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Gold certified PSU

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  • Power Supplies
  • Components
Last response: in Components
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October 15, 2013 11:59:01 AM

Hello,

I had to give away my PSU so I am buying a new one. I noticed that there are Bronze, Gold, etc certified PSUs and the best one saves the most energy, right?

Which PSU brand is the best?
I need a PSU that
- can handle my computer and more since I will be using it when I upgrade in the future. I don't use a dual GPU system right now but we don't know if it's suddenly going to become a lot more common and affordable in the future so it should definitely be good enough for that as well.
- saves the most energy so I assume Gold but maybe there is a better?
- it has to be modular because I want to be able to take cables in and out, unless there is a better version of modular these days
- it has to be a good brand. I was told Corsair is the best but others say Cooler Master is so I don't know which


This is my system
Case: NZXT Phantom
Mainboard: MSI Z87-G45 Gaming
SSD: Samsung SSD 830 Series 256GB
CPU: Intel Core i5 4670
RAM: Kingston HyperX Blu 1x8 GB DDR3-1600
GFX: Asus AMD Radeon HD 7970 Matrix Platinum

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October 15, 2013 12:14:16 PM

Corsair say on their website that the gold PSUs are for gaming rigs that need to be stable but why?
http://www.corsair.com/us/power-supply-units/hx-series-...

Platinum seems to be better but they don't say anything about gaming there. Are the gaming PSUs really more stable or is this just advertising and the platinum one's are better?
http://www.corsair.com/us/power-supply-units/ax-series-...

Some PSUs say that they are digital while other's of the same brand are not. What does this mean?
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a b ) Power supply
October 15, 2013 12:22:42 PM

Platinum PSUs are a little more efficient than the Gold ones.. You can see the differences in their efficiency in the following link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/80_Plus

I'd go for the gold one, because you get all the efficiency you require from a PSU.. You'll be wasting money on the Platinum as there is minimal difference between the two.
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a c 2488 ) Power supply
October 15, 2013 12:40:02 PM

Seasonic is #1
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a b ) Power supply
October 15, 2013 12:46:44 PM

Seasonic is one of the #1 psu's... Corsair is equally good!
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a c 2488 ) Power supply
October 15, 2013 12:47:08 PM

Your ram should be 2 - 4 gb modules , so that it will perform better.
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a c 2488 ) Power supply
October 15, 2013 12:53:24 PM

XFX is top of the line, because all XFX units are made by SEASONIC.

Buy the XFX.
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Best solution

a c 1218 ) Power supply
October 15, 2013 12:56:06 PM

For a system using a single ASUS HD 7970 Matrix Platinum graphics card ASUS specifies a minimum of a 650 Watt or greater system power supply. The power supply should also have a maximum combined +12 Volt continuous current rating of 42 Amps or greater and have at least two 8-pin PCI Express supplementary power connectors.

For a system using two ASUS HD 7970 Matrix Platinum graphics cards in 2-way CrossFireX mode a minimum of an 950 Watt or greater system power supply is recommended. The power supply should also have a maximum combined +12 Volt continuous current rating of 66 Amps or greater and have at least four 8-pin PCI Express supplementary power connectors.

Total Power Supply Wattage is NOT the crucial factor in power supply selection!!! Sufficient Total Combined Continuous Power/Current Available on the +12V Rail(s) rated at 45°C - 50°C ambient temperature, is the most critical factor.

Overclocking of the CPU and/or GPU(s) may require an additional increase to the maximum combined +12 Volt continuous current ratings, recommended above, to meet the increase in power required for the overclock. The additional amount required will depend on the magnitude of the overclock being attempted.

Don't be so focused on 80 PLUS levels. 80 PLUS certification is directed at PSU manufacturers, not consumers. Manufacturers will use 80 PLUS certification in their marketing material to lure uninformed customers. It doesn't mean that the PSU is electrically a better performer than one that is certified at a lower 80 PLUS level.

