I don't trust my PSU anymore

[Jerizo]

First things first, I'm currently using a Cougar Power 550W PSU.

I overclocked my i7 860 from 3.55 to about 4ghz a couple months ago and received hard drive and memory failure.
​

I reverted back to stock clocks and took a break from ocing after that because of work.
​

Now I recently began to look into this and noticed that my PSU makes a fairy high pitch kinda scratchy noise whenever I go beyond stock clocks/volts.
It sounds kinda like a mixture of this and this. The sound is barely noticeable to fairly noticeable depending on the current system load but also on the degree of overclock.


This is why I don't trust my PSU anymore. I don't know if its going to go bad soon or what caused this but I don't feel comfortable running it overclocked in this state. It's been running fine past 2 months at stock clocks/ volts.

I need the extra overclock performance though so I'll have to get a new PSU. I'm wondering if my PSU was possibly not good enough to run the aggressive overclock that initially caused hdd and memory failure. Here is a spec sheet of my PSU Series.


So I'm wondering what PSU to get that will provide enough power and stability to overclock to about 4ghz. I'm also not sure how that kind of overclock will impact power consumption and generally what to pay attention to when it comes to PSUs specially in context of ocing.

-System Specs-

Gigabyte p55-ud3
i7-860
Cougar 550W
Sandisk Extreme II
Western Digital Velociraptor 1tb
4x4GB Mushkin 1600mhz 7-9-8-24
Ati Radion HD5870​

 

[lehtv]

The problem is mostly with the quality of the unit rather than its wattage rating. Cougar units are mostly manufactured by HEC which is generally not very well trusted. I would upgrade the unit even if it didn't have problems, I just wouldn't be comfortable running a high powered gaming rig off of a HEC built unit (unless it was shown to be stable in professional reviews, like some of EVGA's HEC built units).

Out of curiosity, how old is the unit and what is the exact model number (Cougar has several 550W units)?

Where are you shopping at for a new unit?

 

[lehtv]

I'm also not sure how that kind of overclock will impact power consumption and generally what to pay attention to when it comes to PSUs specially in context of ocing.

The i7-860 is old enough that power consumption with OC can easily be double that of overclocked Ivy Bridge and Haswell CPUs. At 4GHz I guess it should consume something like 200 watts, not sure. A lot, in any case. I would get a 650W unit for that system, generally that's the wattage you need if you want to be guaranteed no issues in the long term with any single GPU gaming setup overclocked on air.

Regarding the second part of the question, the same things apply to PSUs powering stock hardware as to PSUs powering overclocked hardware. You want a unit from a high quality manufacturer that uses high quality components such as Japanese long life capacitors, and preferably with at least 5 years of warranty though 3 is fine in some cases, if you know the capacitors are still high quality. The unit should have high +12V current rating, preferably as close to the unit's rated wattage as possible, i.e. the unit should be able to deliver its rated wattage continuously, with peak wattage well above the rated wattage. The only difference with stock vs OC is that overclocking adds potentially a couple of hundred watts to the PSU's wattage rating requirement.

 

[Jerizo]

My power supply is from the Cougar Power series (I bought it in 2009) which is discontinued now.

So to answer your questions concisely:

The Name is Cougar Power 550W and the exact Model is HEC-550TE (it's on the very bottom of the page you linked)
The unit is about 4 years and 2 months and 6 days old
I'll probably get the new PSU off Amazon but I'm not restricted in that regard at all.


What PSU would you recommend based on the criteria you just presented?

Do you think my CPU overclock pushed my PSU too far and caused the hdd and memory failure?
I'm actually not sure what caused it but my PSU didn't show any obvious signs at the time. After playing with bios settings and rebooting my memory just showed up as 8gb usable from 16gb and my hdd was no longer accessible.

I also noticed recently that my computer would blow a fuse when I turn in on. Not sure if this is related.


As I checked the model number on my PSU I noticed, that its making sounds even on stock clocks but they are much more faint.


Thanks for your reply, appreciate you taking the time to help out.

 

[silicon]

First things first, I'm currently using a Cougar Power 550W PSU.

I overclocked my i7 860 from 3.55 to about 4ghz a couple months ago and received hard drive and memory failure.
​

I reverted back to stock clocks and took a break from ocing after that because of work.
​

Now I recently began to look into this and noticed that my PSU makes a fairy high pitch kinda scratchy noise whenever I go beyond stock clocks/volts.
It sounds kinda like a mixture of this and this. The sound is barely noticeable to fairly noticeable depending on the current system load but also on the degree of overclock.


This is why I don't trust my PSU anymore. I don't know if its going to go bad soon or what caused this but I don't feel comfortable running it overclocked in this state. It's been running fine past 2 months at stock clocks/ volts.

