So I'm utterly broke and my PSU is dying

marc2003 · 2 Apr 2020 at 07:54

Need the cheapiest cheapo something to power

i5 4690k / z97 / 16GB ram
amd r9 380 4GB (2x6 pin)
2 x SSD, 2 x mech drives, 1 x internal blu-ray

Was hoping to spend 50 max, maybe 60 at a push.

Ironically enough my current PSU is still in warranty but I imagine getting that done would be a major ballache due to current events and even the postage is putting me off. I might just write it off.

Minibiker · 2 Apr 2020 at 08:15

Not much really stands out at £50... A little extra and you could get this seasonic unit, reliable and has been recommended a lot lately, also comes with 5 year warranty and has plenty of power for you machine

My basket at Overclockers UK:

1 x Seasonic S12III 550W 80 Plus Bronze Power Supply= £57.95

Total: £68.45 (includes shipping: £10.50)

marc2003 · 2 Apr 2020 at 09:28

Yep, I already figured I was getting nowt for 50. Thanks.

pastymuncher · 2 Apr 2020 at 12:21

I don't know why everybody is recommending the Seasonic S12III so much at the moment. It's a relatively new series and I can only find a single proper review which is not in English. It's not even built by Seasonic and is outsourced to RSY (Shenzhen Ruishengyuan Technology) instead. There are no Japanese caps, most of which are Teapo. It has no OCP (overcurrent protection) and no OTP (over temperature protection). Ripple on the 12v rail at 70mV is pretty poor as well. I would steer well away from these.

People see the Seasonic name and think it must be good just because it's Seasonic. That's not always the case and this unit in particular looks to be pretty poor. In the UK it's also expensive, almost double the price it is in the USA. I would have a look in the MM and see if you can pick up a 2-3 year old decent psu cheaply.

andy_mk3 · 2 Apr 2020 at 12:51

pastymuncher said:
I don't know why everybody is recommending the Seasonic S12III so much at the moment. It's a relatively new series and I can only find a single proper review which is not in English. It's not even built by Seasonic and is outsourced to RSY (Shenzhen Ruishengyuan Technology) instead. There are no Japanese caps, most of which are Teapo. It has no OCP (overcurrent protection) and no OTP (over temperature protection). Ripple on the 12v rail at 70mV is pretty poor as well. I would steer well away from these.

People see the Seasonic name and think it must be good just because it's Seasonic. That's not always the case and this unit in particular looks to be pretty poor. In the UK it's also expensive, almost double the price it is in the USA. I would have a look in the MM and see if you can pick up a 2-3 year old decent psu cheaply.

I'm quite shocked Seasonic would even put their name to such a thing, just to fill that area of the market.

marc2003 · 2 Apr 2020 at 13:11

If I increase the budget to 70, either of these worth a punt?

My basket at Overclockers UK:

1 x be quiet! Pure Power 11 500W 80 Plus Gold Power Supply= £64.99
1 x Seasonic Core Gold GC-500 500W 80+ Gold Power Supply= £69.95

Total: £146.04 (includes shipping: £11.10)

Deleted member 77746 · 2 Apr 2020 at 13:13

If you broke why not see if someone has one in the MM? Might get a good deal if you ask

alexakasloth · 2 Apr 2020 at 14:16

pastymuncher said:
I don't know why everybody is recommending the Seasonic S12III so much at the moment. It's a relatively new series and I can only find a single proper review which is not in English. It's not even built by Seasonic and is outsourced to RSY (Shenzhen Ruishengyuan Technology) instead. There are no Japanese caps, most of which are Teapo. It has no OCP (overcurrent protection) and no OTP (over temperature protection). Ripple on the 12v rail at 70mV is pretty poor as well. I would steer well away from these.

People see the Seasonic name and think it must be good just because it's Seasonic. That's not always the case and this unit in particular looks to be pretty poor. In the UK it's also expensive, almost double the price it is in the USA. I would have a look in the MM and see if you can pick up a 2-3 year old decent psu cheaply.

