Newbie,building first puter. PSU question

[truiz9902]

Well for starters, I'm a newbie here and hopefully I'm posting my question in the right Area. If not I'm sure you will point me in the right direction. As stated in the subject line, I'm building my first system. I have a ton of questions but will ask one at a time.
I plan on using the Gigabyte GA-8KNXP motherboard and the Intel P4 3.0GHz processor 800FSB. Only took me two weeks of reading to make those 2 choices. I figured picking a power supply would be a snap,,,,,well, wrong again. I've done alot of reading and often see the names Enermax,Antec,Vantec and Fortron mentioned. I'm actually very interested in the Zalman ZM400A-APF just from a few PSU reviews I've read. Anyways, I need a good Quiet Power supply and I'm open for suggestions. I would rather pay a few extra dollars to ensure I have plenty of power and to get the quietest unit possible.

here's what I plan on running

#-Gigabyte GA-8KNXP motherboard
#-Intel P4 3GHz 512k 800 FSB
#-2GB Corsair or OCZ DDR PC3200 (open for discussion as I've heard that corsair is more stable with the Gigabyte board)
#-2 Matrox dual head Graphics cards(1 AGP-1 PCI)
#-1 Floppy Drive(Brand not yet chosen)
#-1 100Gig HD ,,probably 7200rpm with 8mb cache(open for discussion)
#-1 DVD-Burner (Brand not yet chosen)
#-1 CD-RW (Brand not yet chosen)

as you can see...alot of unknowns for me but choosing the proper supply is the next (3rd) item on my checklist. Any suggestions and input would be greatly appreciated.

regards

truiz


and fwiw,,,I'm not really interested in all that glow in the dark fan stuff. Wifey doesn't even know I'm building this yet and the last thing I need is a Glowing box.

 

[truiz9902]

well I guess I answered my own question by reading this thread

<A HREF="http://forumz.tomshardware.com/hardware/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&p=81049#81049" target="_new">http://forumz.tomshardware.com/hardware/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&p=81049#81049</A>

I take it Fortron is the best?

regards

truiz

 

[Jake_Barnes]

If you want to spend the $ - this PSU reviewed well.
<A HREF="http://www.silentpcreview.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=Sections&file=index&req=viewarticle&artid=81&page=1" target="_new">Clickable</A>

But Officer, I wasn't speeding - I was qualifying ...

 

[Crashman]

Fortron is the best, and also the cheapest of the good ones. This is because Fortron is mainly an OEM supplier and not well known as a brand name. The supply Jake mentioned was a Fortron (the same one Tom's tested), but with a quiter fan substituted.

<font color=blue>Watts mean squat if you don't have quality!</font color=blue>

 

[truiz9902]

Crashman,
Thank you for the reply. I was actually typing a response to Jake as you posted. I was wondering what the difference was between the SilenX and the Fortron itself. Thanks for clearing that up for me. Guess I will do a bit more reading on the Fortron PSU and go from there. I'm thinking that buying a Forton might be the best bet and if worse comes to worse I can always change fans if necessary.

thanks for the input
regards

truiz

 

[Jake_Barnes]

Yea - but Crash, he wanted quiet, even if it ment extra$ - that's why I linked him to the Silenx - extra$, but quiet (according to reviews).

But Officer, I wasn't speeding - I was qualifying ...

 

[truiz9902]

Jake don't get me wrong,,,I'm weighing all options and the SilenX is still on the list. I guess it comes down to price vs DB's. I mean will I be able to notice the difference between 20 db and 22 db unless I'm in a dead silent room? According to the THG review I read, in the 400-499watt power class the Zalman ZM400A-APF was efficient and quiet, The Fortron FSP400-60PFN was the best performer with an efficiency rating of 78%. And the other thing,,If it isn't any louder than my Dell 8200 P4 2.4 gig. I'll never really know how silent it is. (if that makes sense)
fwiw,,I'm a daytrader, and this new machine I'm building will be my main work horse. 4-6 monitors running a ton of streaming data.

So with that said, I'm still open for any suggestions, and Jake, thanks for your reply

regards

truiz

 

[Crashman]

You can get quiet Panaflow fans for around $5. So when you consider the price of the "upgraded" power supply, consider that. But also consider that replacing the fan usually breaks the "warranty void if seal is broken" seal.

Anyway, all my Fortrons start with a rush of air (fan full power) and then quiet down to levels lower than the other parts of the system after about 2 seconds.

