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new GPU, what PSU do i need?

claypigeon101

claypigeon101

claypigeon101

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Joined
27 Apr 2009
Posts
592
Hey guys, need a hand from you guys who know a hell of a lot more than me.

I havent got a high spec comp, intel c2d 2.4ghz, 2gb ram, geforce 8600gs gpu, but ive just bought a BFG 9800gtx+ 1gb OC card off ebay, been desperate for a new one for ages and i just dropped on it with little time left, had to go for it.

anyway BFG says i need a 550w psu to have the gtx+ running ok, although nvidia says the gtx+ needs 450w. either way i am probably going to need a new one as like i say my psu isnt a high performance one.

can anyone help me out, the cheaper the better i.e. second hand ebay auction if anyone knows of one going, i dont understand how PSUs work as such with the different voltages and rails and things but i know the gtx+ probably needs more than ive got.

would a new case with a 450w psu already in it be enough?
Thanks
 
I would suggest going for this.

You could indeed get away with a good quality 450W PSU, however one of these would only cost £5 less and not offer the upgrade headroom and modular cabling of this one.
 
You will want to remove those links as they are against the forum rules. I suggest you post the make, model number and some specs instead.

But yes, they are crap. What you get with a cheap PSU is a big number for the power rating, but it can't achieve this (in many cases they cook themselves or explode if you try), low efficency and the voltage regulation is poor. The general rule is to treat the PSU as the most important part of your system and invest in a good quality one. If it works reliably, then you will have a system that runs stably, if you have a bad one it will provide sub-standard power to your expensive components and if it dies it can take some of your components with it.
 
ok sorry i didnt realise, what exactly is against the rules, linking like that or the fact that i'm saying they are crap? just so as i know.

thanks guys, i reckon the safest and most economical bet for me is that 650w ocuk one for £40, i will get that.

thanks so much for your help
 
The rule is:

We, Overclockers UK (OcUK) are happy to provide the resources of these forums to responsible individuals without charge. They cost a substantial amount of money to maintain and use considerable amounts of bandwidth which is paid for exclusively by us. As you know OcUK are in the computer hardware business and therefore the promotion of OcUK's competitors is forbidden. Examples of promotion are :-
Posting links to competitors websites
Posting links to reviews that promote competitors
Quoting the names or contact details of competitors
Offering to provide the names or contact details of competitors
Hinting about product availability at competitors and their pricing
Using the forums to notify a member of intent or actual supply of names or contact details of competitors
Listing competitors names, URL's or e-mail addresses in signatures
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Disguising attempts to do any of the above
Click to expand...

You can see all the forum rules if you click on "FAQ" at the top of any OCUK forum page, or the link in my last post.

As for the OCUK 650W PSU, most likely it is fine and will power your components OK. But generally cheap PSUs are a false economy - the generic OCUK £42 does not say how long the warranty is, so you have to assume it is only 1 year (legal minimum). However, a decent branded one like that OCZ (£55) comes with:

3 year warranty backed by OCZ's exclusive
PowerSwap Warranty replacement program.
Click to expand...

It also gets good reviews [1][2][3]. Considering it only costs £13 more -I think its worth the extra TBH (also it uses modular cables - which is a nice bonus).
 
ok thanks, i will see if i can get together the extra £13, it is probably worth it as you say.

can i ask one more question, i am deliberately not linking to this but it is on ebay and going for a few quid with 2 days left so i am watching,

Antec Truepower Trio 550w TP-550
it has 3 12v rails- what is this about, does this make it better than the ocuk value one?

is 550w enough to power my 9800gtx+? BFG says it needs at least 550w but NVIDIA says 450.

Thanks ye learned ones :D i am grateful for your advice.
 
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by the way, i know as you say budget PSUs arent the way to go for gaming,
however i am still looking at the OCuk value thingies because A. i wont be gaming that much and B. i wont be playing at high res cos my monitor is only 1280 res. and C. £££ is short
 
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No problem mate. From what I've heard the new true powers are pretty decent so I don't think you'd go wrong with the 550w. I haven't personally used one myself though.
 
hey thanks thats superb, i will keep my eye out in case it goes for half the price of a new OCUK 650w one. although a new one is better cos of new cables and such, then again if i need a new case ive found a decent cheapy on ****** for less than £20 with big fans and things :)
thanks so much
 
claypigeon101 said:
ok thanks, i will see if i can get together the extra £13, it is probably worth it as you say.

can i ask one more question, i am deliberately not linking to this but it is on ebay and going for a few quid with 2 days left so i am watching,

Antec Truepower Trio 550w TP-550
it has 3 12v rails- what is this about, does this make it better than the ocuk value one?

is 550w enough to power my 9800gtx+? BFG says it needs at least 550w but NVIDIA says 450.

Thanks ye learned ones :D i am grateful for your advice.
Click to expand...

That PSU is powerful enough to run your system and 2x 9800GTX+ in SLI
 
claypigeon101 said:
would a new case with a 450w psu already in it be enough?
Thanks
Click to expand...

No!!

claypigeon101 said:
cool, however could i get away with this

only spending £40 would be much more welcome than £60 at the moment,

thanks so much for the quick reply
Click to expand...

They are rubbish. A guy had a problem with a i5 setup with one of those psu's and even the shop staff were saying he should have got a Quality psu.

Stop trying to get away with a cheap psu. It's the most important component in a pc and is not a thing to save money on. Cheap psu's can never deliver their stated output, have weak unstable rails and if they fail they will take out other components with them. If you want to risk your pc with one then that's up to you but don't come back here complaining when it blows up and kills your rig. Buy a quality one now and it will last you years.

The Antec you mentioned is rubbish by the way. The new Truepowers are good but the Trio's had problems.
 
You can usually find reviews on most of the decent psu's and google is your friend for that :). As other's have said never skimp on the psu you can get cheaper but there is always a reason why they are cheaper and it isn't a good reason for the end user. An ocz would be fine for you and while a little more then you'd like to spend you will at least have the piece of mind which you won't have with a cheap one.
 
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