Getting the right Power Supply

[Yamaraj]

This is a quote I picked up from www.slizone.com . Its under the aegis of Nvidia and deals with issues related to SLi.

Because you have 3 very important components (your CPU and two GPUs) drawing power from the 12V line, this line is critical. Looking at the specs of the 500W power supply you purchased, there is only one +12V line, giving you a total of only 15A.

For your SLI system, you should have a power supply that can supply 30A (twice as much!) from the 12V lines.

The dude has AMD Athlon 64 FX55 // DFI LANPARTY nF4 SLI-DR // 2 BFG 7800 GTXs. So he was advised to get an SMPS that can supply 30A from +12V lines. Do we have any SMPS able to meet that criteria ???

nVIDIA certified SLI power supplies from Antec are: TruePower 2.0 550W,
TrueControl 2.0 550W and TruePower 2.0 550W EPS. It's not wise to use
a 450W or even a 500W power supply in any SLI setup. In fact, total amps
on +12V matter more than the total wattage of any PSU.

See: *www.silentpcreview.com/Sections+index-req-printpage-artid-265.html

- Yamaraj

 

[mohit]

For a SLI rig i strongly recommend the Coolermaster Real Power 550W SLI (RS-550-ACLY.). It has three +12V lines delivering 30A. check the specs here,

*www.coolermaster.com/index.php?LT=...other_title=+RS-550-ACLY.+Real Power 550W SLI

 

[Yamaraj]

Now that Antec TruePower 2.0 550W EPS (TP2550EPS)
model is available in India, I wouldn't recommend
the CoolerMaster one. Antec is surely the better of
the two and also has great warranty and support.

All Antec TruePower 2.0 550W models - 550W, 550W
EPS and 550W TrueControl 2.0, are nVIDIA SLI
certified, while the RS-550-ACLY isn't. Also, Antec
550W models offer a total of 38A on +12V lines.

I definitely recommend Antec TP2 550W. The EPS
model is a little expensive (~8000), but it's compatible
with both desktop and server systems, and also is
SLI certified.

- Yamaraj

 

[supersaiyan]

pls make this thread sticky mods.

 

[Ringwraith]

*bump* for sticky ...extremely useful thread

 

[mohit]

@ yamaraj
check this link ,
*www.antecindia.com/spec/true550EPS12V_spe.html

here it shows that the Antec True550 EPS12V PSU gives a max output of 36A on +12V. And note that this is taken during the max load. now when u see coolermaster here,

*www.coolermaster.com/index.php?LT=...other_title=+RS-550-ACLY.+Real Power 550W SLI

this model of theirs i.e Coolermaster Real Power 550W SLI (RS-550-ACLY) gives a total output of 48A on three +12v lines. But these people dont calculate the output at max load and instead they do it at continuity where it gives a total output of 30A on the same three +12v lines.

doesnt this mean coolermaster is better here ? do correct me if i am wrong.

 

[Yamaraj]

@mohit

Forget the AntecIndia site, for it gets updated every once a decade! Check this link:
*www.antec.com/us/productDetails.php?ProdID=22551

All TP2.0 550W models, including the EPS one, have 2 +12V rails with 19A each.
This sums up to 39A in total. The model shown on AntecIndia is actually the older one.

CoolerMaster isn't a very reliable name in the world of power supplies. They make
good cabinets and other cooling solutions. When I first set out to buy a decent
PSU for myself, RS-550-ACLY was the first one to attract me to it. But then, I
found out that many PSU manufacturers rate their products higher than they are
actually capable of. And unfortunately, Cooler Master is just one of them.
Recently, there was a comprehensive PSU test conducted by THG. The same model,
RS-550-ACLY even failed to run for 24 hours continunously at its rated full load.
I've seen many users complaining that their CM PSUs switch off even at normal loads.

Here's the THG link: *www.tomshardware.com/howto/200507111/stresstest-12.html
What good is a good-looking PSU, if it switches itself off even at normal loads?
Antec passed the test.

I don't mean to discredit CoolerMaster, but IMHO, theirs are not the best in the
industry. Antec has a lot of experience in this arena, and is quite a respectable
PSU maker company.

And besides, CoolerMaster PSUs are always overpriced, at least in India. Last time
I checked with SMC, the 450W was priced at 6500/-. You can get better and more
reliable Antec ones at this price.

- Yamaraj

 

[mohit]

@yamaraj

thanx for the links n details. ill stay away from coolermaster and advise everybody to do the same. btw me on antec smartpower 400w right now .. anyways i have another question.

what is the diff between the basic TP-II 550 (true power 2.0) and the server one TPII-550EPS12V ?? Both are SLI ready and have the same specs. For a normal system such as AMD Athlon 64 / FX / Pentium-4 / Pentium D (Dual core) do i need to buy the server model or will the basic model be sufficient? I will be using SLi though. Please explain. thanx.

 

[Yamaraj]

@mohit

Antec has released three 550W models in the True Power 2.0 category.
Antec TruePower 2.0 550W, 550W EPS and 550W TrueControl.

The plain 550W model is the basic one. It has SLI and shares the same
number of molex and SATA connectors as the other two. The EPS model
is a special one, for it has both 4-pin and 8-pin 12V CPU connectors.
Desktop motherboards require the 4-pin connector on P4/AMD systems.
Server boards with 2 or more processors, need the 8-pin conncetor.
More important is the SSI standard that the EPS model supports. So it
can be used in both desktops and servers/workstations. It should be
taken as little more reliable than other two models.

The TP2.0 550W TrueControl is a very special (and the most expensive?)
power supply. It supports manual tweaking of the voltages on different
rails, via potentiometers. It comes with a panel which is used to change
the voltage levels. Most users do not this type of voltage management.
Also, if the tweakings are not done properly, it can be dangerous for
both the power supply and the computer.

So, if you'll be upgrading in next 2 years or so, you should look forward
to the EPS model. I've seen some Intel Dual Core motherboards with the
8-pin connector. This means even the desktop systems will switch to server
like connectors in next few years. Remember that servers were already using
the 24-pin connectors now required by the new Intel/AMD motherboards.

For a price conscious buyer, a plain TP2.0 550W is more than sufficient.

- Yamaraj

 

[mohit]

hey guyz check out the new Antec NeoHE power Range .. man these psu's are awesome and just look at their 12V ratings , i checked the 550W NeoHE model and its got a total of 54A on three 12V lines .. and u r reading right .. 54 A !!!! also its compatible with EPS12V as well as ATX12V 2.2 .. check it here

@moderators
please consider this thread for a sticky related to buying the right psu.