PSU Advice

jasonf12014 · 30 Dec 2017 at 23:23

Hi

So I was hoping to just add a GTX 1060 in my PC along side a GTX 970 for mining. But I don't think my PSU physically has the connections on it to be able to do that. Entire spec is below, will a better quality 650 watt be ok or would I need to go to a 750? I've been looking at Corsair and EVGA psu's. The card I've decided on getting is the Gigabyte 1060 windforce oc 6gb.

650 watt OCZ X-stream PSU
Gigabyte Z77X-D3H
Core i5-3570k (overclocked to 4.3ghz)
8gb RAM
250gb Samsung 850 evo
1TB HDD
MSI GTX 970 Gaming 4g

Cheers

gpuerrilla · 30 Dec 2017 at 23:31

Hmm it will be tight if you are pushing both the cards but be careful of using the machine whilst your mining for productive reasons too. I would think a quality PSU would cope with it tbh at that wattage. When I was last into mining it was Seasonic and EVGA. As GPU's have got more power efficient then 650w should be ample for two cards.

MinLum · 30 Dec 2017 at 23:34

Might be best to link what your PSU is exactly. AFAIK, the XStream lineup of PSUs has existed for quite a while now so guessing which 650W model you have may lead to wrong advice.

jasonf12014 · 31 Dec 2017 at 00:06

Yeah it was about 4 years ago when I originally built the system. It's actually a 600 watt now that I remember, I'm not on the system at the minute I'll try and check the model number in the morning. But if a 650 watt will handle it then I'm thinking about this, what do you guys think?

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/evga...plus-gold-modular-power-supply-ca-024-ea.html

MinLum · 31 Dec 2017 at 00:33

Remember that PSUs generally have an efficiency curve and it is around 40-60% usage. Therefore, if you have a 650W PSU and you're using 580W, the PSU can still handle that, yes, but you're at 89-90% capacity and the PSU might not be very efficient (or safe) at those loads.

Read HERE or watch this:

jasonf12014 · 31 Dec 2017 at 13:14

Cheers, just checked and there is definitely just 2 pci-e connectors on the psu and they're both being used for the GTX 970. Checking that coolermaster calculator I'll be ok with a 650 watt, just need to find one that will have enough pci-e leads for both cards, so I'll need 3. I was looking at corsair rmx650x but I think that only has 2 connections, any other suggestions?

MinLum · 31 Dec 2017 at 13:52

Conncetors for the Corsair 650W RMx is listed as:

1 x 4+4-pin CPU +12V (EPS)
7 x 4-pin Molex
4 x 6+2-pin PCIe
1 x FDD Power
8 x SATA

Check out the Corsair page HERE

gpuerrilla · 31 Dec 2017 at 14:29

Save up while you use the current 600w one and if you plan to mine for long haul invest in a quality 850w like a Seasonic (seen it for under £110 at competitors) OcUK have it at £125.

Telecaster · 31 Dec 2017 at 14:33

Shame you don't have MM access, I have a cracking PSU I'm about to list on there that would have been ideal.

jasonf12014 · 31 Dec 2017 at 17:43

Yeah it says the RM650x has for 4 pci-e connectors, but that's from 2 cables. I need a 6 and an 8 pin for the GTX 970 and a 6 pin for the GTX 1060. So will I be ok plugging the 970 in with just one cable? This seems to be an issues with anything lower that 650 watt, you only seem to get 2 cables.

MinLum · 31 Dec 2017 at 21:58

Ah... never had a 650W PSU. The lowest I had was 700W and when that went kaput (luckily not taking anything else with it!), I went with an 850W PSU.

RJC · 31 Dec 2017 at 22:20

Keep it to the one thread please, keeps all reply’s in one area.

I have merged the threads and move to PSU.

EsaT · 31 Dec 2017 at 22:20

That GTX 970 can consume enough power that using one split cable could cause some problems.
https://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/MSI/GTX_970_Gaming/25.html
1060 consumes less at around 130W max.
Not sure what level power draw mining causes.
GPU-Z could tell something about it.

Anyway very few OCZs had quality components, so wouldn't expect that PSU to be in that good shape anymore.

jasonf12014 · 31 Dec 2017 at 23:43

Well I think the trick with mining is to reduce the power target on the cards and find a sweet spot. Whereas with gaming or benchmarking your upping the power target so it doesn't throttle. For example at the moment I've got the power target set to 85 with +100 on the core and +175 memory and it's actually about 83% TDP in GPU-Z. I've literally just started but got the bug for it lol But if you think I need 3 seperate pci-e power cables, what would you recommend?