Why is this PSU so cheap?

[Sam B]

I am looking to buy a 850W power supply for my computer to support a second graphics card (SLI) as well as to be future proof.

I have found this power supply: http://www.aria.co.uk/Products/Comp...on=shoppingBasketAdd&productId=50022&context= but at £50 (including delivery) it is twice as cheap as most 850W power supplies I have seen.
So is there some massive problem with it that i cannot see?

 

[Orlean]

When choosing a PSU its not something you want to get cheap, you need a good quality PSU the wattage # isn't that important compared to the brand and quality of it. That one you linked I have never heard of personally, only comes with a 1 year warranty I would steer clear in my opinion.

Look for brands such as Corsair, Antec, Seasonic, PC Power & Cooling. Since Im not aware of what the UK offers as far as PSU products go and where to buy them from if you could post some more options you have available to you in your price range although I recommend spending a little more money on a good PSU.

 

[socialfox]

+1^ well said, you definitely don't want to cheap out on power supplies. I probably bet it does not put 850 watts on the floor (meaning providing to your computer ). It's probably overrated which is normal for chinese manufactures and others to do so. In addition, you should add XFX to that power supply list of good quality.

Edit: oh yes, part of your question is answered on that very page:

"hi i have an asus m4n75td amd phenom 2 x4 965 processor asus eng tx 460 graphucs card 768 and 4 gig memory i hav had problems game cutting out after 10 mins tried everything luckly found this software called occt tried power supply test cut out almost immediatly will this psu be ok for my system and also im thing upgrading graphics card in about 6 months will this psu cope with most graphic cards out many thanks best regards terry"

"Answer by niall on Wednesday, May 23, 2012
id recommend using a branded psu (be quiet, corsair, seasonic,etc) for gaming as our arianet psu's are more for low end/business use."

 

[Sam B]

When choosing a PSU its not something you want to get cheap, you need a good quality PSU the wattage # isn't that important compared to the brand and quality of it. That one you linked I have never heard of personally, only comes with a 1 year warranty I would steer clear in my opinion.

Look for brands such as Corsair, Antec, Seasonic, PC Power & Cooling. Since Im not aware of what the UK offers as far as PSU products go and where to buy them from if you could post some more options you have available to you in your price range although I recommend spending a little more money on a good PSU.

Thanks for the advice. The other PSU I considered buying was this one: http://www.aria.co.uk/Products/Components/Power+Supplies+-+PSUs/Non-Modular+700-950W/850W+Corsair+TX850+V2+80PLUS+Bronze+Power+Supply+?productId=43907 or http://www.aria.co.uk/Products/Components/Power+Supplies+-+PSUs/Modular+700-950W/850W+Corsair+TX850M+80PLUS+Bronze+Modular+Power+Supply+?operation=shoppingBasketAdd&productId=49406&context= if the extra £20 is worth it.

 

[socialfox]

YES! Go with the Corsair branded power supplies, they are top notch and will provide the labelled wattage and even be able to crossfire/sli video cards.

 

[Orlean]

That's better, I would go with the TX850 V2, its a Seasonic built unit compared to the newer TX850M which is made by Chicony Power Technology someone I've personally never heard of before.

Review on the Corsair Enthusiasts Series TX850 V2

http://hardocp.com/article/2011/08/29/corsair_enthusiast_series_tx850_v2_psu_review/1

Source:
Scroll down to VX & TX on the left colum until you see the model number and compared.
http://www.realhardtechx.com/index_archivos/Page447.htm

 

[Silvune]

The TX850M (CP-9020004 / CMPSU-850TXM), which is the one in this link, is made by CWT. It is the new, as yet unreleased TX750/850s and TX750/850Ms that will be made by Chicony Power. I would tend to agree that the TX850M is not worth ~£20 compared to the TX850 V2.

If you're going for a non-modular ~850W PSU then I haven't seen anything that is as good or better than this, for a similar or lower price:
Fractal Design Tesla R2 800W £100
http://www.ebuyer.com/399381-fractal-design-tesla-800w-80-plus-gold-psu-fd-psu-ts2b-800w

You also can't ignore this:
Antec Truepower New TPN-750 (£70 @ Scan)
http://skinflint.co.uk/407704

 

[Sam B]

That's better, I would go with the TX850 V2, its a Seasonic built unit compared to the newer TX850M which is made by Chicony Power Technology someone I've personally never heard of before.

Review on the Corsair Enthusiasts Series TX850 V2

http://hardocp.com/article/2011/08/29/corsair_enthusiast_series_tx850_v2_psu_review/1

Source:
Scroll down to VX & TX on the left colum until you see the model number and compared.
http://www.realhardtechx.com/index_archivos/Page447.htm

Thanks again. I just found this: http://www.aria.co.uk/Products/Components/Power+Supplies+-+PSUs/Modular+700-950W/850W+Corsair+HX+Series+V2+80PLUS+Gold+Modular+Power+Supply+?operation=shoppingBasketAdd&productId=51463&context=
Is it worth the extra money? I have heard people recommend both the HX series and modular power supplies before.

 

[geofelt]

I am looking to buy a 850W power supply for my computer to support a second graphics card (SLI) as well as to be future proof.

I have found this power supply: http://www.aria.co.uk/Products/Comp...on=shoppingBasketAdd&productId=50022&context= but at £50 (including delivery) it is twice as cheap as most 850W power supplies I have seen.
So is there some massive problem with it that i cannot see?

DO NOT BUY!

