vid card upgrade question

[xiaobao12]

hello all,

will i be able to upgrade to the x800xt with my stock power supply (250W - from the owner's manual). is it completely necessary to switch to a higher wattage?

if so, i have a brand new superflower 550W - does anybody have any bad experiences they would like to share about this particular PSU or will i be okay?

thanks.

 

[Powermoloch]

Well....it is good to know that you got a new psu. Just to make sure that it is a top quality one, check the volt rail readings , especially the 12V+ line, make sure it gives at least 18 amps or more. Anything below is crappy. (it's on the side of the power supply)

 

[Maximilian]

Well that PSU should be able to handle the card but yea as power said, check its quality. Ive heard some bad things about superflower PSU's but most of those were about a strange clicking noise it makes and not about its stability or anythin.

 

[ixelion]

especially the 12V+ line, make sure it gives at least 18 amps or more. Anything below is crappy. (it's on the side of the power supply)

Agreed, but also make sure it's namebrand as there are generic PSUs with 18a on the +12v

Also remember the higher the wattage the higher the +12v amp should be.

I have the Antec Truepower however it is a cable management nightmare, the PSU is good but there are way to many cables.

 

[xiaobao12]

hey power,

i checked it out and it says 22amps for the 12V+ line. will that be just sufficient or more than sufficient?

 

[ixelion]

I would say that is more than sufficiant what brand is it?

 

[xiaobao12]

thanks all for your input.

superflower, made in taiwan...

 

[munchow2]

To ans your 1st question: yes you do need a good PSU with a higher power rating for you to run a high end (usually gaming) computer with stability.
22A is fine if that is what it says on the +12V rail. However, I've heard that some superflower PSUs tend to be quite noisy. My friend has one and it annoyed the heck out of me the last time I went over to his house. He has one with a 140mm fan.