Mainly UPS and PSU questions (and a bit of case fans)

Toggle sidebar Toggle sidebar
blasc

blasc

Reputable
Nov 21, 2014
769
2
5,360
So i've (finally) built my new rig, and it's wonderfull! (it always is right?)

I'll first put down the questions and at the end I'll post the build from PcPartPicker.

So first of all, the UPS:
Since I invested a lot of my hard earned money on the PC, I would obviously like to protect it. I live in central Lisbon (Portugal), and my building can be said as "recent" (built ~20 years ago) so my guess is that i won't suffer much from voltage spikes, since the electrical installation is not that old.
But there is always something that passes through, a storm or something. And so my 1st question is: advice on a UPS to buy, how should i choose one and preferably, the best "bang for buck" UPS, since I don't feel like spending much on it.

Second, the PSU (upgrade or not?)
So i have bought a 650 Gold XFX PSU, and I bought it at the time because it was on super sale at Amazon, and only costed me around 40€~50€ (!!!), so I didn't even think twice before ordering it. The problem is, if in a near future (1 year?), if I decide i want to go for SLI, should i get a PSU with more juice? Because every time i search on web for the GTX 970 in SLI, I see a minimum of 750W. But then, when I search for pratical measures, NEVER EVER the PC passes the 550W of system consumption.....
Here is an example (one of many), and also on the comments, where people are confirming 650W is enough (since themselves built the same SLI config with 650W):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=55fKOG8C9qc

Finally, and less important, case fans:
First, my case is a Noctis 450, which already comes with 4 fans (3 frontal 120mm, 1 back exhaust 140mm). This part is a bit 50/50 when it comes to cooling/aesthetics. I would like to get as much air flowing as possible, but in reality, my main goal here is to give my build a better look :)love:).
The cooler i got was a CM Hyper 212 EVO, and i was aiming at removing the back fan and the cooler fan, placing them on top of the case, and then do a push/pull on the EVO and better exhaust fan on the back with the new ones I will buy.
Problem here is, I wanted all the new fans to have some red leds :D. What are your suggestions regarding 1x140mm, and 2x120mm (push/pull) fans with red leds? (but also with good quality)



And finally my build. I know this is a bit of loooong post, but well, these are my questions for you toms out there. Have fun, and anything I missed i should say, just ask it :)

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor (Purchased For €200.00)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler (Purchased For €30.00)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97X-Gaming 3 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard (Purchased For €102.00)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (Purchased For €50.00)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive (Purchased For €84.00)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive (Purchased For €84.00)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 4GB WINDFORCE Video Card (Purchased For €300.00)
Case: NZXT Noctis 450 ATX Mid Tower Case (Purchased For €130.00)
Power Supply: XFX TS 650W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply (Purchased For €50.00)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Pro OEM (64-bit) (Purchased For €0.00)
Monitor: Asus VG248QE 144Hz 24.0" Monitor (Purchased For €200.00)
Keyboard: Cooler Master OCTANE Wired Gaming Keyboard w/Optical Mouse (Purchased For €40.00)
Total: €1136.00


 
Sort by date Sort by votes
MarkW

MarkW

Judicious
Dec 7, 2009
6,308
0
32,960
First of all, a power supply is most efficient when running at 40% to 60% load. You never, ever want to run a power supply at 90% or higher load.

So yes, when you add a second GTX 970, you will want to upgrade to at least a 750 watt unit. I probably would go for an 850 watt unit just to keep things running cool. In fact, I bought an 850 watt Seasonic power supply when I built this system last year, just in case I might go SLI someday...

For cooling fans, all you really need is 2 fans at the front pulling cool air in. Plus one fan at the rear pulling warm air out. Your CPU and GPU both have fans to move hot air away from those items, and the case fans then move that air on out of your system.

Cannot help with the UPS because I have not sat down and done an in-depth look at them in over 20 years.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
blasc

blasc

Reputable
Nov 21, 2014
769
2
5,360
regarding the fans, like stated, i'm going for them mainly for aesthetics, so I just wanted to be pointed in a right direction when it comes to brands/models that have red leds, but are reliable in terms of air flow (specially the 140mm back one for exhaust).

Regarding the PSU, i really didn't want to pay another 100~150€ for a PSU and stay with this one brand new, which is going to be really hard to sell btw... the system would be running at 80~85% of total power (~500W), as you can see from the measures.
I just wanted to know what problems it can bring to the build of doing it. Bear in mind that the PSU I currently have is tier 1/2, so very high quality.

Regarding the UPS, my question was more aimed at "should i buy one", and if so, what models/brand to look at.

anyway thanks for the answer. Waiting for more opinions :)
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
MarkW

MarkW

Judicious
Dec 7, 2009
6,308
0
32,960
Fans with LED's are generally very poor quality. And no, fans are not mostly for aesthetics. They keep your system cool, and that is very important to your hardware.

Power supplies run most efficiently between 40% and 60% loads.

I guess it is hard for most people to realize that the power supply is the heart of their system. Every single item inside that case is dependent on a power supply. They need smooth, stable, ripple free power, and only a high quality power supply can deliver that.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
blasc

blasc

Reputable
Nov 21, 2014
769
2
5,360
i currently have 5 fans in my case, so yes, the extra ones will be for aesthetics.

corsair AF120+SP120 on push/pull are low quality and are worse than the stock fan on a Hyper 212 EVO?
same goes for cooler master jetflo, sickleflo and XtraFlo.

I was expecting something down this line, but wanted to know other solutions than these models.


For the PSU, you had already told that. i was just wondering what kind of issues (if there are any..) that I would encounter by using a power supply at 80~85% of max load constantly.

The "lower in FPS" and "random crashes" part I know. I am refering to hardware issues.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
MarkW

MarkW

Judicious
Dec 7, 2009
6,308
0
32,960
Here is the facts of PSU efficiency.

2d6od2b.jpg
If you want the rating, your power supply must be able to match or exceed those numbers.

And which percentage of load is the most efficient? 50%... Thus I say 40% to 60%.

As for what happens when you run a power supply at 80~85% of max load constantly, the PSU runs hotter, which means the fan will be screaming. And you will be kissing 3% to 4% of the power usage byebye. Constantly. In the end, it will most likely shorten the life of your PSU.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
You must log in or register to reply here.

TRENDING THREADS

Latest posts

Moderators online

Share this page

COMPANY
RESOURCES
FOLLOW
Top Bottom