In need of a new power supply for long term

[gxsaurav]

This is my current build. Read full details here. *gxsaurav.com/desktop-upgrade/

• AMD A6 3500 APU
• MSI A75MA-G55 motherboard
• ADATA XPG SX900 64GB SSD
• 2x4GB kit of Crucial Ballistix Tactical DDR3 1866 RAM.
• Silverstone FP38 front USB 3.0 panel.
• Western digital 500 GB SATA 2 HDD.
• Cooler Master Hyper TX3 CPU Cooler.

I am looking to buy a new SMPS which I will keep for long time and Radeon HD 7750 graphics card. This card doesn't need external power connector and only needs around 16amp on 12v rail. I want to buy something which I can use in my next build too (if any). I want to know which will be a good enough SMPS so that I don't pay extra for something I won't even use.

I am confused between Corsair CX500 and Corsair CX430.

CX430 has 28 amp on the 12v rail while CX500 has 34 amp. If I buy 430W SMPS mentioned above and GPU uses 16 amp, will the rest of 12 amp on 12v rail be enough for rest of my system?

Note - I don't play games much. I don't overclock. I am buying this GPU because of AMD VCE and DirectX 11.1. My computer is used as a Workstation for designing with Photoshop, Microsoft Blend/Visual Studio 2012 for Windows 8/Windows Phone development hence stability is important. Also, regular tasks like watching movies, web browsing etc. Even in future I will be buying mid-range GPU only.

 

[thetechfreak]

if paying extra for the cx500 isn't a problem, you may go for that. Else the cx430v2 is more than sufficient to handle mid end GPU's without a Overclock.

also the 430 is somewhat cheaper on Flipkart
Corsair CMPSU-430CXV2UK 430 Watts PSU | Psu | Flipkart.com

 

[pratyush997]

+1 for 430CXV2
BTW You are back after Freaking Long time " @gx_saurav "

 

[gxsaurav]

Updated first post with complete hardware setup

Thanks for the Flipkart link. What about rest of the computer? Like I said, stability is what I want.

@pratyush yeah. I don't get much time out of work life to visit this forum much. If I am on the internet, it is for acquiring knowledge and usability research now.

Btw, what about Corsair service? I read this thread of CX430 V2 burning. Now I am worried *www.thinkdigit.com/forum/power-supply-cabinets-mods/165842-corsair-cx-430-psu-smoked.html

 

[thetechfreak]

Corsair service is great to be honest. sometimes there might be lemons right from the factory but I have not heard many negatives.
*www.thinkdigit.com/forum/service-r...customer-service-flash-voyager-usb-3-0-a.html
not just flash drives, other devices too.

 

[sukesh1090]

cx 430v2 is more than enough to power your rig but if you can spend more it is worth to go for cx500v2.btw about corsair service they are the best in this category.never worry about after sales service of corsair.

 

[gxsaurav]

Thanks for the reply.

I was looking at some more specs. The Radeon HD 7850 (for example) needs 21 amp on 12v rail but 500W SMPS. If I get CX430, will I be able to run it cos CX430 gives 28amp on 12v rail but it is 430W, not 500W?

I am also inclining towards CX500 v2 now. Although it will cost me Rs 1,000 more approximately but considering I am going to buy SMPS once only which will last for many years, lets buy good.

Other then this, I saw Radeon HD 7750 from Sapphire and Radeon HD 7850. I wonder if my APU will be a bottleneck for these cards?

 

[sukesh1090]

^^
it may not bottleneck 7750 but chances are high that it will bottleneck 7850.

 

[anirbandd]

the power requirement of 500w that you have seen is calculated like this: the cos use the gpu on a setup which will be the most power hungry. then they measure the power consumed by the setup at the wall plug. then they double the figure and you have the SMPS wattage needed. they do do this to be on the safe side, so that no customer wiould blow their SMPS and then come to them.

take me as an example. i use the HD7770, which must use a 450W smps, as adviced by AMD. but i am using th CX430V2, without any problem. whats even more interresting is that my UPS is only 360W, and gives me around 5mins backup on full load.
puzzled? see this: *www.thinkdigit.com/forum/graphic-c...ndation-budget-b-w-6-5k-8-5k.html#post1775698

see this: *www.tomshardware.com/reviews/radeon-hd-7870-review-benchmark,3148-19.html

*media.bestofmicro.com/Q/6/328830/original/load%20power%20over%20time.png

 

[gxsaurav]

@anirband well, that clears some doubts. So even if I buy a Radeon HD 7850 I will still be able to run it on a CX 430v2. right? If so, I am going ahead with CX430v2 only. Lets save Rs 1k, I can use it somewhere else.

Also, what about GPU? Are there some reviews for GPU scaling with CPU available online? When I do play games I play them at around 1280x720 with optimizations done according to me. For example, I disable lens flare, bloom effect etc. I prefer having more then 30 fps for smooth game play. I hate lags.

 

[anirbandd]

with a 7850 you wont need to disable any of the those features to have a smooth gameplay. heck. you can have >40FPS with all settings high.

 

[gxsaurav]

So, I can get Radeon HD 7850 with a CX430v2, but the old question still remains about CPU being bottleneck.

How much performance do you get with your rig? I wonder if my APU A6-3500 is more powerful than your i5-2400 or less to get an estimate.

 

[dashing.sujay]

A6-3500 is way less powerful than i5 or even i3, at least in terms of gaming performance. I'm not sure how much bottleneck will occur, if at all, but chances are more of a positive bottleneck.

 

[gxsaurav]

That is what even I thought after looking at CPU benchmarks online but wanted to confirm. I purchased this CPU as my gaming needs are hardly any now and did not want to pay a lot of money for my tasks mentioned above. I require more RAM (When running Visual studio + Blend + Photoshop side by side) than CPU power. Even onboard GPU is enough for me and these tasks.

Update - Change in plans. Since it is going to be a Radeon HD 7750 and I already got a Cooler Master extreme power 430w PSU with 19A on +12v rail, I am going to buy the GPU first and see how it works. If there are problems then I will buy the Corsair PSU.