How To Pick A Psu

[dBTelos]

Under full construction.

Edited October 22, 2006 by dBTelos

[Fatso913]

nice stuff!

[naraku9333]

You should definately add some reference links, and maybe your criteria of what makes PSU 'A' a member of list 'B'. I would also change the references to RAIDs to just hard drives, a user can have a dozen drives none of which are members of an array. Most important is qualifying the information, Im not trying to be overly critical but you cant expect a user to accapt what you say as fact without some backup.

[dBTelos]

Ok, reference list it is. And I didn't put non-RAIDed drives in the system because if you have 3+ non raided drives, they take power for the 3.3V rail. Everything else (almost) takes power for the 12v rail so their isn't much of a problem. Just so you know, the only really direct reference I used was for the "Crappy PSUs" list. This is because their are many, many really really small brands that I can't list all just from my knowledge. I don't know what else you would want.

[dBTelos]

Guys, BTW. As most of you will notice, I'm counting on you to just take my word on this stuff. In a month or two I will add another section to this that will explain EVERYTHING. I'm not doing it right now because all the explainations may not be as full as you would like them.

[Honda_Boy]

wow really? masscool is on the great list. Ever since one of their HSF's nearly let my old processor fry (pushing 70 celcius) I never dealt with them again. A cheapo Coolermaster saved the processor.

FSP is not on the great list? Come on. I got a 450W FSP powering my dual 7600GT setup just fine.

Other than those 2 things bugging me, it looks great man.

[dBTelos]

wow really? masscool is on the great list. Ever since one of their HSF's nearly let my old processor fry (pushing 70 celcius) I never dealt with them again. A cheapo Coolermaster saved the processor.

FSP is not on the great list? Come on. I got a 450W FSP powering my dual 7600GT setup just fine.

Other than those 2 things bugging me, it looks great man.

Masscool only has one PSU, the Masscool Nextherm. The Nextherm was made by Seventeam, which is a very good OEM. Fortron FSP is good, and is very good if your on a tight budget, but you can do better if you want to spend a little extra money.

[Chappy]

Well, as I said in PM's, this isn't what we would consider as an "Tutorial", so don't expect to see this in the KB anytime soon.

I have a couple of issues with this, and in no order here they are...

First, this is more of an advertisement than a tutorial. You've simply listed brands by what, in your opinion, is Great, Good, or Crappy ( a term that I would not use in a tutorial).

Your title of "How to pick a PSU" should be more like..."PSU Recommendations", as you don't really tell people "HOW" to pick they're own PSU, but more tell them what PSU's to pick.

So, now you know what to look for, for the most part. But, you still don’t know which brand to pick, how much wattage you need, or what supply you should get.

Uh, after your listings, they Still don't know what to look for but Should know which brand to pick as this is exactly what your lists imply....what brands to look for and what ones to avoid. You haven't explained anything about Features they should look for.

Here is my, half PSU calculator, half what is floating around in my head.

So, how are people supposed to calculate their wattage needed if it's in your head? Are you telling them what their future systems are to look like here??

"So you will be doing the following in the FUTURE (to allow extra power for what you plan to do):"

You rank CPU's from Most to Least Consumption, yet you fail to explain how to calculate exactly what consumption they take so how is one to calculate what they'll need...or what types of connectors these differing CPU's will/may require..20 or 24 pin??

Also, you list PSU wattages seperately after each component, if you have this graphics card you need this PSU, but if you have this CPU, you need this PSU...does that mean that one won't be compatable if you have the other component setup??

Then you talk exclusively RAID setups, most normal users don't use RAID and may have many questions about SATA setups.

I'm sorry dude, but I just have a problem with the way this "Tutorial" is formatted and the information (not) given. It doesn't teach the regular user what different features are available in PSU's, the basic terminology some salesman is going to use at the local Radio Shack, nor how they're supposed to calculate wattage for THEIR future system and not one you dreamed up for them. Nothing about the "rails", Linear or Switched models, what "Modular Design" is (anyone knows a connections should be tight, modular or not...)

Alao, listing PSU's under headings such as you have is not accurate, I've seen reviews that challenge some of your "assumptions" so this is more an Opinion than fact. Folks can accept your opinion of course, if they feel that the information you give qualifies you as someone they should trust or not, or look it up themselves to concur, but still it is opinion as it is.

I have already explained to you just what it is we would like to see in an actual "Tutorial" if you wish to have one published, but as this one stands it will remain as a post, stating your opinions, just as any other member's posts are.

[dBTelos]

1st, yes, that purpose of this thread was (for me) to help people buy the right PSU, not to know everything about the selected PSU. I will add what you and Jeff are looking for later on.

2nd, with the sheer amount of possible systems out there, I can't tell you exactly what features you may need. For the most part, this is for people that know something about a computer. Everything else should be fairly self explanatory.

3rd, what I was trying to say is, what do you want your selected PSU to be able to handle. If it is Quad-SLi, or something less, then it is covered.

4th, your supposed to weigh in the power consumption of your CPU, and you are weighing it into what videocard setup you plan on having. CPUs don't require different power connectors, motherboards do. Almost all of the PSUs I recommend have 20+4 connectors, which is almost standard of new PSUs. That means that you can use a 20pin connector, or a 24pin connector.

5th, as mensioned, your supposed to weigh in your CPU power consumption into what is already provided. For example, if your system is in the SLI category, but your overclocking your Pentium 4 EE as far as it will go, you should bump it up to the quad-sli section.

I'm sorry if this wasn't as technical as you would have liked, it was just supposed to be a buying guide. It will be formed into what you consider a tutorial sometime soon.

[Chappy]

I don't think I can be any clearer here, it seems you just don't get it.

