Psu help/new build

[boden08]

Hi all,
Within the next few months i am looking at building a new system.


SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: (Gaming)

PARTS NOT REQUIRED: All parts required/new build

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) Scan - UK

PARTS PREFERENCES: AMD,Asus,Corsair,Antec, Western digital

OVERCLOCKING:maybe SLI OR CROSSFIRE: Yes to Crossfire

MONITOR RESOLUTION: 1920X1080

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS:

I am looking at getting a Phenom II 955 be (AM3), Asus crosshair III, 4gb DDR3 1600mhz Corsair Dominator XMS3 ( upgrade to 8gb at some point), 2 x Western digital 7200rpm 500gb, Liteon optical drive, 5.1 surround sound, 23" 1920x1080 Monitor, Antec 900, and a Asus Hd 5770 ( upgrading to 2, Crossfire later on).

Using windows 7 64bit.

Putting all this togeter with the 8gb ram and the Crossfire setup 2x hd 5770 the recommended wattage is only 365w, calculated by thermaltake power supply calculator.

This just seemed a bit low for me and wondered if this was correct and could do with a bit of help or information on this.

The psu's i have been looking at getting are the Corsair tx series and range from 450w to 950w. It mentions on some i think that they have dual 12+ rails not sure what this is.

Thanks for your help.

 

[Silvune]

Well you would probably add a few more watts for fans. Personally for a system of that kind of configuration I would get a 500 - 600W PSU. Perhaps more if you want to be extra confident that you'll be able to take it to another build down the line. Other brands you can consider are OCZ, Antec, Seasonic, Silverstone, XFX.
I doubt you'll need more than 4GB of RAM for a long time. I would suggest getting something other than Dominator RAM and getting the alternative from somewhere other than Scan as you will certainly be paying too much for basically just the name and ebuyer and overclockers.co.uk do much cheaper RAM that is still high quality.
Samsung Spinpoint F3 and Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 drives are better performers than WD at 500GB capacity, so I suggest you consider changing to either of these.

 

[boden08]

Hi Silvune,
Just wondering why to consider or was this just a option. I have looked at others and for the same price range they are ezcool that i have never used before. Could i ask why to get other ram rather than Corsair Dominator ram. I use scan as it seems to be the value, if i ordered this configuration from ebuyer it costs another 28 pound. i am looking at getting the 650 watt psu

 

[Silvune]

I don't understand how EZCool is in the same price range as a Corsair TX 650. I'd suggest going for that Corsair.

This is the sort of RAM I'd suggest Patriot Sector 5 Viper II 4GB (2x2GB) PC3-12800 1600MHz CAS 7 1.65V http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MY-026-PA&groupid=701&catid=8&subcat=1517 £83
Which is cheaper than any Dominator set and will match almost any Dominator set out of the box.

I don't know if there is something about the Asus Crosshair III that you specifically want, but this one is cheaper: Gigabyte GA-MA790FXT-UD5P £132. The only card that would get bottlenecked by x8 speed PCI-E is the 5970. So you could also easily change down to this Asus M4A79XTD Evo £84.

You don't have to change the whole system to be ordered from another site, just one or two items where buying it from another site will save you money over the added delivery charges. If you make enough savings then you might be able to get a 5850 into the build which would be fantastic for a gaming build.

Just wondering why to consider or was this just a option.

I don't really know what you mean by this. You don't have to change anything because it will work, but you can definitely make some changes that would save you money. If you manage to save enough money, then you could change the video card to a 5850, without spending too much more than you would have done with the original build.

 

[boden08]

Silvune,
Thanks for your reply, i was looking at the asus m4a79xtd evo first. the only reason i was getting the corsair ram is because its what i have always used and know and always been happy with the ram and seems stable when over clocked. the patriot sector 5 viper II has lower latency than the corsair so it seem better for less money but i have never used and dont know much about the quality of the ram also there is the g.skill ripjaw ram that is better value than corsair but same again never used.

i was going for the crosshair as both pci-e lanes run at 16x in crossfire and got good reviews, would be nice to save money tho. what would you suggest for the psu your opinions are very welcome.

 

[Silvune]

Corsair are far from the only manufacturers of quality RAM and five minutes looking at google searches shows that Patriot are pretty well respected as well. I've suggested it a few times now and no one has come back with any issues. Same with G.Skill.

I think the Corsair TX 650 is the one to go for. You could potentially save around £10 (without thinking about extra delivery costs) by getting the 600W OCZ ModXStream, the Antec Earthwatts 650 is usually cheaper than the Corsair TX 650 at around £65, but it's not available on Scan and more expensive on overclockers.co.uk, so altogether I think the Corsair TX 650 is the best option.

