PSU Advice Requested

[janbak]

I need a more than 600 watt modular PSU with more than of 36A current output on the +12v rail ... what's the best choice with the best price?

What's about Enermax, Seasonic, Chieftec, LC, Corsair and Tagan? I've to choice among these manufacturer ...

Thank you very much

[Acid]

I was thinking of picking up a SG-650w i think their semi-modular. Otherwise i'd suggest something along the lines of a corsair hx-620

[burebista]

... what's the best choice with the best price?
Corsair HX620 probably.
What config do you want to power with more than 600W modular?

[janbak]

What config do you want to power with more than 600W modular?

My config is:
- CASE Aerocool ExtremEngine 3T
- MOTHERBOARD Asus P5N-D
- PCU Intel Core 2 Quad Q9400 Box
- RAM Dimm 2X2GB DDR2 PC2-6400 Corsair C4 XMS2 DHX
- HD 2x Seagate Barracuda 500GB SATA-II 32MB
- CD/DVD PLAYER/BURNER Optiarc AD-7201S Black SATA
- VGA Gainward GeForce GTX 260+ 896MB Extreme Edition
for more details you can see my pc here http://www.playdeep.it/PC/marsduo

My current PSU is an LC Power Silent Giant v2.3 600W Green Power but I've some instability issues: randomly when I'm playing the display freezes, the audio loops ... and my PC is totally blocked ... sometimes a message error appear saying that the nv4_disp driver doesn't work or is blocked in an infinite loop.

Finally I've become convinced that the cause of this issue is an underpowered PSU, in fact nVidia minimal requirement for the GTX 260 is a 500 Watt PSU with a minimum 12V current rating of 36A ... my PSU +12v rail is rated +12V1: 17A / +12V2: 18A ... so I think it is insufficient and I'm thinking to change it.

Thank you very much for your advices ;)

[burebista]

Your system needs under 300W DC in full-load, so a good 500W PSU is just fine for you.

989

[janbak]

Your system needs under 300W DC in full-load, so a good 500W PSU is just fine for you.

Thank you very much ...

... so do you agree that my current PSU isn't a good PSU and it is the possible cause of my issue?

... and finally could you suggest some better solution than my current PSU (choosing among the the manufacturer I've indicated)? What's about Chieftec PSU?

At the moment I'm evaluating the following options:
- Corsair HX 620W (Triple 12V Rails with a combined rating of 50A maximum) ... my first choice at the moment ;)
- Seasonic M12-600W - Ampere +12V +12V1: 18A / +12V2: 18A / +12V3: 18A / +12V4: 18A (TOTAL 48A)
- Seasonic M12-700W - Ampere +12V +12V1: 18A / +12V2: 18A / +12V3: 18A / +12V4: 18A (TOTAL 56A)
- Enermax ATX EIN650AWT (650w) INFINITI - Ampere +12V +12V1: 28A / +12V2: 28A / +12V3: 30A - Ampere +12V +12V1: 18A / +12V2: 18A / +12V3: 18A / +12V4: 18A
- Enermax ATX EMD625AWT (625W) MODU82+ - Ampere +12V +12V1: 25A / +12V2: 25A / +12V3: 25A (TOTAL 50A - 600W)
- Tagan TG700-BZ PipeRock Series 700W - Ampere +12V +12V1: 20A / +12V2: 20A / +12V3: 20A / +12V4: 20A (TOTAL 56A - 672W)
- Tagan TG600-BZ PipeRock Series 600W - Ampere +12V +12V1: 20A / +12V2: 20A / +12V3: 20A / +12V4: 20A (TOTAL 48A - 576W)
- Chieftec Super Series CFT-700-14CS 700W - Ampere +12V +12V1V (18A) / +12V2V (18A) / +12V3V (18A) / +12V4V (18A) [+12V Combined: 672W (56A)]
- Chieftec Super Series CFT-650-14CS 650W - Ampere +12V +12V1V (18A) / +12V2V (18A) / +12V3V (18A) / +12V4V (18A) [+12V Combined: 624W (52A)]

[spursindonesia]

Forget those Tagans, among the rest, what are their prices ? Corsair would give you the best performance at a reasonable price (Seasonic prices are usually rather unreasonable), but if the price difference quite significant and the warranty scheme is comparable, those Chieftecs are CWT PSH based units and good performers too -but they should be cheaper than the Corsair, especially the 650w unit, while the 750w unit can be priced the same or slightly more expensive.

