480W PSU good enough for 8800gt?

[Joo52]

I just ordered an XFX 8800GT from newegg yesterday and because I knew they'd run out of them really quick (an hour after I ordered, all 8800gt's were out of stock) I forgot to check and see if my Thermaltake PurePower 480watt psu would do the trick for my new setup. Here's what I've got:

Athlon X2 4600
1gb OCZ DDR400 (or thereabouts)
Asrock mobo (the one with both agp and pci-e)

I'm currently running with an x800xt which apparently only draws 70watts on full load compared to the 250 or so that the 8800gt supposedly draws on load. I'm just a little concerned that my psu might not hold up.

Thanks

 

[hclarkjr]

go here and check to see if you need bigger power supply use the tool at the top of the page

 

[Joo52]

Aha! According to that tool I need 437watts of power. Thanks for that link, I think I should be ok with my 480watter.

 

[mlhm5]

Maybe and maybe not. That is really close. I would give myself a larger buffer. Go here and check out the recommended ones.
http://www.jonnyguru.net/forums/showthread.php?t=1460

 

[Tarindel]

How accurate is that eXtreme power watt measurer?

I ran a hypothetical system with an o/c'd Q6600 (to 3ghz) and a Geforce 8600GT (proxy for 8800GT since it wasn't on the list), plus a couple fans and a soundblaster, and it told me 602W.

That seemed quite a bit higher than I'd expect.

 

[Quiksilver]

Sounds to me like you messed up and didn't read the power supply notes on the calculator itself and you selected quad processor. Instead of single. (When they mean quad the mean 4 separate processors not 1x4 cores.)

I just tried this stuff and it still comes out to be less than what you had so I think that is your mistake. (Most of the stuff I choose for the OC is rounded up)

System Type: Single Processor
Motherboard: High End - Desktop
CPU: Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 2400 MHz Kentsfield
Overclocked: 3600 MHz, 1.5 V
CPU Utilization (TDP): 100% TDP
RAM: 4 Sticks DDR2 SDRAM
Video Card: NVIDIA GeForce 8800 Ultra
Video Type: Single Card
SATA HDD: 2 HDDs
DVD-RW/DVD+RW Drive: 1 Drive
Floppy Drive: 1 Drive
Sound Blaster - All Models: Yes
USB: 4 Devices
Front Bay Card Reader: Yes
Front Bay LCD Display: Yes
Fans - High Performance: 1 Fan 92mm; 5 Fans 120mm;
Keyboard and mouse: Yes
System Load: 100 %

Recommended Wattage: 572 Watts

 

[Tarindel]

Yup, I'm pretty sure that's exactly what I did! Thanks for the correction.

 

[Build it Myself]

So I'm screwed? LOL, I just bought an Antec Earthwatts 430 because I was told it would be efficient enough to run what i've got coming in...

8800gt KO
2180 allendale OC'ed to 3.0
Abit IP35Pro
4gigs 667mhz ram
1x120mm fan (i'd like to have 2 but i'm trying to save wattage here)
2 dvd/cd drives
1 floppy drive

it says I need like 470+ for power...I took someone's advice on this and now I'm worried, will I be able to run ok? i can't imagine pushing this system to 100% EVER with the stuff I do but I'm worried now!

 

[MarcVenice]

I think the calculator gives an estimate of how many watts your PSU should have, AFTER applying the 60-70% rule. So you won't be pulling more then 60-70% of those 437 watts of power you mentioned, but to make sure your PSU doesn't run at 100% all the time, the calculator just tells you to get a PSU with roughly 450w. Several tests have shown that even a q6600, a 8800gtx and the normal goodies won't pull more then 350w of power under full load.

But Joo52, the thermaltake purepower is a PIECE of CRAP PSU. It has bad caps, and it's only going to give you trouble in the future. Personaly, I would either replace the caps, or just buy an antec earthwatts 500w.

Build it Myself: I think the antec earthwatts can handle your rig, and as it looks you're trying to save every penny you can. I doubt 70w is going to make a big difference between the EA 430 and the EA 500. But if you can send it back, and can get a EA 500w for 10-15$ extra, I would do it.

 

[Build it Myself]

I'll probably have to do that then, i'm not really trying to save money, i mean I got an 8800gt, picked up a IP35pro board instead of the E model...the only thing I really skimped on was the ram since I have no experience in such things...My brother wants a computer too so if this all goes well i might just use it for his system since he doesn't want all the stuff I do.