PC P&C

[John]

Originally posted by: BoomerD
So, in the ~$200. range, is there anything BETTER than the Silencer 750?

There are plenty.

http://forums.anandtech.com/me...=2073808&enterthread=y

 

[HardWarrior]

You're so predictable, yoda.

 

[BoomerD]

As I understand it (from numerous sources) Sea Sonic makes very good PSU's?

oh my!

http://www.seasonic.com/new/twevent20070315.htm
"The Seasonic X900 is designed and built for power, performance, stability and reliability as demanded by power users, gamers and over-clockers. The X900 is a true 900W output power unit with a peak output of over 1,000 watts.

Seasonic X900 is equipped with multiple +12V rails to support high-end graphic cards? need with a total power output of 72 amps. A Double Forward Converter circuit design achieves a 99% Active Power Factor Correction and an industry-leading efficiency rating of up to 88%. Additionally, the power supply utilizes a Dual Magnetic Amplifier circuit to maintain a class-leading 3% line regulation tolerance on all +12V output rails to meet the demands of high-end graphics cards, CPU?s and peripherals for accurate and stable power output.

The jet black colored chassis is a standard ATX form factor so as to fit into any standard ATX system housing in the market today. Our exclusive S2FC [Smart & Silent Fan Control] technology ensures that the 80mm exhaust fan keeps the noise level as low as possible and yet at the same time maintain the proper operating temperature for the power supply.

Seasonic X900 comes with four dedicated PCI-E connectors & two 6P to 8P adapters to support extreme Quad SLI? & CrossFire? systems and as well, conforms to the latest Intel ATX12V & EPS12V specifications. In addition, the power supply is equipped with nine standard Molex connectors and six SATA for peripheral devices. For added flexibility, one Y cable that converts one standard Molex to FDD connectors is included for added configuration flexibility.

High output power supply without compromise is finally here, the Seasonic X900."

I realize this is severe overkill for my uses, and for the most part, I avoid buying things when they first hit the market...(let other people find the bugs in new products)... but this excites the "Tim--The Tool-Man-- Taylor" in me... Bigger, Faster, Vroom, VROOOOOM! :roll:

On a more serious note, since I want to stay in the $200 range for a new PSU, is the Seasonic M12 SS-700HM worth the price? I'm actually surprised that it's more $$ than the PCP&C Silencer 750...
Like most of us, money IS an option, and I don't want to spend more than I need to, but I'd rather buy more than I need, than to need more than I buy...and hopefully, sometime next year, I'll finally make the jump from AGP to ???PCI-E? (who knows what the next year will bring) I doubt I'll jump into SLI/Crossfire unless I find a screamin deal on dual-vid cards, but the new Intel quad-core processors sure sound like a worthy upgrade from my P4 3.06 Northwood.

 

[HardWarrior]

Impressive. Seasonic needs to advertise. The only place I hear about them is here.

 

[BoomerD]

So far, press releases are the only places I could find anything about that 900 watt powerhouse, (and in one "give-away" on a different site. Not sure why...(although there could be several reasons)

 

[BoomerD]

The PSU rating sites all list Zippy/Emacs (?) as a tier 1 psu, but where do you buy them? The major sellers (NewEgg, ZZF) don't carry them, and even a Google search brings very few sellers.

 

[GalvanizedYankee]

myaopen.com
servercase.com
buildtoorderservers.com

Just buy a Corsair 520 or 620 depending on your precieved needs.

 

[BoomerD]

Thanks...just looking at the assorted options...

 

[HardWarrior]

Thanks for the bookmarks, Yankee! :thumbsup:

 

[BoomerD]

Since Corsair is so highly recommended, and it looks like they're modular PSU's, are there any problems with the modular wiring? I know PCP&C says there can be too much resistance in the plugs, but I don't know how much of that is hype and how much is truth. The modular idea really doesn't matter much to me, as long as the plugs make a good connection and don't fall out or lose connectivity...(this case doesn't go to LAN parties or anything...)

 

[GalvanizedYankee]

Properly done, like not using shared, tiny DIN pin mic jacks...as Hyper has done, there has been no reports of issue with voltage drops or pins burning. Seasonic, Corsair, Silverstone and many others use real ATX spec pins at the modular interface.

