the new top story on TomsHardware.com named "The Graphics State of Union" got me thinking, I mean DAAAAMN !! 1000watt PSU's.. .holy crap... so as the topic hints... right now I have an aging case with a 400watt power supply, but I am just about to upgrade to an E6600 Core 2 Duo with OCZ 2GB of PC5400 DDR2-667 ram, 1 Seagate SATA2 320GB HardDrive, and 1 Sony DVD drive... and NO VIDEO CARD..(waiting for the new line of DX10 capable Vid Cards, will buy then) thats why I figure a 400 watt PS should be enough, cuz I wont be using a high power Graphics Card and the Conroes draw less power than earlier CPU's...
ok so my question is... should I blow a load of money on a new case and PS (take a look here, I have my eye on this) Aluminum ATX case 550watt PS
this would cost me around $160CAD after rebate taxes and shipping..
or should I be smart about it and wait, because I do fully understand that the new wave of DX10 graphic cards which are just around the corner will have larger power requirements so will therefore need a helluva lot more power and stability, that the current power supplies on the market will not be able to offer... I remember reading an article on toms hardware i cant find it now, but in any case it stated that currently most of the Power Supply manufacturers are hard at work trying to deliver the next generation of power supply units to the market which will be fully compliant with the new wave of products hitting the market soon, so common sense tells you it all mostly begins with Windows Vista, with the new Aero interface (which looks nice by the way, but hey so does the Apple iMac interface and its not nearly as power hungry as Windows Vista will be) in any case Windows Vista equals, the need for an expensive graphic card, which in turn requires a really good power supply... so after you blow your money on Windows Vista Ultimate, u still gotta blow around $500 on the GPU and PS to be able to run the Operating System the way its supposed to be run... I will never understand the Computer world, I mean... car manufacturers don't sell you a million dollar supercar capable of 200mph and tell you 'oh by the way the engine has been detuned the car is only capable of 100mph, so you're gonna have to buy a few extra parts and spend a little more money !!to have it run the way its meant to be run!!"

If you can wait then do so, I don't believe in upgrading something when I can, just when I have to. Of course I only apply this to core components not to peripherals like mice and keyboards.

Vista Aero runs fine on my ATI x800.... I don't see any problems and my PC is about 3 years old. The problem is that games need more video power, not windows.

That being said I would hold off on the power supply if its not needed why buy it now guessing at what the reqs for DX10 cards will be?

if ur gonna buy a PSU now to have it sit there then no. but if ur planning on building now then get a PSU. PSU's will be the same in 1 month. there will be new ATX v5.09 plug

I would not buy any component that required a 1000watt PSU! Just like Conroe is using less power, so will future GPUs. Eventually they will start reducing heat generation like Intel did.

You picked a good rig. I too am getting the Ultra X2 PSU, though with a larger case. I am putting together a similar system with Core 2 Duo E6600. I will be running 6 hard drives, but with a mid-level GPU.

not next generation GPU. they will use more power there for giving off more heat.

you think they will? the 7600s dont need a power connect.
and they are as good or better than the 6800s

i know they will. but something like a 8600 series shouldnt. the higher end like 8800's will.

nvidia uses less transistors which means less vlts and heat
in their 76 and 79 series plus the lower <90nm> processing
as well as everyone else.

my question is will dx10 and vista require the gpu makers
to have to go <back so to speak> to more power to be able to
run the next gen of gaming software?

and then after dx10 is out and all the bugs are being
worked out. and they see how everything works after
the end user has experienced and complianed about
this and that will they <ati and nvidia> beable to drop
power comsuption, transistors and such?

do you get the idea or what i am trying to say.

or will they be able to lower the nm process
and power consumption?

example
the new nvidia 8800 or what ever series this fall
or when ever the new dx10 cards come out

will it be 65nm or still 90 and if so will the 65nm need extra power
becuase of the next gen graphics

Don't forget that the 6800's were on an AGP bus - one of the major reasons for the shift to PCIe was its ability to provide more power for graphics cards.

65nm use less power.

it;ll be 65nm but it'll require lots of power still.

look, we dont have a lot of info on this topic. the vid card compaines didnt relase much info.

