What Power Supply for my new rig?

[spitz10]

Thanks for your input Jedi. Seeing as though I dont really know much about PSUs and how everyone seems to be conflicting, Im not sure who to really trust here. I was made aware of the Enhance 600W model that apparently is the exact same model as the Silverstone ST60F 600W, which looks like it has really good specs. Seeing as though I can get that for right around $100 bucks, I think I am leaning towards that over the the ENERMAX EG565P-VE FMA 535W ($80) and the OCZ ModStream 520W ($80) (someone said this was a piece of crap, but it got a great review:

http://www.slcentral.com/ocz-modstream-520w-psu/page4.php

Anyways, if anyone has anymore input, I will definitely consider it before making my purchase. Thanks

 

[JEDIYoda]

Originally posted by: spitz10
Thanks for your input Jedi. Seeing as though I dont really know much about PSUs and how everyone seems to be conflicting, Im not sure who to really trust here. I was made aware of the Enhance 600W model that apparently is the exact same model as the Silverstone ST60F 600W, which looks like it has really good specs. Seeing as though I can get that for right around $100 bucks, I think I am leaning towards that over the the ENERMAX EG565P-VE FMA 535W ($80) and the OCZ ModStream 520W ($80) (someone said this was a piece of crap, but it got a great review:

http://www.slcentral.com/ocz-modstream-520w-psu/page4.php

Anyways, if anyone has anymore input, I will definitely consider it before making my purchase. Thanks

yes and thats my whole point~!!
Everybody has there favorite PSU for whatever reason!
They also have there favorite reasons for owning the PSU that they own!!!
Many reasons to and including..

Well I like the green LED fan that is inside my PSU....
I like those knobs so that I can adjust the POTS on my PSU...
even though a good PSU should never need the rails adjusted...

I like the price the cheaper the better

I would never pay $150 for what a PSU...rofl
yet these are the same people who spend $1,000 on a CPU...lol

Eww thats PSU uses TEAPO Caps....
Yet these same people cannot explain how PC Power & Cooling made there reputation on what they put inside there PSU`s...lol

My PSU comes with braided cables...lol

and the list goes on and on...

Dood just do your reading homework and you will be fine!!

Also understand that wheever somebody gives you links to read....
It doesn`t necessarily prove any point at all!!

almost 99 times out of 100 these people who post "informational" links to educate you are just trying to sway you to think like they do.....

Even if some of there arguments are bogus and make no sense other than to them!!

Good Luck!!

 

[TrevorRC]

Jedi, the thing is that the Silverstone is availible for 100, instead of 150, and is pretty much wipes the floor with everything around that area.

Here is a question for you Spitz--do looks matter?

Do you EVER plan on upgrading to Crossfire/SLi?

If not, consider this unit:

http://www.gogofan.com/gogofanphp/product_info.php?products_id=151

Right around your budget mark, good, STABLE rails, relatively quiet.... but it'll do what you need done, and better than a lot of the listed units. It's a good step down from the other unit I was telling you about.

Review here:
http://www.jonnyguru.com/PSU/NexthermPSU460/

Please, ignore Yoda until he learns to type in complete phrases.

--Trevor

 

[GalvanizedYankee]

spitz10 I will not post in this thread again.

I really don't believe I spew out garbage, as posted in this thread. The member that said that searches my posts late at night(PUI I think) and attacks me often. He is an ignorant twit and over at badcaps.net I have his posts blocked so I don't have to step over the dung he posts.

EDIT: I blocked PMs from the ignorant asshat here 8 months ago.


...Galvanized

 

[Howard]

Teapo caps! Teapo caps!

 

[spitz10]

Trevor - did u get my PM? Well, Id say care essentially ZERO about bling, and I doubt that I will ever really go to SLI, so this seems like it could be the one for me. But as far as if I did ever want to go SLI, would the reason I wouldnt be able to be because of the power factor, or the lack of second connector? Hopefully they will hurry up and stock that Enhance one so I can jsut get that, but if I run out of time, I might just have to pull the trigger on that masscool.

