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[Solved] Upgrading (finally)

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Best answer from Proximon.

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promoth   09-12-2009 at 07:38:12 AM

Thanks for your help in advance! I posted a few days ago but now I have a better idea of what I'm doing.
I am upgrading with a mobo and processor that were given to me. I want to do this cheaply but still have it be worth the money.
To put things into perspective I am running an old Athlon XP 2500+, 1GB ddr 3200, ATI9600 128MB, and Asus A7V880 mobo. I'm not looking for this build to be a modern day hot-rod, just a great improvement.

I used 3 psu calculators and found the highest watt calculation for this setup was newegg's at 373 watts.
I have an Antec true430 and I am wondering if it will work, it has always run very well. The video card I selected does not use a power connector.
Will this PSU work? It has a 20-pin and a 4-pin and SATA power.
http://www.antec.com/specs/true430_spe.html
I have a case, dvd and cd optical drives. I may use my basic sound card if the onboard has driver issues. No other cards or hardware.

Free
Intel Core 2 Duo E6550 Conroe 2.33GHz 4M shared L2 Cache LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6819115030

Free
ASUS P5N-E SLI LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 650i SLI
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813131142

--- Things to buy---
PNY XLR8 VCG98GTEE5XEB GeForce 9800 GT EE 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814133279
$72.99 w/ 20 rebate.

Rendition by Crucial 2GB 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820148235
$25

SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD502HJ 500GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5"
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6822152181
$44 with 10% off promo code

Message quoted 1 times
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Best answer from Proximon

promoth wrote :


I have an Antec true430 and I am wondering if it will work, it has always run very well.

PNY XLR8 VCG98GTEE5XEB GeForce 9800 GT EE 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814133279
$72.99 w/ 20 rebate.




Spec sheet for PNY 9800GT:
http://www3.pny.com/9800-GT-512MB-PCIe-P2814C331.aspx

Quote :

A minimum 400W or greater system power supply (with a minimum 12V current rating of 26A)





Hardware Secrets PSU tutorial:
http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/181/9

Quote :

If you see a typical efficiency curve you will notice that efficiency varies according to the power being delivered and usually the power supply achieves its highest efficiency when delivering between 40% and 60% of its maximum capacity. Efficiency is also higher when the power supply is operating at 220 V.
Because of this effect it is recommended that you buy a power supply with double the power you are actually going to pull.



Finally there is capacitor aging. The longer you have used your PSU and the warmer it has been during that time, the less able it is to provide the rated amperage. A 430W PSU that is two years old may only be able to provide 350W at 30C.

So can you use your PSU? Maybe for a bit, but it needs replacing. You can bet you'll be losing money on the electricity bill.

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Twoboxer   09-12-2009 at 08:13:45 AM

Yes, a 430W psu that delivers its rated power cleanly (IOW, a psu in good working order) wil power the system. And yes the 20pin power connector will fit on one side of the 24 pin slot - the 4pin will fit in the 4pin.

Power requirement for your vid card can be found here:

http://www.nvidia.com/object/produ [...] gt_us.html


Message edited by Twoboxer on 09-12-2009 at 08:22:19 AM
Reply to Twoboxer
Proximon   09-12-2009 at 08:42:18 AM
Best answer

promoth wrote :


I have an Antec true430 and I am wondering if it will work, it has always run very well.

PNY XLR8 VCG98GTEE5XEB GeForce 9800 GT EE 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814133279
$72.99 w/ 20 rebate.




Spec sheet for PNY 9800GT:
http://www3.pny.com/9800-GT-512MB-PCIe-P2814C331.aspx

Quote :

A minimum 400W or greater system power supply (with a minimum 12V current rating of 26A)





Hardware Secrets PSU tutorial:
http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/181/9

Quote :

If you see a typical efficiency curve you will notice that efficiency varies according to the power being delivered and usually the power supply achieves its highest efficiency when delivering between 40% and 60% of its maximum capacity. Efficiency is also higher when the power supply is operating at 220 V.
Because of this effect it is recommended that you buy a power supply with double the power you are actually going to pull.