As I stated to you before, you're not telling folks who know "something about computers" anything new here, we can do our own research and make our own choices thank you.

A Besttechie tutorial is designed to help people who may not understand what it is they need to look for, or ask a salesman about in a new Power Supply, understand how a PSU works, what it does, what one needs to have to be considered good, and how to calculate what size they mey need. Explanations of the different types for different CPU's would be required so folks know whether to ask for a 20 or 24 pin, different cabling options available...etc.

As I see it (and many others you don't see talking so far), your post does none of that so far.

You stated you were writing a "Tutorial", but even as a "Buyers Guide" it lacks some things. If you're going to have a comprehensive list as you do, make sure it's complete. I have a StarTech 450W Pro which I consider an excellent PSU in mid-range, and it was all I had to choose from without buying online.

EXAMPLE - If I had known nothing about PSU's and was going strictly by your guide, I would not know if I should buy this StarTech one as it isn't listed in your guide.....now what do I do...you state that with a "Crappy" PSU I can kiss my GPU, CPU, and probably my HDD, RAM and everything goodbye...YIKES!!! How do I know what to do now....I STILL know nothing about PSU's except I have written down your list before I went to the store. I hardly understood half of what you were talking about in that article...I'm not good with all that abbreviation stuff.. Am I now going to fry my computer?

Not true and you know it, but you make it seem like that's in the imminent future for anyone not buying from list #1 or #2.

You are targeting the wrong audience with this post so as things are now this is exactly where this stays, and I really can't see how to make that any clearer for you.

[dBTelos]

I understand you perfectly, as I have since the beginning.

[Chappy]

I would be more than happy to post a tutorial from you into the BTKB if it meets our requirements.

If you want to take some time and put together a tutorial designed to teach members how to recognize a good PSU from a (possibly) bad one, explain terminology and feature differences they may run into, different types and the other things I've mentioned before, I would be more than willing to post it permanently into the KB and give you edit rights for future upgradings to the post as may be needed.

A list of your Brand recommendations would also be welcomed at the end of the tutorial, or you could add a second post afterwards with that info, and could be updated as you find out more on some brands. That would be very useful for many I think.

In fact, I respectfully ask that you please do this for us. You are definately enthusiastic about PSU's, and I know very well how underestimated they are in many cases. I've personally seen the consequences of poor quality PSU's and I would love something to teach our BT family members how to avoid those pitfalls.

I've been working on "How System Restore works" and proper troubleshooting with MSCONFIG tutorials for some time and I don't have time to add a PSU one. If you could please write us a comprehensive tutorial for BT Members, I assure you we would be grateful for it and I would personally write into Open and other forums to point members to your article.

[dBTelos]

I'm planning on doing just that. But schools starting up, I'm getting busy, so it may not be done for a while.

[bearskin]

now this I can understand:

http://www.motherboards.org/articles/guides/1487_1.html

[Phil]

Nice link Bearskin. It goes into depth and gives some good information on many topics.

~Phil~

[Besttechie]

I agree with Phil. Very nice find bearskin.

B

[Matt]

I'd just like to throw my $0.02 in here. Firstly, I would LOVE to see a very strong and well thought out PSU tutorial in the KB. Building off of what Chappy said, your original post may not even help, as you put it, "people that know something about a computer". I'll use myself as an example. I'd say I know a thing or two about computers, but when it comes to hardware, I'm not as knowledgeable as I'd like to be. If I were ever looking for a resource that could help someone like myself pick a PSU, I'd want something that could explain some key things:

1. Will it work with the rest of the components of my machine?

2. Where's the line between really good, and just way too expensive?

3. Which product by which company is right for me?

Granted, as you said, it is impossible to write up someting that will cover everything every system would relate to; but a general informative walkthrough and explanation guide would be handy. And maybe as an added touch, some external links to other places to get extended information on various aspects.

These are just suggestions I came up with after reading through other replies. Looking forward to the revised post.

Matt

[Chappy]

I'm planning on doing just that. But schools starting up, I'm getting busy, so it may not be done for a while.

Not a problem, we understand that completely.

A good writeup will take time anyway so it's not like you need to do it in an hour or 2. My Sys Restore tutorial has been in the works for months, total working time including research has been about 12-15 hrs or so and it's nowhere near ready to print yet. I probably have well over 30 pages of info so far, and I need to trim that down to a page or two....

I'm still working out the formatting of the post so that it will be fairly linear and easily understood by anyone who needs the info. It's a very complex subject that most people don't have a clue as to how it works and therefore have no idea just how harmful it can actually be if overused, or used for things it's not designed for.

Anyway, what I'm getting at is this, a good article will take quite some time to research, format intelligently, and be helpful to every level user without actually going to an extreme overboard thing. Packing the most needed info into a tight package is not as easy as it may seem but worth the effort in the long run. You've done allot of research already it seems, so you've got a good start and a base to work from.

I think PSU's are so overlooked, that this article would be a real help for many of our members. They've started getting better recognition now that today's systems really require a strong, stable power output to run things properly, and many found that their problems have stemmed from a poor PSU from an OEM box. I really think this article will be well used and could get tons of Google hits, so take your time with it, and if you need any help just ask one of the Senior Staff for advice. I'd be glad to give you any help I could with it, I've done a ton of research on PSU's myself and formatting articles is one of my specialties...(shameless plug there..)

[Chappy]

now this I can understand:

http://www.motherboards.org/articles/guides/1487_1.html

MotherBoards.org has always been one of my favorite review sites bearskin!

Another good one you should check out is AnandTech, excellent reviews and these guys go to the wall with their testing of things. Sometimes it's wayyy too technical for most but in the end you can trust their conclusions because they do go so deep into it.

[dBTelos]

I'm going to take all of your comments into consideration.