Power Supply

[kevinturcotte]

Looking to do an upgrade, and was planning on upgrading my power supply first, but after using a power supply calculator, I'm not sure I need to. I have a 300 watt power supply. This is what I'd be running:

Intel Core i7 920 Nehalem 2.66GHz Processor
3 sticks of DDR3 RAM
PCI-Express 1.0 based ATI Radeon X700 Pro video card
1 DVD burner
Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS Platinum Pro Sound Card w/Breakout Box
2 SATA Hard Drives (7200 RPM)
PCI based network card (Though I could do without it)
Front Bay Card Reader

Would I be able to run that fine on 300 watts (Until I start updating further)? This is what I used: http://extreme.outervision.com/psucalculatorlite.jsp
I do plan on upgrading the PSU eventually, just wondering if I can sneak in this major update before having to do that.

[funhouse69]

Well the CPU itself is rated at 130 Watts that means that you are going to be dealing with a lot of heat from the CPU alone. That of course is going to need the cooling to deal with it as well.

I'm sure that a decent 300 Watt Dual Rail PS would be ok but a cheap one might not last to long. I like the Mushkin Units but they only start at 550 Watts. Stick to a brand name and you should be ok.

[kevinturcotte]

I intend on upgrading to a Thermaltake either 1000w or 1200w eventually. Stuff just running a little slow right now, hoping to speed it up. Plus my case won't fit the PSUs I'm looking at, so there's more money.

[BattleZone]

IMO, there's no way you're going to run all that on a 300W PS, and if somehow you do, it will be running at max capcity (and heat) at all times, which means it will die quickly. And when it dies, it may very well take out a bunch of the other components.

The power supply is the single most important component of the entire computer. It's the last place to "save money."

[hdtvfan0001]

IMO, there's no way you're going to run all that on a 300W PS, and if somehow you do, it will be running at max capcity (and heat) at all times, which means it will die quickly. And when it dies, it may very well take out a bunch of the other components.

The power supply is the single most important component of the entire computer. It's the last place to "save money."
The OP is looking at potentially about 290-320 watts (not enough detail to make certain) on that equipment list....so I agree that a 300W power supply is pushing the envelope.

You can pick up a nice 500W or even 750W power supply for < $50, and it would be well worth it. I'm in the same boat - upgrading a few things and will upgrade the power supply here too.

[phat78boy]

I'm with hdtvfan0001, 300 won't be enough. You might be able to boot the computer up at first, but the minute you go to burn a DVD or watch/play something graphic intensive you'll be wondering why your machine keeps crashing. 500W would be a nice median if you don't plan to add a lot of extras.

[fmcomputer]

Looking to do an upgrade, and was planning on upgrading my power supply first, but after using a power supply calculator, I'm not sure I need to. I have a 300 watt power supply. This is what I'd be running:

Intel Core i7 920 Nehalem 2.66GHz Processor
3 sticks of DDR3 RAM
PCI-Express 1.0 based ATI Radeon X700 Pro video card
1 DVD burner
Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS Platinum Pro Sound Card w/Breakout Box
2 SATA Hard Drives (7200 RPM)
PCI based network card (Though I could do without it)
Front Bay Card Reader

Would I be able to run that fine on 300 watts (Until I start updating further)? This is what I used: http://extreme.outervision.com/psucalculatorlite.jsp
I do plan on upgrading the PSU eventually, just wondering if I can sneak in this major update before having to do that.

Just built one for a client. Specs call for min of 750watts. I used 1000watts.

[waynebtx]

I just ordered one of these will be here tusday,
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-Details.asp?EdpNo=2700091&sku=ULT40063&srkey=ult40063

[phat78boy]

I just ordered one of these will be here tusday,
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-Details.asp?EdpNo=2700091&sku=ULT40063&srkey=ult40063

Is it just me, or does that seem like it would add a lot of heat to your internal case? I would suggest just upgrading the entire unit so as not to add that much heat to your computer parts.

[kevinturcotte]

Just purchased this case: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811133056 and plan on ordering this: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817153054 when I get my check next week.

[kevinturcotte]

Just curious-I imagine because of the additional fans, this case will use more watts than my current case? the case will arrive first. What will happen if I transfer everything over to this case, and it uses more wattage than the current power supply can supply? Will anything actually be damaged (Hardware or data)? I can just transfer everything back over to the old case? (I enjoy ripping it apart and putting it back together anyway, so that's not an issue)