Finally there is capacitor aging. The longer you have used your PSU and the warmer it has been during that time, the less able it is to provide the rated amperage. A 430W PSU that is two years old may only be able to provide 350W at 30C.

So can you use your PSU? Maybe for a bit, but it needs replacing. You can bet you'll be losing money on the electricity bill.

Reply to Proximon
promoth   09-12-2009 at 09:32:06 AM

Thanks for the quick and useful replies. My PSU just meets the min requirements with 26amps.

This 600 watt PSU has two 12V outputs with 19A each. Does that meet the requirement? Do they add or not?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Comb [...] mbo.242609


Message edited by promoth on 09-12-2009 at 09:32:48 AM
Reply to promoth
Twoboxer   09-12-2009 at 10:04:27 AM

A $50, 600W psu is exactly that. Please stick with Antec (Earthwatts, Truepower), Corsair, PCP&Cooling, or Seasonic. The known quality of those brands/lines allows recommendations. For any other psu, google "PSU_Name_Model rveiew" and find someone who has actually evaluated the guts and measured performance. if you can't find a review, its an unknown commodity.

Reply to Twoboxer
promoth   09-12-2009 at 02:09:57 PM

Would you feel comfortable using this psu?

CORSAIR CMPSU-450VX 450W ATX12V V2.2 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817139003

Message quoted 1 times
Reply to promoth
wiinippongamer   09-12-2009 at 04:10:06 PM

promoth wrote :

Would you feel comfortable using this psu?

CORSAIR CMPSU-450VX 450W ATX12V V2.2 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817139003



you can't use a 9800gt with that psu as it needs 2 6-pin PCIe connectors, not just one.


Message edited by wiinippongamer on 09-12-2009 at 04:13:43 PM
Reply to wiinippongamer
Twoboxer   09-12-2009 at 07:50:39 PM

A Corsair psu is fine.

Your specific 9800gt requires no additional power cables. It will work with the Corsair.

[If you bought a 9800GT that needed the extra power cables, and if your psu only had one such cable, it would be easy to buy a $4 adapter to convert 2x4pin Molex to the correct PCIe power.]

Reply to Twoboxer
Proximon   09-12-2009 at 08:46:45 PM

Yes the Corsair would be preferable.

This OCZ 500SXS is surprisingly good for the cost:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] -_-Product

But the Corsair will last longer and provide better voltage regulation.

Message quoted 1 times
Reply to Proximon
Twoboxer   09-12-2009 at 09:03:28 PM

Proximon wrote :

Yes the Corsair would be preferable.

This OCZ 500SXS is surprisingly good for the cost:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] -_-Product

But the Corsair will last longer and provide better voltage regulation.



This particular OCZ reviews as Prox says it does:

http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/798/9



Reply to Twoboxer
Proximon   09-12-2009 at 10:52:28 PM

Just installed one for a friend with a 4670. I was pretty impressed with the noise level at idle.

Reply to Proximon
promoth   09-13-2009 at 06:24:14 AM

I just placed my order and went with the CORSAIR CMPSU-450VX. Totaled $200 with shipping and rebates.
:) Now I just hope the rebates go smoothly.
Thanks for all the good work you guys are doing for people.


Message edited by promoth on 09-13-2009 at 06:25:33 AM
Reply to promoth
Twoboxer   09-13-2009 at 08:48:49 AM

Thank you for that!

Consider it payment in full :)

Reply to Twoboxer
zipzoomflyhigh   09-13-2009 at 04:12:23 PM

Corsair rebates come quick. I'm 9 of 10 on rebates this year. Still waiting for Sunbeam. If their rebate service is like their tech support, I'll never get it.

By the way, 2gb of ram is not enough for todays games.


Message edited by zipzoomflyhigh on 09-13-2009 at 04:12:37 PM
Reply to zipzoomflyhigh
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