Tom's Hardware > Forum > CPU & Components > Power Supplies, PC Cases & Case Mods > hec 580UB, stable/powerful enough for a 3870 X2 system?

hec 580UB, stable/powerful enough for a 3870 X2 system?

Forum CPU & Components : Power Supplies, PC Cases & Case Mods - hec 580UB, stable/powerful enough for a 3870 X2 system?

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Will an hec 580W dual 12v rail psu deliver enough 12v amps to this system (i.e. the 3870 X2 ), and remain stable/reliable for maybe a year or two?

Biostar TForce TP43D2A7 motherboard
MSI Radeon hd 3870 X2 OC edition
Intel E7200 wolfdale oc'd from 2.53 to 3.15 ghz
1 SATA HDD
1 DVD+RW
4 fans (1 LED, 3 regular)
4 ddr2800 1gb dimms

Thanks, and I greatly appreciate any information!

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Sorry for not posting the specs for the psu! The exact specs are in this link:
http://www.hecgroupusa.com/product/33

Reply to jya252

That is wayyyyy too close for comfort. I would be really surprised if that worked. You have already invested in a good system why not invest in a good psu?

Reply to faster3200

My PSU should have about 117.5 watts of headroom before maxing out:

580W
- 225W @12v (3870 X2 at absolute peak will use 75W from slot and 75W x 2 from the 2 PEG connectors)
- 65W @12v (overstatement for the Intel E7200 wolfdale I hear)
- 48W @12v (guesstimate for 1 HDD, 1 DVD+RW, 4 fans ~ 4amps @12v)
- 24.5W (combined -12v and +5vsb power)
- 100W (guesstimated combined 3.3v and 5v load)
------------
117.5 watts of headroom

Unfortunately, the hec 580UB specs don't list the combined wattage of its 12v rails, so I have no idea if the psu will be stable at the output of 12v watts that I want. But from what I've read from hec reviews, they make pretty solid psu's.

Does anyone know if my hec psu will stay stable for a year or two at my system's current demand? Are there any major mistakes in my calculations? (eep!)

Reply to jya252

While I hope this psu will work great, I wouldn't hesitate for a second to get a better psu (maybe a corsair ) if my current psu can potentially harm my system with dirty power over the next year or so - I'm just kinda low on funds atm

Reply to jya252

I just bought a HEC 580WATT PSU and I installed it yesterday. It power's my X1950PRO AGP with no problems and I'm only using 1 12volt rail instead of 2 which the card ask's for. If this PSU can handle a Sapphire X1950PRO by only using 1 rail I'm pretty sure it will be able to handle a 3870X2 with 2 12volt rails.
If I'm reading these PSU specs correct. then this PSU supposed to be able to handle crossfire or SLI along with 2 separate Opteron Dual core CPU's

Reply to Equalier

Thanks for the replies faster3200 and Equalier,
Although this psu has 2 12v rails, I sure hope the connectors are split so that the two PEG connectors are fed by 12v1, and with everything else @12v's including peripheral connectors being fed by 12v2. I'm really new to balancing rail loads, but since hec provides no information on the way they're split it seems I have no choice on where to plug stuff

Reply to jya252

DO NOT GET THAT PSU Get some thing with good build quality, I recommend a Corsair or a PC Power & Cooling. Also consider OCZ, Antec, Thermaltake. These PSUs are of much better quality than that hec PSU. A Corsair 550 would be a good choice. If possible a PC Power & Cooling 610.

------------------------------

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2617/3815217176_0a5be7955d_o.gif

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3553/3818083596_1a772f7162_o.gif

Reply to Shadow703793

A friend of mine that builds 15-20 systems a year favors using the Hec (compucase) cases available from Newegg. When i asked him about their power supplies he said "ohh i'd never use their power supplies, i just like their cases"

Reply to dirtmountain

Wattage is equal to voltage times amperage.
So your 12v rails provide 420 watts.
As a PSU ages it loses the ability the deliver the same level of power.
10 to 15 % after the first year, so it is always good to buy a PSU with a little extra headroom.
I have to second the recommendation of Shadow, regarding the PCPower and Cooling Silencer 610 watt PSU.

Reply to bobbknight

its will work fine, but if r buying a new one get antec thermatake pc power and cooling. if u have his psu just keep it.

------------------------------ intel core 2 quad q6600 @3.2ghz msi p6n diamond (X-FI Extreme sound) 6gig of OCZ+CoRSAIR oc 900mhz Nvidia gtx 260 sli @ 730/1465/1250
Lite-On Blue-ray Western Digital 7200rpm 500gb Antec 500 Earthwatt Window vista 64-bit
Reply to invisik

Considering the current distribution for the voltages listed on the label, although the link says the PSU is 2.2 compliant, the power distribution is indicative of an old design that has been relabeled etc for marketing purposes. A google search for reviews shows only 2 reviews of this product, neither of which is a proper review done with appropriate test equipment (I don't count Newegg user reviews). The pictures of the internals do not inspire confidence in the component quality or engineering of this unit.
The PS claims 2x 12V rails, however if their design is consistent with their other models, there is actually only 1 12V rail internally. A quick and dirty analysis of the output rating shows a calculated total of 28 amps on the 12V side, vice the 35 shown on the label.

Message edited by rgsaunders on 09-11-2008 at 02:20:55 AM

------------------------------ Never under estimate peoples capacity for stupidity, and you won't be disappointed.
Reply to rgsaunders

So the hec psu should deliver a stable total current of 28 amps on the 12v? With 28 amps @ 12v (336 watts), shouldn't that cover my (sightly overestimated) system need of 338 watts @ 12v? I'm not sure how much headroom that leaves my psu over all my rails, i.e. how long that hec would last me O.o But that 28 amps is supposed to be the "stable" max output right (like what's on the labels)?

I've been looking at other similar psu's labels (450-550W psu's with 2 (likely current limited) 12v rails) and trying to compare the labeled max combined output of their 12v rails to what mine should have:

Combined max load 12v1/12v2 on PSU labels:
-----------------------------------------------------------
Antec EA-430: 360W
Antec EA-500: 408W
Bgears b-Tarantula 550W: 360W
Zalman ZM460B-APS: 408W
Topower TOP-550PCM: 360W

So if I'm unlucky, my hec psu could be the 360W @ combined 12v1/12v2 - which would give me more headroom than 28 amps (336 watts) @ combined. But if I'm lucky, mine could be more like the 408W combined, which gives me even more headroom! It looks like the overall wattage of a dual rail PSU is no indication of the combined 12v1/12v2 current

Message edited by jya252 on 09-11-2008 at 03:09:14 AM

Reply to jya252

ur cutting it close with the amps but in my opinion it will be enough. im running 2 gtx260 with a 34amp psu.

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