Time for new PSU?

Meddling-Monk

Meddling-Monk

Meddling-Monk

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Bit of a thread repost (sort of), I was previously looking for alternative PSU's (last year I think) when the PSU was noticed to be really loud and had horrid Coil Whine (which I subdued with some dampening around the case), so that still applies if there's any good ones released lately I should look into. But the primary point of this thread, is, am I correct in my diagnosis that the PSU is on its way out or just poorly designed in the first place and needs replacing?

So, specs:

Corsair HX650W Bronze (So it's the Seasonic MII or SII or something like that, obtained back in 2012)
4930k (at 4.2Ghz using 1.22v, previously 1.28v for 4.3Ghz, but felt wasn't worth it over power costs and heat produced)
64GB DDR3 RAM (so all 8 DIMM slots populated, and the extra FDD Power Cable attached to motherboard)
Asus Rampage IV (4) Extreme (R4E or RIVE, first version)
Powercolor RX580 8GB (Just added the +50 Power Limit)
2x SSD
Aqua Computing Quadro
Roughly 7 120mm Fans (2 Exhaust - rear and rear top, 2 GPU, 2CPU, 1 Intake - top), 1 140mm Fan (Intake - front), 1 92mm Fan (Exhaust - PCI rear) and 1 200mm Fan (Intake - front)
Basic Peripherals (Mouse, Keyboard, Tablet, Webcam etc)
All inside a Corsair 650D Case

So, tests I conducted:
Prime95 and other stress testing, all cores on full, etc. CPU is stable and fine.
GPU testing was done with games running at resolutions the RX580 can't handle at uncapped frames. Always stable and fine.
But when I run both the CPU and GPU intense (90%+ usage on both), after an unknown amount of time (it's never the same, sometimes it quickly reaches the crash stage, sometimes takes a lot longer), the system will freeze (sound buzzes and becomes unresponsive, etc). But only when the system is fully loaded like that. Never on the CPU or GPU alone or when the system is a lot hotter than it is normally. There is no BSOD, just a freeze. Previously when it was an overclocked CPU, RAM, lack of voltage or the older HD7950 about to die, there will be BSOD, but this is just simple freeze.

Am I correct that either the PSU is with a combination of old age and 1) badly designed (supposedly same rails combined), or 2) old age and the system is pushing the PSU beyond what it can reasonably handle?

Or, in either case, it needs replacing if I want it to not system freeze/crash?

Is there any test(s) anyone can think of that might eliminate the motherboard from being the problem? It shouldn't be, but just want to cover all areas.

Was eyeing that new Seasonic Fanless 700W, but unsure on actual release, and of course, what the price might be for that (Aiming for as much silence as possible). But really, if the above is confirmed, I won't be scrimping on the PSU, so consider the 150+ range for a PSU recommendation.

Thanks all.
 
Besides PSU tiring it could be also motherboard tiring.
(and neither Intel guarantees durability out of stock settings)
But 80+ Bronze was anyway low end already decade ago.
That's when two steps better 80+ Gold efficiency and DC-DC design appeared to high end PSUs.
And now Platinum and Titanium are further better efficiency classes than Gold.

Fanless PSUs would definitely need good case airflow.
Even minimally running fan will help PSU to last better.
Especially it helps to keep temperature under control when PSU is loaded.

Seasonic Prime is high end serie.
 
EsaT said:
Besides PSU tiring it could be also motherboard tiring.
Click to expand...

This was my concern as well, hence why I asked if anyone knew of any way to test for the motherboard for being the culprit or not, although I have a feeling that the only way to really test it is to replace it, and that isn't going to be possible these days since it went EOL many years ago. :-/

EsaT said:
But 80+ Bronze was anyway low end already decade ago.
That's when two steps better 80+ Gold efficiency and DC-DC design appeared to high end PSUs.
And now Platinum and Titanium are further better efficiency classes than Gold.
Click to expand...

Yep, aiming for a Titanium PSU, but a Platinum can work if it provides better noise levels, although from what I've been looking at it seems the more efficienct designs are the ones who are quieter.

EsaT said:
Fanless PSUs would definitely need good case airflow.
Even minimally running fan will help PSU to last better.
Especially it helps to keep temperature under control when PSU is loaded.

Seasonic Prime is high end serie.
Click to expand...

Got fans galore in this setup now and can modify it to accomodate Fanless PSU's I'd imagine on the fly (from Aquasuite control) whilst keeping it as low volume as possible (currently they're all running low rpms to point you can't hear it at all in the middle of the night). So that's why the interest in the Seasonic Prime 700W Fanless PSU. But again, it's not out yet. And happy to try out the semi-fanless options (Prime Ultra, etc) that's available if people think they can work as well. Just need to remind myself to grab a molex to FDD adapter, as the newer PSU models are coming out without this bundled in their PSU's it seems (The Fanless 700W doesn't carry this).

If anyone else has any thoughts on PSU suggestions or on ways I can narrow down whether motherboard or PSU being the culprit of my issues, I'd be grateful.
 
Meddling-Monk said:
Yep, aiming for a Titanium PSU, but a Platinum can work if it provides better noise levels, although from what I've been looking at it seems the more efficienct designs are the ones who are quieter.
Click to expand...
The more waste heat PSU produces the more cooling it needs.
Bronze vs Gold difference basically halves waste heat.
Titanium again roughly halves it.

And also percentual/relative improvement is major at low loads.
Seasonic Prime Titanium basically wastes only 5W to power itself and at 100W load waste power is ~7W.
At 500W load waste power is ~25W.
Something what that 80+ Bronze reaches at maybe ~180W load.
 
Ahh, thanks for clearing that up @EsaT

Fantastic. Definitely stumping out for a Titanium PSU then. Given that this PSUs fan is also occasionally providing a small grinding sound (another sign it needs replacing I guess); I think 9 years is plenty of this chap and time to retire soon now in any event.

Now, the only further question is:

Fanless PSU or Semi-Fanless?

The Prime TX has a fan that reaches up to 20db when needed, but I don't know what the fan is like (and I'm sure can't be swapped if needed, unlike the fans in my case), and whether relying on the airflow inside the case I've got setup (for a lower noise maybe) might be better or not. Anyone know how much airflow is needed for the Fanless vs the Semi?
 
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