over limited watts.

[invisik]

just wondering my antec earthwatt psu is capable of 500w if my pc were to use over the 500w whats the worse thing that can occur?

 

[cantbesure1086]

Probably worst thing that can possibly happen is that you'll burn up your psu and start a small fire, most likely the computer will just down though. Either way i wouldn't recommend using a power supply you know is under powered for your setup but 500w should be good for everything but a sli rig with 2+ hard drives or more.

 

[geofelt]

just wondering my antec earthwatt psu is capable of 500w if my pc were to use over the 500w whats the worse thing that can occur?

I don't think you can use more power than a PSU can deliver. If the PC needs more, and the PSU can't deliver, you will get shutdowns, blue screens, or maybe just flaky operation. Low power might damage some components, but I think that is unlikely. The Antec is a good unit, so I would not worry much about it.

 

[invisik]

well if you see my spec in the signature section you can see im running a quad 0c @ 3.2ghz and 2gtx260 in sli with only 500w. i was just wondering if adding another 9600gt to dedicate for physics would work? but doesn't seem likely.

 

[cantbesure1086]

I didn't notice your signature when i looked at it the first time and it doesn't show it now in your first post either, my bad. I would say though to maintain a stable environment a tad bit larger psu would be a thought with adding the physics card. I have seen people run huge raids raids with old psu's, and antecs are pretty solid, but if it starts giving you trouble i would start troubleshooting at the psu.

 

[invisik]

well if i were to add a 9600gt and lets say my psu cant deliver enough power to my system whats the odds of damaging anything. i dont no if i want to take a risk. usually dont psu have a safety feature?

 

[JAYDEEJOHN]

Ever heard of russian roulette? I wouldnt try it. As your psu overworks, itll overheat, whichll cause for poor performance due to the heat, as the electrons just wont flow, and itll ask for more from your psu, whichll get hotter, and could spike power, then you lose whatever....

 

[invisik]

thanks guys for all your help i get the picture. lol
=]

 

[einstein4pres]

Well, normally, I'd say that 500W is more than enough, so long as you buy a good brand/model, and the EA500 is good model, but you should probably consider 650+W models (or more). I don't have much experience recommending such models; maybe the Corsair 750W model? Anything big by PC Power & Cooling (750)?

Overrunning stable operation on a power supply isn't a good idea (as stated above). You might get sparks or fire, and you might destroy components.

 

[Zorg]

Ever heard of russian roulette? I wouldnt try it. As your psu overworks, itll overheat, whichll cause for poor performance due to the heat, as the electrons just wont flow, and itll ask for more from your psu, whichll get hotter, and could spike power, then you lose whatever....

I was going to post something similar, now I don't have to.

Dirty power will kill things like HDs etc. get a PSU that will deliver good clean power at the load you are drawing. I'm not going to tell you how to determine the load, you have been around enough, work it out.

 

[invisik]

ya i no how much power it draws all i wanted to know whats the worse thing that can happen if the psu gives out. never happened to me so im kinda inexperienced with this category.
=]

 

[Onus]

I think an Antec PSU will shut down gracefully before it croaks anything else. That said, you are still playing a game of chance with your rig. If you know the PSU can't support the load, what's the point of trying it anyway? Use a PSU calculator and see how many watts you need.

 

[Zorg]

Agreed it will shut down, while it struggles to provide the power it will become dirty. The dirty power is what will kill your components. By the way, in case you didn't understand it in the first place, the dirty power will damage your HDs, mobo regulators... need I go on.

I haven't even looked close enough to give you the answer in your specific, but if you are questioning it, then consider a new PSU.

Oh never mind, yeah run your existing PSU... It will all be OK. Do you feel better now?

You can't run a medium duty PSU to it's limits without problems.

Understand I Haven't determined your load, obviously.

I have given you the understanding that you already had.

 

[invisik]

im not going to attempt it i was just curious to see what would happen. with my current setup im using about 415-430w at max load. adding a 9600gt would drive it to around 500w. cutting it to close whenever i add another card ill definitely upgrade psu. thanks again everyone.

 

[Zorg]

So you were teasing us?

 

[invisik]

no i really thought about it but then i just wanted to no what problems i could run into if i attempted doing this.

 

[JAYDEEJOHN]

I wouldnt load your psu above 75-80% usage, as thatll also cause an early death, sorta like hard ocing your psu. Get one thatll do that amount for your calculated usage, and youll be perfect, but limited to upgrades that require more juice

 

[Zorg]

STOP, he knows better.

I'm not gonna call it.