PSU Advice

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AnthIste

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Hey people, I'm buying a new PC from Sybaritic and everything was pretty much good to go but their 'technician suggests that I opt for a stronger power supply', which resulted in them putting not one, but two new power supplies on my order and saying it's ready for payment, but thats another story.

I need to power the following:

AMD Phenom II X4 955 3.2GHz
Sapphire HD 4890 Vapor-X
1TB Seagate Barracuda
Asus M4A79XTD EVO AMD 790X Motherboard
Kingston DDR3-1600 4GB (2x2GB) HyperX CL9 Memory Module Kit
Vantec Stealth 120mm Case Fan

Originally I opted for the Corsair VX550W PSU, which I have heard should be sufficient, but they insist that I take either the VX650 (which I can't afford), or the Cooler Master eXtreme Power RP-600-PCAR. I have heard that the Corsair is a damn good PSU, so I'm actually worried that the Cooler Master will be weaker overall, despite having a higher wattage rating. The Corsair delivers ~41A on the +12V rail(s) and I'm not sure about the Cooler Master.

I'm also thinking of the future, because my friend has the same graphics card, so if I ever want to xfire I can buy his (afaik they are being discontinued). In that case, will a Cooler Master eXtreme Power RP-650-PCAR be enough? Keep in mind that the Corsair 550W is still more expensive than the Cooler Master 650W.

Any thoughts?
 
AnthIste said:
Hey people, I'm buying a new PC from Sybaritic and everything was pretty much good to go but their 'technician suggests that I opt for a stronger power supply', which resulted in them putting not one, but two new power supplies on my order and saying it's ready for payment, but thats another story.

I need to power the following:

AMD Phenom II X4 955 3.2GHz
Sapphire HD 4890 Vapor-X
1TB Seagate Barracuda
Asus M4A79XTD EVO AMD 790X Motherboard
Kingston DDR3-1600 4GB (2x2GB) HyperX CL9 Memory Module Kit
Vantec Stealth 120mm Case Fan

Originally I opted for the Corsair VX550W PSU, which I have heard should be sufficient, but they insist that I take either the VX650 (which I can't afford), or the Cooler Master eXtreme Power RP-600-PCAR. I have heard that the Corsair is a damn good PSU, so I'm actually worried that the Cooler Master will be weaker overall, despite having a higher wattage rating. The Corsair delivers ~41A on the +12V rail(s) and I'm not sure about the Cooler Master.

I'm also thinking of the future, because my friend has the same graphics card, so if I ever want to xfire I can buy his (afaik they are being discontinued). In that case, will a Cooler Master eXtreme Power RP-650-PCAR be enough? Keep in mind that the Corsair 550W is still more expensive than the Cooler Master 650W.

Any thoughts?
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I think the corsair will be ok.As long as your not planning on getting a second HD 4890.
 
That PSU shouldn't be a problem at all with that setup.

I would suggest just getting normal Kingston ValueRAM rather than the HyperX. Save some money there. Get 2 sticks of the DDR3 2GB and not the kit.

I'd stick with a single 12V rail as well. Quoting full amperage across multiple rails sometimes doesn't pan out very well.
 
The VX550 will be more than sufficient. Strange to hear this false recommendation coming from the likes of Sybaritic.

Corsairs are quite pricey though.

I am a huge fan of Vantec PSUs which have been in SA for around 6 months. I needed to upgrade my PSU, so I decided to get the Vantec Van-550A which retails at under R700.

"Vantec ioN2+A van-550A , EPS12V , 80PLUS certified for energy saving , 550w power supply ( 12v: 420w ) , ATX 12V V2.3 , 24pin ( 4 pin detachable ) + 4 or 8pin 12v AUX , dual 12V rail , 6 x SATA + 2x6 or 1x6+1x8pin PCI-E power connectors , 1x 135mm pwm fan with intelligent fan speed control ; with OCP, OVP , SCP - 3 years warranty"















 
+1 there.

Even the VAN-600AS is good. It's modular too. Just has a rattly fan, but that doesn't annoy anyone but me.
 
TheRift said:
+1 there.

Even the VAN-600AS is good. It's modular too. Just has a rattly fan, but that doesn't annoy anyone but me.
Click to expand...

I decided modular wasn't worth it for me as I use most of the cables.

By the way, the Van-550A is as silent as a tippy-toeing mouse.
 
So is the VAN-600AS, but the fan does have a ticking noise to it. I'm sure in most chassis this will be blocked.

Yes, no point in modular if using all the cabling. I'm not, so didn't need it.

I'm going to replace the fan with something more quiet anyway.
 
Wouldn't say so. I guess it is a well documented PWM fan issue though. Yet haven't heard it on other PWM PSU fans. I reckon it's made worse by the aluminium chassis I have.
 
That PSU shouldn't be a problem at all with that setup.
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The VX550 will be more than sufficient. Strange to hear this false recommendation coming from the likes of Sybaritic
Click to expand...

Wow, I also found it strange that they recommended an upgrade because I did some research beforehand, but I dont think they're trying to rip me off because the Cooler Master is actually cheaper.

Even the VAN-600AS is good. It's modular too. Just has a rattly fan, but that doesn't annoy anyone but me.
Click to expand...

Sybaritic doesnt seem to have it and I'm buying everything through them :(

If you just want a good PSU get the 650 Coolermaster but for future SLI and Crossfire you are going to have to get a name brand, don't cut cornors when it comes to PSU because a R300 saving can cost you a GFX card or something else
Click to expand...

