?!?! power supplies

[alco]

Simple question, really. I'm getting an Athlon XP 2400+ w/ a Radeon 9700 PRO. I only have one Hard Drive, Monitor, one CD drive and another CD burner. My current power supply is 250W. Do I need to replace it with higher wattage, or is it sufficient enough so that I won't experience any crashes?

 

[Corporate Thug]

what brand? if i were i would replace it to be on the safe side though

 

[Trashman]

Yes....no reason to skimp on PS, thats the heart of your system....even ATI suggest a PS 300W or better.....Antec TruePower 380W would be ideal.

 

[alco]

ATX.

Yeah, I guess I probably should replace. Supplies are dirt cheap anyways...

 

[Corporate Thug]

400W sparkle for $33 @ newegg if you are on a budget

 

[RealTim]

You know, the thing about power supplies is that you never really know whether they are the cause of your problem, except in some rare instances. It seems many people are quick to blame them without real evidence when they can't think what else the problem is. I would say boot her up and run her for a while and if no probs, so much the better why make a change?

If you replace, keep in mind the brand matters more than the actual wattage.

Very few people want to learn the technical issues of how much power each rail will support, why weight is actually a factor, etc etc

So to make it simple, you stick with brand and price. After reading endlessly on the subject, my 2 cents on brands to stick with include:

Antec
Enermax
Thermaltake
Vantec
TTGI

Anything 350W and over is going to be enough for the computer you use, though some motherboards and video cards are known for sucking more power than others (e.g., ECS mobos and GeForce FX video).

I went with TTGI aka "Super Flower" because I have read they are the poor man's Enermax, same specs and basic construction but without the name and cheaper. Directron.com usually has an excellent selection, you can get a TTGI 350W silent PSU for $25.

A good bargain these days also is the Antec "SL" line.

Good luck.