Thanks for your help everyone.

 

[aigomorla]

Originally posted by: spitz10
Thanks for your help Galvanized and Operandi, and to others, keep posting your suggestions.

Although I said my Max was $120, as I stated before, I really would like to keep this as cheap as possible. I know aigomorla said he finds it crazy how people will spend so much on everything else but dont want to spend enough for the PSU, but, like people have mentioned, Im trying to avoid overkill as much as possible, and having headroom for future upgrades is not one of my biggest concerns at the moment. I just want something that will do a very good job at running a 3500+, X1800XT, 2 gb ram, 3 hard drives, and 2 dvd-roms. If running that very stable and quiet is going to cost me over $100 then I am fine with that, but if a PSU around $80 will be more than enough. Then that would definitely be my choice.

hi again op, lemme tell you a little story about my system. When my baby is idling and doing nothing but school work, idling, at my settings *see sig below* she sips power at a nice 160-170W. So from this i can tell, if your just going to do school work and go on the internet, a 300W PSU would be enough. When i make her do laps around P95, and SP2004 she begins to gulp power at 220~230W. All be it, its still less then 300W, but your thinking hey thats not bad, i'll go with a 350W and end it there.

Now let me tell you what happens when i play oblivion or BF. >:]
in town and villages, she will peak at 415W yes. 415W and im suposed to have LESS power hungry video cards then the 7800GTX remind you. When i go outside, POOF the power peaks at 465-475W. In BF i'll notice the power requirements to my videocard isnt as high as oblivion but its still over 400W.

So let me tell you this, i know you dont have SLI nor do you plan on getting SLI. But you might after you notice you have some extra cash you can burn on something. if my videocards are leeching more then 200W, please plan accordingly.

Everyone will tell you 500W is overkill, but i say NO. I kinda wish i bought the 600W seasonic unit, but my PSU will have to hold due unless i decide to do something stupid like upgrade to x-fire *which i highly doubt because at 710 my 7900's are probably faster then a X1900XTX*. So i tell you again OP, the reason why i say devote a decient budget for a PSU is because when you starve your system of power in games, it will not act very nice and will make your build a nightmare.

The lowest i would ever decide to go is 500W, the cheapest company will be fortron. Seasonic would be my high mid point, i dont think id ever get PCNC because there price is just outragous. That liberty from enermax i hear is a good unit, i wouldnt mind buying that.

AND listen to galvenized, he knows a lot of technical stuff, ive learned a lot when i was a newbie on this forum from his input. Yoda also has many valid points but i feel sometimes he tries to force his opinions on you. Find where they both stand a common ground and decide from that. If worse comes to worse, find mark or duvie as they tend to comment by experience of product rather then pure data. I dont know how the hell mark goes though 3284903284903284320 systems in 1 yr :\

I find experience to be much stronger then paper data.

 

[spitz10]

Aigo, thanks for the post. All I am really trying to do here is gather as much info as possible and you have been quite helpful to me. I am becmoing ok with forking over about 100 for a PSU, and honestly, at this point, i just want the best/most powerful with the best value, and if that is at 100 bucks (which it sounds like it probably is) then thats what im going to do. The problem is, the one that i want (Enhance 600W) is out of stock now, and i dont have much time to wait, so i might just settle for:

http://www.jonnyguru.com/PSU/NexthermPSU460/

which only costs 65 bucks.

 

[aigomorla]

Originally posted by: spitz10
Aigo, thanks for the post. All I am really trying to do here is gather as much info as possible and you have been quite helpful to me. I am becmoing ok with forking over about 100 for a PSU, and honestly, at this point, i just want the best/most powerful with the best value, and if that is at 100 bucks (which it sounds like it probably is) then thats what im going to do. The problem is, the one that i want (Enhance 600W) is out of stock now, and i dont have much time to wait, so i might just settle for:

http://www.jonnyguru.com/PSU/NexthermPSU460/

which only costs 65 bucks.