So I take it Cooler Master isnt the greatest when it comes to PSU's :/. How about this baby? 'SLI certified'?

I would suggest just getting normal Kingston ValueRAM rather than the HyperX. Save some money there. Get 2 sticks of the DDR3 2GB and not the kit.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the advice, but it's quite hard swapping things around at this stage of the game. RAM is aparently very hard to get hold of too and I know that they have that kit in stock. And last time I 'swapped' the out-of-stock RAM that I had, I ended up with 2x the new kit on the order, wtf?

Besides that enermax, what would you rate is the best PSU under or equal the price of the Corsair VX550? (http://www.sybaritic.co.za/store/index.php?cPath=73_269)
 
AnthIste said:
So I take it Cooler Master isnt the greatest when it comes to PSU's :/.
Click to expand...

Cooler Master's Extreme Powers are their budget range of PSUs. They are fine for the most part. But they are not 80+ certified (80% efficienty, something along the lines of being able to constantly output 80% of their rated wattage, I think (i.e. 500watt PSU able to constantly output 400watt = 80+ certified, Extreme Powers output less than 80%)).

Besides that enermax, what would you rate is the best PSU under or equal the price of the Corsair VX550?
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http://www.sybaritic.co.za/store/product_info.php?products_id=20945 ;)
 
I've heard good things about the OCZ ModXStream PSUs.
Unfortunately I'm after an Enermax PSU at some point, so you've gone and shortened the list too soon. :D
 
http://www.sybaritic.co.za/store/pro...ducts_id=20945 ;)
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:) guess I'm taking that one then. It would've been great if it was listed as being in stock though, im tired of waiting for them to check stuff. And I've already sent them an email saying to remove the VX650 and keep the cooler master 600W (before checking here), and now they're gonna get yet another one saying scrap that, get this one :/ I hope they dont mess it up...

Will the Vantec 600W be able to handle 2 4890's in xfire?

EDIT: I know the GTX 275 needs 2 6-pin connectors, not sure about the 4890 though, can anyone confirm this (im capped)? If I want to xfire I'd rather not use adapters...
 
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AnthIste said:
:) guess I'm taking that one then. It would've been great if it was listed as being in stock though, im tired of waiting for them to check stuff. And I've already sent them an email saying to remove the VX650 and keep the cooler master 600W (before checking here), and now they're gonna get yet another one saying scrap that, get this one :/ I hope they dont mess it up...

Will the Vantec 600W be able to handle 2 4890's in xfire?

EDIT: I know the GTX 275 needs 2 6-pin connectors, not sure about the 4890 though, can anyone confirm this (im capped)? If I want to xfire I'd rather not use adapters...
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The Vantecs are usually in stock. 30+ of the Van-550A at their supplier's Cape Town branch on Friday when I got mine. :D

For 4890 Crossfire without adapters I'd look at the Corsair HX650W with 4 x 8-pin (2 x 6+2).

Some 4890s have 2 x 8-pin, some have 1 x 8-pin and 1 x 6-pin I think.
 
For 4890 Crossfire without adapters I'd look at the Corsair HX650W with 4 x 8-pin (2 x 6+2)
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Meh. I'm worried about spending so much. But then again, I DO have the money, it just means having a bit less to put in a savings account for later. It might be better to just invest now instead of trying to sell off the weaker PSU when I do decide to xfire, just a bit of headroom you know?

I read somewhere that someone powered their 4890 on a Corsair 450W/460W, so are you SURE the VX550 won't be good enough for them?

And how risky is it to use an adapter to power a card? I'd rather not break anything.
 
AnthIste said:
Meh. I'm worried about spending so much. But then again, I DO have the money, it just means having a bit less to put in a savings account for later. It might be better to just invest now instead of trying to sell off the weaker PSU when I do decide to xfire, just a bit of headroom you know?
Click to expand...

Bear in mind a single card option, to the value the two Crossfire'd cards, will perform better and cost less.

I read somewhere that someone powered their 4890 on a Corsair 450W/460W, so are you SURE the VX550 won't be good enough for them?
Click to expand...

I wouldn't know, however I know that you would have to use adapters.

And how risky is it to use an adapter to power a card? I'd rather not break anything.
Click to expand...

It's usually fine when you dedicate an entire cable - one of the PSU's cables with 2 or more Molex/4-pin connectors - to the card without using that cable to power other devices.
 
Bear in mind a single card option, to the value the two of the Crossfire'd cards, will perform better.
Click to expand...
I really wish I had some cap so I can check some benchmarks of a 2x 4890 setup compared to single cards at the same price-range. The reason I'd rather xfire is because I'm not sure how easy it is to sell second hand parts at a decent price. You must also factor in the % lost when seling a card second hand I guess. On the other hand, should the VX550 be enough to power about any single card with similar performance to xfire 4890's? I'd rather not overkill on the PSU and never use the power I have...

It's usually fine when you dedicate an entire cable - one of the PSU's cables with 2 or more Molex/4-pin connectors - to the card without using that cable to power other devices.
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That should be fine, its not as if I'm running 10 HDD's and 6 fans, should be plenty of cable to spare.
 
Sorry for double post, but the Corsair TX650 delivers 52A on the +12V rail which is enough to power a GTX 295 ! So I might as well just pay up and get the HX650W with 4 x 8-pin (2 x 6+2) because its R100 more and has all the connectors and power I'l EVER need in my price range.
 
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