Which Power Supply?

Wizard Bear · Aug 4, 2014

Yes, I made a very similar thread back about what type of Powersupply I should be looking for, but I still never bought a PSU because I wasn't sure if I was going to go with an AMD graphics card or not (AMD requires a minimum of 500 watts).

So here it goes:
$49 EVGA 500W: Not-Modular, 500W, Bronze

$50 Raidmax 535W: Semi-Modular, 535W, led, Bronze

$55 Raidmax 730SS: Semi-Modular, 730W, toggle led, not certified

$60 Corsair CX600: Not-Modular, 600W, Bronze

$60/$65 Corsair CX500M / CX600M
: Non-Modular, 500W/600W, Bronze

So my Question is... which one?
Is the semi-modular really worth it (I was told yes on the previous thread). Also, if an AMD graphics card claims to have a 500W minimum, does a 500W PSU really give out it's max 500W in order to run the GPU?

i7Baby · Aug 4, 2014

Get a good one from tiers 1, 2a or 2b of http://www.tomshardware.com/answers/id-1804779/power-supply-unit-tier-list.html

eg http://www.amazon.com/XFX-ATX-550-Power-Supply/dp/B004RJ8EKI

avenseth12 · Aug 4, 2014

It depends on which GPU, a $1,000 GPU might take that much power but an AMD GPU for $60 could run on a 200 watt GPU.
Semi-modular PSU's are great because you dont have to tie up all the extra cables in or behind your case. You only plug in what you need. They are semi because they usually have 3 cables fixed (24 pin, CPU and 1 PCI-E).

Without knowing your other components and which GPU you are thikning about, I cant tell you which PSU to choose, but based on the supplies you linked I would choose the Corsair cx 600 modular.

Wizard Bear · Aug 4, 2014

i7Baby :

Thanks. And what would you say about the "500W minimum" and using a 500W PSU? I've heard a PSU doesn't use it's max potential.

Duh, I should have given out the specs... I'm going to get a Sapphire r7 260x or r9 260... Haven't decided yet and still am planning on doing some more research. Both say "500W minimum" which is why I'm not going for the 430's.

Edit: And doubt it matters, but I'm going to run an i5 4460 (Got one for cheap'ish). I'm leaning towards the r9 just so I can run the i5 closer to it's potential

avenseth12 · Aug 4, 2014

Those power supplies will easily power the GPUs you linked. They barely draw much power. They use 1 PCI-E power cable.

Dark Lord of Tech · Aug 4, 2014

EVGA 500B

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Power Supply: EVGA 500W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($34.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $34.99
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-08-04 00:48 EDT-0400

Wizard Bear · Aug 4, 2014

Thanks for this input.

As for "they don't draw much power", it does say that they have a 500W PSU minimum requirement. I'm just not sure why...

Dark Lord of Tech · Aug 4, 2014

They overstate that so the consumer buys more than enough power to run the card.

Built in protection , never underpowered.

Wizard Bear · Aug 4, 2014

Great, thank you for that info. As for the PSU, I'm probably going to do some more hunting and find a tier 2b or higher that's semi-modular... I gotta have some cable management. Would you prefer EVGA over a Corsair CX?

Dark Lord of Tech · Aug 4, 2014

EVGA B2 , G2 , P2 are great.

I like Corsair HX , AX .

I like SEASONIC and XFX supplies.

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