Dearly needed: power supply advice!

[Hastibe]

Hi friends,

I've been really confused about what type of PSU I need--when I built my first gaming rig in 2003, I slapped some $18 dollar PSU in it and never thought about it again. Now, having just built my second rig, I have a spare 430W Thermaltake PSU in it, and am wondering if I need a more powerful PSU...

I've looked around on review sites, for a good recent round-up of PSU reviews, but a lot of the round-ups seem really dated, so any help would be appreciated! One request: please explain your reasoning behind your suggestions--I'd like to try to understand all this important PSU stuff, too!

Here are the specs of my new gaming rig (note: gaming, but I don't plan on overclocking):

• Asus M4A79XTD EVO motherboard
• AMD Athlon II X4 630 processor
• Super Talent 2x2GB Kit of 1600Mhz RAM
• Sapphire HD 5770 1GB graphics card
• Hitachi Deskstar 1 TB SATA 7200rpm hard drive
• IDE 250GB 7200rpm hard drive and CD/DVD-RW

With this set-up, what power supply should I get? I'm not interested in spending tons, so, though I want to buy a PSU that will protect this investment, and not fry it, I'm not looking for anything fancy, either.

P.S. Additionally, the above just said, if, at some point down the road, when this rig begins to age, I wanted to run a second graphics card in it, then what type of PSU would you recommend, too?

 

[Rifter]

If crossfire is a option later i would go with a quality 450W-600W unit, those 5770's dont draw too much i believe around 100w at max load. If you are not trying to spend alot and dopnt want to spring for a corsair or seasonic then a Antec is a good option.

Like this one:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817371035

OCZ is also a good mid range PSU, this one would work well:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817341010

 

[Hastibe]

QUESTION #1: Okay, thanks for your thoughts... Here are a few, which all seem CrossFire capable, that I'm considering--please let me know what your thoughts on them are!

AZZA Dynamo 650 650W
XION XON-630P12N 630W
Eagle Tech ET-PSVT600E
OCZ ModXStream Pro OCZ500MXSP

Do I have it right that the OCZ PSUs are considered a step-above generic brands, which these others (AZZA, XION, Eagle Tech) are? Because, for the same price, the AZZA, XION, and Eagle Tech seem to have better specs than the OCZ PSU here...

QUESTION #2: If the OCZ is one that y'all would go with for my rig, and if I want two graphics cards via CrossFire to be an option in the future, should I spend the additional money to get one of these?
OCZ StealthXStream OCZ600SXS 600W
OCZ ModXStream Pro OCZ600MXSP 600W

If I should spend the additional money to get a 600W PSU for CrossFire possibilities, any thoughts between these two or comparably-priced (with the rebates) competitors? Would it be worth it to spend $60 instead of $50 to get the 86% instead of 80% efficiency that the ModXStream version boasts?

 

[Rifter]

Most of those generic ones you listed would have problems keeping up with a 400w Corsair on the 12V rail which is the only one that really matters. Yes OCZ is a step aboue the generic brands, a big step. And yes i would spend the extra cash on the 600w if crossfire is a serious possibility, the efficency doesnt really matter too much, yeah it will save you a few bucks a year on hydro but IMO if your PSU is over 80% thats good enough unless you are running a room full of computers 24/7.

 

[alexruiz]

I have the OCZ stealthXStream 600W. Despite the glowing reviews and the quad 12 V rails, the power supply IS NOT crossfire capable. It cannot handle Radeon HD4830 x 2

 

[Hastibe]

I have the OCZ stealthXStream 600W. Despite the glowing reviews and the quad 12 V rails, the power supply IS NOT crossfire capable. It cannot handle Radeon HD4830 x 2

Shoot, really? What happened? Has anyone else had this problem?

 

[Jhatfie]

I have the OCZ stealthXStream 600W. Despite the glowing reviews and the quad 12 V rails, the power supply IS NOT crossfire capable. It cannot handle Radeon HD4830 x 2

That is weird, I had no problem with the StealthXStream 600W and a cheap crossfire build I did for a friend a couple months ago using dual 5750's (Max PSU budget was $50 so the 600W is what we decided on). It has been a rock solid rig so far. The 5750's do draw less power than 4830's though. To be noted though the StealthXStream 600W does have quad 12v rails rated at 18A each, however the max amp's it can deliver across all 4 in total is 44A. That is however more than the 41A total on the 12v rail that the Corair VX550W has available for instance.

However I would suggest giving yourself extra headroom if you can afford it and aim for 650W or above if you can if you are serious about going crossfire in the future. Corsair 650TX (52A max total on 12v rail) is worth the extra $25 over the StealthXStream 600W or even the OCZ StealthXStream 700W (50A total max on 12v) which is only $10 more at $60 AR right now which is a good deal. Spending a little more now can save you headaches later.

