New Overclocker. PSU Advice

[metzgerov]

Hey guys great site!

I am upgrading for the first time in 5 years! (dimension 8200 P4 2.4ghz)
I did a lot of research in best bang for really low buck
Heres what I am getting

e4400 W Arctic Freezing Freezer 7 Pro
gigabyte GA-P35-DSR
Crucial Ballistix PC2 6400 2GB
2X 250GB HDD
Soundblaster Audigy 4
ATI X1950XT
RAidmax 500W PSU 12V 22A (came with Smiloden case)

I will have everything shipped for $600.
I plan on over clocking to 3GHZ
I play 90% racing sims (gtr2,R-Factor)

First off I am worried about the psu with the X1950XT since I heard its a power hog. I definitely dont want to blow up all my new stuff...but I dont want to spend $$ if I dont have to. I am aware the psu is very important so I think I might need to upgrade.

If so I believe a single rail high 12v works better with this type of card.
Any suggestions and how much 12v should I need. Any affordable PSU's you could suggest for my system? This is the only thing I am unsure about and would like some expert advice.

Thanks!!

 

[JEDIYoda]

I would be concerned about the PSU also not because as you say its a power hog...

It`s just not a good pSU at all!!

Your over clocking....should have saved your money and possibly purchased an Antec case with an Antec PSU!!

Personally I don`t recommend Antec PSU all that much but in your case IMO the Antec PSU that comes bundled is far superior to the raidmax PSU!!

Peace!!

 

[metzgerov]

Well thats what I wanted to hear. I have no issues getting a new PSU considering the one with the case was cheaper than the one without..??? So I will sell it and get a good PSU.

My real question is how many amps will be sufficient on the 12v rail? Is 30A enough?

 

[MarcVenice]

30a should suffice for a 1950xt, that's what ATI themself say. My 8800gts runs fine on 30a too, so I can't imagine a 1950xt struggling on 30a. Depending on how much you would want to spend you have several options. A cheap option is the antec earthwatts 430w, http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16817371006

If you can spend more, I'd go with something like an enhance for around 80$ or with this one: http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16817139003

 

[metzgerov]

Thanks Marc! I will prolly go with the better psu (enhance or corsair) so when I upgrade in the future I wont have to upgrade the psu as well. Thanks for the help guys.

 

[John]

RAidmax 500W PSU 12V 22A (came with Smiloden case)

That psu is garbage to put it politely. It would probably pop under a 300W load. A quality 500W psu would have at least 34A on the 12V rail. Both of the psu's that MarcVenice mentioned are high quality Seasonic built units. If you are trying to future proof things you may want to consider a more powerful psu such as the Corsair HX520 or HX620.

 

[metzgerov]

Like I said it came with the case. I never planned on using it really.

I like the HX620 as well. Shouldnt need more power than that for a while.

Thanks for the help. 5 years without looking at a pc component to buying/building my 1st system was daunting. Thanks to sites like this I found out everything i needed!