is my psu okay ? should i save up and get a better one ?

garyfl

garyfl

garyfl

Associate
Joined
26 Jun 2010
Posts
2,118
Location
west yorkshire.
my pc was prebuilt by a local pc specialist, they used this psu

*sorry link removed*

just google powercool 950 w psu/modular.




im really sceptical, with the amount i paid i expected a corsair or something.

my pc houses a 470 gtx, 2x hard drives, bluray rw, pci sound card, 2 cold cathodes, ud7 and a i7 950.

just wondered if it could handle it nicely, i dont understand amps or anything, but i heard a 470 gtx can require 29 amps on a single rail ? this psu gives off 20 i think.

hmm. not happy tbh, had it a while but i just get the impression its cheap tat and could go bang anytime, quiet as a whisper, though...
 
Last edited:
I would removed the link to competitor site if I were you, as it is against forum rule and you might get suspended/banned for it.

Although 950W watts is more than enough for a i7 overclocked system with GTX470 SLI, I'm not too convinced about the Powercool 950W's quality and have doubt whether or not it will remain stable under heavy load (i.e. 70%+ usage), or if it can actually deliver its rated output. If the PSU is unstable, you might get BSOD or crashes...or may be worse.
 
Last edited:
well its been running for the past 2 weeks, only putting it to sleep a few times, it runs a heavy load of strenuous plugins in cubase, seems to be okay in game, even had i7 oced to 3.4 and 470 oced. just like you say im not convinced, id feel so much better with a corsair, fail rate is so low. its the amps im worried about, if what im saying is kinda right, then my gfx card isnt getting powered correctly.
 
Are powercolor new to the PSU Market or something? Can't find much on them. I winder who the OEM is for their range.

Anyway if it worries you, can you not use separate PCI-E leads for the graphics card, they're normally on different rails. Quite often the discrete rails are derived from a single rail split into 4 or more with each protected by overload circuits.

Does the 470 really use over 300w? I doubt it as 2x6 way pci-e only adds 150w to the 75w from the pci-e slot.
 
Its like everything you buy , the more you spend the better quality you get . I have only ever bought corsair recently and before that it was enermax . I would recommend saving up some money and buying a new psu if your not happy with the powercool as the psu is the most important part of any pc . I bought a corsair hx 750 watt a year and don't think i'll need to change it for awhile
 
Last edited:
They dont sound like a high end brand, from googling their brand ive seen 750w psu's retailing for £40.00 ono, not convinced tbh. Another dodgy brand are ez-cool. Id never skimp on the psu, currently use a corsair hx 850w, but ive used enermax and thermaltakes toughpower's in the past, two very good brands as well, the toughpower 750w i had was basicaly a corsair tx unit.
 
Marine-RX179 said:
It's Powercool, not Powercolour.
Click to expand...

Oops, read one thing and understand another.

Still not a lot of info on them though apart from sites trying to flog them.

Best I can see is that they have 3x 12v rails each rated at 20A, which would be max 60A (720W). The 950W rating is one of those add all the amperages up to reach a figure jobbies. If this were a quality (expensive) supply it would be rated as a 700W, possibly 750W Max.

Still 60A should be ok for your rig, if it can provide it stable across loads.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom