Need power supply recommendation.

[bupkus]

I have an ASUS A7N266-VM mainboard (onboard video) with:
1 hdd
1 cdrom
Athlon XP 1.4GHz
not using any PCI slots.

What PS would you recommend?

 

[AnAndAustin]

Well it makes sense to buy with the future in mind, you don't want to stress the PSU or be forced to replace it because you wanted to save $10 at the time. I'd rec a 300W or more pref 350-400W PSU ideally from Antec or Enermax although ToPower, SFlower and Sparkle are also known to be good. If you buy an unbranded PSU then 400W is wise.

 

[S0me1X]

I bought a Topower 370W for only $75 CDN (~$50). It works great with two temperature-controlled fans. I wish I could manually adjust the fan speed like with the Enermax and Antec ones. Anyway, the newer Topower power supplies have the fan adjust switch.

Antec and Sparkle's newer power supplies have trimmer pots to adjust the 5v/12v rails (a very useful feature for overclocking).

 

[bupkus]

The reason I listed the components was I had the feeling I could do with a smaller, cheaper PS.

 

[S0me1X]

A good 300W is enough then. (A few months back, I ran a Thunderbird 1.33 with 1 hard drive/burner/dvd with an AOpen 250W). You can get a 300W Codegen or Inwin for ~$25.... but a nice CWT 420W is only $45.

 

[AnAndAustin]

Well I'd say most 250W PSUs would run your setup fine, but a good brand not only means better build quality and reliability but that the actual numbers are not 'overly optimistic'. I've seen far too many components fried by cheap PSUs and wouldn't rec an unknown PSU. If you cut things too close you may have to fork out again for a slightly higher rated PSU and considering the price diffs a 350W is a very sensible minimum which is still very decently future proofed, with a decent brand 350W you could upgrade to a top AthlonXP, add a CDRW, another HD, PCI sound and AGP gfx and still not have to worry about the PSU causing probs or instability.

So any 300W should be more than fine for your current setup, a good brand PSU is wise and 350-400W don't tend to add significantly to the cost and are good investments IMHO.

PS. Just out of curiosity what do you use that PC for and what is the o/b gfx?

 

[bupkus]

It's being installed in a childcare center to run games, educational and composition software, like Word. The age groups sharing them I'm told are around 5-11.

I'd just installed a ps yesterday I'd purchased from Newegg by Heroichi Electronic corp. Power Supply 350watt HEC-350LDT-R, UL Approved. World Famous Power Brand, AMD(Athlon)/Intel Approved.
Ever hear of them?
It's a dual fan unit, which immediately emitted a buzzing/rattling sound, which I determined was coming from the intake fan. I called NE and they issued an RMA no. and offered a refund upon return.
They're listed under Compucase in the NE catalog but some have posted they are infact manufactured by Antec, the model being the Antec PP352x repackaged.

On my personal machine I'm using the Antec True Power where the case fans are powered down from a sensor in the ps. I love the damn thing. It's so much quieter, but the daycare is so noisey anyway no one would notice.

I'm thinking of giving the Sparkle 300W for $27 + $6 a try. Alot of people seem to like them.
I was even thinking of keeping the Heroichi, and changing the fan myself, just to save on the shipping.
Is that hard or dangerous (in terms of breaking it) to do?
I'

 

[Passions]

I never had any problems with Antec's, they are built very solid and reliably. I would go for at least a 300w, maybe 330w if u plan on upgrading in the future.