How often do you guys change PSU?

[Fubsy]

After doing a forum search I found this thread.... so sorry for necro.

I've just ordered the Seasonic Prime Ultra Snow Silent 650W to replace the Corsair CX750M that I've had running without issue since May 2016. That PSU was bought on a Sunday afternoon when I realised my old one wasn't ever going to be usable in my freshly (at the time) purchased Fractal Design Define r5; try buying a quality PSU at that time of the week from a bricksand mortar store.....

As such I've been lacking a quality PSU for all this time and feel nervous as it starts to make knocking noises and near the end of it's warranty period. So I feel now was a good time with that PSU being on a good offer and with a hefty warranty period it should last me a few future builds with a single GPU.

 

[BlackAle]

Over a decade, my previous PSU, a Corsair HX520 lasted 11 years before I retired it (still working). My current Seasonic 600w fanless includes a 12 year warranty, so hopefully it'll last at least that amount of time.

 

[Colonel_Klinck]

Pretty sure I saw a video recently about how people throw away perfectly good PSU because they think because they are a few years old they are old tech or about to die. The opposite was was actually the case. Might have been Gamers Nexus or very similar channel.

 

[Bickaxe]

Corsair RM850 since 2013. No reason to swap as its it modular. It is on the longer side of things so had to take that into account on my new build and its limited the case options.

I'll get something new next time, so another 4 years I suspect.

My Corsair HX520 is still going strong, I use it as a back up.

 

[Firestar_3x]

Still running a 12 year old Thermaltake Toughpower 850w in a retro machine.

 

[Terminal_Boy]

When the old one fails.

 

[Blackjack Davy]

Tough one I've had a couple go on me and its never good when they do the last one destroyed a couple of hard drives when it went. Actually it wasn't a total blow rather a decline so there comes a point when odd things start going wrong and you're scratching your head trying to figure out whats causing the issues. I've pretty much decided to swap out every 5 years or so in future more more for piece of mind than anything else.

 

[kizz360]

I've recently swapped mine after 8 years, the old one is fine but just completed a new build and wanted something fully modular. Will just keep it as a spare.

 

[Kelt]

Over two years since I posted in this thread...PSU still going strong.

Into its thirteenth year of operation.

I'm pretty sure it will outlast me.

 

[Grimley]

Well my old Seasonic S12 430w that was powering my sisters office PC is about to go to the skip after 12/13 years & has been in a fair few builds over that time.
Only reason is because I was fitting a SSD to it today & when I replugged a sata power plug into my 11 year old LG Blu-ray/HD-DVD optical drive & fired the rig up - there was a short & that resulted in said power plug & socket billowing out smoke & melting both terminals, so both have got to go to the tip (the PSU still worked) & £100 spent on replacements. It was due for an overhaul anyway but the morale of the post is, PSU or drive terminals pack up or wear out sooner or later, so be vigilant when you are dealing with older PC components, even when they are reputable makes.

 

[Paul_RD]

All my current computers use Seasonic or Antec (Seasonic built) power supplies, and as and when I've needed another, I have put the new one in my main rig and moved the others down one so that the older power supplies are used in the least frequently used computers where they are under less load/stress. Once they are out of warranty, I open them up every few years to give them a good vacuum out and a general visual inspection. The only issue I ever had was when one of the modular SATA outputs stopped delivering 12 volts but that was traced to a dry joint that was repaired with a blob of solder. Some of them are well over ten years old by now and still seem to be ok.

One surprising PSU I came across was a cheap unbranded one I bought new about 12 years ago from a local shop for £20. It was meant as a stopgap for a friend who ran a garage and needed to get his PC working urgently as he relied on it for all his invoices and it was costing him revenue. The PSU was only meant to last a few days whilst I ordered him a decent one online. However, because the PC was now working and he was always producing invoices, he kept postponing the date to change the PSU and it ended up never getting replaced. Two years ago he sold the business and gave me the old computer for parts. The PC had spent its life under the desk on the floor and had operated for twelve hours a day, six days a week for over ten years. The PSU was full of fluff and other workshop detritus, but it had never faltered once in all that time. One thing that may have helped was the workshop was unheated, cold and draughty all year round and the PC had a good supply of cool air. Also, it was only running Windows XP with a Microsoft Access based accounting programme and was never under any real stress. Should it have been used in a way that demanded more from it, it may have had a much reduced lifespan.

 

[andy_mk3]

My SuperFlower PSU is 5 years old this week. Certainly in no rush to change it yet, moved it into my new build this year. 750W should be plenty for my future upgrades yet too I am sure.

Built a PC for my wife using my old components, dug an old Corsair semi-modular PSU out of the loft which has got to be 10 years old now, powering an old 2600k & 280x build nicely.