I need the extra overclock performance though so I'll have to get a new PSU. I'm wondering if my PSU was possibly not good enough to run the aggressive overclock that initially caused hdd and memory failure. Here is a spec sheet of my PSU Series.


So I'm wondering what PSU to get that will provide enough power and stability to overclock to about 4ghz. I'm also not sure how that kind of overclock will impact power consumption and generally what to pay attention to when it comes to PSUs specially in context of ocing.

-System Specs-

Gigabyte p55-ud3
i7-860
Cougar 550W
Sandisk Extreme II
Western Digital Velociraptor 1tb
4x4GB Mushkin 1600mhz 7-9-8-24
Ati Radion HD5870​

get a new power supply, don't risk all your computer for a this supply.

 

[lehtv]

The Name is Cougar Power 550W and the exact Model is HEC-550TE (it's on the very bottom of the page you linked)
The unit is about 4 years and 2 months and 6 days old

No surprise there then, you're well past the unit's warranty, it's high time to replace it.

I'll probably get the new PSU off Amazon but I'm not restricted in that regard at all.

Amazon operates in several countries, I assume you mean Amazon.com.

What PSU would you recommend based on the criteria you just presented?

If you're willing to fill the rebate form:
Antec TruePower Classic 650W for $75 AR @ newegg
- in terms of quality and reliability, it doesn't get much better, this is the top tier
- 80+ Gold efficiency
- 5 year warranty
- double ball bearing fan for high durability
- OEM is Seasonic
- downside: not modular; you'll have two PCIe connectors, probably along with some SATA and molex cables that you need to tuck away

See review of the 750W version at techpowerup.

If you don't want to deal with mail-in rebates:
Rosewill Capstone 650W $90 @ amazon
- also top tier unit
- 80+ Gold efficiency
- 7 year warranty
- OEM is Superflower
- also not modular

Do you think my CPU overclock pushed my PSU too far and caused the hdd and memory failure?

I'm actually not sure what caused it but my PSU didn't show any obvious signs at the time. After playing with bios settings and rebooting my memory just showed up as 8gb usable from 16gb and my hdd was no longer accessible.

HDD failure is an entirely possible symptom, as pushing a unit too far can cause the voltages supplied directly to the hard disk to be out of spec, especially with a unit whose voltage regulation isn't that great to begin with. Not sure about the memory, it could also mean motherboard failure - i.e. the memory's fine but the motherboard just doesn't recognize it. Motherboard failure can definitely be caused by bad power

 

[Jerizo]

thanks for your great reply lehtv!

I'm actually located in Europe and Rosewill unfortunately is one of the few major manufacturers that I've come across that don't ship over here. I should have told you this beforehand, I apologize.


I checked out the Antec TP-650c and It appears to be a great power supply indeed. I don't mind the non modularness (although it would've been nice) and I like the aesthetics so I could actually go right ahead and order one.

Before I do that I'd like to check back with you tough because the TP-650c is $140 over here and thats almost twice the price you advertised.
So does this make other power supplies of same quality more reasonable or would you still go with this one?

Also I can get the 750W version of this for just $5 more. The only difference (apart from the wattage) seems to be that its 1% less efficient and has 35 ampere instead of 30 on it's 12V rails.
Not sure which one is better.


So stick with the Antec TP-650c for $140, get 750 version for couple more bucks or are there more reasonable options at this price point?


Once again, thanks for your help.


*when it comes to what to get, you appear to find where you get it to be important (which I completely get after seeing this $75 vs $140 difference) so this is how I shop:
I basically don't care what site it is that I get it from as long as I find it trustworthy so I just pull up google shopping and search for whatever I need. In this case I did this
https://www.google.de/#q=antec+truepower+tp-650c&tbm=shop
That search form allows me to compare prices and see whats available in my country quite easily.

 

[lehtv]

Based in Europe? You mean in Germany? You could've said this in your beginning post and saved a lot of time (for both of us). Assuming this is correct, and you're not simply googling through google.de despite being located in another country.

In Germany, the best bang for buck high quality units are generally Super Flower's self branded units.

Super Flower Golden Green HX-650 76,25 EUR from hardwareversand.de, price via geizhals.de

 

[Lisathedinosaur]

IMO, the best power supplies are SeaSonic and Corsair.

 

[Jerizo]

alright thanks lehtv, appreciate your advice.
I just ordered the Super Flower Golden Green HX-650.

 

[lehtv]

alright thanks lehtv, appreciate your advice.

No problem, hope it will work out for you :thumbsup:

 

[JEDIYoda]

IMO, the best power supplies are SeaSonic and Corsair.

if you read the thread then you know the Op is in Europe and it really has no bearing what the best Power supplies are...
It only matters whet the Op can get his hands on...

 

[coffeejunkee]

You know, Seasonic and Corsair are being sold in this backwards part of the world. But Superflower is a good choice too.