Can I run 2 GTX 460 SE SLI with a 650 w power supply?

spenceryuan

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I have an Antec Earthwatts 650 w bronze certified power supply. Wanting to Run 2 GTX 460 SE in SLI.

Heres what else I have

Corsair 600T case with fan controller
i7-950 @3.06 GHz
Asus Sabertooth x58
6 gb DDR 3 1600Mhz RAM
1 Crucial 64 GB SSD
1 Hitachi 1Tb Drive
1 CD/RW optical drive
1 GTX 460 SE 1GB


I'm probably supposed to have about 750 for this setup. No overclocking on anything. Since the SE has less power consumption than the regular edition do you think I could do it?
 
Solution
your not in a bad position, 2 gtx460se in sli is pretty good. and your PSU is more than enough to run 2 of those cards with plenty of room to breath, you wont be pushing it much at all. i cant find any reviews of them in sli, but this is the 768mb review http://www.guru3d.com/article/geforce-gtx-460-sli-review/11 in some cases your setup will be a tiny bit slower, in other situations (higher resolutions/larger textures) it will be a bit faster. either way you should be running a bit faster than a gtx480, which is pretty good.
The EA-650 is a solid PSU. I notice that the SLI zone

http://www.slizone.com/object/slizone_build_psu.html

lists the TP-650 as a certified PSU for twin 460's but not the EA-650. My bet is because the EA is not set up with the right amount of PCI connectors.

The TP has two 6+2 pin and two 6 pin connectors. The EA one of each.

http://en.expreview.com/2010/11/16/nvidia-officially-introduces-geforce-gtx-460-se-graphics-card/11934.html

In addition,in spite of decreased core of GTX 460 SE,NVIDIA still let out TDP of 160W,the graphics card features dual-6pin power connectors.
 

spenceryuan

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Thanks. I think i might just trade in my 460 SE for one single 570 from EVGA. People have said that I shouldnt get two SE's and would be better off with a single 570.

Would two 570's or two 560 ti's work with the Earthwatts 650 for future reference? Or is that pushing it? The power requirements are I think 50 watts higher for each card.
 

jb6684

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I go with the single 570GTX. Two main reasons:
Power:
- your Antec Earthwatts 650 is not SLI certified
- if you go to Antec's PS calculator http://www.antec.outervision.com/PSUEngine
you'll see that one 570 recommends 592watts and SLI 460's 582watts. If you overclock the 460's to get extra speed they can deliver, you'll be short on watts and likely pretty unstable.


Heat:
- SLI or Crossfire will raise the temperature of the top card 10 to 15 degrees C. You have a great case but I've tried SLI & Crossfire in Antec P182, P183, HAF-X, HAF-922, and Corsair 800D cases and found the increase in temperature in all of them.


Go with the fastest single card. With your current power supply a single 570GTX is your max.

You might also look at the new 560 Ti it'll need 524 watts and if you read a few reviews does a good job for less money... Dual 560 Ti on a 650watt supply isn't going to work, Antec calculator show 646watts.

The POST that indicated 400watts max would be drawn for the SLI pair of 460 SE's, needed to add some power for the rest of the system, like CPU, RAM, HD, DVD, keyboard, mouse, .. etc.
 

spenceryuan

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So it turns out that I can't step up my card. I'm pretty pissed about it. EVGA does not make it clear which cards you can step up. Some cards have different warranties than others which is complete BS. I paid $170 for my card from an authorized retailer(central computers) about 7 weeks ago and am stuck with it. Here is what EVGA said.

"Only parts that carry a limited lifetime warranty, or parts that have purchased an extended warranty, are eligible for EVGA's Step-Up.

Your product is a -TR product which carries a 2 year warranty and no options to Step-Up."

What the hell is a Tr product? really deceiving if you ask me.

I guess I'm probably going to have to get another GTX 460 SE and put it in SLI because selling it wouldn't be worth it. I have a Antec Earthwatts 650w, and that should be enough, though I could be pushing it....Argh....

Probably will have to do something to play Crysis 2 when it comes out. I'm gettin 75-90 fps on COD: Black ops with full settings(but anti liasing at x8)

Wish I did more research before I bought my rig. You live and you learn:/

 
your not in a bad position, 2 gtx460se in sli is pretty good. and your PSU is more than enough to run 2 of those cards with plenty of room to breath, you wont be pushing it much at all. i cant find any reviews of them in sli, but this is the 768mb review http://www.guru3d.com/article/geforce-gtx-460-sli-review/11 in some cases your setup will be a tiny bit slower, in other situations (higher resolutions/larger textures) it will be a bit faster. either way you should be running a bit faster than a gtx480, which is pretty good.
 
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