IS a 80+ Bronze 500w PSU good enough for an Fx-8350 and GTX 980

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John Paul Hibbert

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So I currently have an fx-8350 and a EVGA 80+bronze certified 500w PSU. I am buying a gtx 980 on friday? Do I need a new power supply? I really dont want to buy a new one, just bought this one in february. I've read a couple things and it seems like its going to be close. Just wanted a solid answer. Thanks.
 
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jazzy663
I understand you don't want to spend extra money, but please go for a better power supply anyway. Since you have an AMD CPU the TDP is going to be higher than an Intel CPU, so at full load it is going to draw more power. In addition, the 980's architecture makes it more power efficient than previous GTX cards, but 500W is still the bare minimum. You're cutting it very close.

You'd probably be fine on the desktop, but my guess is that your current unit would struggle to supply power to the system during resource-intensive tasks.

For a single card, this unit would perform the job nicely. It is also in and of itself a very nice unit.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817438026
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shadows1234

shadows1234

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Jul 18, 2014
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yes it is gonna be a problem youre gonna be cuting it to close to full load on psu a minimum of 500w psu is needed for the 980
so i recommend you buy a new psu with the 980 gpu or get a psu and a 970,

although i would just suck it up and get a new psu and a 980
 
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jazzy663

jazzy663

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Feb 12, 2014
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I understand you don't want to spend extra money, but please go for a better power supply anyway. Since you have an AMD CPU the TDP is going to be higher than an Intel CPU, so at full load it is going to draw more power. In addition, the 980's architecture makes it more power efficient than previous GTX cards, but 500W is still the bare minimum. You're cutting it very close.

You'd probably be fine on the desktop, but my guess is that your current unit would struggle to supply power to the system during resource-intensive tasks.

For a single card, this unit would perform the job nicely. It is also in and of itself a very nice unit.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817438026
 
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Screwby

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Amd tdp is in fact high, even with a power efficient 980, you're leaving no comfort room.. if you plan on overclocking that cpu, your tdp will skyrocket, leaving you way less room than is acceptable. I would at least go 700.
 
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John Paul Hibbert

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Thank you all, that is the exact PSU I was thinking about getting except I was looking at the 750w model. It's nice to know the 650w will be good.
Unfortunately, I don't have any money left over to buy it yet. I'm getting the video card on Friday but I'm not going to be able to get the power supply for a few weeks. Will it be okay to use my computer until then or should I hold off on putting that video card in?
 
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hjj174

hjj174

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Just to clear something up, TDP isn't the power the component draws it's how much heat it puts out.
Watts is measurement of heat AND power.

In reality though, power draw of components is typically higher than TDP.

 
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jazzy663

jazzy663

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Just to be safe, I'd hold off. Like I said, you'd probably be fine on the desktop, but in resource-intensive tasks (such as games), the system will draw more power. I can't say for certain, but there is a chance that the power draw might get to be more than your current unit can handle.

I know how you feel, you really want to use your new card. I would too. But for your system's safety as well as your own, please wait.
 
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jazzy663

jazzy663

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You're right about the heat.

I don't quite understand one thing, though. If the power draw of a component was higher than its TDP, then wouldn't that be some kind of false advertising? Take for example, an FX-9590. Are you saying it could draw more than 220W?
 
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hjj174

hjj174

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See that's the confusing part about TDP as watts in that case is measuring heat produced. When talking about power draw, it's also measured in watts. TDP measurements are really just there to tell you how much heat your cooler must able to dissipate. Actual power draw measurements/specs aren't released to the public or reviewers, although they do recommend minimum power supplies.

If you want to learn more you should watch this video by Linus: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yDWO177BjZY
 
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