PSU - how do you know?

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brevity

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How do you guys figure out if you've got enough juice or not. I mean, if I get a new something another (let's say a hard core graphics card), how do I know if my PSU will have enough power. Currently I think I have a 300watt supply.

I hear people talking about 500 and above. Should I feel humbled and humiliated by this.

Just curious?

Thanks
 
I too am a bit stumped, but I learned my lesson the hardway. I had a 300W PSU and when I plugged in my old ATI Radeo 9800 Pro, it's when BANG! (Literally)

Now I recommend at least 500W for gaming rigs, just incase you need to get faster cards.
 
It doesn't just have to do with how many watts you need to look at amps per rail. Also stay clear of no name psu they cause trouble. Stick with the big brands.
 
Normally the actual requirements of a gaming rig is much less then everyone thinks it is. LINK
And as Stefan says, some 600W PSU's can't always deliver the stated 600W(or only at low temp) and some 500W PSU's will deliver more AMPs per 12V rail than the 600W.
So a well know PSU is a must.
 
As mentioned already, it's not just the watts that matter. The amps per rail (and in some instances, the NUMBER of rails) is important. The sustained / average number of watts supplied is also far more important than the theoretical max (PSUs are always quoted at their theoretical maximum.)

The calculator linked to above will give an indication of what your system will need. Once you've got the sizing (round it up to the nearest 50) done, then have a look here to identify decent power supplies and make sure you only look at good quality makes and models (I personally only buy PSUs on the Tier 1 or 2 list.) Expect to spend over R1K for a PSU; over R2K if you're "going big"; over R3K if you're koo-koo-bananas(TM - my kids).

Now look at the power requirements for your graphics card. You're specifically looking for AMPs per rail required. Make sure that the PSU you've selected provides the AMPs required by the graphics card.
 
Very instructive.

For the hardware non-specialist who only knew about RAM and processors, and then followed the forums for a while, I can see where the guy who sold me my computer cut costs to give me a good deal. I got an okay PSU, a crappy motherboard, and a slow hardrive.

Oh well.
 
masticore said:
The calculator linked to above will give an indication of what your system will need. Once you've got the sizing (round it up to the nearest 50) done, then have a look here to identify decent power supplies and make sure you only look at good quality makes and models (I personally only buy PSUs on the Tier 1 or 2 list.) Expect to spend over R1K for a PSU; over R2K if you're "going big"; over R3K if you're koo-koo-bananas(TM - my kids).
Click to expand...

I funny how different sites and forums rate PSU's differently. Some Tier 4 PSU's are in other PSU forums top lists and other way around.
 
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