Worth the extra $34?

[Sniper82]

K decided to go with the modstream but should I get the 450watt or 520watt version. There is about $34 price difference and the 520watt has 2 extra amps on the 12v rail.

Will be running:
3000+ o/ced
NF4 board of some kind
6600GT(will be getting 6800 Ultra in the future)
2 CCFL's
2 80gb 7200
1gb PC3200
DVD burn
DVD rom
Thermaltake fan controller with temp display

Will the 450watt(26amps on the 12v) be plenty for the above system even when I upgrade to a 6800Ultra in the future? Or maybe a new CPU?

 

[Blazer]

single rail only,whatever you read doesnt concern me as i am very happy with my single rail atx 2.0 spec enermax,but never a dual rail.

never a dual rail

opps sorry mine is a atx 1.2

 

[loafbred]

From the little I've read about this, one of the seemingly more important benefits of dual rail is reduced signal noise on each rail.

 

[Blazer]

From the little I've read about this, one of the seemingly more important benefits of dual rail is reduced signal noise on each rail.

how would that be determined [line noise i mean],i havent ran across anyone having that prob that could measured of found for sure,i think this is a sales line more than anything else,just to promote sales

 

[Sniper82]

So does it really matter which you go with even with newer motherboards?

 

[Algere]

I heard PSU's that have 24pin single rail are not true 2.0 ATX PSU's where dual rail 24pins are. Whats this mean exactly?

Source (pg. 7)

"1.2.1. Increased +12 VDC output capability

System components that use 12V are continuing to increase in power. In cases where
expected current requirements is greater than 18A a second 12 V rail should be made
available. ATX12V power supplies should be designed to accommodate these increased
+12 VDC currents."

When running the OCZ with a 24pin mobo(NF4) could I run into problems where its single rail 24 pin

From what I've heard, 2*12V provides stable/clean power. From that I assume less prone to power failure (stable) and/or the like & increased hardware life (clean).

Would the dual rails on the Antec be more future proof over the single rails on the Modstream? Does it really matter?

The Antec doesn't share amps between it's 2*12V lines which is a disadvantage against other 2*12V PSUs that can & IMO there's too many components connected to one of the 12V lines on the Antec then I'd like. So in that sense, the Antec seems a bit outdated in that regard. Does 2*12V lines matter? IIRC, originally the 2*12V design is/was intended to isolate the CPU (surge/fluctuations) from the other components of a system. IDK how bad or likely a CPU will experience such so if it's not needed why expose other components to the same surge/fluctuations (or vice versa?).

A shot in the dark but maybe the higher the CPU frequency & power requirements - seems we're headed that way, the more likely the CPU will experience what was said above & if so probably on a more frequent basis. Perhaps in that case, the Antec would prove more futureproof?

 

[loafbred]

Originally posted by: blazer

From the little I've read about this, one of the seemingly more important benefits of dual rail is reduced signal noise on each rail.

how would that be determined [line noise i mean],i havent ran across anyone having that prob that could measured of found for sure,i think this is a sales line more than anything else,just to promote sales

I don't know. Maybe it became a problem for chipsets, cpu's or RAM running faster than those currently available.

 

[Sniper82]

So which would be best to go with?

 

[Quasmo]

Dual rails means simply that one rail (12V) runs the motherboard and the other rail runs all your peripherials. It just creates cleaner power to the motherboard. Like Gigabytes thing, just at the power supply level. It's almost like a dual power supply in one box.

 

[Sniper82]

Originally posted by: Quasmo
Dual rails means simply that one rail (12V) runs the motherboard and the other rail runs all your peripherials. It just creates cleaner power to the motherboard. Like Gigabytes thing, just at the power supply level. It's almost like a dual power supply in one box.

Does that make the Antec better or no?

 

[Algere]

Originally posted by: ^Sniper^
So which would be best to go with?

For future CPU's if my shot in the dark theory holds true, go with dual rail. If you're not intending on SLI, go with Antec. If you're planning for SLI, wait for Antec to release a more compatible dual rail PSU or look somewhere else.

 

[Algere]

Originally posted by: Quasmo
Dual rails means simply that one rail (12V) runs the motherboard and the other rail runs all your peripherials. It just creates cleaner power to the motherboard. Like Gigabytes thing, just at the power supply level. It's almost like a dual power supply in one box.

Not all (if any) dual rail PSUs have one rail entirely dedicated to the MB.

 

[Blazer]

personally if i were going to build another sys maybe with sli i would look at a namebrand {enermax / allied}with a single rail @ 36 or more amps on the 12dcv rail with a high input amps on 120/240 a/c line in,i feel that any line conditioning should be done before the PSU line in.

 

[Sniper82]

edit

 

[RussianSensation]

I'd go wtih OCZ 520 since it has 33A on the 12V rail and it has adjustable rails. This allows you to increase and adjust the voltage in case fluctuations do take place. Modstream series cannot do this. I bought an OCZ 420 myself and it's a very stable PSU. But I would not be uncomfortable getting Enermax 475 (ATX 2.0 version with dual rails) and Antec 550 (with adjustable rails) as they have proven themselves as well.

 

[Algere]

Originally posted by: RussianSensation
I'd go wtih OCZ 520 since it has 33A on the 12V rail and it has adjustable rails. This allows you to increase and adjust the voltage in case fluctuations do take place. Modstream series cannot do this. I bought an OCZ 420 myself and it's a very stable PSU. But I would not be uncomfortable getting Enermax 475 (ATX 2.0 version with dual rails) as they have proven themselves as well.

Just a note that it may be difficult to find the Enermax 475 (ATX12V 2.0). By the looks of it I believe Enermax is phasing them out in favor of the 485W model w/ shared amps. As the former shares the same traits as the Neopower - fixed amps, according to my recollection.

 

[Algere]

What are CCFL's?