The biggest noobie question you've ever heard!

[blaze739]

I'm building my first rig and have bought all the components except the case and the psu. I was originally going to purchase a 500W Rosewill psu because of its good ratings and nice features, but I just used a wattage calculator and it says I only need 320W for my setup. Basically I have:
C2D E6750
Gigabyte P35-DS3L
XFX nVidia 8600GT
2GB Crucial Ballistix DDR2 1066
Seagate 7200rpm HDD

So my question is, if I buy a 500W psu but my computer only needs 320, will I be wasting a lot of electricity? I feel like its a waste to buy so much wattage when my computer doesn't need it, but I don't mind spending the money. I haven't found a weaker psu that I really trust so I'm alittle torn. I just dont want the electrical bill to jump up when it isn't necessary.
Thanks guys.

 

[13thmonkey]

yes and no, no in that a PC will draw whatever power is required up to the limit of the PSU. Yes in that the 500W will be slightly (1-2%) less efficient at 320W than a similar 350W PSU would be.

But the effect is negligible, and the bigger PSU will run cooler, and therefore potentially quieter, and have a longer life as it is under less stress.

 

[emp]

Rosewill units are nowhere NEAR trustworthy units, if anything they are the antithesis of a quality unit. To answer your question, no you wouldn't be wasting electricity, it will only draw as much as it requires. However I'd like to point 2 things out, first if this system is for gaming then I SERIOUSLY recommend that you invest a Hell of a lot more on a decent graphics card, the 8600GT is a laughable card at best.

Second and more important, you need and should want a high quality unit, most people like to skimp on PSU only to regret it afterwards. What is truly important in PSUs nowadays are the 12V rails amperage, not the wattage of the unit, which is a common misconception. On top of that you want a unit that has high efficiency, STABLE rails, and no ripple, otherwise your system is prone to injury so to speak.

Here are some units I strongly recommend to anyone that needs a PSU:

PC Power & Cooling Silencer 610 EPS12V EPS12V 610W Continuous @ 40°C Power Supply 100 - 240 V UL, cUL, CE, CB, TUV - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817703005&Tpk=Silencer%2b610

Antec NeoHE 500 ATX12V 500W Power Supply 100Vac to 240Vac +/- 10% UL, CUL, TUV, CE, FCC, CCC, CB, C-tick - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817103940&Tpk=NeoHE%2b500

Antec NeoPower NeoHE 550 ATX12V 550W Power Supply 100 - 240 V UL, CUL, TUV, CE, FCC, CCC, CB, C-tick - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817103941&Tpk=NeoHE%2b550

SeaSonic M12 SS-500HM ATX12V / EPS12V 500W Power Supply 100 - 240 V UL, CE, CB, TUV, FCC - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151029

CORSAIR CMPSU-520HX ATX12V v2.2 and EPS12V 2.91 520W Power Supply 100 - 240 V UL, CUL, CE, CB, FCC Class B, TUV, CCC,

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139001&Tpk=Corsair%2b520

And this is the bare minimum that you should aim for in a PSU:

CORSAIR CMPSU-450VX ATX12V V2.2 450W Power Supply 90 - 264 V UL, CUL, CE, CB, FCC Class B, TUV, CCC, C-tick - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139003

 

[trevorblain]

One thing to take into consideration is that there will be other components using power as well: fans, cd/dvd drives, LEDs, etc. these may be minor draws when compared to CPUs and HDDs, but they do factor in. Another question is whether or not you will eventually want to try your hand at overclocking, which will also increase your power requirements, as will future upgrades such as additional HDDs.

In my opinion, I would consider 500W to be your baseline. It is, afterall, better to have more power in reserve, than to find your PSU being the weakest link in your newly constructed system. I can't personally vouch for Rosewill PSUs having no prior experience with them (I'm using a Corsair 620 which I'm impressed with and have not noticed any substantial increase to the utility bill).

Good luck with the new build!

 

[ausch30]

My first suggestion would be to not buy a Rosewill PSU, they are not very good. To your next question, no you will not be wasting power. The computer will draw the power it needs, it's not like if you buy a 500w you'll be drawing 500w from the wall. A larger PSU will give you a little room for upgrades and over time the components in the PSU produce less power but I thing 450w is all you really need. Something like this http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817104954 or this http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139003 would be a better choice.

