Will i need to update my power supply?

[ksmils93]

my specs are as follows:
operating system: windows 7 ultimate 32-bit

CPU: AMD phenom x4 9650 (agen 65nm technology)
RAM: 4.00GB DDR2
mother board:BIOSTAR group M61PC-M2S (socket AM2)
graphics card:Nividia geforce 8400 GS
harddrive:977GB hitachi device
audio:usb audio device

powersupply:450 watts

I'm looking to upgrade my graphics card but im not sure if i should upgrade my power supply first. Also if i did upgrade my power supply how much of a difference would i see on my electric bill?

EDIT: sorry about the mistake on the title

 

[popatim]

depends on which PSU you have. Some cheap stuff would list peak power while a good unit would list its real continous power. Given your PSU is probably 4 years old I would replace it anway. A good quality 450w PSU would run just about any single GPU made.

 

[toyftw]

my specs are as follows:
operating system: windows 7 ultimate 32-bit

CPU: AMD phenom x4 9650 (agen 65nm technology)
RAM: 4.00GB DDR2
mother board:BIOSTAR group M61PC-M2S (socket AM2)
graphics card:Nividia geforce 8400 GS
harddrive:977GB hitachi device
audio:usb audio device

powersupply:450 watts

I'm looking to upgrade my graphics card but im not sure if i should upgrade my power supply first. Also if i did upgrade my power supply how much of a difference would i see on my electric bill?

EDIT: sorry about the mistake on the title

Hi - your electric bill will not be affected by the PSU watt rating,
as it only takes from the wall(efficiency affected) the amount your pc components
demand from your PSU. It will be minimally affected by the PSU efficiency tho.

You can purchase the PSU 1st (I did), but you need to know which
GPU you are going to purchase. Some cards are fine with <430w,
some need 450, some 500, etc.

What is the make & model of the PSU you now have?

Tom

 

[ksmils93]

Hi - your electric bill will not be affected by the PSU watt rating,
as it only takes from the wall(efficiency affected) the amount your pc components
demand from your PSU. It will be minimally affected by the PSU efficiency tho.

You can purchase the PSU 1st (I did), but you need to know which
GPU you are going to purchase. Some cards are fine with <430w,
some need 450, some 500, etc.

What is the make & model of the PSU you now have?

Tom

EXTREME ATX 450W
model no.RSY-645

 

[popatim]

A quick search says that power supply can be bought for less than $20, personally I wouldn't use it.

 

[ttcboy]

Calculate your system power requirement here : http://www.extreme.outervision.com/psucalculatorlite.jsp

Get the PSU with 80+ symbol, for better efficiency and slightly lesser electricity bill compare to the one without the symbol.

One important side note : Make sure ur new PSU have enough PCI-E power adapters to support the new card that you are getting.

 

[toyftw]

EXTREME ATX 450W
model no.RSY-645

Hi again - I see popatim beat me to it. That's the reason
I asked for make/model, there's no telling how much
power that thing really has.

Anyway, would still need to know which GPU you
are going to get to recommend a PSU. You
could get a quality 550w unit as it would be
sufficient for almost any card out there.

Quality brands: Seasonic, XFX, PC P & Cooling, Antec,
Rosewill Capstone Series,most Corsairs, & a few others.

Tom

 

[ko888]

EXTREME ATX 450W
model no.RSY-645

That's the power supply that was included in this computer case:

http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=1901962

Its +12V rail is rated at 17.5 Amps which is extremely weak for a 450 Watt power supply. Very likely its 450 Watts peak, not continuous.

Any modern power supply from a reputable brand will be more efficient than this generic PSU.

 

[ksmils93]

ok thanks guys but i have 2 more questions.
1)which energy efficient PSU would you suggest from http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/Category/guidedSearch.asp?CatId=106&name=Power-Supplies&cm_sp=Masthead-_-Computer%20Parts-_-Spot%2013

2) is there a specific type of power supply? for example i know graphic cards have different slots and you need to check what slot before buying the card.

