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PSU for new build

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  • Power Supplies
  • New Build
  • Components
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Last response: in Components
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March 19, 2012 9:40:49 PM

Hi everybody-

So I'm building a new rig and was wondering if a 550W PSU is going to be enough for it/future-proof.

Here are the specs:

Intel i7-3770k CPU (I know it's not out yet; I'm waiting for it)
Mobo TBD (waiting for the Z77s)
DVD-RW
1x HDD
1x SSD
4 x 4 GB DIMM

That's it for now. I plan on adding a discrete GPU eventually, but for now, I don't really need it/can't afford it. That's why I'm waiting for IVB. When I do, it'll probably be something like a Radeon HD 6870. It's pretty unlikely that I'll be running a dual GPU setup.

The other consideration is overclocking. Is 550W going to give me enough room to overclock the crap out of the CPU/RAM? I may add a water-cooling option later on if I really get into video editing.

Thanks!

More about : psu build

a b ) Power supply
March 19, 2012 9:43:12 PM

I would go with a TX650 but 550w would power it just fine.
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March 19, 2012 10:07:41 PM

So 550W would be enough for water cooling, over-clocking, and a discrete GPU? (Because I'm able to get a 550W supply at a big discount. Probably should've mentioned that.)
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a b ) Power supply
March 19, 2012 10:20:17 PM

MaelstromMaster said:
So 550W would be enough for water cooling, over-clocking, and a discrete GPU? (Because I'm able to get a 550W supply at a big discount. Probably should've mentioned that.)
It should be a quality one with enough AMPS to power everything. If you're getting a $5 PSU with a funky looking brand name, it will blow up your PC guaranteed.
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March 19, 2012 10:26:37 PM

e56imfg said:
It should be a quality one with enough AMPS to power everything. If you're getting a $5 PSU with a funky looking brand name, it will blow up your PC guaranteed.


Nah. It's an XFX. My friend builds systems and has an extra XFX 550W. I just came on here for a second opinion.
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a b ) Power supply
March 19, 2012 10:36:32 PM

MaelstromMaster said:
Nah. It's an XFX. My friend builds systems and has an extra XFX 550W. I just came on here for a second opinion.
Then it should be good to go.
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Best solution

a c 157 ) Power supply
March 19, 2012 10:45:14 PM

The 3770K is a 77w part.
Without a graphics card, you will only need a 150-300w psu for the whole pc.

Add 200-300 w per graphics card.

Your 550w psu should be sufficient to run your rig including a current graphics card as good as a GTX570. Newer 28nm 7970 and GTX680 will need only 500w.
XFX is an excellent brand. Go for it.


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March 20, 2012 1:48:25 AM

I'm just wondering how much wattage is involved when overclocking the CPU. I'm guessing it's not too much, but I thought I'd ask just in case.
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a c 158 ) Power supply
March 20, 2012 10:28:17 AM

Depends on how high you want to OC... 50W or so is a good estimate for the CPU.
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a c 157 ) Power supply
March 20, 2012 1:25:19 PM

MaelstromMaster said:
I'm just wondering how much wattage is involved when overclocking the CPU. I'm guessing it's not too much, but I thought I'd ask just in case.


If you increase the core voltage of a 77w chip by 20%, you are adding only 15w.
Exceedingly high voltages are not good, better to be conservative and just raise the multiplier.
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a c 1218 ) Power supply
March 20, 2012 4:30:34 PM

CPU power consumption is not linear.

e.g.: i7-2600K (Max TDP of 95 W) overclocking power draw from the +12 Volt rails @ 100% CPU load :

@ 5.0 GHz 219 Watts (18.25 Amps)
@ 4.8 GHz 180 Watts (15.0 Amps)
@ 4.7 GHz 162.4 Watts (13.5 Amps)
@ 4.4 GHz 111 Watts ( 9.25 Amps)
@ 3.4 GHZ 86 Watts ( 7.2 Amps) <--- Stock Clock Speed

In this example the power draw rapidly increases when the clock speed is above 4.6 GHz (i.e. more like an exponential increase).
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March 21, 2012 1:39:21 PM

Best answer selected by MaelstromMaster.
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March 21, 2012 1:39:54 PM

Thanks to everyone for their help! It's been much appreciated.
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!