Is corsair CX430 W a good psu?

Ashish Joseph · Jul 25, 2014

Here are my specs
cpu - core 2 quad Q8400 2.66 ghz
mobo - asus p5g41t-mlx
memory - 4gb ddr3
gpu - nvidia gtx 750 ti
hdd - wd green 1tb

I just recently got the 750 ti as an upgrade to my hd 6670. I currently have a local cheap 400W psu, and i don't want to put the new gpu on that psu.
My next build will be after 2 years, a fresh build. So, i won't be doing any upgrades(maybe another stick of ram, but that's it), so no need of psu futureproofing.
I found out that the corsair CX430 is 80+ bronze certified, and good for entry level builds.
So, is the 430W psu enough for this build?
Now, i found out that the older model of cx430 isn't 80+ certified. So, will it have lower efficiency?(i am concerned about electricity bills!)
Or should i just buy the cx430?
There aren't any other major brand versions available in our area, and i read that cooler master psus are bad.
There are 2 versions of corsair at this price range.
The VS450 and CX430
I know that the CX430 is better, but how? the CX430 costs about 30% more than the VS 450, i don't care about that.
Should i just buy the CX430?

Ubrales · Jul 25, 2014

Yes it is good value for the money you pay and will serve you well on the hardware you listed.

avarice · Jul 25, 2014

It will work - but not so good with the quality - look at the followig link - find brands made by Seasonic, FSP or Zippy.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/power-supply-psu-brands,3762-5.html

Shneiky · Jul 25, 2014

Yes, you can just go with that CX 430. It is a low quality tin with bad capacitors, but it should hold for 2-3 years since your build consumes less than 200W at full load. But I do not recommend you using it after 3 years. And also, 80+ certifications are different for 115V and 230V. In the first graph, you can find results for 115V (USA for example) and for 230V (Europe for example)

Percentage of rated load 115V: 20% 50% 100% 230V: 20% 50% 100%
80 Plus 115V: 80% 80% 80%
80 Plus Bronze 115V: 82% 85% 82% 230V: 81% 85% 81%
80 Plus Silver 115V: 85% 88% 85% 230V: 85% 89% 85%
80 Plus Gold 115V: 87% 90% 87% 230V: 88% 92% 88%
80 Plus Platinum 115V: 90% 92% 89% 230V: 90% 94% 91%

PSUs are most efficient at 50% load and that is where you fall. Also, the practical difference is not that much. 5-7% from Bronze to Gold, is like 10W for 200W machine. Nothing to write home about, unless you are running full load for days and weeks.

P.S Graph does not look like a graph.

Novuake · Jul 25, 2014

Short answer. No, the CX or VS series PSUs are not good.

Here is a tiered PSU list. http://www.tomshardware.com/answers/id-1804779/power-supply-unit-tier-list.html

You should ONLY consider PSU from Tier 1, Tier 2a and Tier 2b, anything lower is NOT suggested.

The CXs are Tier 3 by the way.

Shneiky · Jul 25, 2014

Given the reason that his build is that old, and he is going for a new one in 2 years, a junk CX will hold out till then. No use for him to pay 2 times the price now, when he is changing everything later.

Novuake · Jul 25, 2014

Or get something proper now and use that quality later again, which actually SAVES money in the long run.
Cheaping out on a PSU is very much against my religion!

herrwizo · Jul 25, 2014

Shneiky :

^^ What the man said. Not worth it to swap now, this one, although not quite an example of quality, should hold quite well until that point. Besides, tier 3 PSU's ain't *that* bad, it's just that they ain't designed for overclocking or powerful GPUs (only good up to mid range, single card). But 750Ti is so low-power that even 300W PSU would do.

Joseph DeGarmo · Jul 25, 2014

I swapped out a CX600M for an XFX TS 550w to run a better quality unit. I'm keeping the CX600M as a backup, though. A Seasonic or XFX 450w will be great choices.

herrwizo · Jul 25, 2014

Joseph DeGarmo :

Yeah, for his current situation. And then, all of a sudden, he might want to upgrade his computer to, say, 290X. Or a whole new rig altogether. Money wasted.

Better get at least 550W (quality) unit.

Ashish Joseph · Jul 25, 2014

Shneiky :

I only meant that i care about non certified psus. I don't care about 4% or so difference between bronze and gold. And the gold ones cost 2.5 times this one anyway. Since the non certified ones have very low efficiency, it will make a big difference in bills

Ashish Joseph · Jul 25, 2014

herrwizo :

Did you even read?
I said that i will not upgrade anything, so no money is wasted.
My current build is final
A 290x, yeah right!

Ashish Joseph · Jul 25, 2014

Novuake :

Why not? the tier 3 says they are good for everything other than serious overclocking, which i am not going to do. My build is low end anyway, so why buy a high end psu. Budget is also an issue here

Novuake · Jul 25, 2014

That is a very brief reason why should not get Tier3. It comes down to more than just that.

herrwizo · Jul 25, 2014

Ashish Joseph :

I did read. And unfortunately, I tried to help, by thinking in advance, because a good PSU can be used for your another rig as well one day (used 290x only for illustration, not so much for real case scenario). Sorry for that, no further attempts from me.

Pondering · Jul 25, 2014

It is fine. Channel Well is a good manufacturer. The primary concern is the fact that it is a high volume unit so quality control is not as stringent. I ran a A6-5400k and a MSi r7 260x 2GB on my CX430 and it was fine but it is not suggested for people on tom's since most of them eventually look into overclocking.

The CX500 shouldn't be much more expensive and it might serve you better.

Ashish Joseph · Jul 25, 2014

herrwizo :

Novuake :

herrwizo :

Sorry, i didn't mean to be rude or anything. I won't be upgrading anything on this rig. I will use this pc for about 2 moreyears, then i will get a fresh gaming build(hopefully a good one), and i will give this one to my younger sister(she is no gamer). So no point in getting a high end psu

herrwizo · Jul 25, 2014

If you are about to give your rig, then yes, no point, you are correct.

I usually just sell off the old parts and keep the PSU for new rig if it is good... that's what I meant. No hard feelings, sir.

Is corsair CX430 W a good psu?

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