 

[drew455]

i've had good luck with my Ultra 500w power supply. for 50$ it has served me well for over a year now. good luck with your decision

 

[emp]

I urge not to purchase Ultra units, they are known for making horrible PSU, right on par with Rosewill's quality (Or lack of quality for that matter). The only "decent" Ultra unit is the Ultra X3 1000W.

 

[justinmcg67]

I ordered a Rosewill 600W PSU and it's just fine. Do any of you bashing Roseiwll PSUs actually OWN a Rosewill PSU?

 

[emp]

Why would I? I already said I only purchase quality units... And it obviously will work at the beginning, but after some time let the ripple and unstable voltage kick in and wreck your components, only to leave you with a bigger electricity bill due to low efficiency...

 

[Zorg]

I ordered a Rosewill 600W PSU and it's just fine. Do any of you bashing Roseiwll PSUs actually OWN a Rosewill PSU?

Be afraid... very afraid.

Tier 5 - Other than the units listed above for any of these brands, NOT RECOMMENDED
...
...
Rosewill
...

And it's not listed in any tier above tier 5.

Good luck with that Rosewill, keep your fingers crossed.

 

[jonisginger]

Here's what you need to know. A PSU gets drawn out of it whatever the system needs. You could run a 1000kW PSU and you wouldn't waste much more electricity.

BAM

 

[justinmcg67]

Be afraid... very afraid.

Tier 5 - Other than the units listed above for any of these brands, NOT RECOMMENDED
...
...
Rosewill
...

And it's not listed in any tier above tier 5.

Good luck with that Rosewill, keep your fingers crossed.

Well Raidmax is also listed as Tier 5 and I've been using a 450W Raidmax PSU now for almost two years without any problems whatsoever. I don't know who credible that list is. And from reviews, the PSU I purchased seems to perform very well and has been a great buy for many customers.

 

[joefriday]

I really like Rosewill's mATX PSU. 200 watt, solid build, and very quiet. I've purchased two of them now, for HP Pavilions.

As for Rosewill's ATX PSUs, I tend to stick with OEM brands like Hipro and Bestec in the same price range.

 

[Zorg]

Well Raidmax is also listed as Tier 5 and I've been using a 450W Raidmax PSU now for almost two years without any problems whatsoever. I don't know who credible that list is. And from reviews, the PSU I purchased seems to perform very well and has been a great buy for many customers.

Best of luck to you.

 

[emp]

Well Raidmax is also listed as Tier 5 and I've been using a 450W Raidmax PSU now for almost two years without any problems whatsoever. I don't know who credible that list is. And from reviews, the PSU I purchased seems to perform very well and has been a great buy for many customers.

Ignorance is bliss, I suppose...

 

[Evilonigiri]

Yes Rosewill is bad, but it's not the worst. They get like a 72% efficiency. Problem is that you may get a defective unit, and if that happens your pc could get fried :/ Stick with corsair or OCZ or a solid brand name.

 

[lunyone]

PSU's are sorta like some cars. Take the Yugo/Chevette for example. They will get you to point A and back, most of the time. But when they break down, you'll possibly have other issues. Now if you take a Honda/Toyota for example, you can have a quality car that will do a more reliable delivery of goods from point A and back. Not to say that there aren't any Honda's/Toyota's that have had issues, but overall your going to have a better experience if you get the Honda/Toyota than you would if you had a Yugo/Chevette!

Edit: forgot to add linkage for possible PSU's. The FSP PSU listed is a bare minimum for a system. The others will leave you plenty of room for GPU upgrades later.