<font color=blue>Watts mean squat if you don't have quality!</font color=blue>

 

[Jake_Barnes]

Hey - You won't hurt my feelings - Crashman knows more now than I ever will (I listen to him)- go with what you want.
When you said $ was not a consideration - I figured a premium of $40 or so wasn't bad for a silent (quiet) PSU.
But, I'd listen to Crashman 1st.

But Officer, I wasn't speeding - I was qualifying ...

 

[truiz9902]

fwiw I'm leaning towards the SilenX 400W 14dBA
<A HREF="http://www.silenx.com/configurePrdz.asp?idcategory=74&idproduct=170" target="_new">http://www.silenx.com/configurePrdz.asp?idcategory=74&idproduct=170</A>


but have 2 more question? Is a SATA ready PSU something I should be considering or is it not a big concern at this time? Does SilenX make a SATA ready PSU?

thanks

truiz

 

[Jake_Barnes]

Noticed that the manufacturer wants $110 - you can get it here for $10 less: <A HREF="http://www.exoticpc.com/cgi-bin/merchant2/merchant.mv?Screen=SFNT&Store_Code=EPC" target="_new">http://www.exoticpc.com/cgi-bin/merchant2/merchant.mv?Screen=SFNT&Store_Code=EPC</A>

But Officer, I wasn't speeding - I was qualifying ...

 

[truiz9902]

thanks jake,,,,much appreciated.

 

[Jake_Barnes]

Your welcome

But Officer, I wasn't speeding - I was qualifying ...

 

[truiz9902]

Jake, While looking at the link you provided, I'm wondering why they call it the "AHANIX SilenX" ? This concerns me a bit. If you go to the SilenX site they warn of other companies selling their Name, go to the link provided and read the warning near the bottom of the page.
<A HREF="http://www.silenx.com/configurePrdz.asp?idcategory=74&idproduct=170" target="_new">http://www.silenx.com/configurePrdz.asp?idcategory=74&idproduct=170</A>

 

[Jake_Barnes]

I see what your saying, but I clicked on the ad in the left column - didn't have that off brand (the rebranded PSU was $79, not $99). You might call the reseller tomorrow to find out the real story.

But Officer, I wasn't speeding - I was qualifying ...

 

[Jake_Barnes]

My bad. The $79 unit is 350w. When I looked under category>PSU's, they listed the SilenX with "Ahanix". They also sell stright Fortron PSU's like Crash advises. I'd definately call these guys or SilenX directly to get the right story. They wouldn't be the 1st reseller to employ deceptive sales tactics - and they do charge a 20% restocking fee.

But Officer, I wasn't speeding - I was qualifying ...

 

[truiz9902]

If I do buy the SilenX, I will buy directly from them.
<A HREF="http://www.silenx.com/viewCat_z.asp?idCategory=74" target="_new">http://www.silenx.com/viewCat_z.asp?idCategory=74</A>

yes I pay the premium for what is essentially a $60 Fortron PSU. But with the quieter fan installed by SilenX and the 1 year warranty provided by them,, makes it money well spent imo. And I won't have to worry about changing fans any time soon, )

You have to remember this is my first build so I need all the protection I can possibly get,,,,lol

 

[Crashman]

I haven't seen SATA ready supplies yet, but voltage adapter are on the market if you need them in the future.

<font color=blue>Watts mean squat if you don't have quality!</font color=blue>

 

[Jake_Barnes]

Re-read the comments in the original article -<A HREF="http://www.silentpcreview.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=Sections&file=index&req=viewarticle&artid=81&page=1" target="_new">here</A> -seems it's a personality thing with Exotic PC and a former employee (read the review) - the reviewed unit was the Exotic PC supplied unit - not the new break off SilenX unit. Just some interesting information. Seems units are near identical - personalities are not.

But Officer, I wasn't speeding - I was qualifying ...

 

[mixerman]

Got my Antec TrueControl 550 watt the other day.. I like it a lot.. stupid Antec released some of the early revisions with the White power connectors, and then changed them to "Black" connectors.. so I am having another one sent to me with the Black connectors.. but in any event, I really like this PSU. I don't know how the Sound DB output compares to the units you guys are talking about here?

But in any event I got mine for $115 and I think the TrueControl 550 W can be had for $99 now. So just another one to consider.. Antec claims it is very quiet, it seemed very quite the other night when I plugged it in..


My system:
P3 850mhz (100fsb), 512 Micron PC133, Abit SE6, IBM Deskstar 75gxp (60 gig @ 7200rpm), Hercules 3D Prophet 2 GTS (64 meg), SB Live MP3, Pioneer 16x DVD, Asus 45x CD-Rom