Are Mega-PSUs truly necessary? [From GT200 Thread]
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Berek
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I will go with this AND against it... to a point
. I bought a $25 case once that came with a 400watt PSU... the PSU was extremely light, so I questioned its performance. I plugged it in a test machine... it lasted 20 minutes before burning out.Recently, I bought a GameXStream 1010W PSU and intend only to run it around that 40-60% load, even with a GT200 or two thrown in there it should stay below 90% maximum load. My friend has a PSU from the same series, so I'm confident in this one, and it was only $99 at the time!
Yeah, what I wrote for my post sounds entirely different than what I had intended to from my head...sorry.
Cheap PSUs are a losing proposition. Aside from all the "they can damage your precious system components" arguments they tend to end up being the cause of too many people's problems for my comfortable liking.
I like to get a solid "name" PSU now with a decent guarantee, and I research before I buy more now. You don't have to get crazy, but I think the days of the $50 PSU are long past too.
Cheap PSUs are a losing proposition. Aside from all the "they can damage your precious system components" arguments they tend to end up being the cause of too many people's problems for my comfortable liking.
I like to get a solid "name" PSU now with a decent guarantee, and I research before I buy more now. You don't have to get crazy, but I think the days of the $50 PSU are long past too.
380, is that watts?!?
I don't think I have a system in my house that could run on that anymore.
(Ok, that's a lie...but it's awful close to not a lie. )
I don't think I have a system in my house that could run on that anymore.
(Ok, that's a lie...but it's awful close to not a lie.
)380, is that watts?!?
I don't think I have a system in my house that could run on that anymore.
(Ok, that's a lie...but it's awful close to not a lie.
You use a whole lot of massively OCed quad core quad SLI machines?
like IST said:380, is that watts?!?
I don't think I have a system in my house that could run on that anymore.
(Ok, that's a lie...but it's awful close to not a lie.
http://www.techreport.com/articles.x/14654/9
Now, granted, a 380W PSU may not have the output on the 12V lines for a 8800Ultra or more, but you sure as heck can power a lot of rigs with one.
like IST said:
http://www.techreport.com/articles.x/14654/9
Now, granted, a 380W PSU may not have the output on the 12V lines for a 8800Ultra or more, but you sure as heck can power a lot of rigs with one.
How do you think my 2900xt Crossfire will do on a 600w PS
at absolute max load they actually will pull near 300w each - or were the tech sites exaggerating? They are slightly more power-hungry than the 8800GTX ultra afaik; so 600w right there. My 850w OCZ starts to ripple out just before it hits 800w it is near the edge as it is.
What "smaller" would you recommend that i use for my e4300 @ 3.25Ghz / 2 x 2900xt in Crossfire and 3 DVD drives and 4 HDs - and a mass of case fans and CPU/GPU cooling -right now? Some pretty LEDs i like also =P
Next, i am going to get a QC and over clock it till it screams. And when i get 2x GT280 GTX, should i really get something smaller than 850w?
How do you think my 2900xt Crossfire will do on a 600w PS
at absolute max load they actually will pull near 300w each - or were the tech sites exaggerating? They are slightly more power-hungry than the 8800GTX ultra afaik; so 600w right there. My 850w OCZ starts to ripple out just before it hits 800w it is near the edge as it is.
What "smaller" would you recommend that i use for my e4300 @ 3.25Ghz / 2 x 2900xt in Crossfire and 3 DVD drives and 4 HDs - and a mass of case fans and CPU/GPU cooling -right now? Some pretty LEDs i like also =P
Next, i am going to get a QC and over clock it till it screams. And when i get 2x GT280 GTX, should i really get something smaller than 850w?
Near 300W each?
Try 200 and you're a lot closer to truth.As long as it's a quality PSU, it should be ok. R600 and G80 were nuts though. I'd bet on G100 or whatever being little ovens, too. I just hope they bring lots of power management to bear this time and bring down that idle power use a bit.
