Need help matching a new mobo with 300w psu

[TGirl]

😕 My MSI Pro 2A just bit the dust so I'm shopping for a new mobo. I'll probably upgrade my 1G TBird to an xp1700 or so. The case I'm using, which I really like, is the Antec SX830 that came with a 300W power supply. I don't really want to change that out, so I was wondering which of the KT266 mobos would work ok with my power supply?

I was thinking of the Epox but several people said it's a power eater, needing at least 340Watts, so that's out of the picture. I was kind of leaning toward the Iwill or the Abit. I don't need raid support. Will my PSU work with any of the decent board in the latest roundup?

I always appreciate all of your help here on the forums. You all have helped me out several time, and I've been able to help others out a time or two myself! Any suggestions would really help me out.

Thanks a bunch!

TGirl

 

[o1die]

If your ps is amd approved and worked fine before, you should have no problems with the new rig, unless you add an extra hardrive, burner, or other power hungry devices. Newegg sells a wide variety of refurbished boards. I would check those out, if money is tight. They had my old shuttle ak31a for only $49 shipped awhile back.

 

[oldfoof]

Go for the Epox 8KHA+ No problems here. (also have a 300W PSU)😀

 

[Buz2b]

Contrary to the currently shared wisdom, I would like to warn you that according to AMD's recommended PS page, your unit should only run up to a 1.0 GHz cpu. That doesn't mean it might not work on a different board with a larger cpu, it is just a "guideline" that is there to use. You should keep that in mind before deciding to stick with your current PS. They are very easy to change and a good 350 watt is not that expensive. It would take much less than 5 minutes to replace but would give you better "headroom" for further expansion: Not to mention piece of mind.

One more thing:

<< If your ps is amd approved and worked fine before, you should have no problems with the new rig >>

AMD approved doesn't mean it will run any processor. The "AMD Approved" PS should match the processor speed on the chart I linked to before. As mentioned, the PS in question is "AMD approved" but only "AMD Approved" up to a 1.0 GHz CPU.

 

[daywalker]

Well im running an Asus A7A-133 PA with an AMD Duron 1Ghz on it with a 350W powersupply. My old 235W power supply, hit the dust after one week's use. This new one though has been stable as a rock for about 2 months now. So... the bigger the power supply. the best it is for your system for your system i believe...

 

[TGirl]

Well thanks a lot, guys. My husband just ran out and bought an Asus A7M266 at Frys along with an xp1700 (lady accidentally gave him an 1800!). I really don't know ANYTHING about this board except it only has 2 DDR slots!!! The Frys person (and we all know how knowledgable and helpful they are) hehe, told him my 300w would be ok.

If we just try it out, what is the worst that can happen? Would it fry the psu only, or could it damage the mobo or cpu or anything else, for that matter? Also, he had to pay out the a** for a stick of ddr. Does anyone know if you can return memory? I'm going to take advantage of the crucial sale and was wondering if I'd be able to return this other stick on Wednesday when the crucial arrives? Do they let you return memory? I thought we could use this memory to see if it all works, then bring it back when we get the crucial in?

Thanks

TGirl

 

[Buz2b]

Fry's will let you return Memory but there may be a restocking fee (not sure). You should keep it in it's original package though. Don't try to use it til the Crucial shows up. I wouldn't wait either; return it today! That board is an excellent one. Check my System below and you'll see why I think so. As to the PS issue, as I said earlier; you can try. Nothing to lose. I ran mine with a 300 watt that was AMD approved for my CPU for a while and then switched to an Enermax 350 watt. It ran "OK" with the 300 watt and my 1.33 GHz CPU but I had an occasional stability issue. Not sure if changing the PS fixed it or some of the other things I did at the same time did it. Either way, it is rock solid now and running at 1.45 GHz.
Use the money you save on the Crucial RAM as a down payment and get a better PS though. That is my recommendation. But, it won't hurt the CPU or board to try the other one.
BTW, you can get a Sparkle 300 watt PS that is fully AMD recommended for your CPU and above for about $34.00 shipped at NewEgg. They have the same one at Fry's for $44.00. The Sparkle 350 watt is slightly more but you should be able to get away with a 300 watt Sparkle.
Update: NewEgg is currently out of stock on the Sparkle PS I mentioned.

 

[TGirl]

Well thanks for all the info. After messing with that mobo (asus) all day, we figured out - thankfully through anandtech's forums - that unless you have the bios v 1005 or later, it won't let you use the xp. You can't even get it to boot to flash it. I guess you have to put in an older cpu to get it started, then flash the bios, then it will accept the xp. My husband didn't want to risk harming the new cpu by redoing the whole thing, so he just took it back to Frys. He said the guy behind him in the return line had the exact same board with the exact same problem!!!

The only mobo left was the Soyo sy-k7v Dragon Plus, so he got it! Darn! HEHEHEH. Everyone on here was drooling all over it so I knew it had to be pretty good. I didn't have much time to research like I did last time. I also had him buy a new ps. He got a 400w Antec. I guess I'm totally safe now. He couldn't wait, so he ended up paying $100 for it. The mobo was $139. I didn't want to risk frying anything. 🙂

Thank you all so much for helping me out here. Just thought I'd pass on this tidbit of info for you all: You may already know this, but I was very impressed - I went to Mushkins site to check their memory prices (didn't realize it had shot up so high!!!) and after I followed the directions to my new soyo mobo - it gave all kinds of info about issues and workarounds regarding memory and other problems. It's really pretty cool. It had all kinds of issues that I wasn't aware of. Just for the hell of it, you might just want to look up your mobos and see what they've got to say about it? Fortunately, the chips on the memory stick are the kind they said this mobo works the best with so I'm keeping that stick!

Thanks again, everyone!!!

TGirl

 

[Gonx]

I've a 1700*+XP, Epox 8kha+ and a 300W task, power suply approved by AMD. No problems.