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Forums - PC Discussion - PC Newbie needs help buiding his first rig? parts listed

homicidaIpanda on 18 February 2010

Ive been reading up on crossfire also...does either of the psu in furture will be able to handle it...if i decide to go that route?



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Garcian Smith on 18 February 2010
WilliamWatts said:

I thought the motherboard was the most important component in a system? Wait? Oh we're not talking about motherboards so therefore the PSU is suddenly the most important now.

The OCZ PSU has a ripple of under 3%, how the hell is that not good enough? Add that to beefed up enthusiast parts and you've got extreme over-engineering on every level with your typical enthusiast PC. If you're not overclocking then you're not requiring an uber expensive PSU.

Besides anything else a PSU has to last about 3-4 years and thats about it. By the time the next Intel platform comes out your current over engineered PSU will be useless because they will once again change the power delivery. PC parts don't stay current for 5+ years, not even the PSU.

An equivalent "over-engineered" PSU is like twenty bucks more than a cheap-o one. We're not talking anywhere near Radeon 5770 vs 5970 levels of overcompensation here. For most enthusiasts, the guaranteed stability of an "over-engineered" PSU is worth that twenty bucks because it carries less risk of frying the several hundred dollars' worth of other components in your system. Basically, think of the extra money spent as insurance on your computer.

For others, that $20 saved on a second-rate PSU seems like a good deal... until the first time it dies and takes your mobo with it.

If you want to take that chance, then by all means, do so. But that's objectively speaking a very small price to pay for additional guarantee as to the stability of your system.



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homicidaIpanda on 18 February 2010

im going to go with the corsiar...they have a 550w and a 650w for about the same price..should i get the 650 if i plan on upgrading down the road?



WilliamWatts on 18 February 2010
Garcian Smith said:
WilliamWatts said:

I thought the motherboard was the most important component in a system? Wait? Oh we're not talking about motherboards so therefore the PSU is suddenly the most important now.

The OCZ PSU has a ripple of under 3%, how the hell is that not good enough? Add that to beefed up enthusiast parts and you've got extreme over-engineering on every level with your typical enthusiast PC. If you're not overclocking then you're not requiring an uber expensive PSU.

Besides anything else a PSU has to last about 3-4 years and thats about it. By the time the next Intel platform comes out your current over engineered PSU will be useless because they will once again change the power delivery. PC parts don't stay current for 5+ years, not even the PSU.

An equivalent "over-engineered" PSU is like twenty bucks more than a cheap-o one. We're not talking anywhere near Radeon 5770 vs 5970 levels of overcompensation here. For most enthusiasts, the guaranteed stability of an "over-engineered" PSU is worth that twenty bucks because it carries less risk of frying the several hundred dollars' worth of other components in your system. Basically, think of the extra money spent as insurance on your computer.

For others, that $20 saved on a second-rate PSU seems like a good deal... until the first time it dies and takes your mobo with it.

If you want to take that chance, then by all means, do so. But that's objectively speaking a very small price to pay for additional guarantee as to the stability of your system.

Im talking over-over engineered. Like for example the Japanese capacitors which are rated for 105 degrees C but never reach more than 60 in their operating life. Most 'enthusiasts' pay through the nose for components which add nothing to their system. They pay for the computer equivalent of the ricer wing.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128415

vs

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128431

The difference? Integrated GPU which will never be used, a single PCI-E slot which isn't cost effective to use, a single USB 3.0 port, RAID which will never get used and twice the price.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817162023

$29 and cheap

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371016

$65 modular and 'most reliable PSU brand'

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371030

$69 not modular and 80+ certified

So wheres the justification for paying 1/3rd more again for a Corsair?



superchunk on 18 February 2010
homicidaIpanda said:
im going to go with the corsiar...they have a 550w and a 650w for about the same price..should i get the 650 if i plan on upgrading down the road?

I would.

The info page should mention if its compatible with crossfire tech.



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homicidaIpanda on 18 February 2010

ok thanks



DOLBYdigital on 18 February 2010

Hey Homicidalpanda,
I got the 650w version and love it :)

What crawled up your ass today WilliamWatts?
If you read my post I said the PSU is the most important part for STABILITY.

To be honest Garcian Smith said it best (like usual, the man knows his stuff):
"...PSU is worth that (extra) twenty bucks because it carries less risk of frying the several hundred dollars' worth of other components in your system."

So go ahead and buy the cheapo PSU and then cry when it destroys your oh so special mobo :)



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homicidaIpanda on 18 February 2010

Ill be getting the 650 watt one then since it will support future upgrades..thanks...should be ordering this weekend or at the most mid next week.



WilliamWatts on 18 February 2010

Despite being the cheapest PSU in the bunch, the Basiq delivers steady voltages all the way up to 100% of its rated capacity. The 5 and 12V lines sag a little under load, but they're still well within acceptable tolerances.

The Basiq's AC ripple content also suffers under load, particularly on the 12V lines. However, we're at worst looking at less than 14 millivolts of AC content, which is actually quite good.


http://www.techreport.com/articles.x/16073/5


What stability problem from cheaper PSUs?



homicidaIpanda on 21 February 2010

One more quick question...do i need heat sink paste or does that already come on the cpu etc?