help... Need a new powersupply...

Shnak · Sep 20, 2001

I just sold my trusty 300w Antec powersupply (mainly because I got a good price for it) and I need something to power all this stuff (planning to buy most of those things):

Athlon TBird 1.4GHz or Athlon 4/XP ~1.5GHz
8X CD-RW (already have)
10X DVD
IBM 75GXP (already have)
IBM 60GXP
Hercules Kyro2 64MB (may upgrade to Radeon 8500/GF3)
1 or 2 case fans

that's pretty much all the things that consume lots of power right?

I'm hesitating between the Antec PP-403X 400W and the Enermax EG465P-VE 450W... or is 400w overkill for my needs? If so, I guess the Enermax 350w would be enough.

I'd also want something as quiet as possible.

Thanks all
Shnak

MSI K7T 266 Pro, Kyro2, IBM 75GXP, Samsung 950P, Win2kPro

njeske · Sep 20, 2001

350w would be enough, but just to be safe, I would go with a 400w. Just having an Athlon system means that having 300w is pretty much minimum. Then you add in two IBM hard drives, some CD drives, and all your cards and you are looking at least 350w. Just go for the 400w to be safe.

- God Bless America

Shnak · Sep 20, 2001

that's what I was thinking... 400w sounds nice...

now, which brand would be best? I want something as silent as possible... Antec, Enermax? Something else? I mention Antec and Enermax because those would be the easiest to purchase around here...

Thanks
Shnak

MSI K7T 266 Pro, Kyro2, IBM 75GXP, Samsung 950P, Win2kPro

njeske · Sep 20, 2001

Enermax has their "Whisper" series that are supposedly really quiet. I don't have any personal experience though. I run my system on a Codegen 300w that is pretty silent, but I don't know if they make a 400w version the PSU I have.

- God Bless America

stable · Sep 20, 2001

Unless I'm missing something here, I find that your amperage and wattage requirements only add up to the capabilities of a high amp. output 300W P.S. with at least 5 drive leads.

As you are not using high power SCSI drives and nor do you have a boatload of PCI or USB devices, nor high-power required Video, I can't see the need for going beyond a good 350Watt unit.

Given what I see here, (again, unless I'm missing something) I would say an Enermax EG-365P-VE would be MORE than enough to cover these requirements and the future addition of video and drive devices.

Steve Benoit

Stable Technologies
'The way IT should be!'

Shnak · Sep 21, 2001

that makes sense

I don't really care if it's 350watts or 400watts... as long as it's quiet...

Thanks
Shnak

MSI K7T 266 Pro, Kyro2, IBM 75GXP, Samsung 950P, Win2kPro

Guest · Sep 21, 2001

I have that enermax 465P VE, I think they are actually 430 watt!
Its so quiet I had to check to see if the fans were running.

Beam me up Scotty

Shnak · Sep 21, 2001

hmm 431watts is a bit overkill for me... but the EG365-VE looks really nice at 350watts. It's nice to hear about how quiet those powersupplies are...

Shnak

MSI K7T 266 Pro, Kyro2, IBM 75GXP, Samsung 950P, Win2kPro

Guest · Sep 21, 2001

Whats the price difference around your way between the 350w and 430w Enermax?
(I was set on buying the 350w, the 430w was on special for a few dollars more)

Beam me up Scotty

Shnak · Sep 21, 2001

prices can be seen here...
http://www.dealsdirect.com/catalog/mall.cfm?CATEGORY=117

that's the american version of their page, hence US prices.

Enermax 350w sells for 45$US
Enermax 450w (but I believe its really a 431w) sells for 68$US

I know its only 23$ more, but is it really worth it for me? I mean, a 350w powersupply should be enough to power a setup like mine with like 5 hard-drives!

Shnak

MSI K7T 266 Pro, Kyro2, IBM 75GXP, Samsung 950P, Win2kPro

Crashman · Sep 21, 2001

I would stay away from Antec, they tend to have lower than standard voltages, which can lead to system instability, especially if you decide to overclock.

Back to you Tom...

Shnak · Sep 21, 2001

You're the first that ever told me that Antec wasn't good. Any proof to support what you just said? I know for a fact that Anandtech did an article comparing many power supplies over a year ago and the Antec PP-303X 300watts was the ONLY powersupply that didn't cause the system to crash under huge system stress over like 2 days... and I've been using my Antec 300w for over a year without any problems... but then again, I don't overclock...

which brands would you recommend instead of Antec?

Shnak

MSI K7T 266 Pro, Kyro2, IBM 75GXP, Samsung 950P, Win2kPro

yeahy · Sep 21, 2001

How could you connect with so much devices? My 300W powersupply only has 4 connector plugs. So
one for HDD, one for DVD-ROM, one for case fan and FDD,
one for HDD2. So I even couldn't add a CD-RW .
How could you do that? Please introduce some powersupply
with more than 5 connector plugs . Thank you.

Guest · Sep 21, 2001

The 350watt should be alright(does it have wisper?), but it might be worthwhile adding up the power requiremnts of your system and compare it.If you were to overclock with all that hardware I would go for the higher option if its in your budget!

Beam me up Scotty

Edited by scotty3303 on 09/21/01 12:43 PM.

