GTX 970 SLI on a 650W Power Supply?

[mrhoppsmc]

Hey all,

I have a 650W Corsair GOLD PSU and was wondering if any has tried a 650W? I don't want to have to upgrade if i don't have to. I read these cards are very efficient.

 

[mnineseven]

It will be enough. The 970 has a TDP of 145w. Double that=> ~300w + other components (~150w) = 450w. So it should suffice.

 

[Dark Lord of Tech]

A good 750w is a better choice , 650 is cutting it too close.

 

[MeteorsRaining]

What model is it? If its CS, then no.

 

[TechyInAZ]

A good 750w is a better choice , 650 is cutting it too close.

I agree, especially when you have superclocked cards with high wattage coolers. Or you have a highly overclocked cpu also.

 

[zxt827]

650 should be fine, it does seems a little edge cutting. but it will be fine if you are not overclocking hard.

if you want to be safe about your new investment, get a 750w, evga supernova 750 is on sale.

 

[Dark Lord of Tech]

Get this , it's the 750W B2 from EVGA , made by SUPER FLOWER.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Power Supply: EVGA 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $49.99
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-09-26 14:19 EDT-0400

 

[Shadow Knight]

''Super Flower'' how could I take that seriously xD

 

[cub_fanatic]

It will be enough. The 970 has a TDP of 145w. Double that=> ~300w + other components (~150w) = 450w. So it should suffice.

TDP is actually a measurement of heat, not power consumption. Specifically heat transfer or rate of heat flow between the GPU core itself and the heat sink and fan assembly measured in watts: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rate_of_heat_flow. This is useful for knowing what kind of heat sink or cooler to use, not what kind of power supply. The same is true for CPUs like the 8350. It isn't consuming 125 watts, rather it needs a heat sink that can transfer a rate of heat flow measured at 125 watts which can also be expressed as 125 joules per second from the chip to the cooler.

Most reviews of non-reference 970s have measured the power consumption to be about 180 watts under full load and around 170 watts during normal gaming or other average use: http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/EVGA/GTX_970_SC_ACX_Cooler/23.html