Is it safe to use multiple PSU's?

anspee

Reputable
May 30, 2014
5
0
4,510
I know that most would advise against it because using two separate PSUs that have different Wattage/Voltage rates can fry your system, unless you only use it to power peripheral stuff like fans or water-cooling rigs. But, my question is, what if you use two of the exact same PSUs? Obviously I would leave the power to the CPU and Mobo to only one of the PSUs, but I would connect all of the hard drives and GPUs to the other. My question is whether or not this would still be safe. (I know how to jump a PSU, and it 'always being on' isn't an issue because i can just flip the I/O switch on the back to "off".

Furthermore, I'd like to know if bridging a dedicated PSU like that to your CPU/motherboard in the assembly I just described would give you more power to overclock your CPU to higher levels, or if the increase in available power supply wouldn't make a difference, and the CPU would still only be able to handle a similar load if it were being fed with one PSU. (In other words, the increased availability of power wouldn't make a difference in your overclocking because the levels you could safely overclock your CPU would be about the same as if you only had one PSU in your whole system.)
 
Solution
"In other words, the increased availability of power wouldn't make a difference in your overclocking because the levels you could safely overclock your CPU would be about the same as if you only had one PSU in your whole system."

That is correct.

The PSU itself consumes power so a second one would be a waste of money both intially and on an ongoing basis. If you want more power get the PSU you need with plenty of "headroom". That is, it has more power than your equipment needs. It won't be straining to supply power to the system and will have a relatively lower load in relation to its capacity so should last longer. It should also generate less heat than a lower powere unit running near its capacity.

Also don't skimp on the PSU...
"In other words, the increased availability of power wouldn't make a difference in your overclocking because the levels you could safely overclock your CPU would be about the same as if you only had one PSU in your whole system."

That is correct.

The PSU itself consumes power so a second one would be a waste of money both intially and on an ongoing basis. If you want more power get the PSU you need with plenty of "headroom". That is, it has more power than your equipment needs. It won't be straining to supply power to the system and will have a relatively lower load in relation to its capacity so should last longer. It should also generate less heat than a lower powere unit running near its capacity.

Also don't skimp on the PSU. Everything else depends on it being stable. If you use a second one, you are just introducing another point of failure that isn't necessary and doesn't really have any benefit.
 
Solution