PSU for ACER T120 ?

[Furkin]

XPpro> SP3> MB: KM400> Athlon 2400+> PSU: FSP200-60ATV> All IDE - (2 x HDD + 2 x DVD)> Home machine.

Hi all,

After a spot of bother with booting up, someone suggested that the PSU might be failing. As it's only a 200w item, and I intend to update the machines insides 'as & when' I can, I thought this would be a good time to upgrade it anyway.

To this end, I thought that i'd go for something as big / better / more VFM as I can at the moment. I'm disabled & on a limited budget. I see some great items for sale at around £30/35 of up to 750/800w etc > dual rail > fully featured. This sort of thing would suit my circumstances.

As I upgrade the insides I will be going for SATA drives, so I need to make sure that the PSU has connections for both the existing IDE & new SATA. If possible, it would be nice if I can add/swap the drives one at a time - as I can afford it.
Am I right in thinking that the only other thing I might need for this, is an IDE (M.B) to SATA (Drive) Adaptor ? If so, I have seen at least two types:
1 x a One Piece item with SATA socket one side & IDE the other.
1 x a short piece of ribbon,,,, with the different sockets at either end.
Is any one design better than the other ?

Main problem at the moment, is that I am now hearing that ACER - in their wisdom - only use proprietary parts in their machines ? Is this true ?
The fixing screws on my existing FSP are out of square. One of them is way off,,,, the other three just might be square.

Is this 'off-set' fixing set up peculiar to ACER, or are all PSU's made this way ? (Obviously, I have never needed/fitted a replacement PSU before). Is there a name for this type of off-set ?

What do I ask for when seeking to buy ? "ACER pattern" maybe ?

Physically my existing is:
140mm Long, & I could go a bit longer.
160mm Wide - I can't go wider.
86mm deep - I can't go deeper.

Sorry for all the questions, but I want to get it right the first time.

thanks for reading,,,,

[Furkin]

any advice please ?




ADMIN: If this would do better in a different section - please feel free to move.

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

The high wattage PSUs for under £40 tend to be quite poor designs and in most cases will not even supply their rated wattage.

You can get this PSU using your free Scan postage for around £26 delivered:

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/400W-...80mm-Quiet-Fan

Here are the specifications of the PSU:

http://www.fspgroupusa.com/vr-400/p/610.html

It looks to be a similar width and height to your existing PSU but is shorter.

This PSU is smaller:

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/350w-...4-SFX-uATX-PSU

This PSU is around the same size as your existing PSU and is made by Seasonic:

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/400W-...-year-warranty

Here is a review of the Corsair PSU:

http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/750