Which PSU should I buy?

Try reseating the RAM sticks and pulling the GPU out—just pop them both out and click them back in... might fix it.

Picked up a Seasonic 520W at Best Buy today—pretty happy with the deal 🙂 just one quick question though... I plugged in the 24-pin and the 4-pin CPU connector, but there's another 4-pin right next to it—is that okay to leave alone 🙂 anyway, I'm satisfied with the specs—it's got 6 SATA ports, 6 standard connectors, and even two 6-pin PCIe rails 😉 so I'm planning to upgrade the GPU down the road without worrying about the power supply... was thinking about grabbing a used 8800 GTS—how does that card actually stack up against the ATI 48xx series?

The Radeon 4850 really sits right up there with the GeForce 9800 GTX—which, if you recall, actually holds its own against the 8800 GTS...

Hey there!
I'm currently putting this PC together, and the power supply is the very last thing left on my list to pick out.

So, here's the breakdown: I've got a mini ATX motherboard,
an AMD Athlon II 245 processor,
a basic GPU,
two hard drives,
and 2 sticks of RAM.
I don't actually have a dedicated graphics card yet—just using the integrated graphics for now.

How much wattage do you think I'll need to keep everything running smoothly?

The second one is fine, but if you ever actually plan on buying a decent GPU, you're better off going with the third or fourth option...

driftingpilot8 said:Hey there.
I'm putting a PC together, and the power supply is the last thing on my list.

I've got a mini ATX motherboard,
an AMD Athlon II 245 processor,
a basic GPU,
two hard drives,
and 2 sticks of RAM.
No dedicated graphics card yet, just integrated.

How much wattage do I actually need?

This build is pulling maybe 100W under a normal load, so... honestly, anything on this list will work fine. Even if you decide to slap in some budget graphics card worth about $150 later on.

darkowl72 said:http://www.bestbuy.com/index.php?option...egorija=052712

The second one should suffice, but if you ever intend on picking up a dedicated GPU down the road, you'd be better off going with the third or fourth option...

Are you guys saying an EVGA Series, specifically the EVGA 400W Series for $117 is actually better than a Corsair FSP400-60APN Super Silent for $100.....

Everyone keeps pushing that Corsair unit because they mistakenly think it’s actually a high-end model, but it really isn't. 🙂

The EVGA series is a significantly better choice than that underpowered Corsair.

Thanks.

Thanks so much for all the help, everyone!

Just one more quick thing for you guys—I've got this old PATA hard drive, and my motherboard has an ATA connector, so I think we're good there, right?
So, here's the real kicker though... what about the power side of things? Can a "modern" power supply actually handle a vintage drive like this?

yeah

The price gap between a 400W and a 600W power supply is basically $47

I'd say just grab the higher wattage one; you probably won't run into any headaches down the road when you're using it long-term or eventually decide to throw in some extra components.

Someone above mentioned that we're only talking about a 100W difference, but I can't help but laugh at that. Sure, everything is optimized and parts are what they are, but power draw isn't actually going down—if anything, it's rising because hardware keeps getting more powerful, and component performance is always tied directly to current and voltage.

So, yeah, just get the beefier unit and don't listen to those people who claim you can take a chassis meant for a compact sedan and expect it to handle a heavy-duty truck engine.

Morgan Moore37 said:the price gap between a 400W and a 600W power supply is $47

just grab a beefier one... you won't have any headaches down the road when you're using it long-term or if you decide to throw in more components later.

some guy above mentioned it's only a 100W difference, but honestly, I can't help but laugh at that. sure, everything is optimized and parts are what they are, but power draw doesn't just magically drop; it actually goes up because modern components are getting more powerful, and component wattage is directly proportional to current and voltage.

so yeah, get the bigger unit and stop listening to people who tell you that you can run a high-end rig on a starter chassis meant for a budget commuter car and claim it'll hold up.

No offense intended, but you are completely wrong here.
600W for that specific setup 🙏

What’s the deal with Zachary Wilson30

Well, looking at the whole picture, except maybe for the gap between 400 and 600W $47, I don't know, I really can't be bothered to go check...
First off, you can't just compare a budget Codagen 400W unit to something from Seasonic or Enermax of the same wattage. It’s not even close—it's night and day.
It's true that having extra headroom is always a good idea, but in his specific case, if he actually drops a 5870 in there, a 380W Seasonic will handle it without breaking a sweat.
So now the components are "too powerful," is that it? Go ahead, look up the actual TDP of this AMD Athlon II 245 and those older 65nm generation chips.

quoting;

"component power is proportional to current and voltage"

I honestly have nothing to say to that, and frankly, I'm losing my will to even continue this argument until you take a moment to educate yourself on the absolute basics.

So, what do you guys think about
Or maybe

Seasonic—without even a second thought...

Does it actually make sense to drop as much cash on a power supply as I am on my CPU (like $500) or my motherboard ($470)? I mean, if people start yelling at me for being crazy, I’m just gonna regret it even more... 😁

driftingpilot8 said:Is there actually any logic in spending the same amount—or even more—on a power supply than I would for my CPU (say $500) or my motherboard ($470)? If I do this, people are probably going to yell at me for being foolish... 😁

You should always be willing to shell out a little extra for a power supply—though, I suppose, that only applies if you're buying something actually reliable, like a reputable brand and a proven series. At the end of the day, a motherboard or a processor isn't going to complain about having a high-quality power supply feeding it.

Morgan Moore37 Asks:
Someone up there claims this is a 100W build? Honestly, I can't help but laugh. Sure, maybe everything has been stripped down to the bare essentials, but that doesn't mean power consumption drops. If anything, it’s the opposite. Components are getting more powerful by the day, and power draw scales directly with voltage and current. It's just basic physics.

Look, just get something more powerful. Don't listen to those guys claiming you can slap a 1.6L engine into a Mustang chassis and expect it to hold up. Seriously? You think that’s going to work?

Look, you’re famous for suggesting a thousand-watt power supply for a build like this, but some users actually possess something called a power meter. They have similar rigs sitting right in front of them, so a manual measurement carries a lot more weight than your sarcasm. 😉

Look, I already told you: this is a 100W build. And honestly? I couldn't care less what you think about it. 😁