Dual x8 is very close in performance to dual x16, less than 5% performance difference according to this article: http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/p55-pci-express-scaling,review-31780.html The only cards that are likely to be more impacted by x8 PCI-E speed is the 5970 and GTX 295.
The Gigabyte MA-790FXT-UD5P has both PCI-E slots at x16 if it is that important to you.

 

[jsc]

I like the Antec 900 case - own three - but they will be pretty cramped with 2 video cards. You might want to consider one of the larger CoolerMaster cases.

A Corsair 650TX will work nicely for a pair of 5770's.

 

[JohnnyLucky]

about system power requirements

Here are the official ATI power supply requirements for the ATI Radeon HD 5770 and 5750 video cards:


450 Watt or greater power supply with one 75 watt, 6-pin PCI Express® power connector recommended

600 Watt or greater power supply with two 75 watt, 6-pin PCI Express® power connectors for ATI CrossFireX™ technology in dual mode

The recommendations are for an entire pc system.

The Corsair TX650 recommended by jsc would be an appropriate choice. Corsair has a reputation for high quality power supplies. They consistently earn high marks in technical reviews. They are reliable, stable, and come with a 5 year warranty.

In the event you require a modular power supply Corsair now offers the HX650.

 

[boden08]

Hi all,
if the difference of the 8x and 16x is only 5% then i will go for the asus m4axtd-evo as it is half the price, i am looking at the patriot ram now as you have mentioned it and seem to have good reviews, the only reason i was looking at corsair is because i buy from scan normaly and dont have patriot on there. i was looking at the corsair tx650 as i have used corsair ram before and the psu was corsair, i like to get close combinations manufacturers in my build but not too important in this case. i also looked at the ocz modxstream 600w but as the recommended wattage for crossfire is 600w that would be on the boarder, i like to have a bit more power incase of more hdd or case fans or future gpu upgrade.

I will go for the Corsair tx650 for the extra power, i will also go with the asus m4axtd-evo as silvune has convinced me and saved me alot of money (thanks).

i am also looking at the Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 as it is slightly cheaper and better reviews.

As for the case i was looking at the antec 900 as i like the look of them and the front case fans, i own a cm 335 elite at the moment slightly modded and love them to bits and ok build quality. this is the problem with antec i have heard bad reviews about the build quality and looking to spend a bit more on the case as silvune has saved me money on my mobo. i have been looking at the lian-li armor.

Would you go for the g.skill or patriot ram over the corsair ram.

 

[Silvune]

Consider the Coolermaster HAF 922 £83 Not much more expensive than the Antec 900, well respected case, large enough for a shed load of components despite being a 'mid tower' and one of the best for aircooling and cable management.
If this Lian Li Armoursuit is the one you were referring to and like the look of that over the HAF 922 then you will probably also like the look of the CM 690 II and is only £90, cheaper than the Lian Li and good quality. Another case that I like which you might consider is the Lancool PC K62.

I don't know which RAM you are talking about, but if it is this one G.Skill Ripjaw 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz (F3-12800CL9D-4GBRL) then I would get the Patriot seeing as this one is CAS 9.

 

[boden08]

Silvune,
Yes that was the ram i was looking at. i dont like the look of the haf 922 it just seems too much. the cm 690 II is a nice case and thats the sort of look i am after, antec 900, cm 690II, lian li armorsuit. i just like the look of the front and my desk is a bit tight at the sides so trying to get on that can mount 2-3 fans on the front but looks nice.

When it comes to ram i dont know a lot of info, i dont mind paying a bit more for ram if i will benifit from it, about £120 max for 4 gb, if it was you what would you get.

 

[boden08]

Hi all,
Just been looking at hd5770 crossfire psu wattages and 600-650 is fine but i have just noticed no one has mentioned the amps, on the corsair tx550,tx650 and tx750 the amps are only 52. a hd5770 crosfire requires 55a reccomended.

im not sure about the rails as i dont know much about psu's but the tx series all have single 12+ rails if that helps, but noticed that a few other psu's have dual 12+ rails.

Thanks

 

[JohnnyLucky]

boden08 - Where did you find the current (amp) requirements for the 5770? Please post a link.

 

[boden08]

Jonnylucky,
http://www.guru3d.com/article/radeon-hd-5770-review-test/11


first page 2/3rds of the way down.

dont know how reliable guru3d is tho.