Tight voltage regulation, low electrical noise and ripple levels and high component quality are vastly more important than energy efficiency.
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a b ) Power supply
October 15, 2013 1:02:38 PM

+1 for the XFX
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October 15, 2013 1:37:51 PM

ko888 said:
For a system using a single ASUS HD 7970 Matrix Platinum graphics card ASUS specifies a minimum of a 650 Watt or greater system power supply. The power supply should also have a maximum combined +12 Volt continuous current rating of 42 Amps or greater and have at least two 8-pin PCI Express supplementary power connectors.

For a system using two ASUS HD 7970 Matrix Platinum graphics cards in 2-way CrossFireX mode a minimum of an 950 Watt or greater system power supply is recommended. The power supply should also have a maximum combined +12 Volt continuous current rating of 66 Amps or greater and have at least four 8-pin PCI Express supplementary power connectors.

Total Power Supply Wattage is NOT the crucial factor in power supply selection!!! Sufficient Total Combined Continuous Power/Current Available on the +12V Rail(s) rated at 45°C - 50°C ambient temperature, is the most critical factor.

Overclocking of the CPU and/or GPU(s) may require an additional increase to the maximum combined +12 Volt continuous current ratings, recommended above, to meet the increase in power required for the overclock. The additional amount required will depend on the magnitude of the overclock being attempted.

Don't be so focused on 80 PLUS levels. 80 PLUS certification is directed at PSU manufacturers, not consumers. Manufacturers will use 80 PLUS certification in their marketing material to lure uninformed customers. It doesn't mean that the PSU is electrically a better performer than one that is certified at a lower 80 PLUS level.

Tight voltage regulation, low electrical noise and ripple levels and high component quality are vastly more important than energy efficiency.


I understand but I don't understand anything about those things which is why I am asking if it would work with my parts. I want platinum to save money since I read it will use less energy and my computer is on nearly all the time.

People seem to love XFX because of Seasonic so I decided to just buy a Seasonic PSU.

So last time, is this one alright?

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Seasonic-Platinum-Series-Power-...
http://www.seasonic.com/pdf/datasheet/NEW/Retail/P-660-...
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October 15, 2013 1:38:53 PM

Doublepost
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a b ) Power supply
October 15, 2013 1:39:48 PM

yes
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a c 1218 ) Power supply
October 15, 2013 1:47:49 PM

nyxanna said:
I understand but I don't understand anything about those things which is why I am asking if it would work with my parts. I want platinum to save money since I read it will use less energy and my computer is on nearly all the time.

People seem to love XFX because of Seasonic so I decided to just buy a Seasonic PSU.

So last time, is this one alright?

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Seasonic-Platinum-Series-Power-...
http://www.seasonic.com/pdf/datasheet/NEW/Retail/P-660-...


That one should work fine.

Is your cost for electricity really high?
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October 15, 2013 2:36:05 PM

ko888 said:
nyxanna said:
I understand but I don't understand anything about those things which is why I am asking if it would work with my parts. I want platinum to save money since I read it will use less energy and my computer is on nearly all the time.

People seem to love XFX because of Seasonic so I decided to just buy a Seasonic PSU.

So last time, is this one alright?

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Seasonic-Platinum-Series-Power-...
http://www.seasonic.com/pdf/datasheet/NEW/Retail/P-660-...


That one should work fine.

Is your cost for electricity really high?


I have to admit that I don't know the exact figures, especially not for my PC usage but I do know that the computer is on every single day for many hours. There are times where it is open for 24 hours through the night. I also plan to use the PSU for a long time.
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a b ) Power supply
October 15, 2013 3:10:59 PM

Go for the XFX in this case.
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a c 1218 ) Power supply
October 15, 2013 3:28:20 PM

nyxanna said:
I have to admit that I don't know the exact figures, especially not for my PC usage but I do know that the computer is on every single day for many hours. There are times where it is open for 24 hours through the night. I also plan to use the PSU for a long time.


The less heat that is generated during the PSU's AC to DC power conversion process will lead to longer PSU component life. Heat is what degrades or shortens the life of the PSU.

Power consumption level will depend on whether or not your computer is running at full load or spending a lot of its time at low load or idle.
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