Would 750W last longer than 650W?

[yoake]

Hi,

I'm trying to choose a new PSU. My goal in mind is longevity.

Here's the basic system:
Core i5 750 (will OC)
Two DIMMS (will add two more in a year or two)
Three 7200 RPM drives (will never add more)
GTX 460 1GB (will SLI after a year or so)
9600 GT for Physx (may remove when I SLI, might not)
Probably 2-3 120mm fans
PCI card audio.

I know I'll be covered with a 650W PSU, and I was looking at Antec TruePower New TP-650 650W and the Antec EarthWatts EA650 650W.

But I read that PSUs lose about 10% of their power each year, which sounds like a lot. So, I'm also considering the Antec EarthWatts EA750 750W and the Antec TruePower New TP-750 750W.

For a 650W PSU that sounds like:
1 year - 585W
2 years - 526W
3 years - 474W
3 years+1 day - EarthWatts out of warranty. TruePower in warranty for another 2 years, but can it be replaced for this reason?

And for 750W:
1 year - 675W
2 years - 607W
3 years - 547W

For the 650W's they both seem to become too weak for an SLI'd system sometime during the third year.

For the 750W's this seems to happen a bit later, but definitely before the warranty expires.


Is that the way it works? Any could someone shed some light on whether or not a PSU can be RMA'd for losing output capaticy?

I know there are several technical reasons to favor the TruePower series, but I'm more interested in longer the warranty.


Thanks in advance

 

[rolli59]

That would mean that my 7 year old 400watt could not power the system it is in any more. Running the PSU at max load would be the biggest thing that would shorten its lifespan. With 650watts you have enough headroom for the lifespan of the system. Getting the Antec EA 750 for this price if you can is a great deal http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371026

 

[yoake]

Heh, good point. Well I do use Folding@Home in the winters...how much of an impact will that have?

 

[iam2thecrowe]

lol, 10% each year is a joke. This would be based on a PSU in which the capacitors are leaking badly and it will end up not working. Stay with a good brand like antec, corsair, seasonic and you shouldn't have a problem. Id say if your going to run sli, just pay a bit extra for a 750w good brand PSU and it will leave you with power to spare. That way you won't be running the psu above 60-70% of its capacity at your max power draw with sli. That will ensure your PSU will last longer.

 

[4745454b]

I agree that 10% is to much. As crowe stated the issue is with bad caps inside the PSU. If you buy a cheap one they use bad/poor caps that will lose their ability to absorb a charge. If you get a good brand that used good caps, you won't/shouldn't have this problem.

As for 650 vs 750, I'd look at your budget. NEVER add another harddrive? MIGHT remove 9600GT? You might find that you can get a 750W for very little more then the 650W. If thats the case, I'd get the 750W. You never know what might be coming that makes you need to add X thing to your computer, and put you over the edge of that 650W.

 

[shovenose]

lol. 10%.
i would think realistically 5% tops