It's quite misleading as the previous iteration was a good basic power supply, Japanese capacitors and good reviews. I was a surprised to learn this as, like you have pointed out, I tend to think seasonic and associate it with good quality units.

pastymuncher · 2 Apr 2020 at 20:03

If you don't want something second hand from the MM if you shop around you can get the Corsair CP-9020133-UK TX550M 550 W 80+ Gold Power Supply Unit, Black for just under £65. That's a decent unit with a 7 year warranty and is semi-modular.

garnett · 2 Apr 2020 at 20:20

My basket at Overclockers UK:

1 x **B Grade** Kolink Enclave 500W 80 Plus Gold Modular Power Supply= £39.95

Total: £39.95 (includes shipping: £0.00)

Quartz · 2 Apr 2020 at 20:36

pastymuncher said:
It's not even built by Seasonic and is outsourced to RSY (Shenzhen Ruishengyuan Technology) instead

Wow. I too looked no further than the Seasonic name. Seasonic have - had? - a stellar reputation so it astounds me that they would allow their name to be used on a substandard PSU.

pastymuncher · 2 Apr 2020 at 20:57

garnett said:
My basket at Overclockers UK:

1 x **B Grade** Kolink Enclave 500W 80 Plus Gold Modular Power Supply= £39.95

Total: £39.95 (includes shipping: £0.00)

Just no. I wouldn't touch a brand new Kolink let alone a B grade.

garnett · 2 Apr 2020 at 21:12

pastymuncher said:
Just no. I wouldn't touch a brand new Kolink let alone a B grade.

I'm no expert, but is there a basis for that?

OCUK wouldn't stock them if they were ****e and they seem to get decent enough reviews.

keenan · 2 Apr 2020 at 21:33

Had a Kolink PSU from OCUK and it died just after 2 years. Sadly, the warranty was only 2 years..

Just get something better, even if you have to get a used one!

pastymuncher · 3 Apr 2020 at 14:05

garnett said:
I'm no expert, but is there a basis for that?

OCUK wouldn't stock them if they were ****e and they seem to get decent enough reviews.

Yes they would because their parent company has something to do with Kolink. Sadly OCUK has a history of stocking crap psu's and even putting their name on some of them. First was the OCUK/Huntkey units that blew up followed by the abysmal OCUK Ace (and other ridiculous names) which were terrible rebranded Powercool units with extremely weak 12v rails. Google for Kolink psu failures and you will find tales of units dead out of the box, units blowing up when switched on and loads of failures that killed other components. The internal components are the cheapest of the cheap and while these new units appear better on paper I just couldn't trust a Kolink psu. As I would never buy one myself and would never recommend something I wouldn't be 100% happy to use myself you will never see me suggesting a Kolink psu. They should stick to cases as their cases are great value for money.

I ignore all reviews on shop websites as anybody can say it's great etc from just switching something on and reviews are vetted on here anyway so negative ones don't even get accepted. In other words the reviews on the product pages are worthless. The only reviews worth paying any attention to are from the proper review sites such as Toms Hardware, Jonnyguru, HardOCP and others who have a proper test bench and do a full teardown.

garnett · 3 Apr 2020 at 18:33

pastymuncher said:
Yes they would because their parent company has something to do with Kolink. Sadly OCUK has a history of stocking crap psu's and even putting their name on some of them. First was the OCUK/Huntkey units that blew up followed by the abysmal OCUK Ace (and other ridiculous names) which were terrible rebranded Powercool units with extremely weak 12v rails. Google for Kolink psu failures and you will find tales of units dead out of the box, units blowing up when switched on and loads of failures that killed other components. The internal components are the cheapest of the cheap and while these new units appear better on paper I just couldn't trust a Kolink psu. As I would never buy one myself and would never recommend something I wouldn't be 100% happy to use myself you will never see me suggesting a Kolink psu. They should stick to cases as their cases are great value for money.

