Which PSU should I buy?

crimsonstag84 said:Cheap power supplies like Delta Electronics, EVGA SuperNOVA, or even some FSP Group units might pull through. But brands like Linkworld, Intel, Microsoft, Logitech, or Maze? That's just straight-up junk. 😛

My EVGA 400 W wasn't some bottom-shelf budget unit when I picked it up.

FSP Group, Thermaltake Toughpower, Corsair RM Series, plus some Delta Electronics and even those Microsoft units aren't actually bad for entry-level builds...

Larry Ortiz5 said:If that unit actually puts out 600W, I’ll run a marathon through the streets of Chicago. Honestly, if you're looking to pick up a power supply and you're eyeing those cheap models just because they claim to have high wattage, you're making a massive mistake. Most of them don't even hit half of what’s printed on the label. It’s much better to save up a little extra cash and buy something reliable instead. I have to say, this power supply is absolutely top-tier. I honestly find myself gravitating toward those folks who just treat their hardware like a literal bucket of junk. $3.25 It’s a bit of a nightmare when you consider how a cheap power supply can fail; if that unit decides to fry itself, it often takes every single other component along for the ride. I’ve seen it happen before, and then you have people panicking and pointing fingers at the retailers, claiming they were sold defective hardware, when really, it was just a case of cutting corners on the most critical part of the build.

I completely agree with that sentiment. I actually have this exact power supply myself, though I ended up handing it off to a good friend of mine just last week. It turns out I don't really need something of such high caliber for my secondary setup, since I'm only using that machine for basic office tasks and browsing the web, whereas he’s planning to use it for some heavy gaming. 😁

Right now, I’m running a 600 or 650W OCZ modular unit in my current build, which I picked up as part of a pre-built system that cost me around $1,500. 😍

I need some advice on this power supply. Is it actually worth buying $83, or should I look for something else entirely?🤷🤷🤷
It’s listed as an EVGA 500 W

Specs here:
• 80+ certified, up to 84% efficiency
• CE certified, Energy Star
• Braided cables

SPECS:
• Wattage: 500W
• ATX version: 2.3
• Fan: ultra-quiet 120mm fan (+20 db)
• PFC: active

CONNECTORS:
• 1x 20 + 4 Pin for motherboard
• 4x 4 Pin Molex 5.25 connectors
• 5x S-ATA connectors
• 1x P4 connector
• 1x 6-pin PCI-e
• 1x 6+2 pin PCI-e
• Cable length: 50 cm
• Color: black
• Warranty: 2 years
I also spotted this other unit at the bottom of the page.
http://hxgamer.com/index.php?modul=r...&p=5&tip=storm
And on the Best Buy site:

If I were you, I'd probably just grab something from a brand you actually recognize.

I'm trying to figure out the actual difference between these two power supplies and which one is the better pick here.

vs.

I already pulled the trigger on the Corsair CX450, so now I'm second-guessing myself. It looks like the Corsair has an 80+ certification while the Corsair CX Series doesn't seem to have one.
Thanks in advance for clearing this up for me.

I think those two power supplies are around here somewhere; maybe the Corsair one is slightly better.

That certification just means the EVGA unit has better efficiency, nothing else.

🤣

Just a quick question for the group... why is it that whenever these two power supplies come up, they’re just "somewhere in the middle," but the moment someone mentions putting an EVGA unit in their rig, everyone immediately starts lecturing them? You know the type—suddenly they're experts on how that specific series "hasn't exactly been reliable." Yet, somehow, that Corsair CX450 is treated like some holy grail that belongs in every single build. (And look, I'm not pointing fingers at any one person here, just talking about the usual crowd on these forums.) It honestly feels a bit ridiculous...

Because it’s just a bit better overall, I guess. At least you won't deal with that annoying buzzing noise you get with the EVGA CX Series.

Jeffrey Peterson said:🤣

Just a quick question... why is it that both of these power supplies are treated as "okay," yet if someone mentions putting that Corsair unit in their PC, everyone suddenly jumps in to say it "isn't great" or that "the series hasn't performed well"? Meanwhile, everyone talks up that Zalman unit like it's the gold standard for every single build? I'm not aiming this directly at you, but rather at the usual crowd on these forums... It feels a bit inconsistent...