It's not 300W per card. You have to consider that ~100W is the rest of the system. Like Kaotik said, it's more like 200W.
http://www.techreport.com/articles.x/12956/10
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As long as it's a quality PSU, it should be ok. R600 and G80 were nuts though. I'd bet on G100 or whatever being little ovens, too. I just hope they bring lots of power management to bear this time and bring down that idle power use a bit.
It's not 300W per card. You have to consider that ~100W is the rest of the system. Like Kaotik said, it's more like 200W.
http://www.techreport.com/articles.x/12956/10
yes, i see it is as system in the chart and also there appear to be slightly different ways to measure it, as the tech sites had somewhat different figures for r600 and GTX ultra.
my 2900xt, i understood, pulled ~300w at PEAK! .. that is with the fan screaming; max load. So, Crossfire is 600w @ peak. Same as 8800Ultra SLi; about 200w at normal load. The peak draw is what the other 8-pin connector was designed for, right? The box says 550w for a single 2900xt and i imagine they allow for generic.
insane r600! and i was actually planning for it well over 6 months before the 2900xt finally got released. So my OCz 850w was enough and best of all, it was on sale in January, before last; i paid ~$150 for it after a big rebate. How much could i have saved by picking a lesser PS?
imo, it is a philosophy. Just like in a car - i like "extra" hp for passing and for emergencies, even though 90 hp is fine for 99% of my daily driving. i'd simply prefer to 'err' on the side of caution and if i am spending 2K$ on HW, a couple of hundred dollars - one hundred extra - is no biggie for me as insurance of a beefier PS. And also for potential upgrades; Who knows, i may win MegaMillions and buy GT280 Quad-Sli just to show off my 34" screen.
i can also be pretty shallow, i think and my PS would also be flashy, not my car so much - like a geek.
this shows a big difference between load and idle:
http://www.pcworldtech.com/Categories/GPU/reviews/ATI2xxx.htm
http://www.pcstats.com/articleview.cfm?articleid=2159&page=5
http://www.behardware.com/articles/671-9/ati-radeon-hd-2900-xt.html
EDIT: i can test this myself, can't i? AFaiK, i have to buy that "kill-o-watt" meter that NewEgg occasionally has on sale, and i can test the power consumption of my 2900xt, 8800GTX and 2900 crossfire, Right?
- i think i might just do this
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Even theoretical peak is 225W, it's designed for 2x6pin, the 8pin is a "security measure" meant for OCers who might in theory push it over the limit (thus, overdrive only enabled on 6pin+8pin configurations only), but in reality even OCd models don't hit the 225W barrier, as no-one as far as i know has gotten a single more MHz more out of the 2900XT using 6pin+8pin compared to 6pin+6pin
The real world max peaks for 2900XT are in the 160-170W range
No idea what "kill-o-watt" meter actually is, but if it's a device to measure the amount watts pulled through the socket, then yes, you can measure how much the whole machine is pulling through that socket.
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thank-you! So, what you are saying is that "at peak" is way less than what the sites are reporting? and i have O/C'd my 2900xt [i use the alligator clip ground trick, to fool CCC into a max OC and you should hear both VGA coolers spin up to 100% - it sounds like a dragon is trying to break out of my case!]
Yes, Kill-o-watt: they have been less than $25 at NewEgg. com - last year, i think =P
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16882715005
i get a free game with it, shall i pick one up? Nice stocking stuffer for Xmas [free junk, i think =P]
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16882696012
wth, it is less than $50 shipped .. it is so ordered
- it will be here tomorrow. Expect some updates this weekend! i have 8800GTX that will also OC to Ultra speeds
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thank-you! So, what you are saying is that "at peak" is way less than what the sites are reporting? and i have O/C'd my 2900xt [i use the alligator clip ground trick, to fool CCC into a max OC and you should hear both VGA coolers spin up to 100% - it sounds like a dragon is trying to break out of my case!]
Yes, Kill-o-watt: they have been less than $25 at NewEgg. com - last year, i think =P
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16882715005
i get a free game with it, shall i pick one up? Nice stocking stuffer for Xmas [free junk, i think =P]
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16882696012
wth, it is less than $50 shipped .. it is so ordered
- it will be here tomorrow. Expect some updates this weekend! i have 8800GTX that will also OC to Ultra speeds
Show me those sites then? So far I've only seen sites reporting values for whole test systems, of course they are higher than what I said, but for the cards alone, I doubt they would be bigger than those.