[gemini]

as ever: I recommend buying enermaxes.
525 Modu 82+ will do fine.

[janbak]

Forget those Tagans, among the rest, what are their prices ? Corsair would give you the best performance at a reasonable price (Seasonic prices are usually rather unreasonable), but if the price difference quite significant and the warranty scheme is comparable, those Chieftecs are CWT PSH based units and good performers too -but they should be cheaper than the Corsair, especially the 650w unit, while the 750w unit can be priced the same or slightly more expensive.

Their prices are:
- Corsair HX 620W => Eur 143.60
- Seasonic M12-600W => Eur 145.20
- Seasonic M12-700W => Eur 168.00
- Enermax ATX EIN650AWT (650w) INFINITI => Eur 164.40
- Enermax ATX EMD625AWT (625W) MODU82+ => Eur 154.80
- Chieftec Super Series CFT-700-14CS 700W => Eur 92.40
- Chieftec Super Series CFT-650-14CS 650W => Eur 103.20

... 2 years warranty for all except Corsair 5 years.

P.S. my supplier has advise me against Enermax but ... I don't know why :confused:

[MrWicked1968]

Corsair HX620, price and warranty

[ultraviolet]

Chieftec. These CWT based units actually deliver more power than specified (750w CWT unit delivers 940w :) )
http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/635/8

[spursindonesia]

- Chieftec Super Series CFT-700-14CS 700W => Eur 92.40

My choice, is it under sales discount, cheaper than its 650w little brother ? At that price and 2 yrs warranty, it's a winner in my book. My Toughpower 700w was really a workhorse and a champ, the only part that has never gave me any trouble during its service in my system. If it's a modular version, even better (if you prefer modularity).

IMHO, Corsair HX620w is somehow a slightly underrated Seasonic 700w design, so don't compare it straightly against Seasonic 600w unit.

[janbak]

My choice, is it under sales discount, cheaper than its 650w little brother ? At that price and 2 yrs warranty, it's a winner in my book. My Toughpower 700w was really a workhorse and a champ, the only part that has never gave me any trouble during its service in my system. If it's a modular version, even better (if you prefer modularity).

IMHO, Corsair HX620w is somehow a slightly underrated Seasonic 700w design, so don't compare it straightly against Seasonic 600w unit.


Sorry I made a mistake ... I've inverted the prices of Chieftec 650 and 700 watt ... I apologize ... the right prices are
- Chieftec Super Series CFT-700-14CS 700W => Eur 103.20
- Chieftec Super Series CFT-650-14CS 650W => Eur 92.40

my hesitation about Chieftec is due to the low efficiency they claim ... 75% only :(

[ultraviolet]

This is only on paper ;) The real specifications are different (eff. ~85%). Actually Chieftec CS (Super series) an C (Turbo series) are probably the same CWT PSH platform (only difference is in color - black & blue). On paper the Turbo series is better, but in real they are the same. Best price, best choice :)
btw. does any1 knows is there any REAL difference (not paper spec.) between CWT PSH (PSH750) and CWT power plus (CWT-750VH) platform?

[janbak]

Finally Gainward has confirmed the following reuiqremnts for my GTX 260
- effciency 80%+
- +12v combined rate 36A
- rate of every single +12v rails no lower than 22-25A
- minimum 600 watt
... what do you think about that?

The only modular PSU satisfying these reuiqrements seems to be Enermax Infiniti 650 watt adn Enermax MOD82+ 625 watt ... the others I've mentioned before (Chieftec, Seasonic, Corsair) have +12v rails rated only 18A :(

Do you think are they a good choice?

[MrWicked1968]

http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story&reid=21

the HX620 is capable of providing 50 amps on the 12v rail and would power your GTX260 easily

[Lemmy]

Corsairs and Seasonics are actually single rail.

And why the hell must a PSU be at least 80% efficient to run a GTX 260? :crazy:

The Corsair HX620 will do just fine.

