Radeon X1600

[TripSwitch07]

Hi,

I have an iStart 2311, http://www.packardbell.co.uk/products/desktops/istart/iStart-2311/productsheet-PB82113801-802.html

It is only a few months old and has the following specs:

1 x 160GB SATA HD
2 x 1GB DDR2 RAM
AMD Athlon 64 X2 4000+ Processor
nVidia 6150SE Integrated Graphics
Factory 240W PSU

My question is: I have a Radeon X1600 Pro 512MB PCI-E, which I wish to insert into this computer. I know that the factory 240W PSU will not handle this because I blew the processor in my previous iStart 1379 doing this. I have, however, also got a 450W PSU here that I can insert into the computer. My question is, will the 450W PSU be powerful enough to run the system with the X1600 graphics card installed?

Thanks, Adi.

 

[MrCommunistGen]

What kind of 450W is it? In general I would say yes except if it's a really cheap 450W in which case it might not be suitable for anything.

Also, people will gripe about you double posting.

-mcg

 

[TripSwitch07]

Yea sorry about that, I wasnt really sure where I would get a reply!

I don't really know much about PSU's, but its make is "Trust".

it has this information on the side:

DC Output:
+3.3V | +5V | +12V1 | +12V2 | -12V | +5VSB |
30A | 35A | 15A | 16A | 0.8A | 2.5A |
225W | 372W | 9.6W | 12.5W |
Combined Max Output: 450W

Thanks for replying!

 

[MrCommunistGen]

Well... that's not a brand I have ever heard of and it's not on the Tiered PSU list either. I would be willing to bet it's of very low quality. Where did you get it and how much did you pay for it? Although you can easily spend a lot of money on a bad PSU you can also get good ones for less than you might expect. That said, the commonly recommended 450W is the Corsair VX450 which sells for about $75. Should be powerful enough to power just about any single card system, even with high end graphics.

-mcg

 

[TripSwitch07]

My uncle bought it for me from somewhere I can't remember where, I paid around £55 so I was expecting it to be of decent make. I thought it might have been a good make as it wasn't the cheapest and it was one of the few i'd seen with so many connectors available (4 x sata and up to 6 x molex) but if its not a known brand its probably not the best. I had it in my old iStart 1379 system with the same graphics card but the graphics card seemed to overheat to mad proportions and the computer ended up shutting itself down causing permanent damage to the cpu i think. It could be the graphics card im not entirely sure but if this one is not recommeded I think i'll havta buy a new PSU!

 

[MrCommunistGen]

Well if other components are overheating you may have cooling issues. The X1600 shouldn't put out that much heat, but its more than an integrated solution. If the factory cooling was tailored to fit that heat profile exactly, the extra heat might be too much. What kind/how many fans does the case have?

-mcg

 

[TripSwitch07]

Only a cpu fan, thats it. Its an AMD standard one i believe, quiet as anything, wouldn't know it was on, but I don't think it provides anywhere near enough cooling to provide the computer with a fresh constant air supply so that could also play a factor. I have not tried the graphics card in this computer however, only in the older one, which also only had one cpu fan, but was a faster and more noisy one which didnt seem to do a good job from the start as the CPU was running at around 50 degrees C at from factory.

 

[mactronix]

While i agree that as it is a bit of an unknown brand wise and as such would be considered a bit risky. It wont have a lack of power problem it easily gives enough to run the card and system. The real problem could be how stable it is, There could be no problem with it at all, it may be a very good PSU.
The thing is it is always better to play on the cautious side with these things which is why people tend to be cautious when recomending a PSU. Its usually the top branded ones that get recomended. These are the ones we know to represent good quality at a good price. Thats not to say every other cheaper PSU is worthless, you just need to weigh up the cost of replacing it with a more reputable one.
mactronix