Your very much welcomed! When i first came to the forums as well, a lot of people assisted me as well. I just want to return the favor to the many people that helped me back when i was a noobie.

did you try

directron.com <--- one of my favorates

monarchcomputers.com <--- only use if buying single parts, no mobo combos as they will delay your shipping for bogus testing reasons when all they do is put parts together and pwr up. Not real testing if i do say so myself :\

newegg.com <-- Da egg never fails!

Also look at my retail store list for mod supplies and watercooling parts. Most of the vendors will carry PSUs also.

Store List

Just click down the list and search. Remember some stores will be cheaper then others, but i made quite a good list for stores. :]

 

[smthmlk]

Someone posed the question, "If you had $120 to buy a PSU right now, what would it be?" or something to that effect. Assuming the system I'm buying it for is the one in the original post, I would probably toss a coin to choose between these two:

-- Fortron AX500 (SPCR AX500-A review, possibly old model)
-- Seasonic S12-500 (ZZF $120-$20mib) (SPCR S12500,600 review)

Both are top-shelf brands.

But really, the Silverstone and the Enermaxes mentioned will be fine as well for your setup. Good luck!

 

[Operandi]

aigomorla how are you getting those numbers?, they seem unrealistically high.

SPCR did a great test with 6 PCs with varying degrees of power requirements. The biggest power draw they had was 3.8 GHZ P4 / 6800GT system; under full load the most it drew was 230 watts.

Granted your system is different hardware but the 6800GT is probably pretty close to the 7900GT; you have 2 so figure in a extra 80 watts (very liberal estimate). Your CPU is less power hungry then the 3.8GHZ P4 they used so you would be lower here.

JEDIYoda, there isn't anything wrong with buying a rebadged PSU as long as you know where it comes from and has something to offer that the OEM doesn?t. Zalman for example make a great quieter version of a high-end Forton-Source. More often not however it's a piece of crap PSU being pushed by marketing company looking for quick money.

Since they don't actually make anything marketing companies require relatively little money and the risk is small. So if they turn out a crappy product for 6 months to a year who cares as long as they can make money doing it, they just fold up and do again under a different name.

Building your own PSU on the other hand is huge investment in engineering and manufacturing. You don?t do it overnight and whatever you build that?s your reputation and you have to stand by it. Example, Young Year make junk, and Forton-Source make great units that?s not likely to change anytime soon.

As far as PCP&C cooling goes I don't consider them rebadged. They have their own engineers and the designs are different enough to set them apart from anything else out there. And I think their reputation speaks for itself as far as quality is concerned.

 

[TrevorRC]

Originally posted by: GalvanizedYankee
spitz10 I will not post in this thread again.

I really don't believe I spew out garbage, as posted in this thread. The member that said that searches my posts late at night(PUI I think) and attacks me often. He is an ignorant twit and over at badcaps.net I have his posts blocked so I don't have to step over the dung he posts.

EDIT: I blocked PMs from the ignorant asshat here 8 months ago.


...Galvanized

Spitz, I'd like to point out Galvanized... he is one of the most knowledgeable and intelligent members of this board, especially in areas relating to power supplies. Vastly more knowledgeable then I am, in any case.

Yoda, on the other hand... ugh. Avoid him. That's about all I can say with that...

The reason it can't handle SLi/Crossfire is simply because there isn't enough amperage availible. You'd need to upgrade.

The Sytrin Nextherm won't serve you wrong though, it's a very good PSU.
--Trevor

 

[JEDIYoda]

Originally posted by: TrevorRC

Originally posted by: GalvanizedYankee
spitz10 I will not post in this thread again.

I really don't believe I spew out garbage, as posted in this thread. The member that said that searches my posts late at night(PUI I think) and attacks me often. He is an ignorant twit and over at badcaps.net I have his posts blocked so I don't have to step over the dung he posts.

