The 1000W Noob question....

[architecture1]

Inadequat Power is one of my worst fears, but is it possible to have too much Power. Would this 1000W PSU possibly create problems for me?


GIGABYTE 965P-DQ6 (rev.2.0) Motherboard

Intel® Core™ 2 Duo E6600 CPU (overclocked)

Corsair TWIN2X2048-8500C5 DDR2 800 (2 Gigs Total)

OCZ ProXStream 1000W PSU

Thermaltake Armor LCS VE2000BWS Case (Liquid Cooled)

BFGTech 8800 GTX Water Cooled Edition Video Card

Western Digital Raptor WD1500AD SATA/150NCQ 150GB 16MB Cache Hard Drive

undecided on Optical Drive

Windows XP



Anticipated Upgrades:

Quad Core

Windows Vista (after bugs are worked out)

2 more Corsair TWIN2X2048-8500C5 DDR2 800 (to bring Memory total to 4 gigs)

2nd BFGTech 8800 GTX Water Cooled Edition Video Card (to bring # of Video Cards to 2)

2nd Western Digital Raptor WD1500AD SATA/150NCQ 150GB 16MB Cache Hard Drive (to bring total hard drive space to 300GB)

 

[fredgiblet]

It won't be a problem but it is certainly unneccesary, you shouldn't need that much power until after your upgrades, even then it'll probably be a fair bit of overkill.

On the other hand it shouldn't hurt so you will have plenty of headroom. If you don't have anything better to spend your money on then you might as well get that PSU.

 

[architecture1]

I hear you loud and clear. I am now wondering what the best power supply would be.

Cost is not a big concern of mine. Any ideas? Quality is key.

 

[fredgiblet]

I hear you loud and clear. I am now wondering what the best power supply would be.

Cost is not a big concern of mine. Any ideas? Quality is key.

Well from what I have heard your OCZ PSU should be fine, I hear lots of praise for Enermax and PC Power & Cooling. Personally I use Antec because they've never let me down and they offer pretty good Wattage-price ratios (for a name brand), but I don't know if they qualify for ultra-high-end setups like yours.

 

[clue69less]

I hear you loud and clear. I am now wondering what the best power supply would be.

Cost is not a big concern of mine. Any ideas? Quality is key.

Since you can afford to future proof and plan to double up on the GPU's, get a PS now that will handle your future needs. Any of these should handle the load. Go for more watts if you feel the need. PC Power and Cooling is generally considered top dog but these other manufacturers also make great stuff:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817703008

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817341003

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817151031

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817256007

 

[architecture1]

Does the quality of the PSU diminish in modular optioins?

I'm assuming modular means "plugs" for wires in the back instead of cables comming directly out?

 

[waylander]

If you go to PC P&C's website they talk about modular plugs in psu's... they don't like them and don't make any psu's with them... that's not to say they aren't useful but I intend to stay away from modular at over 750w, just for piece of mind.

 

[architecture1]

Thanks very much. I'll check PC Power and Cooling out before I make any decisions.

 

[clue69less]

Does the quality of the PSU diminish in modular optioins?

Here's one way to look at it: A modular PS has 2X (or less) the number of plugs that cause degradation. So if you go non-modular, you'll still have Molex, SATA, 24-pin ATX, etc., connectors at the mobo, HDs, etc.

 

[El_Hefe]

If you go to PC P&C's website they talk about modular plugs in psu's... they don't like them and don't make any psu's with them... that's not to say they aren't useful but I intend to stay away from modular at over 750w, just for piece of mind.

Taken from their website:

3. DON'T LOSE POWER WITH MODULAR PLUGS
Due to their look, convenience, and cost savings for manufacturers, modular plugs have become a popular power supply feature. Unfortunately, there has been little or no discussion of the impact of this feature on overall performance and reliability. The fact is, modular plugs limit power by adding to electrical resistance. The voltage drop can be as much as would occur in 2 feet of standard wire. Worse yet, modular plugs utilize delicate pins that can easily loosen, corrode, and burn, creating the potential for a major system failure. That's why professional system builders specify uninterrupted wire!

Now my question is, How does it add to electrical resistance?

 

[Dahak]

You could always try the THERMALTAKE TOUGHPOWER line of psu.They offer a great warranty and are made of high quality components,not to mention the built in safety measures.Goodluck. www.thermaltake.com

Dahak

AMD X2-4400+@2.6 S-939
EVGA NF4 SLI MB
2X EVGA 7800GT IN SLI
2X1GIG DDR IN DC MODE
WD300GIG HD
EXTREME 19IN.MONITOR 1280X1024
THERMALTAKE TOUGHPOWER 850WATT PSU
COOLERMASTER MINI R120

 

[clue69less]

Now my question is, How does it add to electrical resistance?

Any metal to metal contact will have resistance. Modular plug contact resistance increases measurably over time. If you want to get really paranoid about it, you'll need to remove all of your plugs and solder all of your cabling. De-soldering your 24-pin ATX if your PS dies should be a treat.