The fact that you use the pintrick to "enable Max OC" already confirms that it can't by any possible means break through 225W barrier, since PCIE slot + 2x6pin (which you are using too) can only supply 225W max, and even when OCd, I'm qutie positive you're having hard time breaking 200W, let alone getting close to 225W
That kill-o-watt is exactly what you need - for full system consumption measurements.
As a curiosite fact (which I think I already mentioned earlier):
Intel Core 2 Extreme QX9650 @ 3,6 GHz (9 x 400 MHz)
Asus P5E3 WS Professional (Intel X38)
Corsair CM3X1024-1800C7DIN DDR3 2 x 1Gt
Silverstone Olympus 1200W
Seagate Barracuda 120 GB SATA
Windows Vista 32-bit
Those with 2x HD3870X2 cards (4 chips in total, that is) consumes 504W at (peak) load, 224W at idle, measured from the power outlet with similar to what you linked
Sounds good; and it appears reasonable what you are saying. i will do some research for you - i remember some extreme claims made for r600's power usage; the reason i got my 850w OCZ in the first place [the rumors!]. And of course, i will do my own measurements at load and idle and OC'd for my single system to get an idea of my 3 video cards [ a 2900p @stock and max OC; 2900xt at stock/idle/peak and compared also with 8800GTX at stock, idle and peak; and i can play with my CPU's OC to see what i draws also!]
Please, i am SO busy, i will report back after this weekend and see what i get with my own system. i had plenty of time this morning and now i am late for work!!
Of course, i won't downgrade my PS, but i will be realistic with my next one. Thanks for getting me off my butt to do my own measurements! Kill-o-watt is here tomorrow [if it comes from NewEgg's Whittier depot]
Is that one so much better than this one for $24 shipped?
(Sorry, I looked 'em up last night when I read this thread and thought about posting it up then...I should have, it would have saved you a bit. My apologies, I was lazy.
) Don't forget that these measurements done by these sites are not the DC power inside the system. They show the AC power consumption, which includes a lot of inefficiency (20% or more.) So yeah, a 2900XT is probably a ~170W DC card. You should be safe dropping 18% of the wattage off those Tech Report numbers above when figuring what PSU you need (assumes 82% PSU efficiency.)
I have a Kill-a-Watt meter. It measures AC power, current, voltage, volt-amps, power factor, frequency and counts your usage in kilowatt-hrs. Nice little device.
I have a Kill-a-Watt meter. It measures AC power, current, voltage, volt-amps, power factor, frequency and counts your usage in kilowatt-hrs. Nice little device.
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Is that one so much better than this one for $24 shipped?
(Sorry, I looked 'em up last night when I read this thread and thought about posting it up then...I should have, it would have saved you a bit. My apologies, I was lazy.
Oops! i thought i had searched; not so well. They are basically the same. It is my hurry that missed it. NP, it was an impulse purchase; i *needed* one that is all! And i have a great account at NewEgg. One of my young cousins will certainly want that game. So, it will be here tomorrow. But thank-you; if i were really cheap, i would call NewEgg and refuse the shipment tomorrow! Then buy the other one and save $20; but NewEgg has been SO good to me, i really don't mind supporting them instead of costing them shipment. It's like 4 gallons of gas - one day driving for me, now. =P
Anyway, thank you for the encouragement! i really want to test this. And i will report back what my measurements are with quite a few variables using 3 GPUs, i think. if i am lucky, i will also have GT280 on it's Day One and will be glad to compare also for you guys. i will try and report back Monday; if the party doesn't get out of Hand on Saturday.
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I think the one you got has a backlight and a few more features, it is there next model up.
I'm gonna talk to my wife about getting one tonight. Who knows, mebbe she'll let me.
I'm gonna talk to my wife about getting one tonight. Who knows, mebbe she'll let me.