 

[ko888]

Which brand and model of graphics card are you considering? We need to know this so that we can ensure that the appropriate number and type of PCI Express power connectors is included if required.

Whats your budget range?

 

[ksmils93]

i can spend anywhere from 100-200$

i need a PCIx16 card

im not really sure what card i want but pref from nividia.

 

[ko888]

i can spend anywhere from 100-200$

i need a PCIx16 card

im not really sure what card i want but pref from nividia.

GeForce GTX 690
• Minimum of a 650 Watt or greater system power supply with a maximum combined +12 Volt continuous current rating of 46 Amps or greater and with at least two 8-pin PCI Express supplementary power connectors.

GeForce GTX 680
• Minimum of a 550 Watt or greater system power supply with a maximum combined +12 Volt continuous current rating of 38 Amps or greater and with at least two 6-pin PCI Express supplementary power connectors.

GeForce GTX 670
• Minimum of a 500 Watt or greater system power supply with a maximum combined +12 Volt continuous current rating of 30 Amps or greater and with at least two 6-pin PCI Express supplementary power connectors.

GeForce GTX 660 Ti and non-Ti versions
• Minimum of a 450 Watt or greater system power supply with a maximum combined +12 Volt continuous current rating of 24 Amps or greater and with at least two 6-pin PCI Express supplementary power connectors.

GeForce GTX 650 Ti and non-Ti versions
• Minimum of a 400 Watt or greater system power supply with a maximum combined +12 Volt continuous current rating of 20 Amps or greater and with at least one 6-pin PCI Express supplementary power connector.

This one will handle all of the cards listed:

XFX P1650SNLB9 Core Edition Power Supply - 650W, 80 Plus Bronze, 135mm Fan, Active PFC, Single +12V Rail

http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=125450&CatId=5432

 

[toyftw]

i can spend anywhere from 100-200$

i need a PCIx16 card

im not really sure what card i want but pref from nividia.

Here's a few for < $200:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130841

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130840

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121670

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121686

over $200(some under after mir): most < $220

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121660

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814500270

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130825

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130826

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125443

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127707

660ti start over $250, 670 over $330

popatim is right, if you'll consider non nvidia, then you can get more
performance for less than $200 with the 7850. I think there might
even be a 7870 avail for $200.


http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161404

 

[popatim]

Try to spend the extra to get a 660 over the 650ti, its well worth it imo, but in the sub $200 category the HD7850 wins the prize, both the 1gb and 2gb varieties can be found well under $200.

 

[ksmils93]

GeForce GTX 690
• Minimum of a 650 Watt or greater system power supply with a maximum combined +12 Volt continuous current rating of 46 Amps or greater and with at least two 8-pin PCI Express supplementary power connectors.

GeForce GTX 680
• Minimum of a 550 Watt or greater system power supply with a maximum combined +12 Volt continuous current rating of 38 Amps or greater and with at least two 6-pin PCI Express supplementary power connectors.

GeForce GTX 670
• Minimum of a 500 Watt or greater system power supply with a maximum combined +12 Volt continuous current rating of 30 Amps or greater and with at least two 6-pin PCI Express supplementary power connectors.

GeForce GTX 660 Ti and non-Ti versions
• Minimum of a 450 Watt or greater system power supply with a maximum combined +12 Volt continuous current rating of 24 Amps or greater and with at least two 6-pin PCI Express supplementary power connectors.

GeForce GTX 650 Ti and non-Ti versions
• Minimum of a 400 Watt or greater system power supply with a maximum combined +12 Volt continuous current rating of 20 Amps or greater and with at least one 6-pin PCI Express supplementary power connector.

