Started putting together my new build today

[Bateluer]

The A64 X2 4200 AM2 is still enroute, but I started putting the system together today to let me get it up and running faster on the 6th when the CPU arrives.

Complete spec's

LL PC-2000B Plus (Has three 120mm fans, 1 as a duct over the CPU area and 1 over the expansion card area, and 1 in the HDD zone)
1 MSI K9N SLI Platinum
Fortron 450W PSU Seen Here
Diamond Radeon X1900XT
1 Seagate 160GB SATA (Boot drive and App drive)
1 Seagate 500GB SATA drive (Main storage drive)
2 Seagate 300GB SATA drives (Secondard storage and application drives)
1 Plextor 716A DVD-DL Burner
1 Pioneer 16x DVDROM
2x 1GB Muskin DDR2-800 modules (4-4-3-10)

Seems like its going to be a solid system once everything arrives and is installed. However, there is one issue that could be a major issue. When I opened the Diamond X1900XT box, there was the usual paperwork, bundle of A/V cables, quickstart guide, driver CD, etc. Lastly, there was a flyer regarding PSU requirements. This flyer highly recommended a PSU wth 30A on the 12v rail. The Fortron 450W I purchased has two 12V rails with 18A on each. I don't know of many PSUs that provide 30A+ on the 12V rail, and they cost an arm and a leg.

Will my Fortron PSU be able to handle all these parts, particularly the X1900XT?

 

[thilanliyan]

Originally posted by: Bateluer
Will my Fortron PSU be able to handle all these parts, particularly the X1900XT?

I know my OCZ Powerstream 420w PSU has 30A on the +12v rail and only 0.5A on the -12v rail, so there are fairly cheap PSUs that will handle the card. If you can return the PSU, do so and get one with the recommended specs. Surprisingly, the OCZ 520w Powerstream only has 18A on both 12v rails.

 

[orion23]

Double check those numbers.

I'm almost sure you meant 30A on the +3.3V
All PSU's I've seen only have a maximum of 18-20A on the 12V1 12V2 12V3 and 12V4 rails.


Take a look at this PC Power & Cooling 1000W PSU
Check the power output ratings!

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817703003

 

[Bateluer]

Originally posted by: orion23
Double check those numbers.

I'm almost sure you meant 30A on the +3.3V
All PSU's I've seen only have a maximum of 18-20A on the 12V1 12V2 12V3 and 12V4 rails.

No, I read it correctly. It says 450W and 30A on the 12V rail is recommended for single Radeon X1900 series product. Radeon X1900 Crossfire configurations, a 550W with 38A on the 12V rail.

 

[Tig Ol Bitties]

Edit: nevermind, taught myself something

 

[Bateluer]

For the record, I don't plan on doing much, if any OCing. Historically, I've had bad luck with it.

 

[Munky]

I'm also using a x1900xt, a OC opty165, dual hard drives, and a OCZ 420W PSU with 30A on the 12V rail. 30A should be enough for any single card rig, even an OC'd one, but with dual rails it gets more complicated. If you can figure out how to get the video card on a separate rail from the cpu, then it should work fine. Otherwise, I'd recommend getting a beefy single-rail PSU.

 

[Bateluer]

After looking in detail at several X1900XT reviews and the PSUs used in their test beds, I'm thinking my Fortron 450W will be fine. The other reviews all used twin 12V rail PSUs, with Amps ranging from 17A to 22A. Granted, they didn't have the number of HDDs that I have, but an HDD doesn't consume a ton of power.

If I have issues, I'll get a new PSU, but not before.

 

[Bateluer]

Just an update. The X1900XT appears to be fine with the Fortron 450W PSU, which has dual 18A 12V rails. The temps are about 60C idle and about 75C after about an hour of Oblivion/EQ2.

ATITool told me my card wasn't support, and I didn't see an option to set the fan speed to 100% anywhere either.

Lastly, CCC, while not a bad control panel, does take a freakishly long time to load.

 

[akshayt]

i am upgrading to antec sp500 for my 1900xtx and am not ocing anything right now, only 2 hdd.
Better go for 550/600 or >=500

 

[ElFenix]

i've got 3 harddrives, an x1900xt, and an overclocked opteron 165 at 2.4 Ghz and a seasonic 430 powers it without getting warm. i bet the fortron is fine. fortron is one of those companies that isn't lying about the specs of the PS by testing at unrealistically low temps (which allows the PS to push more watts), etc.

 

[acegazda]

two 18amp rails DOES NOT mean 36 amps, jsut read JohnnyGuru's psu thread. If I'm not mistaken, that fsp you mentioned has 32 amps combined. I'm not yet certain how to determine the combned amps on the 12v rails, but you can email that manufacturer or the vendor and they will most likely tell you. Even if it is enough to run the video card, you have 4 hard drives and a dual core processor. If you want to even think about ocing it, I'd go with a 500-550 watt psu with decent ampage on the 12v rails.

 

[Bateluer]

If I buy a new PSU, it won't be for several months. Need to let my wallet stabilize again.

 

[akshayt]

with so much , you would be better off with a 600 watts or higher, how can you even think below 550