It’s because the previous EVGA CX Series (Delta Electronics) was much better. This EVGA CX430 doesn't even come close, despite being in a similar price bracket...
The Corsair CX450 has higher specs, costs less, and performs better. There are plenty of reasons to go with the Corsair...😁

I'm looking to pick up a new power supply because my current one is basically junk at this point. My current setup is an ASUS M2NPV-VM motherboard paired with an AMD Athlon X3 450 CPU - Western Digital Caviar Blue HDD
80GB 7200 RPM 8MB Cache IDE Ultra ATA100 / ATA-6 3.5" hard drive
4GB of DDR2 800MHz RAM
Integrated graphics
The plan is to grab a PSU now, and once I've saved up enough cash, maybe add a dedicated graphics card later on. Does anyone have any recommendations for something that would fit this build? I wouldn't mind something used if it helps keep the cost down... 😁 thanks

So, what's the actual game plan here? Something like this:
http://www.amazon.com/?naziv=napajanje...kl=052.740.030

Or maybe just look for those Corsair CX450 models; you can find them pretty much everywhere...

Honestly, I don't really care where I pick it up... what matters most is that it actually fits inside my case. I need the connectors to match an older motherboard, plus enough juice to run a hard drive, a DVD-ROM, and maybe a low-profile graphics card if I can swing it. And, of course, I’m looking to keep things as budget-friendly as possible.

I mean, you'll probably be fine with those two and whatever else you pick up down the road...

So, I'm looking to pick up a second graphics card and run them in Crossfire. The model I have in mind is an AMD Radeon HD 7850.
My motherboard is an ASUS P8P67 that supports Crossfire; the rest of the build is an i5 2500K with 8 GB of RAM.

The sticking point is the power supply. My EVGA Core edition 450 w is relatively new—only about six months old—but is 450 W actually enough for a setup like this?

I’ve already run this by a few friends, and they all insisted that 450 W is nowhere near enough. Now I'm left wondering if they're right.

Thanks.

If this power supply holds up, we should be fine

That board has pretty weak bandwidth on the second PCI-e slot (it's just x4), so I guess Crossfire scaling is going to be significantly handicapped. Plus, that power supply only has two dedicated PCI-e connectors for GPUs, so you’d probably have to use a Molex adapter. It might hold up, but I think it'll be sweating a little (110+110+95+everything else). 😛

EDIT: Man, I am absolutely wiped out 😬

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/80_PLUS

crimsonstag84 said:That motherboard has pretty weak bandwidth on the second PCI-e slot (it's only x4), so any Crossfire scaling is going to be significantly handicapped. Plus, that power supply only has two dedicated PCI-e connectors for GPUs—you’d probably have to use a Molex adapter to get the second one running. It might hold up, but it'll definitely be sweating a bit (110 + 110 + 95 + everything else). 😛

I'm feeling a little skeptical myself. Could you maybe clarify what that "80+" rating actually means when it comes to power supplies? I tried Googling it, but there's just way too much info out there to make sense of it all. I know there's something about Silver and Gold ratings... if you wouldn't mind explaining it, that would be great.

crimsonstag84 said:That board has poor bandwidth on the second PCI-e slot (running at x4), so any Crossfire scaling is going to be significantly handicapped.

I'm not sure I follow your logic. Are you suggesting that setting up Crossfire isn't even worth the effort?

And yes, the PSU is from the link provided above.

crimsonstag84 said:This power supply only has two PCI-e connectors for the GPUs, I guess.

Looks like that PSU only has one PCI-E connector. I guess.

Larry Ortiz5 said:I’m a little skeptical too. Could someone just clarify what that 80+ rating on power supplies actually means? I tried Googling it, but there's way too much noise to make sense of it. I know there's stuff like Silver and Gold, so if you don't mind explaining, that would be great.

Power supply efficiency. A PSU doesn't actually convert all the juice it pulls from the wall; some of it just vanishes. It’s kind of like how old light bulbs waste a ton of energy as heat—power supplies do the same thing.
An 80 Plus cert just means the power supply is decent at efficiency. You can probably find all the specifics if you check out the wiki.

ruggedraven10 said:I'm not sure I follow what you're getting at here. Are you basically saying that setting up Crossfire isn't even worth the hassle?

Yeah, that power supply is the one from the link above.

Yeah, it’s probably not worth it. I mean, why even bother with Crossfire when that single card is already pretty beefy?