Formula 1: Is a 500W power supply enough?

I'm looking at putting together a new PC build with these parts >
1. Gigabyte 970A-UD3P AM3+ socket
2. AMD AM3+ FX-6300
3. EVGA PCIe Nvidia GTX 650 4GB GDDR5 - GV-N650OC-4GI
4. Kingston 4GB 1600MHz CL10 DIMM DDR3
5. Cooler Master - Hyper 212 EVO
6. Western Digital SATA3 500GB 16MB Seagate Barracuda 7200

So—to get to the point of this thread—"Is a 500W power supply going to cut it, or do I need to step things up?"
Thanks in advance

If the quality is actually there, then yeah, I think we could definitely use more of them. Honestly, who knows how much power that GPU pulls when it's running at full load?

Look, just to be safe—I'll toss in another 50 bucks$33 and grab a 600W power supply instead
. Maybe I'll even swap out the GPU for something a bit more beefy
.
Thanks anyway

A solid 450 W power supply should handle that setup without breaking a sweat. Honestly, you'll probably find the processor pulls more juice than the graphics card does 😁

swiftnomad95 said:I'm looking at putting together a new PC build with these parts >
1. Gigabyte 970A-UD3P AM3+ socket
2. AMD AM3+ FX-6300
3. EVGA PCIe Nvidia GTX 650 4GB GDDR5 - GV-N650OC-4GI
4. Kingston 4GB 1600MHz CL10 DIMM DDR3
5. Cooler Master - Hyper 212 EVO
6. Western Digital SATA3 500GB 16MB Seagate Barracuda 7200

So—to get to the point of this thread—"Is a 500W power supply going to cut it, or do I need to step things up?"
Thanks in advance

What are you using the computer for, and what's your budget? If you're looking to game, you might want to rethink that build because that GPU isn't really up to par 🙂 I don't know how many times this question gets asked on this forum, but look—it’s not just about how many Watts a PSU "has"; other factors matter way more. A cheap Linkworld 600W unit can be significantly worse than a 360W Seasonic. Regarding your specific setup, an EVGA 450 W is a solid best buy, as usual 🙂

So

Which power supply are you using exactly?

Why the GTX 650? I mean, it's fine if you just need a card for specific software, but for actual gaming, you can find much better value elsewhere—even from AMD. For instance, over at $33 you can even grab an

http://www.amazon.com/s?k=gtx+750

I’m not building a high-end rig for anything special—my dad just wants to browse the web, my mom needs her cards, and my sister stays on Facebook and those mindless apps. Same deal for YouTube.
As far as I'm concerned, the only thing that matters is running Warcraft III, Red Alert 2, StarCraft, and a few other "old school" classics—I don't bother with modern games because they're basically just old games with better graphics and zero actual story.
My current PC can barely even handle YouTube—it stutters, freezes, hangs, lags... it's honestly a piece of junk.
So, I’m grabbing this setup to give myself some peace of mind for the next decade—plus, now I can actually play Red Alert 2 and Warcraft III with my partner. (:
+ I also need it for a few specific programs and so I can finally watch movies on the TV without the PC being tied up.

*Sorry, it isn't > "3. Gigabyte PCIe NVIDIA GTX 650 4GB GDDR5 - GV-N650OC-4GI"
it's actually >>> "3. EVGA GeForce GTX 650 OC 2GB GDDR5"

swiftnomad95 said:I’m not building a high-end rig for anything special—my dad just wants to browse the web, my mom needs her cards, and my sister stays on Facebook and those mindless apps. Same deal for YouTube.
As far as I'm concerned, the only thing that matters is running Warcraft III, Red Alert 2, StarCraft, and a few other "old school" classics—I don't bother with modern games because they're basically just old games with better graphics and zero actual story.
My current PC can barely even handle YouTube—it stutters, freezes, hangs, lags... it's honestly a piece of junk.
So, I’m grabbing this setup to give myself some peace of mind for the next decade—plus, now I can actually play Red Alert 2 and Warcraft III with my partner. (:
+ I also need it for a few specific programs and so I can finally watch movies on the TV without the PC being tied up.

