305 watt PSU?

[Bluescreendeath]

Hi there, I have an E520 dell comp with a 305watt PSU.

specs: 1.9ghz core2
2gb ram PC-4200
320gb hd

Can this handle a 7600 GT?

I read evga's specs as needing a 350watt PSU. However, I've read that the e520 can
run the 7600gt just fine because dell psus specs are continuous power instead of max power?

So can I run it? thanks

 

[Shadow703793]

How many amps on the +12 and +5?

 

[nukemaster]

many have used the 7600GT on that system with no issues. It only weighs in at 3 amps MAX

I think it has 22A on its 12 volt rails. unless dell changed it

Input 100-120V/9.0A, 200-240V/4.5A

Output +5V/22.0A, -12V/1.0A, +12VA/18.0A, +3.3V/17.0A. +12VB/18.0A, +5VFP/2.0A.

Max combined output on +5V and +3.3V is 150W, max combined output current on +12VA and 12VB output is 264W

 

[delluser1]

The 8600 GTS and 9600 GT have been used as well, just need to use the molex to 6 pin power splitter.

 

[Bluescreendeath]

ok, thanks for the feedback. I'mma go ahead and install it

 

[4745454b]

Dell 305W has 22A on the 12V rails, the 375 has 30A. The 305 should be good up to the 88/9800GT, you should have the 375W for anything bigger.

 

[daskrabbe]

Stay away dual-gpu(eg. 295,4870x2) cards and you'll be fine.

 

[aboutblank]

I don't know whether to ask here or start a new thread, but this is so close to my situation. I'm just trying to find the beefiest video card--I'm thinking on the ATI side--that I can handle with my 300W PSU. I've been researching but the more I find the more confused I get. My head is totally swimming with the ATI designations, performances, power requirements, whether an HD 3650 is better than a 4550, blah blah. I've tried, really.

My PC: HP pavilion A-1430n desktop, circa 2006, windows XP MCE, one PCI express x16 slot for video

PSU specs: Bestec model ATX-300-12Z CDR
Output 300W max.
+12V is 19A
+5V is 30A

+3.3V is 28A
-12V is 0.8A
+5VSB is 2A peak 2.5A

All of which means zilch to me but I know it's important.

My needs: A lot of HD video with more to come, not a heavy gamer but when I do, I'd like good performance. Maybe I'd do better to upgrade PSU? Hesitant to get entangled in that literal and figurative tangle of spaghetti, if only for fear of frying PC, self, or both.

Today my quest went from pending to urgent when my dinky Nvidia Geforce 7300GS went to video heaven in a puff of black smoke (its fan hadn't been working for some time and I didn't bother fixing it).

I'd be most grateful for any suggestions or info.

 

[Bluescreendeath]

^ lol, I had a dinky 7300LE on the comp I'm upgrading too.

Would you consider an Nvidia card?

 

[nukemaster]

I would have a look here to see what cards consume for power and decide. I did run a X850XT on a 380 watt psu with only 1 18amp rail for some time with a A64 3200+ cpu.

http://archive.atomicmpc.com.au/forums.asp?s=2&c=7&t=9354

 

[nsimo86]

My roommate is running a radeon 4650 on a 300Watt gateway psu, and hasnt had any problems. Its a good card and you can get it for under $70.

 

[aboutblank]

Thanks guys.

BSOD, I guess I'd consider an Nvidia; from what I read it seems ATI has an edge in price/performance in most market segments, but (a) I could be wrong, and (b) it changes every couple of months. But especially for low power consumption and no extra connectors etc., and for viewing HD video, I've seen ATI singled out. Any special reason you ask?

Nukemaster, thanks for the link. I've seen charts and tables of power consumption, but I just don't know enough about the amps, volts, watts, rails, etc. to translate the power stats into anything meaningful to me, i.e., "can I run it or not?"

nsimo86, thanks for the tip. Interesting since ATI site cites "requirement" of 400 watt PSU for the whole 4600 line.

 

[Bluescreendeath]

ATI doesn't really have an edge - most of the time they're about equal. Also, Nvidia consuming more power is a myth. I think ATI actually consumes more power if you look at comparisons between equal specs Nvidia cards.

At the present time, Nvidia definitely has an edge over ATI. ATI's best card, the 4870x2, is beat by Nvidia's GTX260SLi, GTX280SLi, GTX285, GX2, and GTX295. The 4870 is priced between the GTX260 and GTX280, performs only marginally better than the 260, and consumes more power than both the 260 and 280.

