Is 500w enough?

[the silent]

i have an antec 500w earthwatts which came with the sonata III case.
was wondering if it was enough power for the following componants:

intel i5-750
2x 160gb velociraptors
1x 640gb caviar black
geforce 9500gt
pci-pcmcia card
cd/dvd burner drive

i would also like a little headroom for overclocking.

if 500w isnt enough, what power would i need?

thanks.

 

[saaiello]

500watts is way more then you need a 400 watt would be plenty. But if you want some head room get a good quality 500watt PSU.

Some good brands to look for
■Corsair
■Seasonic
■Antec

Also check out this big list of PSU reveiws

Try and stay away from cheap no name power supply look for a PSU with an 80% efficency or higher expect to pay $50.00 plus

■Corsair 500 watt

■Antec 500 watt

If you are looking for a little cheaper

■SilverStone 550 watt

 

[JackNaylorPE]

Also check out this big list of PSU reveiws

On the big list....don't see the Antec EA-500 (9.5 on jonnyguru) coming in below the 9.0's from Corsair ....and the HX series being same rank as the Earthwatts ...TP 750 ranked over the CP-850 ????? Antec Neo's generally get poor ratings on jonnyguru, ranked 1 here.....

 

[JackNaylorPE]

if 500w isnt enough, what power would i need?

Ya can use this to "do the math" for ya next time.

http://www.antec.outervision.com/

 

[the silent]

thanks for the help. i was releaved when i read that 500w would be more then enough. but then i filled out the antec psu calculator and its coming up around the 537w mark.
is it calculating the quad core i5-750 incorrectly? with single core selected, it totals 307w, with quad core selected, it totals 537. thats a 230w difference. ive read on forums that the i5-750 uses around 100w max?
i also believe the velociraptors and the g.skill eco ddr3 1600 ram i have are low in watts. so should i take the antec calculation seriously? is 500w really more then enough?

 

[delluser1]

On the big list....don't see the Antec EA-500 (9.5 on jonnyguru)

The current EA500 hasn't been reviewed, and is built on an entirely different platform than the Seasonic built unit that was reviewed at jonnyguru, no reason for it to be on the list.

 

[JohnnyLucky]

Alothough it is a little more power than you need, the general rule of thumb is a high quality 500 to 550 watt power supply with sufficient current (amps) on the +12 volt rail(s) can easily power a system with any single video card made. A high quality 700 to 750 watt power supply with sufficient current (amps) on the +12 volt rail(s) can power a system with two video cards operating in dual mode. There are a few exceptions like the new ATI Radeon HD 5XXX series cards which use less power due to their energy efficiency.

A high quality 500 to 550 watt psu will have a +12 volt rail rated at 40 amps. A high quality 700 to 750 watt psu will have a +12 volt rail rated at 60 amps.

In addition the power supply should be at least 80+ Bronze certified for energy efficiency. There are some models available which have achieved 80+ Silver and 80+ Gold Certifications.

Before purchasing a new psu you will need to decide whether you will eventually have a pc with one or two video cards.

Corsair and Seasonic are two brands that have a reputation for high quality power supplies that consistently earn high marks in technical reviews. They are reliable, stable, and come with a 5 year warranty. Some of the newer models come with a 7 year warranty. Lately we've been seeing a few other brands offering some high quality units. One example would be the Antec Earthwatts and Antec TruePower New models which are a major improvement over Antec’s older psu’s like the Basiq models.

 

[shubham1401]

Your current PSU is enough and overkill for your current setup.
Stick with it

 

[the silent]

thanks for that info.
i have an EA-500D which is 80-plus bronze.
im only going to be using the one graphics card. if the rule of thumb is 500-550w psu for a system with a single video card, would i get by with my EA-500D? or will i need to buy a 530w+ psu?
is it a big risk booting up my system if 500w isnt enough?
for reference, this is my setup:

Intel i5-750
GA-P55A-UD3R
GeForce 9500GT
4GB 1600 G.Skill Eco
2 x 160gb Velociraptors
PCI-PCMCIA connector
Antec Sonata III with EA-500D

and i plan to get the following:
640gb Caviar Black
external back up drive.

 

[shubham1401]

Don't worry even a bit. Even My 400W Corsair unit will power your rig without breaking a sweat! and yours is still quality 500W!!

 

[the silent]

thank you shubham! thats what i wanted to hear.
thanks for all the info guys.