EDIT: I blocked PMs from the ignorant asshat here 8 months ago.


...Galvanized

Spitz, I'd like to point out Galvanized... he is one of the most knowledgeable and intelligent members of this board, especially in areas relating to power supplies. Vastly more knowledgeable then I am, in any case.

Yoda, on the other hand... ugh. Avoid him. That's about all I can say with that...

The reason it can't handle SLi/Crossfire is simply because there isn't enough amperage availible. You'd need to upgrade.

The Sytrin Nextherm won't serve you wrong though, it's a very good PSU.
--Trevor

As usual Trevor has nothing of value to ad to the thread other than Galvanized Rocks!!

Which is true to some point!!

Where we disagree when it concerns PSU`s has to do with what appears to be a frothing dislike of anything that to galvanized would appear to be rebadged or would appear to use what some would call bad caps. While others would say they have had no issue with such and such a Cap!!

Have a nice day Trevor!!

 

[spitz10]

Thanks for all the help ev1. Ive now got it down to 5 choices and I am going to stick to them. I dont care about bling at all, i want quiet, but definitely not over performance, and, if I ever went SLI, it probably wouldnt be for at least another year and a half or two years, so take that into account. Here are my final choices, including any tax and shipping. Let me know what you think.

1. Enhance ENS-0560G $115

2. Seasonic S12-500W $100

3. Enermax Liberty 500W $109

4. Enermax EG565P-VE FMA 535W $78

5. Masscool 460W PS-PSU460 $76

Here is my rig again, incase anyone is wondering:

Asus A8R-MVP
AMD 3500+ venice
MSI X1800XT
2 gb Corsair XMS
1 36 gb raptor
2 extra hard drives
2 optical dvd drives

Thanks to Trevor, Galvanized, and all the others who have helped me out. Im anxious to see what everyones final choice would be.

 

[smthmlk]

Would go with the seasonic in that list without a doubt. Did you read the review of it at spcr that I linked to?

 

[TrevorRC]

Because you won't ever go SLi, I'd go with the Sytrin Nextherm 460.. [That site has it labeled incorrectly, though it is the same PSU ]

Made by Seventeam, good, reliable stuff, and the cheapest one on that list

It'll serve you well.

Yoda, tell me... which would you rather have?
A PCP&C 510 PSU, or a Silverstone Strider? Just curious.
--Trevor

 

[Howard]

Originally posted by: TrevorRC
Because you won't ever go SLi, I'd go with the Sytrin Nextherm 460.. [That site has it labeled incorrectly, though it is the same PSU ]

Made by Seventeam, good, reliable stuff, and the cheapest one on that list

It'll serve you well.

Yoda, tell me... which would you rather have?
A PCP&C 510 PSU, or a Silverstone Strider? Just curious.
--Trevor

I'd recommend the AX450-PN but it seems like it's not in the running.

 

[TrevorRC]

Originally posted by: Howard

I'd recommend the AX450-PN but it seems like it's not in the running.

Don't have any of reviews of the PSU he was talking about, but Fortron is usually a very good budget brand.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817104954

For 50 dollars, it'll do what you need. The rails won't be as 100% solid stable as the Sytrin, but for your use, it'll suffice. [Let's not forget it's almost identically rated compared to the Sytrin model ]

And, it's Newegg.

Vote changed

--Trevor

 

[aigomorla]

Originally posted by: Operandi
aigomorla how are you getting those numbers?, they seem unrealistically high.

SPCR did a great test with 6 PCs with varying degrees of power requirements. The biggest power draw they had was 3.8 GHZ P4 / 6800GT system; under full load the most it drew was 230 watts.

Granted your system is different hardware but the 6800GT is probably pretty close to the 7900GT; you have 2 so figure in a extra 80 watts (very liberal estimate). Your CPU is less power hungry then the 3.8GHZ P4 they used so you would be lower here.

