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PSU Requirements

[TW]Fox

[TW]Fox

[TW]Fox

Man of Honour
Joined
17 Oct 2002
Posts
160,293
I note some rather insane PSU requirements on current generation graphics hardware. However, I also know from experience that manufacturers do enjoy a bit of exageration.

I have a Corsair HX520 PSU powering my Core2Duo system and my 8800GT.

Am I going to need to shop for a new PSU as well as a new graphics card? :rolleyes:
 
should be fine dude

corsairs output efficiancy makes up for their lower wattage ratings

what card are you thinking of?

i would imagine you would be ok on everything bar maybe the X2
 
Nah as long as the PSU is high quality its all fine. The setup in my sig was running perfectly on a HX520 untill I got the second GTX 280 at which point I had to change it.

The ones you have mentioned will run fine for certain :)
 
I've got the same PSU with a E8400 (@3.6) and overclocked 4870, so I think you'll be fine.
 
That PSU will definately be fine. The rails on the Corsairs are as stable as it gets. Leave the PSU there & save the cash mate.
 
Fox, I'm running a E8600 @ 4600, a gtx260/216@ core220 mem2500, a water cooling set up 5 fans 2 Hd's, CD, lots of blingy lights.

All on a Corsair VX 450W with no Problems 24/7, think you will be fine
 
just to cover the bases. The difference between rated wattage and actual capacity can vary wildly especially on cheaper psu's so its easier to say "600 watts" than "600 if its a cheap one, 350 if its a good one", basically :)
 
a lot of "older" PSU's from the AMD Athlon XP era had high current 5v supplies, but were quite weak on 12V. This is true even of good branded PSU's of the day.

Modern PSU's are generally geared for 80%+ of their power to be available on the 12V rail as all current CPU's and high end GPU's take a 12v feed.

Buy speccing a 600w psu for example, the hardware companies are covering their hides, incase someone tried using a 400w supply from a few years ago, which could have as little as 12 amps! on the 12v rail.

If you look at the Corsair VX450, or a Seasonic S12 500 these PSU's can supply many amps @ 12v and can run a single 280GTX without any problems. (The vx450 needs adaptors as it only has 1 PCi-E power cable).

Also as mentioned a few companies will label a 200w psu as 650w "Peak" power, which means it can handle that load for a few milliseconds, but not as a continuous load.
 
l61aq_withplug.jpg



Get one of those Fox "Plug-in Mains Power Monitor". Around £10 i believe and you can check how much headroom you have left. Most reviews these days incorporate a Power consumption benchmark so you can gauge your set up with theirs and guesstimate if its sufficient.

Try using this to help as well: http://web.aanet.com.au/SnooP/psucalc.php

Its apparently fairly accurate. I will get a power monitor too within 2 weeks or so. As i have the HX620 and want to use a 4870X2 (or the refresh)
 
thats exactly the model i have. Its pretty interesting when you see the actual power being drawn, for instance:

power30gh5.jpg


thats what my laptop draws playing a bluray. thats 1/4 of what my pc drew at idle!
 
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