PSU recommendations?

Hey guys, I need some help picking out a new power supply. 🍿

Here’s what I'm running right now:

Intel Core i5 2320 3.0 GHz Sapphire HD7850
Sapphire HD7850
8GB DDR3
2x SATA HDD

I've currently got an EVGA 450 W inside that's been keeping this whole setup alive for about a year, but man... I think it's struggling. It's a total veteran, 7 years old already, and this is actually the third build it's powered up. One time the fan actually seized up on me and the thing got crazy hot—okay, maybe not glowing red, but close enough😁—and there was definitely a weird smell coming from it. But hey, no biggie! Swapped the fan out and it's still cruising along just fine. 🍿

It might be better to just shell out $17 a bit more and get an extra 100W of headroom—plus, if you're based in Washington, D.C., you could probably swing by and pick up the power supply in person today or tomorrow. Waiting on shipping from Uzi takes way longer... But hey, it's his call.

I’d definitely go with a beefier power supply. Right now, I’m running an EVGA 450 W, and while it holds its own for a bit, things get sketchy once I start overclocking my CPU to 3.5... It just can't handle the load. My graphics card keeps crashing out on me—the monitor just goes black...

That EVGA 550W unit handles everything like a dream; it's a top-tier power supply. You can overclock to your heart's content without a single worry. 😉

Corsair Raider Silver, 550W

60-month warranty

David Wood2 said:I’d definitely go with a beefier power supply. Right now, I’m running an EVGA 450 W, and while it holds its own for a bit, things get sketchy once I start overclocking my CPU to 3.5... It just can't handle the load. My graphics card keeps crashing out on me—the monitor just goes black...

You're comparing apples to oranges here. You've got an EVGA 500 W XFX providing 34 A on the 12V rail—plus, it's built by Seasonic—so it can handle that load easily. Your overclocked rig isn't even pulling 300 watts total.

Anything is possible! 😁 Getting 34A on the 12V rail sounds pretty solid, especially since my current EVGA unit only puts out about 15A.

A. Enivej, thanks everyone for the advice, I'm gonna weigh all my options before making a call... 👍

David Wood2 said:Anything is possible! 😁 Getting 34A on the 12V rail sounds pretty solid, especially since my current EVGA unit only puts out about 15A.

A. Enivej, thanks everyone for the advice, I'm gonna weigh all my options before making a call... 👍

Your EVGA actually has 29A (15 and 14) on the 12V rail, but it's just too old to deliver that much power anymore.

So how's that split up? Like, which components are getting the 15A and which ones get the 14A? My guess is they've got the transformers and stabilizers totally separate...

David Wood2 said:So how's that split up? Like, which components are getting the 15A and which ones get the 14A? My guess is they've got the transformers and stabilizers totally separate...

http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/...stion-answered

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/...ce,3061-2.html
http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/power-...w-32270-7.html

Thanks!

A. Enivej, so I finally picked up a new PSU, and ended up grabbing an EVGA 500 W XFX since nothing else was in stock and I didn't really have a choice... Never actually heard of this brand before, but the guy at the shop—who's a buddy of mine—told me to go for it. So, here's the lowdown on this thing...

It’s got active PFC, 33A on the 12V rail, an 80 Plus Bronze rating, and all that good stuff. Plus, it was super cheap. Snagged it with a 15% discount for $93. Visually? I'd give it like a +3 or maybe even a -4... The connector plastic feels pretty cheap, honestly, with these sharp, rough edges. Clearly, their quality control isn't exactly top-tier. It's also pretty light compared to my old EVGA unit... maybe just a tiny bit heavier than some Codegen or other no-name junk. On the bright side, all the cables are sleeved, so they're a breeze to manage inside the case. My old Chief didn't have that, and it only had two SATA connectors, which sucked. This one is that "gamer" style 😬 black. The Chief was more of a professional 😬 gray.
Technically speaking, it runs pretty quiet, though it definitely runs hotter than the Chief both at idle and under load. It handles my overclocked i5 at 3.5GHz without breaking a sweat, though...

That’s probably why you don't listen to the staff much 😬

The power supply is just mediocre... it isn't total garbage, but it's definitely not high-quality or efficient.

My Seasonic power supply puts out 40A on the +12V rail—that’s about 480W—so it really only has 20W more than yours. Honestly, though? In terms of actual build quality, it isn't even in the same league as mine. If you had gone with $67 more, you could have actually slept easy knowing your PSU was reliable for the long haul. But hey, you got lucky since all these newer components—especially modern graphics cards—draw way less power than previous generations, so that unit might just scrape by...

If it had been anything else, I totally would've pulled the trigger. But man, I'm so impatient... I just couldn't wait around to order it. 😁
It looks like they cut corners somewhere to keep the price this low, but honestly? Since everything's running smooth, I'm pretty stoked.

David Wood2 said:If it had been anything else, I totally would've pulled the trigger. But man, I'm so impatient... I just couldn't wait around to order it. 😁
It looks like they cut corners somewhere to keep the price this low, but honestly? Since everything's running smooth, I'm pretty stoked.

man...
was waiting one single day really your issue?

standard shipping usually takes a day anyway...

if they can ship a fully built and tested PC rig in one business day, I don't see why they couldn't do the same for a single part.