JEDIYoda, there isn't anything wrong with buying a rebadged PSU as long as you know where it comes from and has something to offer that the OEM doesn?t. Zalman for example make a great quieter version of a high-end Forton-Source. More often not however it's a piece of crap PSU being pushed by marketing company looking for quick money.

Since they don't actually make anything marketing companies require relatively little money and the risk is small. So if they turn out a crappy product for 6 months to a year who cares as long as they can make money doing it, they just fold up and do again under a different name.

Building your own PSU on the other hand is huge investment in engineering and manufacturing. You don?t do it overnight and whatever you build that?s your reputation and you have to stand by it. Example, Young Year make junk, and Forton-Source make great units that?s not likely to change anytime soon.

As far as PCP&C cooling goes I don't consider them rebadged. They have their own engineers and the designs are different enough to set them apart from anything else out there. And I think their reputation speaks for itself as far as quality is concerned.

Used two methods to test out my wattage. 1. my PSU is the thermaltake TWV. Yeah yeah i know TT product sucks, but its been doing me a nice job. Also i tested to see if the TWV was accurate or not by using a wattage meter that u connect directly to the outlet and it the meter was pretty much on the dot with the TWV. Maybe off by 2-3 watts at the most.

And no my wattage is realistic concidreing the fact that countless amounts of people have had problems with 7800GTX in SLI and not being able to provide enough power to them. I also have 6 Hard drives and two opticals plus maybe aroudn 5 fans and a 1D5 pump.

 

[JEDIYoda]

Originally posted by: Operandi

Originally posted by: spitz10
ok, im about to pull the trigger on all my stuff. Lets play a little game. I have an absolute MAX of $120 to spend on a power supply (just for example, I can get the OCZ powerstream 520W for 105). Whoever replies to this, let me know what PSU you would get if you had 120 bucks.

Thanks for everything

Like Galvanized I think it's best to get you PSU from the manufacture, not marketing companies like OCZ or Enermax. Most of the time such companies are just in it to make a quick buck, there are exemptions of course (SilverStone, Zalman).
As to your question, with that hardware you have a pretty moderate power draw. A good 350-400 watt PSU would run that great with plenty of headroom. Since it sounds like you are willing to spend some cash to get a good unit I would recomend this Seasonic S12.

And PSU manufacturer`s are not in the buisness to make a quick buck? rofl...wake up...smell the roses.....too funny!!

 

[JEDIYoda]

Originally posted by: GalvanizedYankee
spitz10 I will not post in this thread again.

I really don't believe I spew out garbage, as posted in this thread. The member that said that searches my posts late at night(PUI I think) and attacks me often. He is an ignorant twit and over at badcaps.net I have his posts blocked so I don't have to step over the dung he posts.

EDIT: I blocked PMs from the ignorant asshat here 8 months ago.


...Galvanized

Galvanized calls most people ignorant twists who ask questions that are contrary to what he believes.

I ask logical questions at badcaps.com and nobody can tell me why just becuase some companies have issues with CAPs there are other companies that don`t have issues with those very same CAPs.

if being a twit because I don`t follow the party line and drool when other people mention Zippy or other PSU`s so be it!!

Since nobody can satisfactorily answer my main question at badcaps.com about TEAPO caps and my beloved PC Power & Cooling...then I suppose I could call those people twits also???

yet quite a few of those people who GY looks up to or considers not to be twits have PM`d me telling me I have made quite a few good points.
I would call a twit somebody who actually believes the following to be true 100% of the time --

I believe it's best to get you PSU from the manufacture, not marketing companies that pay other companies to make there PSU` for them like-- OCZ or Enermax. Most of the time such companies are just in it to make a quick buck, come to think of it most companies are in buisness to make a quick buck!!
Of course there are exemptions of c (SilverStone, Zalman and other such companies).

 

[JEDIYoda]

Originally posted by: GalvanizedYankee
spitz10 I will not post in this thread again.