 

[Hastibe]

To be noted though the StealthXStream 600W does have quad 12v rails rated at 18A each, however the max amp's it can deliver across all 4 in total is 44A.

Ah, I was looking for that information! How/where did you find out that the max amps it can deliver is 44A?

 

[alexruiz]

That is weird, I had no problem with the StealthXStream 600W and a cheap crossfire build I did for a friend a couple months ago using dual 5750's (Max PSU budget was $50 so the 600W is what we decided on). It has been a rock solid rig so far. The 5750's do draw less power than 4830's though. To be noted though the StealthXStream 600W does have quad 12v rails rated at 18A each, however the max amp's it can deliver across all 4 in total is 44A. That is however more than the 41A total on the 12v rail that the Corair VX550W has available for instance.

However I would suggest giving yourself extra headroom if you can afford it and aim for 650W or above if you can if you are serious about going crossfire in the future. Corsair 650TX (52A max total on 12v rail) is worth the extra $25 over the StealthXStream 600W or even the OCZ StealthXStream 700W (50A total max on 12v) which is only $10 more at $60 AR right now which is a good deal. Spending a little more now can save you headaches later.

I have a Phenom II X4 955 BE, 4 optical drives and 3 HDDs. I am sure it could drive dual 5750, or even the dual 4830 in a rig with only 1 ODD and 1 HDD. The problem with the OCZ is that 2 of the 12V rails are dedicated only to the CPU, and only one rail goes to the PCI express connectors.

I replaced it with a Topower Zumax 750W, that also has quad 12 V rails (max 50A in 12 V rails) and that one drives the 2 4830s no problem

 

[Jhatfie]

Ah, I was looking for that information! How/where did you find out that the max amps it can deliver is 44A?

I was using the list here for the info: http://forums.guru3d.com/showthread.php?t=205763

However according to my calculations, according to the PSU labeling the max wattage over the 12v rail is 580W, which I believe is 48.3A. So not sure which is correct.

 

[Hastibe]

Hmm, so, are y'all sure I can't just use my 430W Thermaltake PSU for my build? The PSU provides 18A on the +12V rail...

My graphics card (HD 5770) says it needs a 450W PSU, and these power consumption tests by Xbitlabs indicate that the HD 5770 needs about 7 amps at max load. My CPU (Athlon II X4 930) requires 95W (at least, that's what it lists under "Thermal Design Power" on the AMD site), which translates into 8 amps (right?)... Is there anything else that's going to be on the +12V rails (DVD/hard drives, RAM, or motherboard)?

Because, if not, then the total +12V requirement for gaming on my computer would be 15 amps, which means an 18A +12V rail should be fine, right?

(Or did I miss something or would 15 amps be stressing it an 18A max load too much?)

 

[Hastibe]

P.S. Here's the list of PSUs I'm eyeing now, if my 430W PSU isn't enough (see above, please):

HIGHER QUALITY

Thermaltake TR2 W0379RU 500W $40 +12V1@25A,+12V2@18A
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...0TR2%20W0379RU

OCZ StealthXStream 600W $50 +12V1@18A,+12V2@18A,+12V3@18A,+12V4@18A
OCZ ModXStream Pro 500W $50 +12V1@18A,+12V2@18A
OCZ ModXStream Pro 600w $55 +12V1@25A,+12V2@25A


DISPUTED QUALITY(?)

COOLMAX NW-650B 650W $40 +12V1@16A,+12V2@16A,+12V3@16A
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817159082

RAIDMAX HYBRID 2 RX-530SS 530W $40 +12V1@20A,+12V2@17A
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817152028

COOLMAX CU-700B 700W $50 +12V1@18A,+12V2@16A,+12V3@16A
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817159089

COOLMAX CL-700B 700W $50 +12V1@16A,+12V2@16A,+12V3@16A,+12V4@12A
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817159107

TOPOWER ZU-550W 550W $50 +12V1@20A, +12V2@20A
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817101021

Rosewill Green Series RG530-S12 530W $55 +12V@41A
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817182199

 

[Hastibe]

Alright, decided to go with the OCZ ModXStream Pro 600w--just ordered it off of Newegg.com!

 

[la_guy]

Stay with Corsair and you will be ok.

 

[Meghan54]

Stay with Corsair and you will be ok.

That's what I was thinking, or an Antec TruePower New.

His list is from fair to extrememly poor quality power supplies. None of them scream quality.....or can even speak quality in the same breath as Corsair or Antec.

 

[alexruiz]

Alright, decided to go with the OCZ ModXStream Pro 600w--just ordered it off of Newegg.com!

You should be OK. Good luck

 

[Tristicus]

Thermaltake has always been my go-to brand for quality.