The modular pin resistance was just some of the marketing FUD that got spread by some.

 

[BoomerD]

that's what I suspected...thanks.

 

[BoomerD]

I'm looking (and seriously considering) the Corsair 620HX as my replacement. One concern I have though is that my current system:

Intel Pentium 4 Northwood 3.06/533 (BX80532PE3066DSL6PG) (stock clocks)
ZALMAN CNPS7700-CU 120mm CPU cooler
ASUS P4P800-E Deluxe
Visiontek Xtasy Radeon X850XT Platinum Edition AGP (stock clocks)
SoundBlaster LIVE! With ?breakout-box? front panel
3X512mb DDR400 RAM (soon to be 2X1 gb, 2X512mb)
Seagate 250 gb SATA HDD
SAMSUNG 18X DVD±R DVD Burner
Toshiba 6X DVD-ROM
Iomega Zip 250 Drive
Floppy drive (unknown)
6-80mm case fans (yep, sounds like a 747 sitting next to me...(planning on adding quieter fans with this upgrade as well)
I only have 1 SATA drive at this time, and NO PCI-E devices. Will I be able to power everything with the supplied cabling? It'd be nice, since so much of the 12+ is built for PCI-E, to get either adapters that would let me use molex connectors on them, or even a cable from Corsair that makes that adaption for me.

While my current power needs (based on various PSU calculators) range from about 350 watts to nearly 500 watts...(every calculator is different, and none give me the exact options of my system) the 620 should more than serve my current needs, (I definitely would rather have more power supply than I need, than to need more than I have!) I'm not at all against buying a PSU in the 750-850 watt range to meet future expansion needs. (HOPEFULLY next year) with one of the new Intel quad-core processors, new mobo, new RAM, and (at least 1) new PCI-E video card. Also, I hope to add a 2nd SATA HDD with that upgrade.

Everyone still think the Corsair is the right PSU, or is there something else that might do the job better? (again, I'd like to stay in the $200 range.)

 

[GalvanizedYankee]

Cabling? I really don't know.
What I do know is that the current rebates on the HX 620 & 520 are not going to last now that the VX 450 & 550 are out.

 

[BoomerD]

While the $20 rebate would be nice, it's not really going to affect my decision one way or the other...and I have to wait for some "extra disposable income"...
I posted the same question on the Corsair forums, where hopefully, I'll get an answer from one of the Corsair reps. They're USUALLY good at replying.

 

[GalvanizedYankee]

Originally posted by: BoomerD
While the $20 rebate would be nice, it's not really going to affect my decision one way or the other...and I have to wait for some "extra disposable income"...
I posted the same question on the Corsair forums, where hopefully, I'll get an answer from one of the Corsair reps. They're USUALLY good at replying.

I think that would be Redbeard. He is a good guy.

 

[BoomerD]

Yep...he & I have swapped a couple of messages over at Hardforums..

 

[John]

Boomer, your current rig doesn't even come close to pulling 300W under full load. The HX620 is more than enough to power your rig, and it's only $119 AR @ ZZF. You'll have ample headroom for a quad core + 8800GTX SLI.

The supplied cables will also fit all of your current devices.pic of cables :camera:

** Corsair now includes (2) 6+2 pin PCIe cables with the HX520/620. If you get an older batch you can call Corsair and they'll send them to you for the cost of shipping.

 

[BoomerD]

Yeah, it's certainly not a power-hungry monster...yet...FWIW, Kill-A-Watt only shows about 350 watts of 110 coming from the wall, and that includes my CRT monitor...
sorry...forgot to add...that consumption is only when I'm gaming. Idle watts are about 210, or about 120 w/monitor turned off.

 

[BoomerD]

heh-heh...Ram Guy (one of the Corsair reps on their forums) is trying to talk me OUT of buying one of their PSU's...

Actually, he's suggested I wait to replace my Perspire...I mean Aspire PSU until I make my upgrade...which makes sense IF I was working with a decent PSU to start with...but maybe I could get a "lesser price" quality PSU to get me through until I do make the upgrade. It's a thought, especially since I'll more or less have to re-do everything at that time anyway.
BUT, that ZZF price is AWFULLY appealing...