I really don't believe I spew out garbage, as posted in this thread. The member that said that searches my posts late at night(PUI I think) and attacks me often. He is an ignorant twit and over at badcaps.net I have his posts blocked so I don't have to step over the dung he posts.

EDIT: I blocked PMs from the ignorant asshat here 8 months ago.


...Galvanized

Actually you don`t spew out garbage.....some of your stances you take concerning OEM verses rebadged PSU`s as well as different brands of CAP`s don`t make any sense at all!!

Bottom line is if a person properly does there homework no matter what PSU they pick as long as they are happy thats what counts!!

Cost, bling factor even brand makes no difference to the person who is using the PSU as long as they are happy!!

Most people who do there homework and still order bling bling bling that was there decision and as long as they are happy thats what counts!!

Have fun!! Just understand a few of us see through the rocket science aspect of owning a PSU!!

 

[JEDIYoda]

Originally posted by: TrevorRC
Because you won't ever go SLi, I'd go with the Sytrin Nextherm 460.. [That site has it labeled incorrectly, though it is the same PSU ]

Made by Seventeam, good, reliable stuff, and the cheapest one on that list

It'll serve you well.

Yoda, tell me... which would you rather have?
A PCP&C 510 PSU, or a Silverstone Strider? Just curious.
--Trevor

Trevor I buy nothing but PC Power & Cooling PSU`s.
Its not a matter of choice...
Its a matter of quality,reliability and just plain top notch power. No bling bling!!

As far as Modular PSU`s go if I ever wanted a modular PSU I would pay performance -pcs to do a modular conversion---http://www.performance-pcs.com/catalog/...zenid=556a3fda2deaca817750d6d4a23a4f10

http://www.performance-pcs.com/catalog/...roduct_info&cPath=166&products_id=1735 -- scroll down!!

 

[aigomorla]

Originally posted by: JEDIYoda

Originally posted by: TrevorRC
Because you won't ever go SLi, I'd go with the Sytrin Nextherm 460.. [That site has it labeled incorrectly, though it is the same PSU ]

Made by Seventeam, good, reliable stuff, and the cheapest one on that list

It'll serve you well.

Yoda, tell me... which would you rather have?
A PCP&C 510 PSU, or a Silverstone Strider? Just curious.
--Trevor

Trevor I buy nothing but PC Power & Cooling PSU`s.
Its not a matter of choice...
Its a matter of quality,reliability and just plain top notch power. No bling bling!!

As far as Modular PSU`s go if I ever wanted a modular PSU I would pay performance -pcs to do a modular conversion---http://www.performance-pcs.com/catalog/...zenid=556a3fda2deaca817750d6d4a23a4f10

http://www.performance-pcs.com/catalog/...roduct_info&cPath=166&products_id=1735 -- scroll down!!

GAH PCNP makes really nice PSU's but they are just WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY too expensive. Cost and budget wise i think a seasonic is a better choice. :\

 

[Howard]

Originally posted by: JEDIYoda

Originally posted by: Operandi

Originally posted by: spitz10
ok, im about to pull the trigger on all my stuff. Lets play a little game. I have an absolute MAX of $120 to spend on a power supply (just for example, I can get the OCZ powerstream 520W for 105). Whoever replies to this, let me know what PSU you would get if you had 120 bucks.

Thanks for everything

Like Galvanized I think it's best to get you PSU from the manufacture, not marketing companies like OCZ or Enermax. Most of the time such companies are just in it to make a quick buck, there are exemptions of course (SilverStone, Zalman).
As to your question, with that hardware you have a pretty moderate power draw. A good 350-400 watt PSU would run that great with plenty of headroom. Since it sounds like you are willing to spend some cash to get a good unit I would recomend this Seasonic S12.

And PSU manufacturer`s are not in the buisness to make a quick buck? rofl...wake up...smell the roses.....too funny!!

Tell me how long FSP has been in business.