is my 550W PSU enough?

[jbourne84]

IP35 pro XE
intel Q6600 OC @ 3.2 (400external clock X8) 1.3V
4gb ram @800mhz, 1.8v
120GB ide HD 7200 RPMs
350GB SATA HD 7200 RPMs
DVD/CD burner
ATI Saphire 3870 (512mb)
550W corsair PSU

everything seems ok, i just started wondering because i notice a lot of people with similar setups with higher wattage psu, 650-750

how bout if i wanted to add more ram/hard drives/ optical drives?

thanks in advance

 

[hannibal]

No problem. If you go for Crosfire or new 4870x2 double GPU graphicks, then you need more power, but good quality 550 is good for you single GPU system. It can even handle one 4870 but not two of them...

 

[rgsaunders]

Your PSU is fine. The largest consumers of power in a system are CPU, yours prob consumes ~125-130W fully loaded, and video cards operating in 3D fully loaded. If you have the CPU and video card maxed out, that will account for approximately 300w, so your system seems to have more than adequate power. I would only consider an upgrade to the PSU if you plan on going to high end video cards such as the HD 4870x2.

 

[mlj]

550w is good enough with your current setup, adding more ram will not be a problem, hard drives and optical drives generaly consume about 15-20w,

you should be ok as the quality of your PSU is just as important as the wattage and corsair have a very good reputation,

if you want to upgrade your vid card you will need a better PSU.

hope this helps you,

Michael.

 

[delluser1]

The Corsair 550 is Crossfire certified for the HD4850 ( they use more power than the 3870 ).

 

[jbourne84]

wonderful, thanks all