Top budget gaming rig PSU? No rebate?

[VirtualLarry]

I guess my two contenders are the Corsair CX430, and the Antec VP-450. I personally prefer the Antec.

Any others that should be mentioned? CoolerMaster? Ultra?

How bad does this CM 460 suck? Worth saving $10 over a VP-450?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817171046

 

[lehtv]

CM doesn't have any decent budget units as far as I'm aware.

Corsair CX series is where it's at, at least in the US. Their efficiency and warranty is a little better than Antec's VP series... I don't really see a point in preferring Antec unless it's cheaper.

In Europe, CX series is as expensive as XFX Core, and XFX is definitely a better pick with 5 year warranty and better caps.

 

[Torn Mind]

http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/Cooler-Master-GX-450-W-Power-Supply-Review/1234
This is probably the best-received budget CM unit out there. It's the 450W member of the GX series. Comes with a 5-year warrant and you need to play rebate roulette.

The CM Elite Power 460 W unit is actually almost the same as its 400 W cousin and was tested to pull only 400W tops. You're out of warranty after a year though. Its ripple control is also staying within the bare minimum of staying in spec. It is not worth it over the VP-450.

http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/Cooler-Master-Elite-Power-460-W-Power-Supply-Review/1005

 

[C2bcool]

I recently used a Corsair CX430M in a build for my dad. Very nice little unit, good cables, and semi modular which is nice. I got it for $29.99 AR, but now its at $39.99 AR. So if you don't care about modular I would would go with the CX430.

Actually the CX500 has a good sale right now....w/ a $10 promo code and $20 rebate makes it $29.99 AR. Good deal IMHO.

 

[VirtualLarry]

I ended up going with the 350W Enermax NAXN PSU from Newegg for $29.99 FS. It has one PCI-E 6-pin power connector.

 

[Nec_V20]

VirtualLarry,

When I read "Top budget" in the title of your thread I thought you meant "Money no object".

 

[kmmatney]

I have this unit running in one of my son's computers - a computer mainly for gaming with an AMD Quad core processor and an HD6850 video card.

http://www.microcenter.com/product/367692/Gold_Series_ILG-400-2_400_Watt_ATX_Power_Supply

I bought one of these as a spare to have around, but I was actually surprised at how well it was made (it has some "heft"), and so Idecided to try it on my sons computer, which was having issues with crashing. This PSU made everything stable, and it's been running fine for 2 years now. The fan is very quiet, and the cables were all sleeved nicely. I couldn't really ask for much more from a $28 PSU.

Edit: That Enermax looks really good for the price as well can't go wrong with that.

 

[lehtv]

That Inland unit may be reliable enough when it's still new and when it isn't pushed too hard. It has low efficiency (<80% which is funny given the "Gold" moniker) and probably low quality capacitors, both of which are a bane to longevity. Despite being a "400 watt" unit, it is most likely not capable of continuous power delivery at anywhere near such a level. The +12V rail is only rated for 20A or 240W, typical for an average 300 watt unit.

I would not recommend it to anyone unless paying only a few bucks for it and using it in a low cost computer. For most people it's better to get a cheap Antec VP, Corsair CX or even Corsair VS.

 

[Torn Mind]

I have this unit running in one of my son's computers - a computer mainly for gaming with an AMD Quad core processor and an HD6850 video card.

http://www.microcenter.com/product/367692/Gold_Series_ILG-400-2_400_Watt_ATX_Power_Supply

I bought one of these as a spare to have around, but I was actually surprised at how well it was made (it has some "heft"), and so Idecided to try it on my sons computer, which was having issues with crashing. This PSU made everything stable, and it's been running fine for 2 years now. The fan is very quiet, and the cables were all sleeved nicely. I couldn't really ask for much more from a $28 PSU.

Edit: That Enermax looks really good for the price as well can't go wrong with that.

The PSU the Inland replaced might have been equal to or worse than the Inland.

The quality of a PSU is not easy to tangibly discern, save for the fan, The most important aspects of the PSU is circuit design, good soldering, and the selection of electronic components(i.e capacitors, resistors) for the PSU. To get hard evidence that the PSU is good in those departments involves opening it up and then testing it out. The casing is not quite as important as these things

It is what is attached to the printed circuit board(PCB) and whether they are attached well that is critical for PSU performance. In addition, the presence of protection circuits for shorts, overvoltage, undervoltage, over current, under current, and over temperature protection circuit.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Well, I just found out that the NAXN PSUs aren't actually made by Enermax, but instead, are contracted out to Sirfa, which is a mediocre PSU maker.

Edit: Going by the HardOCP review of the 750W model. Couldn't find any reviews of the 300W model.
http://www.hardocp.com/article/2011/05/04/enermax_naxn_750w_power_supply_unit_review/

 

[lehtv]

Link? Realhardtechx claims they are mostly CWT made, a couple of Sirtecs and FSP's, none of which are crap.

 

[Sohaltang]

What GPU are you planning? 400 watts seems a bit low for a gaming rig especialy if your overclocking

 

[VirtualLarry]

What GPU are you planning? 400 watts seems a bit low for a gaming rig especialy if your overclocking

It's a 350W PSU, and the CPU is a G1610, and the GPU is going to be a 7790. I might also stick one of these PSUs into a Lenovo i3 rig.

 

[aigomorla]

VirtualLarry,

When I read "Top budget" in the title of your thread I thought you meant "Money no object".

rofl thank god im not the only one..

i was about to pop in and go AX1200i


Anyhow for budget.. i always chose Corsair CX430
Its pretty hard to beat it for its price / value.

Sometimes frys will have a local sale even for like 30 dollars.