changing case alienware x51

[Alberto95]

Hi guys, i bought a couple of years ago an alienware x51 , now i want to improve it , changing graphics card and stuff, but i need to change my case first , i was thinking of buying an h440 but I have also to change the PS .
I 'm planning to buy a 500 w PS so if i want to upgrade i don't have to change it , what do you think?

 

[Robert Cook]

500 watts? what kind of card are you going to be using? most middle end cards will want around 550W to run. I would get no lower than 650.

 

[Alberto95]

right now i have a gtx660 and my alienware has a 330 W ps if i'm not wrong, and i'm going to get a gtx970 , I used the cooler master test for knowing how many watts i would needed and it said like 400 ( using my current mother board and my current hard disk , without the optical disc player cause the h440 doesn't have a slot)

 

[Robert Cook]

That all seems way to low, the 970 has a TDP of 145 watts, and that is for reference, if you plan to overclock, it will use around 160+while a 400 watt PSU can do it, that really seems low for the job, for instance will you have the right amperages? (most low wattage power supplies do not have enough amps on the 12 volt rail). the 970 is efficient, but that does not mean you will not be forcing a PSU to run at full load all the time if it is too low an wattage. generally speaking the performance of the power supply is most efficient at 50% use, and it drops slightly after that, running a power supply at 80% load continuously is not exactly. the best thing for it. Hence, while 500 will work, I would go for 550 Watts at 80 PLUS BRONZE minimum, as it also leaves room for upgrades.

 

[Alberto95]

cool thanks ! do you know any brand for that? I was on amazon the corsair corsair cx500 600w 80 plus bronze, what do you think about that?

 

[Robert Cook]

^ it should be reliable enough. I prefer EVGA supplies, but they are more pricey, and are far from a need. that supply should work great in your case, just make sure it is not an odd dimension case and that it will fit.