This one will handle all of the cards listed:

XFX P1650SNLB9 Core Edition Power Supply - 650W, 80 Plus Bronze, 135mm Fan, Active PFC, Single +12V Rail

http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=125450&CatId=5432

thanks for all the help but i, once again have a few questions.

now price isnt really an issue here but id much rather just go to the store and purchase it myself .so ive checked out a few PSU's that are in store and was just wondering what thought of them.
http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=899124&CatId=1483
http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=5074042&CatId=1483
http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4434993&CatId=1483
http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=3844172&CatId=1483

 

[ko888]

thanks for all the help but i, once again have a few questions.

now price isnt really an issue here but id much rather just go to the store and purchase it myself .so ive checked out a few PSU's that are in store and was just wondering what thought of them.
http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=899124&CatId=1483
http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=5074042&CatId=1483
http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4434993&CatId=1483
http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=3844172&CatId=1483

Ranked based on quality:

1. Corsair HX Series HX650 (SKU# 75-001217 / CP-9020030-NA)

2. Corsair GS Series GS600 (SKU# 75-001181 / CP-9020012-NA)

3. Thermaltake TR2 TR-600 <--- Old obsolete design

4. Cooler Master eXtreme Power Plus 600W (RS-600-PCAR-E3) <--- An absolute horrible piece of garbage that runs out of spec from 80% load and higher.

 

[ksmils93]

thanks guys i ended up going with the corsair hx650 watt power supply and the gtx 660 graphic card. however im just wondering if my CPU should be replaced or not. is it up to date with my other specs?

(AMD phenom x4 9650)

 

[ko888]

thanks guys i ended up going with the corsair hx650 watt power supply and the gtx 660 graphic card. however im just wondering if my CPU should be replaced or not. is it up to date with my other specs?

(AMD phenom x4 9650)

Monitor your CPU usage while the graphics card is under a full gaming load. If the CPU usage is consistently pegged near 100% for the cores in use then you definitely need to upgrade the CPU.

 

[ksmils93]

i have no idea how to do that......please explain how to do that

 

[toyftw]

i have no idea how to do that......please explain how to do that

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&ved=0CDIQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cpuid.com%2Fsoftwares%2Fhwmonitor.html&ei=xsEKUeuwMYnB0QGi4oHgCQ&usg=AFQjCNFApE9jHaN5cdzJyplDtiVzpfa7Xw&sig2=v1Id-3xV3Udggc8TJFJ2nw&bvm=bv.41642243,d.dmQ

you need to download it, then check your readings

actually this might be better,
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=3&cad=rja&ved=0CHIQ0gIoADAC&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cpuid.com%2Fsoftwares%2Fcpu-z.html&ei=BMMKUcWlD4vK0AGipIDYBg&usg=AFQjCNHUYv8vWcydE5qW4K5BW4pYKMVVIQ&sig2=VVsO59rpiX_BVPav-npAug&bvm=bv.41642243,d.dmg

or

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=4&cad=rja&ved=0CHoQFjAD&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cpu-monitoring.com%2F&ei=BMMKUcWlD4vK0AGipIDYBg&usg=AFQjCNHXicllCh4SrqstGHbTosxGtVv2wA&sig2=F1SAqr_lZFWV25Qav5iniw&bvm=bv.41642243,d.dmg

 

[ko888]

You can use the Windows 7 task manager which has a graphing function to monitor your CPU load.

 

[ksmils93]

http://imgur.com/GK4eIxI

is that what you mean?
should i improve get more ram?

 

[ko888]

http://imgur.com/GK4eIxI

is that what you mean?
should i improve get more ram?

Yes, that's what I mean.

You have the 32-bit version of Windows 7 so adding more memory isn't going to help you since anything over 4 GB won't be recognized or used anyway.

If you had the 64-bit version of Windows 7 then I would say definitely add more memory.

 

[popatim]

the 9650 being a gen1 phenom could certainly use updating. The phenom 2's were an excellent upgrade if your motherbd supports them.

 

[ksmils93]

would http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4904561&CatId=7339 be a good CPU?
also is it compatable with my current mother board?