There is no way that a 850w psu can be any good if it comes with only one 6+2 pci-e connector.
It looks like it has two 12v rails of 26a each. One can't simply add the two, but even if you could, it can deliver a max of 52a.

By comparison a top quality 850W unit will deliver 70a, and have 4 6+2 psu leads.

Look for a tier 1 or 2 unit on this list:
http://www.eggxpert.com/forums/thread/323050.aspx

 

[bigcyco1]

The HX series is really good i prefer the AX series out of all Corsair branded power supplies but a bit overpriced imo for those i been using the Seasonic X series in builds as of late and quite pleased with them

 

[geofelt]

What graphics card/s will you be using?

Perhaps you might be better off abandoning sli in favor of a single strong card.
Here is my canned rant on dual cards:

-----------------------------Start of rant----------------------------------------------------
Dual graphics cards vs. a good single card.

a) How good do you really need to be?
A single GTX650/ti or 7770 can give you good performance at 1920 x 1200 in most games.

A single GTX660 or 7850 will give you excellent performance at 1920 x 1200 in most games.
Even 2560 x 1600 will be good with lowered detail.
A single gtx690 is about as good as it gets.

Only if you are looking at triple monitor gaming, then sli/cf will be needed.
Even that is now changing with triple monitor support on top end cards.

b) The costs for a single card are lower.
You require a less expensive motherboard; no need for sli/cf or multiple pci-e slots.
Even a ITX motherboard will do.

Your psu costs are less.
A GTX660 needs a 430w psu, even a GTX680 only needs a 550w psu.
When you add another card to the mix, plan on adding 150-200w to your psu requirements.

Even the strongest GTX690 only needs 620w.

Case cooling becomes more of an issue with dual cards.
That means a more expensive case with more and stronger fans.
You will also look at more noise.

c) Dual cards do not always render their half of the display in sync, causing microstuttering. It is an annoying effect.
The benefit of higher benchmark fps can be offset, particularly with lower tier cards.
Read this: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/radeon-geforce-stutter-crossfire,2995.html

d) dual card support is dependent on the driver. Not all games can benefit from dual cards.

e) cf/sli up front reduces your option to get another card for an upgrade. Not that I suggest you plan for that.
It will often be the case that replacing your current card with a newer gen card will offer a better upgrade path.
The GTX780 and amd 8000 series are not that far off.
-------------------------------End of rant-----------------------------------------------------------

 

[toyftw]

I am looking to buy a 850W power supply for my computer to support a second graphics card (SLI) as well as to be future proof.

I have found this power supply: http://www.aria.co.uk/Products/Comp...on=shoppingBasketAdd&productId=50022&context= but at £50 (including delivery) it is twice as cheap as most 850W power supplies I have seen.
So is there some massive problem with it that i cannot see?

If it seems to good to be true, "it is too good to be true"

Tom

 

[Sam B]

What graphics card/s will you be using?

Perhaps you might be better off abandoning sli in favor of a single strong card.
Here is my canned rant on dual cards:

-----------------------------Start of rant----------------------------------------------------
Dual graphics cards vs. a good single card.

a) How good do you really need to be?
A single GTX650/ti or 7770 can give you good performance at 1920 x 1200 in most games.

A single GTX660 or 7850 will give you excellent performance at 1920 x 1200 in most games.
Even 2560 x 1600 will be good with lowered detail.
A single gtx690 is about as good as it gets.

Only if you are looking at triple monitor gaming, then sli/cf will be needed.
Even that is now changing with triple monitor support on top end cards.

b) The costs for a single card are lower.
You require a less expensive motherboard; no need for sli/cf or multiple pci-e slots.
Even a ITX motherboard will do.

Your psu costs are less.
A GTX660 needs a 430w psu, even a GTX680 only needs a 550w psu.
When you add another card to the mix, plan on adding 150-200w to your psu requirements.

Even the strongest GTX690 only needs 620w.

Case cooling becomes more of an issue with dual cards.
That means a more expensive case with more and stronger fans.
You will also look at more noise.

c) Dual cards do not always render their half of the display in sync, causing microstuttering. It is an annoying effect.
The benefit of higher benchmark fps can be offset, particularly with lower tier cards.
Read this: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/radeon-geforce-stutter-crossfire,2995.html

d) dual card support is dependent on the driver. Not all games can benefit from dual cards.

e) cf/sli up front reduces your option to get another card for an upgrade. Not that I suggest you plan for that.
It will often be the case that replacing your current card with a newer gen card will offer a better upgrade path.
The GTX780 and amd 8000 series are not that far off.
-------------------------------End of rant-----------------------------------------------------------

I run games on 1920 x 1080 on full graphics but only on 60fps.
The card I currently have is a GTX 560 ti and therefore so would be the one I was going to buy. How good would a card have to be to match two 560 ti's.

 

[bigcyco1]

I run games on 1920 x 1080 on full graphics but only on 60fps.
The card I currently have is a GTX 560 ti and therefore so would be the one I was going to buy. How good would a card have to be to match two 560 ti's.

let's see hmm... two 560 ti's would be a little not much better then one 580 so a gtx 670 would murder two 560 ti's lol

 

[Sam B]

let's see hmm... two 560 ti's would be a little not much better then one 580 so a gtx 670 would murder two 560 ti's

Wow I didn't realize just how much more powerful a newer version would be in comparison to sli. Thank you, you may have just saved me a lot of time and money. I think I'm going to save up for a gtx 680, would that have any other requirements?