*Sorry, it isn't > "3. Gigabyte PCIe NVIDIA GTX 650 4GB GDDR5 - GV-N650OC-4GI"
it's actually >>> "3. EVGA GeForce GTX 650 OC 2GB GDDR5"

Well, you might find an even cheaper deal if those are the only games you plan on playing; there's no need for a massive bulldozer 🙂 Just grab a Pentium G3220 and a GPU like the one suggested, and you'll get much more bang for your buck since your expectations aren't that high anyway. How much were you planning to spend on this new setup?

Adam Moore3 said:Well, you might find an even cheaper deal if those are the only games you plan on playing; there's no need for a massive bulldozer 🙂 Just grab a Pentium G3220 and a GPU like the one suggested, and you'll get much more bang for your buck since your expectations aren't that high anyway. How much were you planning to spend on this new setup?

around $1000 (already have the HDD and RAM +$1000) and I want zero upgrades for at least 10 years—assuming nothing dies, obviously—though maybe adding another 4GB of RAM later.
If I decide to play anything even remotely modern, I'll just swap in a better GPU and call it a day...

With an AMD FX 6300, what’s the best GPU I can pair it with without totally bottlenecking the system?

That was my approach with my current PC when I bought it 11 years ago, and it's still kicking.

swiftnomad95 said:around $1000 (already have the HDD and RAM +$1000) and I want zero upgrades for at least 10 years—assuming nothing dies, obviously—though maybe adding another 4GB of RAM later.
If I decide to play anything even remotely modern, I'll just swap in a better GPU and call it a day...

With an AMD FX 6300, what’s the best GPU I can pair it with without totally bottlenecking the system?

That was my approach with my current PC when I bought it 11 years ago, and it's still kicking.

Nobody can promise you a computer will last 10 years. A lightning strike could fry it in two, making that $10,000 investment totally useless, or it might last until you decide to sell it for scrap metal or silicon or whatever. 😁 Regarding the FX, it's a pretty decent processor; I think pairing it with an R9 290 would be fine, though it really depends on the specific game. You should check some benchmarks to be sure, but honestly, you shouldn't worry about that within your budget. Have you actually calculated the total cost yet? I'm not sure if the whole setup with that FX and GPU will fit under $1000... If you're looking for a $3,000 build, here's how I'd approach it:

1 x Asrock FM2A88M EXTREME4+, FM2,FM2+, AMD A88X (Bolton-D4), DDR3
1 x AMD Trinity Athlon II X4 740 3.20GHz 4cores
1 x DDR3 4GB (1x4GB) Crucial, 1600MHz CL11
1 x ASUS R7260-1GD5, AMD Radeon, R7260, PCIe 3.0, 1024 MB, DDR5
1 x TOSHIBA 1TB, 7200rpm, SATA 6 Gb/s, 32MB, DT01ACA100
1 x Spire Kepler Rev.2 ,hladnjak, 1156/755/FM1, 96.5×51×125 mm ,92mm
1 x Zalman ZM600-LX Power Supply, 600W

$980 techforum.com

Quad-core CPU, a decently powerful GPU, a terabyte hard drive, and an aftermarket cooler. If you happen to be interested in overclocking, just throw in an Athlon 750 k and go for it. 🙂 You'll have a much stronger machine for gaming, and it'll handle everything else without breaking a sweat. It's just a more balanced configuration. 😉

EDIT: Just realized you mentioned you already have the RAM and HDD, so feel free to cut those out and just stick with the rest. Save the extra cash and use it to (find 😛) take a girl out on a date, or just spend it on food and drinks. 😬

My apologies—I edited this post a bit late... I already have the HDD and RAM, which puts me at about $233...
HDD and RAM +$1000

swiftnomad95 said:My apologies—I edited this post a bit late... I already have the HDD and RAM, which puts me at about $233...
HDD and RAM +$1000

I updated my post too, you can check it out. Basically, just cut those two items from the budget and keep the rest of the money. In my opinion, there's really no need to go for a higher-end setup given what you're looking for. If you're really itching to spend that extra $233, then maybe look into getting an SSD. 😁

Would you overclock it?

