Powercool extreme 750 watt

[jakethebusker]

Hi there. In May I bought a budget i5-2500k rig as a project for gaming. The system came with 8 Gb of ram on an ASRock motherboard (H61M-VS), 1 Tb hdd and a 500 watt PSU. As my budget at the time couldn't stretch to a discrete GPU, I have been running the IGPU, Intel's hd3000. A reasonable IGPU but Oblivion and Skyrim get extremely laggy on anything higher than medium graphics settings without AA. Now my budget is able to fit a discrete GPU (probably Nvidia GTX 560 ti with a view to an SLI set-up, again when budget allows), I have upgraded the PSU to a Powercool 750w 80+. Fitting it was not a major headache but I bought it without reading reviews and now I find people are giving mixed reviews when I search the internet to find either a manufacturer website or product review.

My real question is this - have I just wasted money that would've been better spent elsewhere? As I say, this is a project that will be upgraded as my budget allows and although I am primarily using it for gaming right now, I will be using the rig for recording and mixing music in the not too distant future. I haven't managed to find a manufacturer's website, which doesn't instill much confidence in the PSU. There are about 3 other fans (1 cpu and 2 case) circulating a huge amount of air around the case which will hopefully still keep the system cool once the graphics card get fitted. I say this because one review of the PSU stated that it might get too hot causing it to go pop.

I hope all that rambling doesn't confuse the issue and I sincerely thank you all in advance for any advice.

 

[clutchc]

I'm afraid you didn't really get a 750W PSU. It may be rated at that, but ratings can be fudged. The 2 +12V rails spec out at 16A and 18A. The GTX 560i alone draws 16.4A at full load (197/12)... something you will rarely reach but good to have the headroom for. http://forums.atomicmpc.com.au/index.php?showtopic=264

You might as well try it as long as you already bought it. If the PCIe power connector is wired to the 18A rail and nothing else is on that rail, you may get by. Be sure the PSU has the required safety emblem on it. Here in the US it would be something like UL Approved. As funds become available, I'd look for a quality PSU, tho. It definitely won't support 2 560ti's.

 

[jakethebusker]

That kind of supports what I thought. Having read the stuff on the internet I have been able to find. As my motherboard only has on PCI-e 2.0 x16 slot the second video card would have to be bought after a new motherboard has been fitted anyway, which means that it would be graphics, motherboard, psu then second 560 ti and then I would have a reasonable gaming rig with a suitable amount of headroom and poke - I mean power not the old BASIC terminology (I miss my specky!!!). It seems that this has been caught in the gap between what I know and what I thought I knew.

Many thanks cluthc for your assistance. Will remember to research thrice and buy once in future.

 

[clutchc]

That kind of supports what I thought. Having read the stuff on the internet I have been able to find. As my motherboard only has on PCI-e 2.0 x16 slot the second video card would have to be bought after a new motherboard has been fitted anyway, which means that it would be graphics, motherboard, psu then second 560 ti and then I would have a reasonable gaming rig with a suitable amount of headroom and poke - I mean power not the old BASIC terminology (I miss my specky!!!). It seems that this has been caught in the gap between what I know and what I thought I knew.

Many thanks cluthc for your assistance. Will remember to research thrice and buy once in future.

LOL.. you're giving away your age if you remember the POKE command in BASIC. But, I guess, so am I... The 'old days' of trying to write one's own programs in BASIC... That was the fun days of computer hobbying. But I digress.

 

[jakethebusker]

My age is just a number - bit like my specky 128k +2. If you like that for a blast from the past I must recommend a book - Ready Player One by Ernest Cline. Just started it the other week and it is full of references that some people of our "age group" would appreciate. A minor digress but one certainly worth a "poke"

 

[obsidian86]

that psu is way way on the bottom of the barrel it might pass for an iffy 400 watt psu on a good day based on specs and no way in hell gonna do 700 watts on its best day it might be able to give a 700 watt arc when it blows but honestly i'd get something better from antec,corsair,enermax,silverstone,super flower,seasonic an few other brands i cant remember right now but give us a link as to from where you buying and a budget and speculated future upgrades

 

[dansgas1000]

this looks decent: http://www.scan.co.uk/products/750w-ocz-ocz750fty-uk-fatal1ty-series-85-eff-80plus-135mm-fan-psu