 

[jt001]

It adds to resistance because you have more seperate connectors that may or may not make very good connection. It looks to me like that effect is way overemphasized though, I've never had an issue with modular supplies and looking at it from a more technical standpoint you're not adding much resistance. Just a theory here but the manufacturer may account for the resistance and adjust the PSU accordingly. Remember that a bigger and higher quality power supply = more stability, if you can go for something bigger definitely do it and future proof your system, though keep in mind the industry seems to be coming out with a new connector every other day :?

 

[bberson]

Any metal to metal contact will have resistance. Modular plug contact resistance increases measurably over time. If you want to get really paranoid about it, you'll need to remove all of your plugs and solder all of your cabling. De-soldering your 24-pin ATX if your PS dies should be a treat.

The de-soldering widgets for DIP ICs oughta' help!

My 2c - the worry about the extra connections is somewhat over-blown.

I did the math a little while ago here...

LINK

If you worry-warts knew how many crimped connectors there were in the average commercial aircraft you'd never even walk into the terminal.

The only advantage I see in solder is that of lessened oxidation at the union of the conductors over time.

-Brad

 

[croc]

I always believe what a manufacturer says in their literature...

 

[architecture1]

Does this pass the smell test?

I am going to try overclocking, never done it before. I have decided to pass on Liquid cooling for now. This is the revised system. All comments welcome, except regarding the WD Raptor and Samsung SH cause I just bought those.


Motherboard
GigaByte GA-965P-DQ6 (rev. 2.0)
http://www.gigabyte.com.tw/Products/Motherboard/Products_Overview.aspx?ProductID=2422&ModelName=GA-965P-DQ6

CPU
Intel® Core™ 2 Duo E6600 CPU
http://indigo.intel.com/compare_cpu/default.aspx?familyID=1&culture=en-US

Graphics Card
GigaByte GV-NX795T512H-RH
http://www.gigabyte.com.tw/Products/VGA/Products_Overview.aspx?ProductID=2390

Memory
Corsair TWIN2X2048-8500C5 DDR2 800 (2 Gigs Total)
http://www.corsair.com/corsair/products/specs/TWIN2X2048-8500C5.pdf

Hard Drive
Western Digital Raptor WD1500AHFDRTL SATA 150GB 16MB Cache Hard Drive
http://www.westerndigital.com/en/products/Products.asp?DriveID=190

Case
Thermaltake Armor VA8003BWS
http://www.thermaltakeusa.com/product/Chassis/fulltower/armor/va8003bws.asp

PSU
PC Power & Cooling SILENCER® 750 QUAD
http://www.pcpower.com/products/viewproduct.php?show=S75Q

Optical Drive
Samsung SH-S183L
http://www.samsung.com/Products/OpticalDiscDrive/DVDWriter/OpticalDiscDrive_DVDWriter_SH_S183L.asp?page=Specifications

OS
Windows XP
www.microsoft.com


Future Upgrades

Quad Core
(2) R600
(additional) 2 Gigs RAM
(additional) WD Raptor X
Liquid Cooling
Windows Vista

 

[clue69less]

My 2c - the worry about the extra connections is somewhat over-blown.

Total agreement. There are applications where connection quality and reliability are more important. I dunno if they are still in business or not, but there used to be a British high-end speaker builder that would construct a listening room on the side of your home in order to get a proper acoustical environment. They would also silver solder all of the interconnects between components. Their system was about a quarter million USD and you also had to pay for the room. If you blew an amp, a guy in a van would drive up and solder a replacement in and drive away with the refuse. I'm sure they sold a bajillion of them.

If you worry-warts knew how many crimped connectors there were in the average commercial aircraft you'd never even walk into the terminal.

I've done installs on research aircraft where the electricals and mechanicals are exposed. Yes, there are many modular connections, but in defense of the industry, the most important devices are connected with extremely high quality plugs. If I'd known 30 years ago what I know now, I would have gone into that biz because the industry pays big bucks for little specialty connectors.

The only advantage I see in solder is that of lessened oxidation at the union of the conductors over time.-Brad

I believe that is correct. It's a trade-off because one can blow a solder joint too. If flat frequency response over extended time periods across a low level cable is real important, then you'll need to clean the connector surfaces regularly. For delivering 5 to 12 volts +/- the typical 50 to 150mV ripple in a PC power supply, it's not so much rocket science.

 

[croc]

I agree. One cold solder joint at any point in a system will be far more detrimental than a well designed modular plug. But please, do not take this as a 'slam' of PC P&C power supplies.

 

[evongugg]

With all your future upgrades, I estimate you are going to need 50-52 amps on the 12v rails. That is 604-628 Watts for the 12v rails only.

 

[cdonato]

Problems, no it would. Overkill yes, more money yes, but problems no.