For web browsing, YouTube, and strategy games, even a Pentium or an i3 would be perfectly fine for you...
If you want to max out your budget, an i5 will fit:

1 x Intel Core i5-4440 Processor (3.10GHz,1MB,6MB,84 W,1150) Box
1 x Asrock s1150 H81M-HDS - Intel H81, M-ATX, dual Channel 2 xDDR3
1 x CORSAIR 430W Power Supply, CX Series 80+ Bronze, EPS12V v2.3, 80+
1 x MSI GTX750 1GB DDR5, N750-1GD5
1 x Zalman ZM-T1 PLUS micro tower case. 189(W) x 427,5(H) x 364(D)mm

$993

Do you also need a monitor (I noticed you didn't include one in your list) and a case?

The CPU might be slightly overkill for what you actually need, but if you're planning to ride this PC for years to come, it could be a smart move. With a stronger graphics card, you'll be able to play all the modern titles—though you could also go with an i3 paired with a more powerful GPU. That includes newer versions of those classics you mentioned, like Starcraft 2, Red Alert 3, and so on...

EDIT

Now, if you truly only care about those old-school games like Red Alert 2, Warcraft 3, Starcraft 1, etc., then you are essentially throwing money away on a brand-new rig. Those ancient titles can be crushed by a prehistoric PC. If you really need a new machine just for that, you should probably just grab a Celeron like the $100 g1820. It’s more than enough power for those games, and since it has integrated graphics, it'll handle them easily while saving you a massive amount of cash.

Kimberly Gomez34 said:Would you overclock it?

For web browsing, YouTube, and strategy games, even a Pentium or an i3 would be perfectly fine for you...
If you want to max out your budget, an i5 will fit:

1 x Intel Core i5-4440 Processor (3.10GHz,1MB,6MB,84 W,1150) Box
1 x Asrock s1150 H81M-HDS - Intel H81, M-ATX, dual Channel 2 xDDR3
1 x CORSAIR 430W Power Supply, CX Series 80+ Bronze, EPS12V v2.3, 80+
1 x MSI GTX750 1GB DDR5, N750-1GD5
1 x Zalman ZM-T1 PLUS micro tower case. 189(W) x 427,5(H) x 364(D)mm

$993

Do you also need a monitor (I noticed you didn't include one in your list) and a case?

The CPU might be slightly overkill for what you actually need, but if you're planning to ride this PC for years to come, it could be a smart move. With a stronger graphics card, you'll be able to play all the modern titles—though you could also go with an i3 paired with a more powerful GPU. That includes newer versions of those classics you mentioned, like Starcraft 2, Red Alert 3, and so on...

EDIT

Now, if you truly only care about those old-school games like Red Alert 2, Warcraft 3, Starcraft 1, etc., then you are essentially throwing money away on a brand-new rig. Those ancient titles can be crushed by a prehistoric PC. If you really need a new machine just for that, you should probably just grab a Celeron like the $100 g1820. It’s more than enough power for those games, and since it has integrated graphics, it'll handle them easily while saving you a massive amount of cash.

I honestly think it's total overkill for him; an i5 just to play Frozen Throne🤣 I tried to suggest a middle ground: a quad-core CPU with a decent GPU while still saving some cash. But like you said, he could easily stick with a Celeron or a Pentium and everything will be fine, at least regarding his specific requirements..

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 450, you can find this thing $107 pretty much everywhere. Honestly, you won't find a better deal. 😉