Yep, all this is pure speculation for now. The only real thing I've read from Anandtech.com was that the next generation of video cards will be consuming between 130w - 300w. That doesn't necessarily mean that a budget card will consume 130w of power.

I would not recommend that PS. I've read two reviews of it that were thumbs down in summary. For a new build with a DX10 gpu, I recommend a solid PS. I assume there will be SLI-like solutions in DX-10 so you might want to think ahead and decide it you will do a single or dual card setup. Dual DX-10 cards will need a large, high current PS. If you go with a single DX-10 card, you'll still need plenty of PS beef. I'd think that a 500 watt unit will not be overkill for a DX10 machine, and if you OC, I'd go beyond that. A multi-12V rail unit providing 35 to 40 A of +12 is probably a starting point. Waiting to find out the requirements of the card you plan to buy is the safest approach.

I would not recommend that PS. I've read two reviews of it that were thumbs down in summary. For a new build with a DX10 gpu, I recommend a solid PS. I assume there will be SLI-like solutions in DX-10 so you might want to think ahead and decide it you will do a single or dual card setup. Dual DX-10 cards will need a large, high current PS. If you go with a single DX-10 card, you'll still need plenty of PS beef. I'd think that a 500 watt unit will not be overkill for a DX10 machine, and if you OC, I'd go beyond that. A multi-12V rail unit providing 35 to 40 A of +12 is probably a starting point. Waiting to find out the requirements of the card you plan to buy is the safest approach.

heh, i didnt even read that...where did u find that cluelesS??..oh yeah that huge first post.

anyways. as clueless stated. Ultra makes cheap unreliable PSU's. Go with a brand name, Antec, Fortron, Seasonic.

"Vista certified Power Supplies"

you know what I meant by that dude...... the next GEN power supplies since they dont really have a label I used Vista... the GPU's, the Motherboards all of those got these clever little 'Vista Capable' stickers stamped on they boxes n all that stuff....

hey Clue69Less... ok good advice, I'm a single Video Card type user, no SLI for me... and I admit I read a bad review on that power supply as well... it performed bottom of the barrell.... but one thing I really like about it is the cables... have u seen them?? and I quote "Ultra chose an ingenious alternative to cable sleeves: Flat ribbon-style UV-reactive power cables are extremely flexible, easy to route, and look great through clear plastic insulation" so no these arent your typical sleeved cables, these are a little extra.... do you know any other power supplies which feature this type of cable design ??? heres the link to the review on the Ultra PS.. and this page shows you the cables up close Ultra X2 550watt

thanks for all your advice guys, I think this is a question that bothers a lotta people actually das why I brought it up... everyones runnin around like chickens wit they heads cut off, not knowin whether to buy now, or in a bit since all these new products are coming out....

I agree with Adon. I evaluated 12 brands of modular power supplies and found the Ultra X2 to have the best design. Can I find one with more power? Sure. Can I find one with higher efficiency? Sure. Will I notice the difference? No. Will I notice a difference in the design? Yes!

If I was going to go SLI I might choose a different PSU, but I will always go with a single $250-$300 graphics card.

While ur at it ask ur self this and then tell me if u'd still get the ultra.

"Will the Ultra X2 blow in 4 months and fry ALL my hardware? Sure."

I read a lot of user reviews on those 12 brands and some of the NAME brands had multiple complaints about frying motherboards! The Ultra X2 did not. It also has a lifetime warranty. I have followed some "problem" threads on their forum and the response and service seem good. Really, if you don't do SLI there is no reason not to get it.

I just realised I have not responded to the topic of this thread yet, so here goes. Sure, the DX10 chipset will be out in September. The cards will follow a bit later. The debugged cards/drivers won't be out for at least 6 months to a year. I wouldn't wait. GPU manufacturers tend to be too quick to market with new stuff to get ahead of their competition and as a result, there are often major problems with new technology releases. Current technology is adequate and not worth being a beta tester to get the latest. However I only play one game. I mostly do video editing and need a very stable GPU. Those who spend many hours a day gaming may find it worth being on the bleeding edge, but you will bleed.

Ultra is made by tiger direct. Tiger direct gets no where near Antec, Fortron, OCZ..etc. quality. I dunno which "brands" you tested.