 

[aboutblank]

BSOD: Oh, the tippy-top bleeding edge best of the best spot--THAT doesn't change hands every couple of months but every couple of WEEKS, or so it seems. Fortunately that's one of the very few expensive tastes I don't have, so I only pay peripheral attention.

 

[Bluescreendeath]

yeh, but in general Nvidia does not use more power than Ati. I was looking at some 7x00 series and their ATI counterparts for example, and all the Ati seemed to consume more power.

 

[aboutblank]

OK BSD, I've got my eye on the ATI HD4670, which seems to suck more power than your 7600GT but less than the 4650 that nsimo86 recommended. Is there a comparable nvidia that looks better?

(Or, just how much trouble is it to replace a PSU... ogod, it never ends....)

 

[Bluescreendeath]

^ getting a better PSU is the best case scenario, since a 4850 is better than 2x4670 and a 9800GTX is better than a 9800GT/8800GT, which in turn is better than two 7600GT in SLi.

 

[Bluescreendeath]

Nvidia cards around the price range and performance of the 4670 includes the 9600GT (which is far superior to the 8600GT), and a weaker 9500GT and 9600 GSO and even weaker 9400GT and a far weaker 8400 GS.


So get the 9600GT for around the same price, the only issue is power...

 

[4745454b]

9600GT uses more power then the 4670. Odd that you rant about that then suggest it. As I ALREADY mentioned the dell 305W psu has 22A on the 12v rail. You could go as high as the 8800GT/9800GT. The 4850 is probably pushing it, I'm not sure about the 4830. aboutblank, the 4670 won't have an issue with your PSU. Neither will the 8800GT/9800GT, although these are the upper limit for your PSU.

 

[Bluescreendeath]

^ I originally decided not to reply to your comment that a 9800GT can run on a 305watt PSU, but I'll just do it now.

I highly doubt a 300watt PSU can support anything close to a 8800GT/9800GT.

Minimum PSU specs for a 9800GT/8800GT:
Minimum of a 400 Watt power supply. (Minimum recommended power supply with +12 Volt current rating of 26 Amp Amps.)

Also, it needs a 6 pin PCI-e power connector - which the majority of 305 PSUs do not have.

 

[4745454b]

Also, it needs a 6 pin PCI-e power connector - which the majority of 305 PSUs do not have.

Is the Dell 305W PSU like the "majority" of other 300W PSUs? As I've said before, it has enough power. Look it up yourself if you don't believe me.

 

[aboutblank]

I appreciate all this continued conversation on the topic. I'm still at a loss to know how to put this together though. Every card has two numbers: (1) stated PSU wattage requirement, (2) actual consumption by card. Every PSU has two relevant numbers: (1) stated PSU wattage, and (2) amperage on the +12V rail. Sure, I could take the easy way out and just get a card that will run on the watts I got, but apparently there's a more sophisticated way to finesse that by matching wattage consumption with +12V rail amperage. I just don't know the formula.

 

[Bluescreendeath]

^ I've looked up its specs - just cuz it has 12amp rails doesn't mean it's good enough to power a 8800/9800GT PSU. You can probably run it for a month before it kills the lifespan of your PSU.

As for the other guy's comp - it is a gateway, not a dell.

 

[delluser1]

^ I've looked up its specs - just cuz it has 12amp rails doesn't mean it's good enough to power a 8800/9800GT PSU. You can probably run it for a month before it kills the lifespan of your PSU.

It's dual 18 amp rails with a combined output of 22 amps and running an 8800 or 9800 GT won't kill in a month or even a year.

Had to go back and find this, I don't recommend it because it requires modification of the case and heatsink shroud, but that's an 8800 GTS 640 in an E520, being run off the 305 with the use of a splitter.

 

[aboutblank]

BSD, you asked if I'd consider nvidia. I said sure if it doesn't suck too much power cuz I don't have much. You sailed off into super high end, which is of course far beyond my power, money, needs, and interest. I asked what's comparable to ATI HD4670, which states it needs 400 W PSU and which is surely at the upper end of my capacity if not beyond it. You suggested one nvidia that requires even MORE power, and a string of four others that you described as successively "weaker." (How then would they all be comparable to the 4670?) You helpfully reminded me that "The only issue is power," which of course is all I've talked about.

I think we've reached the end of our constructive engagement. Thanks.