Which PSU should I buy?

crimsonstag84 said:I've included the CPU cooler as well, just in case you decide to try a little overclocking later on:

1 x Fortron Hexa+ 400W, 80+, 1x120
1 x Spire Kepler Rev.2

Total: $126 Futura-IT

Your setup should pull less than 200W under full load—so there's really no need to go bigger; this unit can actually handle much beefier components if you upgrade down the road. 😉

Man, what terrible timing... I literally just placed the order for my processor, and they already notified me that it's been shipped. Now it feels a bit pointless to reorder everything since I managed to get my CPU with just one shipping charge. I'll take a look at those local shops in the area for the power supply you suggested, and as for the cooling—I suppose the stock cooler and fan should be fine for now, at least until I decide to dive into some overclocking. Thanks, 🎉

So at Best Buy, things are a bit pricier and they don't have the Hexa+ power supplies in stock, but this one seems slightly better quality and more powerful:

http://www.bestbuy.com/power-supply-example

Cooler:

http://www.bestbuy.com/cooler-example

I’m still leaning towards that XFX from AMD for about $55.

What's the cheapest power supply option to run this setup? A case works too, if that's the budget move. 😬

Intel C2Q Q8200
Asrock P45D
2x2gb ram
ECS 8800GT 512mb
320gb hdd

When I say cheapest, I mean bottom-of-the-barrel cheap—just enough to keep things running under "normal" conditions, not pushing it through a marathon stress test. 😉

If you're really looking to go the budget route with a power supply, this is probably your best bet. Click. I'm not quite sure what you mean by that—could you clarify? $13 It’s definitely more expensive—but honestly, you get what you pay for with this one. Click. I could always go with an even cheaper power supply, but honestly—isn't it better to play it safe than to deal with the regret later?

Larry Ortiz5 said:If you're hell-bent on buying a cheap power supply, just go for this one. Click. Or. $13 It’s more expensive, but it's definitely the better choice. Click. I could throw in an even cheaper power supply, but honestly, I’d rather play it safe than deal with the regret later.

Fortron Hexa is decent if you're looking at the price point. Any case? Doesn't really matter what it looks like.

If you're looking at the absolute budget options (up to $50) this is probably your best bet. However, if you're planning on keeping this case for a future upgrade, the one crimsonstag84 linked is an incredible value for the money.

Or you could just stretch $67 and grab my XFX 450 w Core edition.

But honestly? I might end up buying a new power supply, so I was wondering if anyone knows of any 750-800W units that won't break the bank, maybe around $333 max.

Why go with 750W and $333?

Honestly, I’m not sure if my XFX Core edition 450 w is going to cut it for the build I’m eyeing. Those crazy 1000W+ power supplies are just way out of my budget—I saw some of them go for $400. A 750W unit would be perfect, and there’s an XFX option for about 800 bucks. Anyway, I'm just trying to figure out if my current setup can handle the load so I can have a backup plan ready just in case.

You really planning on running dual cards in CF or SLI? Probably not.

Your XFX should handle most things, though maybe you could grab a 550w if you're feeling ambitious, but honestly, you likely don't need more than that.

Chris Robinson25 said:Honestly, I’m not sure if my XFX Core edition 450 w can handle the build I'm looking at. Those massive 1000W+ units seem way overpriced to me, especially since I saw some starting around $400. Maybe 750W would be the sweet spot; I think there's an XFX model for about 800. Either way, I just don't know if my current PSU will cut it, so I probably need a backup plan just in case.

Wait, you'd really go for a 750W power supply just for an Intel Core I5 4690 k and an R9 280? 😁

That setup of yours probably pulls less than 300W even under full load.

The XFX website lists a beefy XFX 750W power supply under their recommended specs for this card. 😬 So now you're thinking the same thing, Chris Robinson25. 😁

Chris Robinson25 said:The XFX site lists a beefy XFX 750W PSU under their recommended specs for this card. 😬 So maybe listen to Chris for once. 😁>

Honestly, just grab a 1500W unit and call it a day.😁

Don't sweat the small stuff...

Chris Robinson25 said:On the XFX page under the recommended specs for this card, they suggest using a beefy XFX 750W power supply. 😬 Now it's your turn to step into Chris Robinson25's shoes. 😁

You’re already the second person today asking me this exact same question about the same graphics card.

Don't bother; whatever they write is just pure guesswork intended to cover their own backs. The term "750W" is completely relative. They have no way of knowing what kind of power supply you're actually running—whether it’s some bottom-tier junk, a decent mid-range unit, or a high-end powerhouse that might slightly undershoot its rated wattage just to squeeze out those Gold or Platinum efficiency certifications. They can't possibly know the actual draw of the rest of your configuration either.
It’s common knowledge exactly how much power a specific configuration pulls, and just as important, exactly how much quality wattage a power supply can actually deliver.

Here’s the total power draw for the entire setup under a full load with that GPU. Click. And that includes pushing the i5 3570K up to 4.2 GHz.

Running an i7 4770K at stock settings. click

I don't want to start a whole new thread over something trivial, but I'm genuinely confused about what's going on with these Fortron units at Micro Center. THIS one and THIS one have identical photos and the exact same wattage, yet there's a glaring price difference. What's the catch? Which of these budget power supplies is actually the better deal?

They clearly aren't the same thing.
http://www.fsp-europe.com/profession...ghs_85plus.php

As for this cheap Fortron unit, there isn't even any info on its rating. It’s likely not 80+ Bronze—probably just some low-end, budget-tier component...

The Fortron 300 w is basically just an MS FSP 300 w, which I guess is probably the best way to go for a budget build. The latter is an SFX unit, and honestly, it seems pretty solid.