Shnak · Sep 21, 2001

mine has at least 7 connectors, I just counted them quickly.

You could always buy power splitters at any computer store.. I think that even Radio Shack has some...

this is what the cable looks like:
http://www.directron.com/cbl-y.html

Shnak

MSI K7T 266 Pro, Kyro2, IBM 75GXP, Samsung 950P, Win2kPro

Shnak · Sep 21, 2001

how can I "add up the power requirements" of my components?

and budget isn't really an issue, I'm ready to pay for a good powersupply, as long as I need it. If a 300w powersupply will do the job, I don't see why I would shell out 100$ on a 450w powersupply...

I think I'll wait for the 1.53GHz Athlon XP... won't need as much juice from the power supply, all while being faster and producing less heat...

Shnak

Shnak

MSI K7T 266 Pro, Kyro2, IBM 75GXP, Samsung 950P, Win2kPro

yeahy · Sep 21, 2001

Thank you Shnak. Y cable is a good choice for CD-ROMs,but is it ok for the power-consume-giant,e.g. IBM HDDs ?

lhgpoobaa · Sep 21, 2001

i want an enermax 550!
any idea how quiet it is?
or is it better going for the 420?

Religious wars are 2 groups of people fighting over who has the best imaginary friend.

Shnak · Sep 21, 2001

I don't see why not. Use regular cables for your hard-drives and then use the splitter for your CD-Roms or whatever. But like I said, you shouldn't have any problems connecting hard-drives to those cables.

Shnak

MSI K7T 266 Pro, Kyro2, IBM 75GXP, Samsung 950P, Win2kPro

Shnak · Sep 21, 2001

how would I know? I'm the one asking people for a quit power supply!

Shnak

MSI K7T 266 Pro, Kyro2, IBM 75GXP, Samsung 950P, Win2kPro

Guest · Sep 21, 2001

Power consumption; don't know enough to explain it.
But I replaced a 230w with a 300w for about 2 days, still wasn’t enough, as I needed more Amps on all the rails, so the best one I could find that was immediately available was the Enermax 350w & 430w, the price difference was chicken feed. Actually that 230w was better for amps than the 300w marginally, but I was sucked into bigger wattage was better thing without relising amps were just as important. I know better now.

IMO based on my own system requirements now and in the future for video/photographic editing, I went for the larger unit because I'm one of these people who runs everything all at once occasionally and that can be taxing on a power supply, last thing I want is instabilities half way through something important.
My plan is to have 4 HDD's on raid, DVD, CD burner, 2x mass storage HDD's, scanner, and some very intense editing programs all on an overclocked system. Plus all other hardware and fans within the system.

So a good psu is a must in my opinion.

Beam me up Scotty

Guest · Sep 21, 2001

Lol an enOrmax that 550w. It has the wisper thing as well.

I reckon 430w is enough for you ..

Beam me up Scotty

Crashman · Sep 21, 2001

Actually I've posted about this before, a couple other guys have had problems, and besides, my "Opinion" is better than other peoples "facts". Why? I'm a system builder, I have experience with lots of parts. I've never seen an Antec that could supply correct voltage within 1/2 a volt. 1/2 volt sound kind of trivial, but hey, I'd accept them even if they were .49v off.
I've tested them on my own equipement and seen 12V voltage as low as 11V, 5V as low as 4.1v, and 3.3v as low as 2.8! And they seem to rate their power supply capacities a little more lieniently as well.
But the worst part is voltage stability, these things do not seem to be properly buffered. Little things like my CD-ROM spinning up could throw the votageges off by as much as .5v more!
I'm using a PIII so I only need 250 Watts.
Right now I'm using a Continental which is much more accurate, and am experiencing totat system stability. This unit is a cheap OEM, the sleeve bearing is going bad, but it has good electrical components, and is far more accurate and stable than any of my Antec units of the same capacity.
Enermax makes a good power supply, as do other companies. I'm sure someone else has more recommendations. Mine are all OEM, but I get my pick!

Back to you Tom...

Crashman · Sep 21, 2001

Oh, and here's a link to a post: <A HREF="http://forumz.tomshardware.com/modules.php?name=Forums&file=faq&notfound=1&code=1" target="_new">http://forumz.tomshardware.com/modules.php?name=Forums&file=faq&notfound=1&code=1</A>. This guy is running a faoirly beefy 1400 system on only 235 watts! Probably one of those high quality OEM units which are rated more conservatively. He woulddn't be running at all with an Antec of that wattage.
Rule of thumb-all these guys recommending high wattage power supplies do so because it's a reasonable means of making sure such poorly made power supplies are adequate. Usually cheap power supplies such as Antec come up short in the 3.3v/5v lines. And there are far worse power supplies than Antec. I simply recommend something BETTER. Most heavy power supplies have heavier windings, larger capacitors, etc. So sometimes weight is a better judge than brand when it comes to inexpensive units.

Back to you Tom...

forgettythatty · Sep 21, 2001

I didn't read this thread (TOO LONG!) but www.pcpowercooling.com has the best power supplies. Just don't get their ultra quiet models. They don't move any air I have read.

help... Need a new powersupply...

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