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X-460 and 8800 GT ???

N

nizwiz

Junior Member
Hello there, new member here. Well right to my problem:
I've had the following system for quite a while now:
- MB: GA-Q35M-S2 microATX
- E8400 (stock fan)
- 8800 GT from Gigabyte (GV-NX88T512HP; oc'ed by default) with an Accelero S1 Rev2 + Turbo module slapped on
- 1x SATA HDD, DVD, sound card, 2 case fans (80mm+60mm), nothing fancy
- some noname 400W PSU

I think the power required by this system is comfortably below 400W, and the PSU actually never caused me any troubles apart from noise.
To get rid of the noise (and have better efficiency as a bonus), I decided to replace the PSU with a Seasonic X-460. But now, whenever I play a graphically demanding game, my system crashes with a black screen. This even happens when the video card is set to reference clocks.

Any ideas what could be the issue? Is it likely I got a defective PSU, or is the X-460 simply not powerful enough to sustain such a system (in which case the extra PCIe plug + cable of the X-460 seems to be a marketing gimmick rather than a useful addition)?
 
Before tossing in the towel, Throw a case fan somewhere, it's possible the lack of a PSU fan has made other areas of your case prone to heat buildup.

Where is the open grid of the 460 facing?
 
460 should be plenty of power. you shouldn't need more than 350 watts MAX.
Is the video card plugged in? (I presume it has a separate power connector?)
The 2x2 ATX connector plugged in correctly?

edit: I looked the card up on nVidia...They recommend a 400 watt PSU, and mention 6 and 8 pin power connectors.
 
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Hey thanks for the replies.

Concillian said:
Before tossing in the towel, Throw a case fan somewhere, it's possible the lack of a PSU fan has made other areas of your case prone to heat buildup.

Where is the open grid of the 460 facing?
Click to expand...

It's on top of the case facing upwards. I'm leaving the chassis open, and there doesn't seem to be heat building up anywhere (CPU fan and the Accelero's fans blow the heat right out of the case sidewards, whereas the PSU is seperated from the rest of the case and open to the void from all sides but the bottom). I don't think heat's a problem.

BoomerD said:
460 should be plenty of power. you shouldn't need more than 350 watts MAX.
Is the video card plugged in? (I presume it has a separate power connector?)
The 2x2 ATX connector plugged in correctly?

edit: I looked the card up on nVidia...They recommend a 400 watt PSU, and mention 6 and 8 pin power connectors.
Click to expand...

Yup, PCIe 6 pin connected to the 8800 GT (mine doesn't have an 8 pin plug), 2x2 ATX connected to the motherboard. Everything's the same connectivity-wise as before, only my cheapo 400W PSU (it's an FSP400-60GLN, BTW) replaced with the X-460 (including assorted cables).
It doesn't make sense. All information that I could find on the web (including some power calculators I've used) would suggest the X-460 with its 38 A rating on the +12V rail should be good enough for a rig like mine and have ample headroom to boot. Could it be my particular video card model (it's a non-reference design) would require that much extra power / current to outrun the X-460? Hard to believe.

Anyway, I've returned the X-460. But I'm thinking of giving it one more shot - unless someone here would point out a reason why using a X-460 would be futile from the get go - I don't see any.
 
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Nvidia psu recommendation is fairly roomy, so it can include some no name 400W as well. Seasonic X460 should be plenty. Even for oc-ed 8800gt (my stock card could do those freqs without voltage change, I don't think a factory oced model would need more).

It's a bit of a pity you returned the psu already. It would have been good to test it in another system and in your system with a different vidcard. The problem might actually be the vidcard itself. 8800 series is known to break down in quite large numbers. Google for 8800 oven trick.

Or the heat might still be too much...80+60 fan is not much, 8800 gets hot too. But seems unlikely with open case. I'd still try with some external ventilation.
 
Your system looks really low power in terms of psu usage. As stated the most likely reason is heat or something similar causing issues. I assume the noname psu actually has a fast fan because it has to cool itself. Did you carefully check the temps on your system?
 
nizwiz said:
It's on top of the case facing upwards. I'm leaving the chassis open...
Click to expand...

Because the case is open, there's no air being channeled through the case, including the PSU. Passive heatsinks are almost useless when you completely remove airflow. Even with all the spectacular reviews, I would think that any fanless PSU would need SOME air exchange. My 2c since I haven't built with one. What case? Is there a top blowhole, or is the top of the PSU just opening up to case wall?
 
coffeejunkee said:
The problem might actually be the vidcard itself. 8800 series is known to break down in quite large numbers. Google for 8800 oven trick.

Or the heat might still be too much...80+60 fan is not much, 8800 gets hot too. But seems unlikely with open case. I'd still try with some external ventilation.
Click to expand...
It's definitely not the video card, the Accelero + fans do a pretty good job cooling it. And it works with the other PSU for hours without any problems.

zagood said:
Because the case is open, there's no air being channeled through the case, including the PSU. Passive heatsinks are almost useless when you completely remove airflow. Even with all the spectacular reviews, I would think that any fanless PSU would need SOME air exchange. My 2c since I haven't built with one. What case? Is there a top blowhole, or is the top of the PSU just opening up to case wall?
Click to expand...

As I've said, there's no heat building up inside the case. And the PSU is seperated from the rest of the system (think of it like putting the PSU on top of a closed case - heat can dissipate in 5 directions, but it receives no air flow).
The thing is, the crashes happen like immediately (< 2 secs) after the video card starts rendering (and the PSU does not shut down, mind you; there's a black screen and the system is unresponsive, but all fans + HDD keep running). Do you really think the X-460 could overheat in such a short time? If so, I guess nothing short of a fan dedicated for the PSU alone could remedy this problem, and that would defeat the very purpose of a fanless PSU.

Anyway, I have ordered another one to give it one more try. If I should encounter the same prob, I'm gonna slap a fan onto the X-460 and see if that helps (just out of curiousness; if it can't handle a single 8800 GT without an extra fan, I think I'll rather look for other options).
 
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Well, Seasonic says the psu should work fine, provided it gets at least some airflow.

JohnnyGuru tested the X400 both at room temp without any airflow and in a 40 degree hotbox with a little airflow, and it kept working fine no matter what.

So no, I don't think the X460 could overheat in such a short time. Unless you got a defective unit.

Better cooling on the 8800gt will work, but it will only prolong the inevitable. The issue is a manufacturing error (bad solder). If your card is affected it will die. But seems unlikely if it runs fine on the other psu.

So bad unit? Hope the new one will serve you better.
 
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