Which PSU for upgrade

[Counter Terrorist Zombie]

I'm upgrading, yay! (xmas and bday present combined)

upgrading to these bits:

intel QX6850

asus p5k-e wifi

4gb ram (2x2gb 6400)

have these bits:

ati 2900xt

sound blaster sound card

3x hdds

2x dvds

how many watts do I need?? I currently have a 600w coolermaster psu, it's really quiet which is why I like it. will 600w be stretching it? the problem is that I have a really really tight budget because I have to buy this myself. I can spare around £80, maybe £100 if I can convince my dad to help :eyes:

 

[FarFarAway]

But a Q6600 and spend the extra on a decent PSU...and a house

 

[JN]

Coolermaster iGreen should still be able to power those bits no problem. However, if you really fancy a PSU upgrade, check some of the recent reviews.

Notable ones are:

Thermaltake Toughpower

Coolermaster Real Power Pro

Seasonic X900

Enermax Infiniti

Corsair HX620

 

[Counter Terrorist Zombie]

Ahh thanks for the link Jim, I need to open my eyes >_<. Just reading the reviews now and checking the prices before I make my decision... I noticed you said my current psu should be able to cope.. my g-card is really power hungry (300watts+ under load).

Do you think the cpu and g/card will eat more than 600w when im playing a game like Supreme commander or maybe when I'm just rendering my 3D scenes?

 

[JN]

Ahh thanks for the link Jim, I need to open my eyes >_<. Just reading the reviews now and checking the prices before I make my decision... I noticed you said my current psu should be able to cope.. my g-card is really power hungry (300watts+ under load).

Do you think the cpu and g/card will eat more than 600w when im playing a game like Supreme commander or maybe when I'm just rendering my 3D scenes?

You might get close, but I very much doubt you'll go over 600w. What I will say tho is that £100 won't get you _much_ better than what you've got already. If you can save up to £130-150 then you can get something that will future-proof you for quite some time.

 

[jiffz]

Check this - http://www.extreme.outervision.com/psucalculatorlite.jsp

Gives you guide as to how much power your system will use. Why not try with the coolermaster, any probs get another afterwards?

 

[Luigi]

antec truepower quattro 850w? it retails for a obout £110 and is a fine psu

 

[JN]

antec truepower quattro 850w? it retails for a obout £110 and is a fine psu

Yeah I was going to mention that one as I've been testing one out recently. Only reason why I wouldn't recommend it at the moment is that there are still a lot of v1 units that don't work with the 8800GTS in retailers stock. Not great if CTZ decided to change his GPU.

Other than that tho, they are sexy and stable

 

[Luigi]

why would he go to a slower gpu though?

 

[JN]

why would he go to a slower gpu though?

Well if we're going to be pedantic, its a pretty even fight between the two cards.

But at the end of the day, why buy a PSU that potentially might not work with a bit of hardware that you might potentially upgrade/sidegrade/downgrade to in the future (for whatever reason, be it money, compatibility..etc), when there are plenty of other PSU's that don't have the problem and probably can be had at the same/similar price.

 

[Luigi]

i suppose, its just its a very solid psu, worth buying

 

[JN]

i suppose, its just its a very solid psu, worth buying

Agreed. The one I've tested is rock solid and has some decent components inside. Plus the "go faster" stripes on it do look pretty sick

 

[Luigi]

lol, the paint job makes it so much better!!

 

[Counter Terrorist Zombie]

Hey Guys! Thanks for the info/replies so far.

the system seems to be running okay with the current psu here are some pics of the upgrade:

http://forum.overclock3d.net/showthread.php?p=241788#post241788

(goes to my rig thread)

 

[xJonny]

I think the iGreen may be able to power it all, probably uses about 500w?