PSU - $48 shipped Best budget PSU w/good amps on 12V rails and 1 PCI-e connector
FSP Group (Fortron Source) AX400-PN ATX12V 400W Power Supply 120/220 - 240v NEMKO, TUV, CSA, IEC, UL, CE %u2013 Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16817104953

PSU - $60 shipped Hard to beat at this price
Antec earthwatts EA430 ATX12V v2.0 430W Power Supply 100 - 240 V UL, CUL, FCC, TUV, CE, CB, C-tick, CCC %u2013 Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371006

PSU - $100 shipped , hard to beat for this price.
Antec NeoPower NeoHE 550 ATX12V 550W Power Supply 100 - 240 V UL, CUL, TUV, CE, FCC, CCC, CB, C-tick %u2013 Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817103941

PSU - $130 shipped Nice a quiet and cheaper from OEM, not from newegg.
ULTRA-QUIET PSU: SILENCER® 610 EPS12V
http://www.pcpower.com/products/viewproduct.php?show=S61EPS

PSU - $75 shipped - $20 MIR = $55! Can run a single 8800gtx system.
CORSAIR CMPSU-450VX 450W Active Power Supply Retail ***Free Shipping***
http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=10006428

PSU - $100 shipped - $10 MIR = $90! Good solid PSU for the $, hard to beat.
Corsair 520W SLI Certified Modular ATX Power Supply - CMPSU-520HX
http://www.buy.com/prod/corsair-520w-sli-certified-modular-atx-power-supply/q/loc/101/203270716.html

PSU - ~$125 shipped Good solid PSU, straight from OEM and cheaper than Newegg
ULTRA-QUIET PSU: SILENCER® 610 EPS12V
http://www.pcpower.com/products/viewproduct.php?show=S61EPS

 

[emp]

Yes Rosewill is bad, but it's not the worst. They get like a 72% efficiency. Problem is that you may get a defective unit, and if that happens your pc could get fried :/ Stick with corsair or OCZ or a solid brand name.

72% Efficiency is bad for a $70-80+ unit, but that's nothing to worry about, what you should be worried about are unstable rails and ripple, those are the two worst enemies for PC components longevity. This is why I would stay as far as I can from Rosewill units.

 

[zenmaster]

Please visit http://www.jonnyguru.com or other websits that seriously review PSUs.

You will learn they are not all equal.
The "Stats" on a PSU including efficiency do not always matter that much.


"Good" PSUs with lower ratings will often supply more real powre then cheap PSUs with higher wattage ratings.

You will also find that cheap PSUs can die quite painfully for your entire system.

You don't need to blow your retirement fund on a good PSU as there are some decent ones that are slighly below the top ones like Corsair, PCPC, and Seasonic.

Some of these PSUs include FSP and Thermaltake which can often be found on sale in the $50-$60 range for 500+ watt units.

I went for a Seasonic in my build because I could afford to.
However, there is just no reason to risk your system on PSUs of questionable quality. One issue with Rosewill is they do not make their own PSUs and do not have any one particular source for their PSUs. They tend to be low quality but you really never know what you are getting.

Some companies like Corsair which outsource their PSUs have all units i n various lines go to the same manufacturer and those tend to be higher-end PSU manufacturers.

 

[emp]

Not "higher" end... the best. Seasonic is just... god of PSUs

 

[Zorg]

supremelaw, that was some good information that not very many people consider. Everyone wants the cheapest PSU they can get and they run it at 90-95%. In my opinion that is foolhardy. Also, very very few people understand the value of a good properly sized UPS, although since they have come down in price, maybe more people will start using them.

 

[ausch30]

I agree Zorg, I don't have a UPS but have considered buying one and most people's views on PSU's and UPS's are that if it doesn't increase my FPS then I'll just buy the cheapest and when you live by that rule your bound to kill your components. The most important part of the computer is ample, stable power because every part relies upon it.

 

[Zorg]

It's a sad day in computerland

 

[justinmcg67]

Ignorance is bliss, I suppose...

Well beign that I OWN the units and can personally speak on their behalf, while you don't, I'd liek to think my credibility towards such products greatly outweighs yours. Your receiving and giving opinions on products based off of someone else's opinion on the products who as well, doe snot actually own the product.

But I'm sure all the people who purchased the Rosewill PSUs and said they liked it must be wrong right...

 

[Zorg]

All you have to do is go on Newegg. You will find a quote that says something like - I own this PSU and it hasn't blown up on me yet so it is really good. If you like it and you are not concerned about it blowing your whole system up then rock on. I've seen super junk run for ten years, and I have also seen similar junk take out a $10,000 voice mail system within two weeks. The choice is yours. All I ask is that you don't foist your misinformation, which goes against the readily accepted understanding, on unsuspecting newbs.