PSU: do they make a difference?

[Dough1397]

i've been looking into the prices of power supply units and the brand name ones arent cheap at all, my question if i got some relatively cheap one with good ratings would it be good for ocing a a64 to the average 2.4ghz ? like 80 bucks canadian is not nice to pay for s psu when i can get a case and psu for the same price

 

[OnEMoReTrY]

Cheap ones and ones that come in cases are two different things. Usually the psu's that come in cases are the bad of the bad.

 

[imported_Computer MAn]

Originally posted by: OnEMoReTrY
Cheap ones and ones that come in cases are two different things. Usually the psu's that come in cases are the bad of the bad.

Unless you get an Antec or other reputable company's case.

 

[JohnAn2112]

Originally posted by: Computer MAn

Originally posted by: OnEMoReTrY
Cheap ones and ones that come in cases are two different things. Usually the psu's that come in cases are the bad of the bad.

Unless you get an Antec or other reputable company's case.

Even then, you'd only get a 350 watt or so PSU. You'd probably want something with a little more juice.

 

[superkdogg]

Originally posted by: ZePHyRaNTHeS

Originally posted by: Computer MAn

Originally posted by: OnEMoReTrY
Cheap ones and ones that come in cases are two different things. Usually the psu's that come in cases are the bad of the bad.

Unless you get an Antec or other reputable company's case.

Even then, you'd only get a 350 watt or so PSU. You'd probably want something with a little more juice.

Maybe I'm wrong on this, and I certainly would not recommend a cheap PSU, but isn't the PSU less important with OC'ing A64 due to lower power consumption especially compared to Prescott? The thermal max specs are 67 Watts for Winnies, 89W for virtually all other A64 (55 is higher). To compare that, NW P4 is 84W and Prescott 115W. To me, that means that while a move to PSU's that supply 75A on the +12 rail (hyperbole) would be a solid investment and R/O PSU as a weak link, such a move is often premature. Especially if you're using a Winchester. To put that in perspective, the Barton XP's were spec'd @ 68-76W. Obviously a PSU is like most other computer components-you generally get what you pay for. Since I'm pretty poor and have to shop for bargains, I try to maximize my purchases. That's why I'm still holding off on the FX-55 with 4 GB of incredi-ram and the 600W OCZ PSU. For me, they are all overkill, and since you're asking this question I think it's safe to say that you're at least somewhat like me in shopping patterns.

 

[Dough1397]

generally what wattage is good for a64's and what amperage on each line? i know 12v 18 amp is the bare minimum and like 24+ is good but the others?

 

[JBDan]

Originally posted by: superkdogg

Originally posted by: ZePHyRaNTHeS

Originally posted by: Computer MAn

Originally posted by: OnEMoReTrY
Cheap ones and ones that come in cases are two different things. Usually the psu's that come in cases are the bad of the bad.

Unless you get an Antec or other reputable company's case.

Even then, you'd only get a 350 watt or so PSU. You'd probably want something with a little more juice.

Maybe I'm wrong on this, and I certainly would not recommend a cheap PSU, but isn't the PSU less important with OC'ing A64 due to lower power consumption especially compared to Prescott? The thermal max specs are 67 Watts for Winnies, 89W for virtually all other A64 (55 is higher). To compare that, NW P4 is 84W and Prescott 115W. To me, that means that while a move to PSU's that supply 75A on the +12 rail (hyperbole) would be a solid investment and R/O PSU as a weak link, such a move is often premature. Especially if you're using a Winchester. To put that in perspective, the Barton XP's were spec'd @ 68-76W. Obviously a PSU is like most other computer components-you generally get what you pay for. Since I'm pretty poor and have to shop for bargains, I try to maximize my purchases. That's why I'm still holding off on the FX-55 with 4 GB of incredi-ram and the 600W OCZ PSU. For me, they are all overkill, and since you're asking this question I think it's safe to say that you're at least somewhat like me in shopping patterns.

The PSU is so overlooked its rather SAD! Spend the $ if your gonna spend the $ on your system!

 

[SickBeast]

Originally posted by: Dough1397
PSU: do they make a difference?

Yes. Yes they do.

 

[stratman]

Originally posted by: superkdogg

Originally posted by: ZePHyRaNTHeS

Originally posted by: Computer MAn

Originally posted by: OnEMoReTrY
Cheap ones and ones that come in cases are two different things. Usually the psu's that come in cases are the bad of the bad.

Unless you get an Antec or other reputable company's case.

Even then, you'd only get a 350 watt or so PSU. You'd probably want something with a little more juice.

Maybe I'm wrong on this, and I certainly would not recommend a cheap PSU, but isn't the PSU less important with OC'ing A64 due to lower power consumption especially compared to Prescott? The thermal max specs are 67 Watts for Winnies, 89W for virtually all other A64 (55 is higher). To compare that, NW P4 is 84W and Prescott 115W. To me, that means that while a move to PSU's that supply 75A on the +12 rail (hyperbole) would be a solid investment and R/O PSU as a weak link, such a move is often premature. Especially if you're using a Winchester. To put that in perspective, the Barton XP's were spec'd @ 68-76W. Obviously a PSU is like most other computer components-you generally get what you pay for. Since I'm pretty poor and have to shop for bargains, I try to maximize my purchases. That's why I'm still holding off on the FX-55 with 4 GB of incredi-ram and the 600W OCZ PSU. For me, they are all overkill, and since you're asking this question I think it's safe to say that you're at least somewhat like me in shopping patterns.

Bump for second opinions on the topic of this post.

 

[stratman]

Oh, and I'm thinking of getting a ENERMAX EG465P-VE power supply, which I think is rated at 460W.

I'm getting it because my ECS K7S5A pro hates my generic 300W PSU, and to future-proof myself for when I make a new system. What do you guys think: overkill? Not good enough? Too expensive/better one to buy?

Thank yall very much.

 

[SickBeast]

Originally posted by: stratman
Oh, and I'm thinking of getting a ENERMAX EG465P-VE power supply, which I think is rated at 460W.

I'm getting it because my ECS K7S5A pro hates my generic 300W PSU, and to future-proof myself for when I make a new system. What do you guys think: overkill? Not good enough? Too expensive/better one to buy?

Thank yall very much.

Overkill depending on price. You shouldn't need more than the 365watt Enermax for that board.

 

[stratman]

Ah done some more research and it appears the PSU is rated at 431W (the store im gonna buy it at advertised it as 460 for some reason :/ ).

Yeah it's overkill for my board, but for a future comp (so i don't have to get a new psu for my next comp)?

 

[operaman1]

Spend money for a good PSU. It floors me how people spend a ton of cash on their components only to throw it into a generic psu that came with their case or something similar. YOU GET WHAT YOU PAYFOR. I got an OCZ Powerstream 600 watter. I do not recommend necessarily dropping that kind of cash, but for 75 or so you can get a solid 530 watt Sparkle (Fortron) PSU and it is as good as PSU costing 150ish. Totally worth it.