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Thread: What PSU?

  1. #1
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    What PSU?

    I'm building a system for a friend (P4 2.8c & Asus P4P800 Deluxe mobo). I'm on a price limit which I'm getting close to exceeding - but I don't have a PSU.

    What cheap(ish) PSUs do you guys recommend?

    For example - QTec - these seem pretty cheap. Do they consequently have a higher chance of failure (& rixk taking the system down) or are they just poot at providing a decent output under load? If the latter would a 500W QTec be a better buy than the lower rated ones?

    Cheers.
    24" iMac & Macbook Air


  2. #2
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    i would not go cheap on psu running that system!

    are you overclocking?

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    I don't think he'll be overclocking - he doesn't even like having 2 programs running at once.

    I know what you mean re cheap PSUs but I'm stuck with my budget.
    24" iMac & Macbook Air


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    buy a 2.4c and overclock it a tiny bit to 2.8ghz (saves loads)

    buy a P4S800 as canterwood REALLY isnt needed AT ALL @ stock or even small overclocks

    that should save $$$$$$$$$$$$$

    then buy a truepower 480w or something like that

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    I think the PSU is one place where I wouldn't go cheap. The thought of a PSU going bad and trashing half the system doesn't bear thinking about.

    I considered the 500W QTec but in the end went for a lower powered Antec TruePower after reading the reviews. The extra money you pay pay for the Antec will seem like nothing should a cheap PSU fail taking even a few parts with it.

  6. #6
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    and i doubt qtec will give much support if things go wrong!

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    Originally posted by Axion
    buy a 2.4c and overclock it a tiny bit to 2.8ghz (saves loads)

    buy a P4S800 as canterwood REALLY isnt needed AT ALL @ stock or even small overclocks

    that should save $$$$$$$$$$$$$

    then buy a truepower 480w or something like that

    I've already got the CPU & mobo unfortunately. I think I'm screwed & will be dipping into my own pocket for the dude.
    24" iMac & Macbook Air


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    if running at stock with say 3-4ide devices you could get away with a 350w fotron/sparkle (dabs stocks this)

    this psu costs £47 and has been tested at 454w ... far in excess of its rated spec

    the qtec 550w has only ever reached ~400w...

    basically this psu is very good if your not looking for the big o/c (over 3.0-3.2GHz on p4 or 2.2-2.4Ghz on amd)

    this will save some cash but should work flawlessly

  9. #9
    Senior Member SilentDeath's Avatar
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    q tec r decent, cheap, wrongly marketed psus. for example the one branded as 550w is accually 400w, it is marketed as its maximum PEAK output. if u put 550w of load on it i wouldnt be suprised if it half ur case ended up on the other side of the room. (psus have very big electrolic (spelt right?) capacitors, which like to explode when they are either connected wrong way round, or go past what there rated for). afaik these are only things likely to explode, though other parts may get hot/catch fire, and the transformer should have a thermal fuse.

    btw im using an unbranded 350w psu, for my nf7-s, 1700+ @ 2.2, 512mb pc3200, 9700p, loadsa fans, and 4 drives. i recon this would consume less than 225w most of the time, so theres a big enuf gap, incase 350 is peak, instead of continus RMS. im not sure what ud need a bigger psu for, dual cpu servers or low wattage TEC rigs maybe... also my rails are good, with 5.17 and 12.04 with my multimeter, as opposed to the wrong readings my nf7-s gives of about 5 and 11.6

    Axion:
    ide devices typicly use only 1-5watts each, so not really a problem how many u use.

    the qtec 550w has only ever reached ~400w...
    becuase its marketed wrongly, ull find most psus are sold as the continus rms, not the peak.

    basically this psu is very good if your not looking for the big o/c (over 3.0-3.2GHz on p4 or 2.2-2.4Ghz on amd)
    my 1700+ uses ~50w at stock, this increases to at most 80w at 2.2@1.8v, if u add up what ur sys needs, ull find a 450w psu is far more than adequate.
    Last edited by SilentDeath; 10-09-2003 at 05:15 PM.

  10. #10
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    Originally posted by |SilentDeath|
    my 1700+ uses ~50w at stock, this increases to at most 80w at 2.2@1.8v, if u add up what ur sys needs, ull find a 450w psu is far more than adequate.
    1. i was talking about a 350w psu - some have been tested to do 450w - but it still is underrated @ 350w

    2. generic psu's are considered by many to exceed the qtec psu's - ie a 350w generic is far better than a comparable qtec

    3. even if they are marketed wrongly they still are not god enough to risk a huge investment on

  11. #11
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    I'm confused now. Are qtec unreliable? Or would a 550w qtec be sufficient?

    Also - how noisy are they?
    24" iMac & Macbook Air


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    get a sparkle/fotron 350w.... preferably with a 120mm fan

    it will serve you very very well

    many have found the qtecs unreliable... some have been exeedingly lucky

  13. #13
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    Originally posted by Axion
    get a sparkle/fotron 350w.... preferably with a 120mm fan

    it will serve you very very well

    many have found the qtecs unreliable... some have been exeedingly lucky

    Thanks - I'll have a look. Are they very noisy?
    24" iMac & Macbook Air


  14. #14
    Kirstie Allsopp Theo's Avatar
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    • Theo's system
      • Motherboard:
      • Asus P5B Wifi deluxe
      • CPU:
      • E6600 @ 3150Mhz
      • Memory:
      • 2x2GB OCZ 6400
      • Storage:
      • 1x80GB Maxtor
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      • ASUS M221u
      • Internet:
      • Be Value
    I haven't had any problems at all with my QTEC. Steady rails at:
    3V - 3.34
    5V - 5.08
    12V - 11.98

    Runs an NF7-S, XP1700 (stock voltage), 2x256 Corsair PC3200 (TwinX), Rad 9600, DSL card, 3x 80mm fans @7V, a 120mm fan @7V, 48x cdrw, 2x UV CCFL, and 3x Maxtor 120Gb 7200rpm 8MB cache hdds.

    Absolutely fine, no problems.

    -Edit

    Thermaltake psus are supposedly very good for budget users. Someone else might back me up on that

  15. #15
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    Here's some Anantech reviews/articles on PSUs that may be of use :

    http://www.anandtech.com/showdoc.html?i=1774
    http://www.anandtech.com/showdoc.html?i=1841
    http://www.anandtech.com/showdoc.html?i=1774

    (The first url seems to request a login just click ok a few time with no username/password and it works)

  16. #16
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    Originally posted by Ozymandias
    Here's some Anantech reviews/articles on PSUs that may be of use :

    http://www.anandtech.com/showdoc.html?i=1774
    http://www.anandtech.com/showdoc.html?i=1841
    http://www.anandtech.com/showdoc.html?i=1774

    (The first url seems to request a login just click ok a few time with no username/password and it works)
    Thanks - I didn't think the middle one was ever going to end (though it is pretty comprehensive!!)

    Thinking of going thermaltake (will check prices shortly)
    24" iMac & Macbook Air


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