Here are the specifications for my Computer Power supply XTec 400W Processor - Intel Core 2 DUO E8400 3ghz Dual Core\ Video card - Nvidia 8400gs(yeah.... the graphics card sucks i know) Motherboard - Asus P5QL- EM Primary Hard Drive - WDC WD1600AAJS-00PSA0 (160GB) Secondary Hard Drive- SAMSUNG HD501LJ (500GB) In PCI slot - Leadtek DTV1000s (TV card) Optical drive - Sony DVD RW DRU- 800A Probably another thing i should mention is that i am running dual 12cm case fans off the power supply too, taking up 2 4 pin plugs. I have recently upgraded my CPU from a Pentium dual core 2.2ghz to a Core 2 Duo e8400 3ghz, and i read somewhere, i think it was on this site, that fast processors demand more from a power supply . This leads me to believe that my awful 400w power supply might be under a bit of stress. i have been looking at power supplys and i have found one that i particularly like - Cooler Master eXtreme Power 650W So recommendations? Do i need to upgrade? Is the power supply i have chosen good? Cheers Guys!
You do need a better power supply, I am amazed that that unit is working at all with your current setup. Corsair is still the king of power supplies, and right now you can get a 650W unit for just $75 (per newegg.com)...so I would go with that if I were you...
If it were a good 400W PSU I'd say keep it. However, with that brand, it's an absolute priority to get rid of it and buy a good unit. Your PC is only likely to use about 130W or so under full load, so a big powerful unit isn't necessary, but you do need a reliable unit you can trust. Neither the XTec or the Coolermaster are that. A Corsair CX 400W, however, is and is available from Newegg for $49.99 with a $10 rebate to knock that down to $39.99. This is my choice for your system. 400W may not seem much but this unit would handle your system even if you upgraded the CPU to a Quad core and put a much faster top-end graphics card in it. Not only would it handle this, it would have room to spare. 400W is a LOT of power.
Cheers guys for the input..... appreciated ill get right on to getting a new (much better) power supply Cheers guys!
Do, and please tell us what you buy in case you get another bad one. Remember, Corsair 400CX if you can find it.
Ok , i have freed up 200 dollars(Australian dollars) for a new power supply and i have been surfing Ebay for power supplies. I had found a TITAN 850w power supply that i liked, and for only 100 dollars i thought it was a bargain. But then i remembered that it isnt the wattage its the build quality. So i thought a Titan 850w is just a stupid decision. At that point i relized that more money is needed to get a good reliable unit. Then i found, on ebay, a good corsair for twice the amount of the titan , 200 dollars. The corsair i found was a Corsair TX 650w. What i did think of is that my case may not be able to accomodate such a power supply. My case is some cheap micro ATX case that you could probably get for about 30 dollars. I had decided that after the power supply it would be the next thing i save up for and get a new case. My current case has a top mount for a power supply. My current awful Xtec power supply has a back mounted fan. The corsair, on the other hand, has a bottom mounted fan. This bottom mounted fan would be very close to my Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 pro CPU cooler. With that in mind i went in search for a power supply with a back mounted fan. i found a Tagan dual engine 600w for the same amount of money as the Corsair. another interesting (and scary fact ) is that , until i learnt that my current power supply is unrelaible and just awful, i had been running my computer all the time. Thats 24 hours a day for a year and a half. Thats scary. Oh and by the way, a bit irrelevant on this particular thread but oh well it has some relevance. The case i have chosen when i have enough money to upgrade is the Thermaltake V9 . I liked the big fan on the top on the glowing fan on the front. Nice. These are my questions Is the Corsair i have chosen any good? Can i run it at such a close proximity to my CPU cooler? If not , Is the Tagan power supply any good? Is the Thermaltake V9 i choose good?
Why spend $200 on a PSU more powerful than you need? The 650TX is a very good unit but it's ovrkill to the extreme, people run overclocked quad cores and dual graphics off that, let alone dual cores and basic low-end cards. Most Thermaltake cases are pretty poorly made and thought out, the V9 is alright, but I think you could probably do better for the money. Just get the 400W CX like I said!
The reason i couldn't get that Corsair 400w is because i didn't think newegg ships out to Australia. Anyway you're the expert here and i have taken your advice into consideration. Ill contact my local computer shop and see if they can get that Corsair 400cx in for me. with any luck ill be able to get it for about 100 dollars or so. Anyway cheers for the advice !
I think Amazon.com ships to Australia, and they have Corsair power supplies. If not, I am sure you can find a supplier that caries Corsair and also ships to Australia. For the $200AUS, you should be able to get a nice corsair 600W (probably more).
http://www.megaware.com.au/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=87962 http://www.skycomp.com.au/product.aspx?id=172800 http://www.computeralliance.com.au/parts.aspx?qryPart=10321
Sammoris, guess what! I bought the corsair you recommended yesterday. Thanks for posting those australian websites, i was almost about to buy that 600w unit that would have been a complete waste of $200. Cheers!
