The Official Budget-Conscious Dream Machine!

No, because the gamexstream isn't really that good a power supply. I only recommend the OCZ Stealthxstream because it's cheap, and won't fall to pieces like most cheap PSUs do. 600W is enough to power two gaming PCs at once, you'll never use anywhere near that much power. For high-end builds I actually recommend a lower rated power supply, the Corsair HX 520W, as it will definitely produce 520W. With the OCZ I'm not so sure.

 

Yeah, the Corsairs are pretty much the nicest PSUs you can get. The OCZ GameXstreams are pretty nice, but they don't supply as much power as someone like I or sammorris would like.

As for my recommendation: The Enermax Liberty 500W. At least as good as PC Power & Cooling(expensive) or Corsair(also pretty expensive).

The Liberty is old but I challenge you to find another 500W as powerful as the Enermax. It'll power an overclocked 8800GTX rig with no problems. Modular and extremely quiet too.

The Liberty 620W though, seems to get a lot of failures. So stay away if you don't want to gamble. I think I was pretty lucky to get one that works well(see the system in my profile).

:ALSO:

Get this. I looked at my temps today and I was idling at 43*C!!! So I closed my heat vent a little, put a fan in my door to move the air, and she cooled right down. Now idling at a comfy 34-36*C.

 

You make 42C idle sound bad, that seems acceptable to me!
As for the Liberty PSU, I'd stay away from them if you've had issues. You can't afford to hear any scare stories about power supplies, at all.
A lot of Enermax units seem to have failures, even the seemingly indestructible Galaxy.
Currently idling at 34C CPU, 38C GPU in a room with almost no ventilation whatsoever (closed door and closed double-glazed windows).
I love my PC....

 

Going on the fact that I'm running at just as heavy of an OC, AND running an 8800GTX, high temps are expected.

But I have a Tuniq Tower 120 and 43*C is NOT acceptable! If my OC caused me to have a constant idle of 43*C, I would back it down and lower my voltage. I like my frosty temps

EDIT:

Darn ads caused the screen to stretch... argh...

Am I the only one having problems loading the page? I get it in all blue with no white or orange

I think that, given the failure rate shown, the Enermax Liberties are extremely good PSUs. Even if you have to RMA one to get a working unit, they're worth every second waited.

 

That means the formatting hasn't loaded, it sometimes happens with firefox, and/or if you get a dodgy connection to the website, just ctrl+F5.
As for the temps, they are on the high side for a Tuniq...

 

Yep... I use Firefox, lol. It's good now

It was because my room temp was hitting about 85*F... and the door was closed... Now I'm down to 74*F and my temps are back to normal

 

Yes, room temperature plays a big role in your PC temps. Room temps 5C above normal can trigger PC temp rises of far more than 5C.

 

I think, if you look at the newegg reviews for the Enermax Liberty 500W, you'll be pleasantly surprised. Only a few DOA's, and some guys trying to run it on a bedroom circuit(popped their breakers).

Has to be one of the best ones on newegg.

 

Estuansis you are running an E6750? I am getting 30C idle(but it's been on for about 18 hours) on the stock cooler. I live in Florida too.

 

I am running mine overclocked with raised voltage. My temps are perfectly in spec for my cooler(tuniq tower 120)

I suspect your temps are also within specs. Core 2 Duos seem to run VERY cool

 

Yeah thats true. Maybe I just got a really good one. I do have a full tower case so that MIGHT help, but I'm not sure if full tower cases help keep stuff cool or not.

Anyway I have my CPU at 3.6 Ghz and it's overvolted too. I wonder what kinds of temps I would get with a Tuniq Tower...

 

Overclocked you say?... O.O... your temp diodes must be broken!!! 30C idle at 3.6GHZ!!! ON THE STOCK COOLER???!?!?!?!

Your temperature diodes are bad... or you live in a freezer... You should be idling at 38-42*C with the stock cooler. And that's only with a very well ventilated case...

EDIT: Do Core 2 Duos really get THAT cool? I find it hard to believe.

 

I don't know, the AC in here runs 24/7, that's probably why.

 

That could very well be... what kind of load temps do you get?

 

Nah sorry, the E6750 is a cool running chip and all, but it can't possibly run at those temps. You've got a faulty chip. My motherboard chipset thinks it's 14C. fat chance!

 

I think it's less a bad chip, and more just a bad thermistor. I kinda doubt the chip is bad(very uncommon).

You might wanna swap out processors and see if it gives equally low temps. If the ridiculously low temps continue; bad board.

I was thinking the same thing, sammorris. No way in hell...

 

That's what I meant, sorry, bit of a technology slip there!
In a cold room my CPU idles at 34C with a top of the line heatsink. With a freezer 7 Pro even at max speed my minimum idle temp was about 39/40C. Now your CPU may draw slightly less power than mine but at that speed not by much, and with a stock cooler? Your CPU must be at least 45C.
Simple test, feel how hot the metal of the heatsink is. If it's warm to the touch then your CPU can't possibly be that cool.

 

Yes, a CPU at 30*C will not have a warm heatsink. You will feel some heat coming off of it(from the processor itself) but the heatsink itself should be fairly cool to the touch... at least in my experience.

You must be at least in the low-mid 40's.

You might wanna crank down your clocks a bit until you can be sure that you are getting an accurate temp.

 

For reference, when my CPU was at 50C with my old Freezer 7 Pro at low fan speed, the heatsink was HOT. It was difficult to hold your finger on the metal it was that hot. This is what I'd normally expect of the stock cooler.

 

Also, you were running it on low speed, lol. Low vs high makes a difference.

My freezer 7 Pro gave me comfortable temps(idle at 37-39*C, load at 46-49*C) up to 3.4GHz. After that I had to pump up the vcore to 1.40v and it got really hot(too hot for me). Idle at 45*C!!! Mind you, this was with the E6600.

Now, with the Tuniq Tower 120, I'm getting temps similar to a low-mid range liquid cooling setup. I'm gonna see how high I can go on 1.40v vcore(versus my current clock with 1.40v), and I'll leave it there. I'm hoping to take it to a straight 3.6GHz(or am I already maxed at this voltage?). I don't suspect there will be a difference in temps at all.

You aren't going to do 3.6GHz very well on stock cooling, though. In fact, I advise against it.