Question Is it possible to keep my existing PSU with another GPU upgrade?

[phenomk90]

Hello everyone, here's alittle backstory before getting into my question.

My first ever psu with minimum 80+ bronze certification was coolermaster silent pro m850. Around less than 2 years into usage. One night, suddenly my monitor went black and smoke came out from my chassis. It turned out to be my psu already burned. So i sent it back for RMA. Around three weeks later i was informed that due to my unit no longer available to had replacement so i was given a newer model which was the silent pro m2 850w.

But since i already bought a spare unit because i couldn't stand not having my pc for 3 weeks. I kept it in storeroom for years as backup. Only after when i went for rebuilt during 2018 then only i started using my replacement unit as my main psu. It served me well. Survived until today. Now early this year i went for another upgrade as i swapped out my ryzen 2600 for 5700x. Bought another ssd in the process.

So now back to the question, considering graphics cards nowadays consume even more power than before. Can I keep my existing psu for another gpu upgrade such as RX 7900 XT? I didn't really want to spend another 170 usd unless necessary. As my current psu already served me well without issues. Appreciate your feedback regarding this.

Here is my current psu:

Cooler Master Silent Pro M2 850 W Review

The Cooler Master Silent Pro M2 850 W is a well priced mid-range PSU with enough juice to power a triple-GPU system. Besides that, it packs enough interesting features like silent operation, modular cables, 80 Plus Silver efficiency and five year warranty. All that is offered at a very good...

www.techpowerup.com

And here is my pc spec:

Ryzen 7 5700x
Klevv bolt 3000mhz 2x8gb ddr4
Asrock b450m pro4
Crucial mx500 500gb
Coolermaster silent pro m2 850w
Coolermaster hyper 212 led turbo
Inno3d GTX 1080ti twin x2
Fractal design Arc Mini R2

 

[--SID--]

Nope. It's over a decade old unit with outdated internal design that can't handle the dynamic load and powerspikes of recent hardware.

 

[DSzymborski]

Yeah, definite no on that one. A group-regulated PSU already shouldn't be powering modern hardware with a GPU and compounding it by the PSU being a decade old and an even more expensive GPU would be an absolutely terrible idea. A top tier GPU ought to be paired with a top tier PSU, not one that was Tier C on the last PSU tier list update here.

 

[phenomk90]

Nope. It's over a decade old unit with outdated internal design that can't handle the dynamic load and powerspikes of recent hardware.

Omg, that's the last thing i wish to hear lol🫣

 

[phenomk90]

Yeah, definite no on that one. A group-regulated PSU already shouldn't be powering modern hardware with a GPU and compounding it by the PSU being a decade old and an even more expensive GPU would be an absolutely terrible idea. A top tier GPU ought to be paired with a top tier PSU, not one that was Tier C on the last PSU tier list update here.

Damn. I thought i could've get a pass on that one. 😢

 

[phenomk90]

Yeah, definite no on that one. A group-regulated PSU already shouldn't be powering modern hardware with a GPU and compounding it by the PSU being a decade old and an even more expensive GPU would be an absolutely terrible idea. A top tier GPU ought to be paired with a top tier PSU, not one that was Tier C on the last PSU tier list update here.

I thought as long as it has 80 plus certification plus a strong 12v rail it should be fine?

 

[--SID--]

I thought as long as it has 80 plus certification plus a strong 12v rail it should be fine?

Quality, voltage regulation, ripple suppression and transient response are more important

 

[DSzymborski]

I thought as long as it has 80 plus certification plus a strong 12v rail it should be fine?

Absolutely not.

First off, 80 Plus is just efficiency, not quality. They're correlated, but very loosely. 80 Plus at this point is basically the bare minimum for even a competent budget PSU.

And second, it's not a strong +12V rail. It's group-regulated. That was always bad, but it's especially so with high-powered GPUs that need a lot of +12V power suddenly. Group-regulated PSUs result in nasty crossloads in these unbalanced situations and modern gaming PCs are *all* unbalanced power situations. A group-regulated PSU can never be better than mediocre in a 2023 context.

If you want to use an old, middling PSU on a new high-end GPU, that's your prerogative -- it's your property and your money -- but you're not going to talk anyone here with any experience into giving you a thumbs-up for the idea. The significant risks taken will have to be assumed on your own counsel.

 

[phenomk90]

Absolutely not.

First off, 80 Plus is just efficiency, not quality. They're correlated, but very loosely. 80 Plus at this point is basically the bare minimum for even a competent budget PSU.

And second, it's not a strong +12V rail. It's group-regulated. That was always bad, but it's especially so with high-powered GPUs that need a lot of +12V power suddenly. Group-regulated PSUs result in nasty crossloads in these unbalanced situations and modern gaming PCs are *all* unbalanced power situations. A group-regulated PSU can never be better than mediocre in a 2023 context.

If you want to use an old, middling PSU on a new high-end GPU, that's your prerogative -- it's your property and your money -- but you're not going to talk anyone here with any experience into giving you a thumbs-up for the idea. The significant risks taken will have to be assumed on your own counsel.

I see.. So what model you can suggest for a good enough budget 850w psu to accommodate modern hardware?

 

[phenomk90]

Quality, voltage regulation, ripple suppression and transient response are more important

So can you suggest which psu model that i can upgrade to yet not too expensive?

 

[--SID--]

If you buy in the US I would go for https://pcpartpicker.com/product/nh...ully-modular-atx-power-supply-mpg-a850g-pcie5 as the cheapest option.

 

[phenomk90]

If you buy in the US I would go for https://pcpartpicker.com/product/nh...ully-modular-atx-power-supply-mpg-a850g-pcie5 as the cheapest option.

I see... I just saw cheaper one at retail. But seems like it's an older model.

MSI MPG A850GF

MPG A850GF | Power Supply | Power Within Reach

The MPG GF Series offers a range of products that are versatile and reliable. With the help of other existing MSI products including PC cases, liquid coolers, and motherboards, our users can now enjoy a more mature and established MSI gaming ecosystem wit

www.msi.com

Is this good enough?