Tom's Hardware > Forum > Graphic & Displays > Graphics Cards > Video Cards and Power Requirements
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bildo123   02-06-2007 at 11:17:20 PM

Im building a system for my buddy and Im setting him up with a thermaltake TR2 W0070 ATX 430W Power Supply. Its gonna be a mid-range gaming system and I was wondering if that power supply will be able to push a ASUS 1950PRO. The card calls for a min. 450W PS and 30 Amp 12V rail on a fully loaded system. Thing Is this system is quite simple. Just one hard drive,one Dvd-RAM,and a AMD X2 +4200 cpu. So I dont consider it fully loaded like some WD raptors in raid or anything fancy...so Do you think it'll boot If I use this PS?

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rockyjohn   02-07-2007 at 03:39:57 AM
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Have you checked the PSU specs to see if it has 30 amps on the 12v rail? If building a system you should be able to check this.

Assuming that the 12v rail has enought power, the 430w PSU will probably handle your total load with minimal components and no overclocking. However, power supplies are not a good place to skimp on. If the card says 450w minimun, I suggest considering that minimum and would not think of using less - only more - such as at lease a 500w prefereably with more than 30 amps on the 12v rail.

Also keep in mind that PSU efficiency declines over time so on overage is needed for this. On top of that, if there is any chance that you might want to add more components later, or maybe a video card requiring more power, it it best to allow even more now.

See attached linke for power calculations.

http://www.journeysystems.com/powe [...] _popup.php

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randomizer   02-07-2007 at 05:08:39 AM
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That psu only has 18A 12V. I have it and it runs my x1950 pro ok, except in oblivion. I have to underclock and undervolt my 3700 sandy :( just to run it stably. It could just be that its overheating, but the underclock/undervolt solved my problem at least for the moment. Usually problems range from a simple game crash to a loss of display signal requiring a reboot to an automatic system restart. So yes it will boot and likely will run fine on most apps, but anything overly stressful may cause it to crash.

EDIT: Btw those psu calcs are a joke. They nearly always show a rating thats lower than the true system power draw. One said my x1950 pro used only 17 watts more power than my 9800 pro! It does run with an 80nm vs 150nm process, but then if its only another 17 watts, why are there now problems?

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bildo123   02-08-2007 at 12:37:13 AM
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Wow, great replies guys, now that im well informed Ill guess he'll have to choke up a few dollars more, but better than dealing with the problems. thanks a lot guys!
Later,
The Bill

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randomizer   02-08-2007 at 05:30:59 AM
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I hate power supplies. Root of all problems. :lol:

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Granite3   02-08-2007 at 06:14:51 AM
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I ran my e6600 and 1900xtx on that very psu for a couple of months, along with 2 HDs, 2 dvds, floppy, sound card, 3 120mm fans with no problem.

The thermaltake total watts viewer on the psu never got above 275 watts, but I worried about that low amperage 12v rail everytime I booted.

Upped to a 550W TT and a dedicated 250 watt TT vid card psu when I got my 8800 GTX, but the vid psu will be junk before long due to the new quad couplers on the new ATI cards.

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