[HOOfan_1]

Finally Gainward has confirmed the following reuiqremnts for my GTX 260
- effciency 80%+ BS
- +12v combined rate 36A
- rate of every single +12v rails no lower than 22-25A BS
- minimum 600 watt BS
... what do you think about that? I think it is a bunch of BULL


LULZ...what BS...I guess it is a cover your ass type move

[janbak]

LULZ...what BS...I guess it is a cover your ass type move

What's? Could you explain better please? I don't understand ... sorry but my english isn't so good :o

[spursindonesia]

I think Gainward put those requirements in anticipation of mediocre quality PSU used by the users. They only apply to dual 12v rail PSU in which one of the virtual 12v rail only powers the CPU, while the other one powers the rest. That WILL NOT be the case with the PSUs you've mentioned above, so the 18A on the virtual 12v rail would be more than good enough -the OCP would be higher than that anyway.

If the PSU needed would only have to provide 36 A on its single/combined 12v rail, which means 432 w, then a BONAFIDE, WELL DESIGNED 500w rated PSU will be good enough for most users -especially a single 12v rail one, because modern build system consumes most of its power through 12v rail.

Regarding the efficiency, well, it's better to have a more efficient unit, but that's for your bottomline concern, not for the VGA card safety concern.

If your budget is somewhat limited, those Chieftecs would be more than good enough. But if your budget is enough and you put a nice premium in long warranty coverage, Corsair HX 620w is a very nice unit.

[HOOfan_1]

BS stands for excrement(poop) from a male bovine...meaning that I think their advice is wrong


"Cover your ass" means that Gainward is trying to give out information that will least likely result in undesired operation of your card, so that you will not come back and accuse them of giving bad advice or return the card even if it is properly functioning.

To go down the points they gave you


Efficiency 80%+
the efficiency of the power supply has nothing to do with the operation of the card, nor the power that it will put out...efficiency is the ratio of DC power that your components are pulling from the Power Supply divided by the AC power pulled from your wall socket. A PSU capable of outputing 600W DC will be putting out 600W DC wether it is 50% efficient or 80% efficient
+12V combined 36A
well that depends on what other components you have in your system. 36A of 12V is a lot of power and you might need it if your CPU and GPU are highly overclocked and you are running peltier coolers...but with just a single GTX 260, a couple of hard drives and optical drives, a few fans, a standard or mildly overclocked CPU, you probably won't need that much
12V rails split at no less than 22-25A
well that depends on how the rails are split....if it is a decently designed PSU and the PCI-E power connectors have their own rail then 18A for a GTX 260 would be plenty. GTX 260 uses 2 6 pin PCI-E connectors which should pull no more than 75W or 6.25A each...so 12.5-13A total
minimum 600W
the GTX 260 uses just a bit more power than the 8800GTX for which nVidia suggested a 450W PSU. If you buy a decent PSU then anything above 500W should be fine


But Gainward doesn't know what type or quality of PSU you are buying, so they hand you a bunch of specifications that are over and above what is needed just to be safe....except for the 80%+ efficiency thing, that sill has no impact on how much power the PSU puts out...I am thinking that is more a nod at determining quality. They assume a PSU that is 80%+ efficient is of a decent quality

[LoneWolf]

With so many people recommending CWT PSH models, I'd consider looking at another PSU built on that supply --those made by Xigmatek.

Their 650w model is a reasonable $109.99 on the `Egg, and the 750w goes for $124.99. Unlike some of the other PSH models (e.g., Corsair TX series) they also have modular cabling.

I got a great deal locally on the 750w model, and just put it in my system tonight, replacing my Antec NeoHE 550. I don't have the equipment that this site and others have to test it, but it's reasonably quiet, has plenty of cables, and support for SLI or Crossfire.

650w model (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817815002)

750w model (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817815002)

[janbak]

It seems I've fixed the issue, now ... with my new PSU a Chieftec 750 w (60A combined on +12v rails)

Thank to all for your help and suggestions ;)

[janbak]

A week after ... my problem is back :(

[spursindonesia]

A week after ... my problem is back :(

Hmm, perhaps your PSU isn't really the culprit in the first place.

[janbak]

Hmm, perhaps your PSU isn't really the culprit in the first place.

I think so ... but I don't know where to look for it, now :(

[MrWicked1968]

at this point, you may want to put the original LC Power back in and contact playdeep regarding warranty coverage.