500 watt PSU enough?

[sumkid]

Hello

this is my first post, and will try to get right to the point; im looking around for PSUs and am not quite sure what wattage will fit my needs. my basic specs are;

i5 2500k (i will be MODESTLY overclocking, if at all, to say, 3.5-3.8 ghz. its my first build)
EVGA GeForce GTX 550
Asus z68 mobo
16gb corsair vengeance ram
dvd drive
1 tb WD Black

- and ive been looking at PSUs at 500 watts. is that enough? id think it would be. also, is CoolerMaster a decent brand for PSUs?

i might be upraging to another HDD or SSD (2-4 drives) in the future; will the 500w still be ok?

thanks!

 

[ohyouknow]

I am not an expert but I would say go for 650-750 watt psu. My main reasoning is that personally, I have a 500 watt psu and I find it limiting in what I can do as far as getting a better futureproof gpu and doing any sensible form of overclocking. Cheers

 

[Onus]

A quality 500W PSU would be sufficient for you.
CM is NOT a good brand for PSUs, especially at their lower end; only their high end (expensive) stuff passes competent technical reviews. Seasonic, Antec, Corsair, XFX, and Enermax/LEPA are among the better brands. A 500W Antec Earthwatts would be a good choice.
If you've not bought all these parts yet, and can afford it, I would recommend a stronger GPU, like a GTX560 or GTX560Ti. They're a lot better than the GTX550Ti, and will also run on a good 500W PSU.

 

[FinneousPJ]

Yeah, it's enough but look for Antec, XFX, Seasonic, Corsair.

 

[totalknowledge]

Yes, a 500W is adequate, assuming its a good unit.

Some CoolerMasters are better than others. If this is the one you are looking at:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817171031

I would say no, its not that great of a unit.

This one on the other hand is a good psu:
http://www.coolermaster.com/product.php?product_id=4196&category_id=2384

However, I don't see that one online anywhere... The 600 unit is:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817171036

Review:

http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story&reid=134

 

[xtreme5]

of course it's an excellent brand and can able to power your enitre system without making any issue

good luck!

 

[totalknowledge]

Here is the review of the eXtreme Power Plus 500W

http://www.hardocp.com/article/2009/02/16/entry_level_power_supply_roundup/2

So again, if its that one don't get it.

 

[Onus]

HardwareSecrets has reviewed many CM PSUs. Their results, plus the results of reviews at HardOCP, earned them a bad name from me. The SilentPro series is perhaps the only one that reviews well. The others do not, and many are found to be overrated, with liar-labels on them or claiming protection circuits that they don't actually have. That's dishonest, so I don't care how good any of their other products are, a dishonest company does not deserve anyone's business. Besides, with companies like Seasonic making PSUs (they make PSUs for Antec, Corsair, and XFX, aside from their own), there is no reason to buy CM.

 

[sumkid]

A quality 500W PSU would be sufficient for you.
CM is NOT a good brand for PSUs, especially at their lower end; only their high end (expensive) stuff passes competent technical reviews. Seasonic, Antec, Corsair, XFX, and Enermax/LEPA are among the better brands. A 500W Antec Earthwatts would be a good choice.
If you've not bought all these parts yet, and can afford it, I would recommend a stronger GPU, like a GTX560 or GTX560Ti. They're a lot better than the GTX550Ti, and will also run on a good 500W PSU.

thanks for the info! i wasnt to sure about coolermaster, glad i asked

what about a corsair 430 watt? they seem to be great quality but is the 70w difference too low?

 

[FinneousPJ]

No, it's fine. The 550 isn't a particularly powerful/power-hungry card.

 

[Onus]

The 430W Corsair would be enough for the GTX550, but not if you upgrade it to a GTX560 or GTX560Ti. Even if you're not upgrading your GPU now, you may still wish to do so later. If you get the 500W version of the Corsair, you won't need to also replace your PSU then.

 

[sumkid]

The 430W Corsair would be enough for the GTX550, but not if you upgrade it to a GTX560 or GTX560Ti. Even if you're not upgrading your GPU now, you may still wish to do so later. If you get the 500W version of the Corsair, you won't need to also replace your PSU then.

well i wont be gaming really (maybe some light gaming) with my PC, but i will be editing videos with it (particularly HD youtube videos)

now, for that i reall just want a solid card that can support duel monitoring. are these good cards for that? (also, i dont want a "workstation" card, cause my video work is more of a hobby and it isnt really a fulltime job)

thanks !

 

[totalknowledge]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139027

Not bad after rebate.

 

[totalknowledge]

If you don't want SLI/Crossfire in the future and you are cutting the clearance down to the wire, then either of these would be fine.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371034

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817207018

 

[Onus]

If you won't be gaming, the GTX550Ti will be fine. You could even cut back to a GT440 if you like.

 

[hotthree]

the 430w will work fine....It might could even run a 560 since your building w/ Intel...I run this psu on a amd build/6850(comparable to 560) in my brothers comp and it runs like a charm.

 

[hotthree]

double post please delete