recommended PSU for Dual 9800GX2s?

[MraK]

Since this is a section for Video cards, i have a question for anyone who could help me.

Im building a new gaming rig for myself and i was thinking of getting a Zalman ZM1000-HP 1000WATT PSU just so i could run duel 9800GX2s. but some people i know that i have talked to have said i need a more higher watt PSU

my questions are

1)What brand PSU is most recommended? (in terms of durability/lifespan/ and the power to take on 2 9800GX2s)

2)What Watt size is most convenient?

I actually have a Thermaltake Toughpower 850WATT, was thinking of using that for now but maybe its not enough

 

[JPB]

Originally posted by: MrAK
Since this is a section for Video cards, i have a question for anyone who could help me.

Im building a new gaming rig for myself and i was thinking of getting a Zalman ZM1000-HP 1000WATT PSU just so i could run duel 9800GX2s. but some people i know that i have talked to have said i need a more higher watt PSU

my questions are

1)What brand PSU is most recommended? (in terms of durability/lifespan/ and the power to take on 2 9800GX2s)

2)What Watt size is most convenient?

I actually have a Thermaltake Toughpower 850WATT, was thinking of using that for now but maybe its not enough

With putting that kind of money into GPU's. I'd be willing to say you don't care about price. So do not skimp on the PSU.

I used to have a Thermaltake PSU, and the thing quit on me. Although that was two years ago. I would stick with Corsair or PC Power And Cooling brands. What about the Silencer Series 750?

PC Power & Cooling 750W

Looks like your PSU has dual +12 18Amp rails, Where as the Silencer has a single 60Amp rail. Big difference there.

Here is the CORSAIR 750 which also has a single +12 60Amp single rail.

Both are excellent PSU's.

If it were me, I don't think I would trust two GX2's on that Thermaltake.

Here is the GeForce 9800GX2 Power Supply Support list page.

 

[ther00kie16]

GX2 draws 200W at load so give it 20+ amps for some overhead. Then 20+ for overclocked cpu and some extra for rest of components. So 50A should be plenty, which is what the Corsair 620HX has. 620HX is great and just about perfect for a GX2 system, plus it's modular.

 

[nRollo]

Originally posted by: JPB

Originally posted by: MrAK
Since this is a section for Video cards, i have a question for anyone who could help me.

Im building a new gaming rig for myself and i was thinking of getting a Zalman ZM1000-HP 1000WATT PSU just so i could run duel 9800GX2s. but some people i know that i have talked to have said i need a more higher watt PSU

my questions are

1)What brand PSU is most recommended? (in terms of durability/lifespan/ and the power to take on 2 9800GX2s)

2)What Watt size is most convenient?

I actually have a Thermaltake Toughpower 850WATT, was thinking of using that for now but maybe its not enough

With putting that kind of money into GPU's. I'd be willing to say you don't care about price. So do not skimp on the PSU.

I used to have a Thermaltake PSU, and the thing quit on me. Although that was two years ago. I would stick with Corsair or PC Power And Cooling brands. What about the Silencer Series 750?

PC Power & Cooling 750W

Looks like your PSU has dual +12 18Amp rails, Where as the Silencer has a single 60Amp rail. Big difference there.

Here is the CORSAIR 750 which also has a single +12 60Amp single rail.

Both are excellent PSU's.

If it were me, I don't think I would trust two GX2's on that Thermaltake.

Here is the GeForce 9800GX2 Power Supply Support list page.

The SLi Certified PSU list for 9800GX2s

I like PC Power and Cooling personally, and would get the 1000W or 1200W model.

 

[MraK]

WOW fast response, thanks for the tips guys, i thought the same way about my thermaltake PSU and after reading what info you guys had i was thinking of this PSU "PC Power & Cooling TURBO-COOL 1KW-SR EPS12V 1000W" yet where i order my pc parts from, its going to cost me $420, is that really worth it? i agree with the fact that one big single rail is far better than multiple rails especially when it comes to gaming rigs. Since i found out that the new Nvidia cards are coming out next month "GTX 280" or something like that. Should i just wait till the new cards come out or just stick with dual 9800GX2s?? and yea, money does not matter for the cards, just need to get the right ones. I'm a gamer by heart but i do a lot of photoshop work and some video editing, like making home movies from friend or family gatherings.

 

[angry hampster]

Originally posted by: MrAK
Should i just wait till the new cards come out or just stick with dual 9800GX2s??.

Yes.

Single card solution is always better than multi-gpu setups.

 

[MraK]

I guess i made up my mind, I think i could hack another month before the new cards come out, at least they will be single cards like angry hampster states. I just hope that these new cards that are coming out would still let me play with some games that are a few years old (ex. Counter strike Source) or older games since I'm a fan of old-school pc games. Yet knowing that Nvidia is releasing yet another higher-end card, why still bring out the 9800GTX and 9800GX2 where the 8800 ultra is still abit better than these 9 series cards?

 

[betasub]

Originally posted by: MrAK
Should i just wait till the new cards come out or just stick with dual 9800GX2s??

Wait.

For the money you are looking to spend, GTX 280 makes sense. And a few weeks stuck with an 8800GTX shouldn't too great a hardship

 

[MraK]

yea i guess your right too betasub, my 8800GTX is still able to hack most games well with the exception of Crysis *only at high settings* but yea, a few weeks, heck a month or 2 down the line wont hurt me, since when the new cards come out i wanna wait a month before I get them, so i could judge by the reviews from first time users. Yet some how 9800GX2 are still on my mind, i means thats the reason for this thread lol

 

[error8]

Actually two 9800GX2s would scale pretty awful in SLI I guess, since there are 4 gpus and it's very hard to make good drivers for them to take advantage of the whole processing power. You would do better just by adding a second GTX or even better if you wait until June.

 

[MraK]

so your saying "error8" that once they come out with good drivers, people will be able to take full advantage of dual 9800GX2s? as for WATT size of PSUs i have read that 1000WATT PSUs are overkills and that high quality durable 850WATT PSU are more suited, is the theoretically justifiable??

 

[Sylvanas]

Dual GX2's is probably the worst investment you can make right now. The 750w PCPower I hear is a solid PSU, but you might be better off to ask in the PSU forum. As stated, wait for the GTX280 to land until you buy high end- an infinitely better option.

 

[nRollo]

Originally posted by: Sylvanas
Dual GX2's is probably the worst investment you can make right now. The 750w PCPower I hear is a solid PSU, but you might be better off to ask in the PSU forum. As stated, wait for the GTX280 to land until you buy high end- an infinitely better option.

I don't think it's the "worst" investment you can make, no matter what launches, you'd still have a VERY fast system with Quad SLi.

However, I agree with you that in general spending a lot on graphics a few weeks before rumored new launch is risky in terms of value- too many unknowns about cost and performance of new parts.

 

[error8]

Originally posted by: MrAK
so your saying "error8" that once they come out with good drivers, people will be able to take full advantage of dual 9800GX2s? as for WATT size of PSUs i have read that 1000WATT PSUs are overkills and that high quality durable 850WATT PSU are more suited, is the theoretically justifiable??

No, I think that even though drivers will improve over time (maybe), you will always have some type of problems with some games at some point.

As far as for PSUs, you can choose what others said above and remember that 1KW PSU even though is overkill right now, in the not so distant future will be perfect for dual or quad SLI/crossfire.