have to get some others opinions on other brands.

You should be able to get a good unit in the $40.00 - $60.00 range. Check out the Hot Deals forum, and watch for Antec power supplies with MIR's in your local paper and you can probably save a few bucks.

 

[pkme2]

Tom's Hardware

Avoid Antec

If you planning to do dual video cards as a gamer, the Seasonic 12 is highly recommended.
Fortron and Enermax are worth considering. 430w is a good starting point.
The Fortron 300w is OK for an older rig, but its your choice. Good hunting.

Good Buy