Will a 300w power supply handle a core i7 processor, 8 gb ram, SSD drive, and 7200 rpm HDD drive?

Clay SmithJoh · Mar 31, 2014

I am putting together a new machine for my father that includes a case/PSU combo with a 300w PSU.

he doesn't need any graphics intensive stuff, just wants a faster machine than what he has.

I put together:
an intel core i7 (LGA 1155)
Asus integrated graphics MoBo
8 gb gskill ripjaw (2x4gb) ram
240 gb SSD drive
1 tb 7200 RPM HDD
DVD/CD burner

I just want to know if the 300w PSU is going to be sufficient.

Ahmadjon · Mar 31, 2014

Built in PSU's are usually crappy but 300W quality good PSU is more than enough for your system!

Edit: I would recommend you to get Seasonic or XFX 450W or 550W should do fine even with good powerful graphics card!

boosted1g · Mar 31, 2014

350 watts should be suffecient if using integrated graphics. The problem is that most all of the case w/ psu combo deals use cheap PSUs that will only put out - 70-80 percent of their rated power and at very low efficiency.

Never go cheap on the part that can destroy everything else in the computer.

Seasonic, Antec, XFX, corsair or Rosewill Hive or Capstone are all good psus. You should shoot for one of those that is at least 80+ bronze rated.

Clay SmithJoh · Mar 31, 2014

here is the case/psu combo I went with. It is a Rosewill.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147010

DonQuixoteMC · Mar 31, 2014

It all depends on who is selling the case/built in PSU. Antec for example has some nice ones. What's the exact combo you're planning on buying?

To answer your question though: a quality 300W PSU will definitely power that.

On a different note, a Haswell i3 will be faster for web-browsing and daily use than an i7 Ivy Bridge. If he doesn't plan on doing video editing or serious gaming (which would would also want a GPU for), an i3-4130 will more than suffice.

Clay SmithJoh · Mar 31, 2014

DonQuixoteMC :

I posted the combo I want to get right above your response.

Ahmadjon · Mar 31, 2014

Clay SmithJoh :

Well that case uses crappy PSU!
So this Seasonic is a well made and known PSU which will power your system!

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

Power Supply: SeaSonic 400W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($49.99 @ Mwave)
Total: $49.99
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-03-31 13:24 EDT-0400)

boosted1g · Mar 31, 2014

Yeah Roseill is good for their higher end PSUs but what they put in that is not going to be of any decent quality what-so-ever.

You would be better off dropping to an i5 if you cant afford a better psu/case with your budget

Clay SmithJoh · Mar 31, 2014

DonQuixoteMC :

If I can drop to an i3, then I can certainly upgrade the case/psu. Why would an i3 out-peform an i7?

Ahmadjon · Mar 31, 2014

Clay SmithJoh :

No it won't! don't get dual core CPU's in 2014 get at least i5-4440!
Intel is not so stupid to make top tier CPU slower than bottom tier CPU

boosted1g · Mar 31, 2014

Here is a full build (did not include optical drive or OS since your list did not)

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3jGYw

CPU: Intel Core i5-3470 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($189.29 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Asus P8B75-M/CSM Micro ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($70.98 @ Best Buy)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($67.50 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($139.99 @ Best Buy)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Rosewill CHALLENGER ATX Mid Tower Case ($44.64 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 430W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($39.99 @ Newegg)

Total: $612.38 (Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.) (Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-03-31 13:54 EDT-0400)

Clay SmithJoh · Mar 31, 2014

boosted1g :

thanks for that. Here's what I put together while you were putting that together. What do you think as far as the processor goes? Which would perform better for him? I'd rather pay a little more and get it all from newegg than piece-meal it from a bunch of different vendors.

Qty. Product Description Savings Total Price
1
LG Internal Super Multi Drive SATA Model GH24NSB0
Item #:N82E16827136270
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
$19.99

1
Intel Core i5-4440 3.1GHz (3.3GHz Turbo) LGA 1150 Quad-Core Desktop Processor
Item #:N82E16819116942
Return Policy: CPU Replacement Only Return Policy
$194.99

1
CORSAIR CX series CX430 430W Power Supply
Item #:N82E16817139026
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
$49.99
$39.99

1
Seagate Barracuda ST1000DM003 1TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive
Item #:N82E16822148840
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
$69.99
$64.99

1
MSI H81M-E33 Micro ATX Intel Motherboard
Item #:N82E16813130730
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
$49.99

1
Crucial M500 240GB SATA 2.5" 7mm (with 9.5mm adapter) Internal Solid State Drive CT240M500SSD1
Item #:N82E16820148694
Return Policy: Limited Replacement Only Return Policy
$179.99
$124.99

1
G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory
Item #:N82E16820231314
Return Policy: Memory Standard Return Policy
$79.99
$74.99

1
Rosewill Blackbone Black Computer Case
Item #:N82E16811147023
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
$49.99
$44.99

Grand Total: $614.92

boosted1g · Mar 31, 2014

Go with Samsung Evo over crucial.

Challenger case is better for cooling/cable maanagement then the Blackbone.

If the motherboard fits your dad's current and future needs then it will be just fine.

Clay SmithJoh · Mar 31, 2014

boosted1g :

what about the cpu? Is the one you posted going to perform better than the one I selected per Ahmadjon's suggestion?

boosted1g · Mar 31, 2014

I would stick with your CPU choice.

I chose the one I did because your i7 was an Ivy Bridge (3rd generation) so i left it the same generation in case you had a specific reason behind it.

Clay SmithJoh · Mar 31, 2014

boosted1g :

thanks much. Just placed my order....

DonQuixoteMC · Mar 31, 2014

Oh come on guys. Don't just throw money at the i7. Of course it's more powerful, of course it can do more calculations per second in a multi-threaded app, but let's be honest, this build isn't being built for extreme encoding or gaming is it? The singlethreaded performance of a Haswell i3 matches or exceeds that of the Ivy Bridge i7, and you're never going to even touch the capabilities of an i7. An i5 would be fine for gaming, but he's not gaming without a GPU. The i3 is perfect for this build, plus Haswell's upgraded IGP would have given him better Graphics performance than Ivy Bridge i7.

I mean, it's too late now, and the i7 will never let you down, but it's just a waste of funds.

Summary:
1. Haswell is faster than Ivy Bridge when it comes to singlethreaded apps (i.e. web browsing, light multitasking)
2. You won't need more than 2 hyper threaded cores in this PC.
3. The Haswell i3 is a lot cheaper than the Ivy Bridge i7.

You will benefit more from the Haswell's speed more than the i7's greater number of cores.

I would have gotten the i3 and would have used the saved money to buy a larger SSD so your Dad wouldn't have to worry about filling it up and slowing it down.

Either way, that's a darn fine build. So don't worry about it.

Clay SmithJoh · Mar 31, 2014

I ended up with a haswell i5 so I guess he'll have the best of both worlds

thanks.

DonQuixoteMC · Mar 31, 2014

Clay SmithJoh :

Ohhh okay. It sounded like you went with the i7.

The i5 is a much better choice

Will a 300w power supply handle a core i7 processor, 8 gb ram, SSD drive, and 7200 rpm HDD drive?

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