I ignore all reviews on shop websites as anybody can say it's great etc from just switching something on and reviews are vetted on here anyway so negative ones don't even get accepted. In other words the reviews on the product pages are worthless. The only reviews worth paying any attention to are from the proper review sites such as Toms Hardware, Jonnyguru, HardOCP and others who have a proper test bench and do a full teardown.

Thanks a lot for this. As I say, I'm no expert. What you said makes sense.

I think I had a quick look, and saw a kit guru review that was pretty decent, but then, I don't know whether kitguru is decent or not.

Edit: this is it...

https://www.kitguru.net/components/...k-enclave-80-plus-gold-700w-psu-review/all/1/

Ree · 3 Apr 2020 at 18:43

pastymuncher said:
reviews are vetted on here anyway so negative ones don't even get accepted. In other words the reviews on the product pages are worthless.

that is terrible behaviour just to make a buck. ocuk should be better than this imo.

Tuvoc · 13 Apr 2020 at 10:20

pastymuncher said:
Just no. I wouldn't touch a brand new Kolink let alone a B grade.

Yet OCUK use them in their machines. And give a 3 year warranty. I was looking at this machine, and saw the Kolink in the pic:
https://www.overclockers.co.uk/ocuk...-5-2600-geforce-gtx-1660-super-fs-1dv-og.html

So they can't be that bad. However I've had my time with cheap PSUs and I'd certainly spec a better PSU for that. You generally get what you pay for, and given that a quality PSU will last many many years it is a no-brainer to spend the extra. But you have to do your research.

For the original poster - if money is incredibly tight I guess it is an option as a stop-gap until you have the money for somethign better.

Monkeynut · 13 Apr 2020 at 12:27

Tuvoc said:
Yet OCUK use them in their machines. And give a 3 year warranty. I was looking at this machine, and saw the Kolink in the pic:
https://www.overclockers.co.uk/ocuk...-5-2600-geforce-gtx-1660-super-fs-1dv-og.html

So they can't be that bad. However I've had my time with cheap PSUs and I'd certainly spec a better PSU for that. You generally get what you pay for, and given that a quality PSU will last many many years it is a no-brainer to spend the extra. But you have to do your research.

For the original poster - if money is incredibly tight I guess it is an option as a stop-gap until you have the money for somethign better.

They're miles better than the Q-Tec and no-name stuff of years ago, and if you got the 500w and placed it in a basic PC which only draws about 150w then it would be fine for ages, it's just that a too few many corners are cut and if you try and pull the rated wattage it will go pop.

pastymuncher · 13 Apr 2020 at 13:39

Tuvoc said:
Yet OCUK use them in their machines. And give a 3 year warranty. I was looking at this machine, and saw the Kolink in the pic:
https://www.overclockers.co.uk/ocuk...-5-2600-geforce-gtx-1660-super-fs-1dv-og.html

So they can't be that bad. However I've had my time with cheap PSUs and I'd certainly spec a better PSU for that. You generally get what you pay for, and given that a quality PSU will last many many years it is a no-brainer to spend the extra. But you have to do your research.

For the original poster - if money is incredibly tight I guess it is an option as a stop-gap until you have the money for somethign better.

Like I said in a previous post OCUK's parent company is pushing these Kolink psu's so OCUK get them for next to nothing. We have had several threads where a pre-built pc has been delivered with a crap Kolink psu installed only for it to not start up or fail within a few days. The early ones such as the Core and KL series are barely a step up from a cheap and nasty £20 no name psu from Ebay. That Kolink Core series 500w in the link that you posted only has a pathetic 396w on it's 12v rail and has a recommendation on it not to exceed 400w total power. If you bought it seperately it would have a 1 year warranty. I would like to say that I am shocked that they would stick such a poor quality psu in that build but I am not. They get a psu for next to nothing, use them in their budget builds and maximise profit.