 

[GalvanizedYankee]

Your call. A VX520 might do you well. But it ain't modular, if that is of any importance.

NOTE: It is A**-Fire or Expire.:laugh:

 

[BoomerD]

Originally posted by: GalvanizedYankee
Your call. A VX520 might do you well. But it ain't modular, if that is of any importance.

NOTE: It is A**-Fire or Expire.:laugh:

Modular really doesn't matter, except that since I currently have no PCI-E devices, those would just end up rolled up and stuffed in some part of the case to collect dust-bunnies...

And it really doesn't matter what you call it, a cheap POS by any other name...

 

[BoomerD]

So the extreme PSU calculator recommends a PSU of about 477 watts for my current set-up, and my POS Aspire is handling the load, although not very well.(if I'd have only known then what I know now...)

Other than initial cost, is there any downside to buying one larger than I actually need since the PSU only puts out as much power as the demand calls for?

At this time, the only drawback I see to the Corsair units is the PCI-E cables. Right now, all my power demands are 4-pin molex connectors, so I'd need a couple extra cables to supply power for those things...BUT, it would give me upgrade capability.

 

[Aluvus]

Originally posted by: BoomerD
Other than initial cost, is there any downside to buying one larger than I actually need since the PSU only puts out as much power as the demand calls for?

You may not get the best possible efficiency from the supply, but unless you're drastically overshooting it this is a pretty small concern.

 

[BoomerD]

OK, to consolidate info from a couple different threads:

Here's my current system running on a 500 watt Aspire PSU:

Pentium 4 Northwood 3.06/533 (BX80532PE3066DSL6PG) (stock clocks)
ZALMAN CNPS7700-CU 120mm CPU cooler
ASUS P4P800-E Deluxe
Visiontek Xtasy Radeon X850XT Platinum Edition AGP (stock clocks)
SoundBlaster LIVE! With ?breakout-box? front panel
3X512mb DDR400 RAM (soon to be 2X1 gb, 2X512mb)
Seagate 250 gb SATA HDD
SAMSUNG 18X DVD±R DVD Burner
Toshiba 6X DVD-ROM
Iomega Zip 250 Drive
Floppy drive (unknown)
6-80mm case fans (yep, sounds like a 747 sitting next to me...(planning on adding quieter fans with this upgrade as well)

A couple of days ago, I tried some testing...
I ran Orthos in 2 instances, plus rthdribl while hooked up to a multi-meter. 12v rail (as measured through a molex connector) for the most part, ran in the 11.4-11.45 range...until I fired up rthdribl...then it dropped to 11.30 volts...(and actually dropped for a second to 11.28v) ran for a few seconds like that, then the video card went "wonky" and started putting out nothing but pixelated garbage...

So, here's my dilema:
I KNOW my existing PSU is garbage, but it came with my case about 4 years ago...I knew nothing about things like this, and only saw "500 watts...34a/12v. (I still don't really know much about this stuff, but I'm trying to learn...)
http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/413
It's a disaster just waiting to happen.

The current system has no PCI-E connectors, and only 1 SATA drive. The majority of my power needs are filled thru molex connectors. Most current PSU's have a lot of the 12v in rails with cabling for PCI-E and SATA.

While my current power needs could probably be met by a quality 400 or 500 watt unit, (especially since they're being met by a crappy 500 watt unit) my plans are to do a major overhaul/rebuild next year, and would prefer not to have to buy one PSU now to get me by, then replace it once I upgrade later. My concern is that since I have so many things that draw power from molex connectors, that I'll either end up overloading the one rail that has molex connectors on it, or just not have enough of them to go around. (Yes, I have "Y" connectors/splitters if I need them)

At this point, I'm STILL considering the PCP&C 750 Silencer, as well as the Corsair HX620, the Enermax Infiniti 720, Seasonic M12 SS-700HM , and am open to other suggestions as well.
I'd like the PSU to be (relatively) quiet, (or at least not sound like a leaf blower) during operation, be able to support all the connections I have now, yet still be "future-proof" enough to allow me to upgrade next year...

IF I need to, I'll buy a quality inexpensive unit now, then replace it when I do the major upgrade, but I'd rather just do it once.(like most of us, I already have a closet FULL of outdated computer components that I need to get rid of)

Thanks.