[SOLVED] My PSU just blew up. Wanting to confirm what the issue was likely to be and make sure my parts don't get fried.

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LiamIV

LiamIV

Oct 22, 2021
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Hey all,

I just purchased a few new parts for my 4-year old build, which was:

GPU: 1050 ti
CPU: Ryzen 3 1200
PSU: Gamemax GM-ECO500
Motherboard: AB350M-HD3

I then upgraded the following parts as follows:

GPU: 3060 ti
CPU: Ryzen 5 3600

I was reading around on forums and some people were saying that a 500W power supply would suffice to power the new components. It was running fine with the new CPU, however after I plugged in the new GPU, I played a little bit of The Division 2 on Ultra settings and after 1 minute there was a flash, smoke and the PSU went bust. I opened it up and there was a little glass tube that had exploded.

A few questions:

  1. Have I potentially busted any other components? There doesn't seem to be any visible damage.
  2. I just want to confirm - was the most likely reason that the PSU blew up because it was 4 years old, of lower wattage than the official recommended specs, and it was from a lesser-known supplier? Also the fact that it is bronze-rated?
  3. I purchased a Cooler Master MWE 750W 80+ Gold V2 - do you think that now if I plug in this PSU that I shouldn't have any further power issues?

Thanks for any help on this.

Liam
 
Solution
S
Quality of the psu was the problem. Get a replacement of 500w or greater that is tier A or B on this list.

Article - [psucultists] PSU tier list rev. 14.8 (Final Update Jul '21)

PSU Tier List 4.0 rev. 14.8 (outdated) Last Update: 12-07-2021 Legend : Gray - EoL/obsolete and/or otherwise not recommended for purchase. Green - small form-factor (gold and blue colors are disregarded due to scarcity of SFX PSUs) Gold - best units in the tier (includes requirements for blue...
forums.tomshardware.com forums.tomshardware.com
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LiamIV said:
Hey all,

I just purchased a few new parts for my 4-year old build, which was:

GPU: 1050 ti
CPU: Ryzen 3 1200
PSU: Gamemax GM-ECO500
Motherboard: AB350M-HD3

I then upgraded the following parts as follows:

GPU: 3060 ti
CPU: Ryzen 5 3600

I was reading around on forums and some people were saying that a 500W power supply would suffice to power the new components. It was running fine with the new CPU, however after I plugged in the new GPU, I played a little bit of The Division 2 on Ultra settings and after 1 minute there was a flash, smoke and the PSU went bust. I opened it up and there was a little glass tube that had exploded.

A few questions:

  1. Have I potentially busted any other components? There doesn't seem to be any visible damage.
  2. I just want to confirm - was the most likely reason that the PSU blew up because it was 4 years old, of lower wattage than the official recommended specs, and it was from a lesser-known supplier? Also the fact that it is bronze-rated?
  3. I purchased a Cooler Master MWE 750W 80+ Gold V2 - do you think that now if I plug in this PSU that I shouldn't have any further power issues?
Thanks for any help on this.

Liam
Click to expand...
1. You will find out when the new one arrives.

2. That power supply is just garbage less than 400 watts on the 12 volt rail. Power supplies are so poorly regulated you can rate them at about anything you wish. You can build a PSU rate it at 500 watts all the time knowing it will go up in smoke if you pull 300 watts from it.

3. I would never buy a Cooler Master power supply. Just not the quality I would be looking for but it's much better than what you had.
 
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Quality of the psu was the problem. Get a replacement of 500w or greater that is tier A or B on this list.

Article - [psucultists] PSU tier list rev. 14.8 (Final Update Jul '21)

PSU Tier List 4.0 rev. 14.8 (outdated) Last Update: 12-07-2021 Legend : Gray - EoL/obsolete and/or otherwise not recommended for purchase. Green - small form-factor (gold and blue colors are disregarded due to scarcity of SFX PSUs) Gold - best units in the tier (includes requirements for blue...
forums.tomshardware.com forums.tomshardware.com
 
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Solution
LiamIV said:
Hey all,

I just purchased a few new parts for my 4-year old build, which was:

GPU: 1050 ti
CPU: Ryzen 3 1200
PSU: Gamemax GM-ECO500
Motherboard: AB350M-HD3

I then upgraded the following parts as follows:

GPU: 3060 ti
CPU: Ryzen 5 3600

I was reading around on forums and some people were saying that a 500W power supply would suffice to power the new components. It was running fine with the new CPU, however after I plugged in the new GPU, I played a little bit of The Division 2 on Ultra settings and after 1 minute there was a flash, smoke and the PSU went bust. I opened it up and there was a little glass tube that had exploded.

A few questions:

  1. Have I potentially busted any other components? There doesn't seem to be any visible damage.
  2. I just want to confirm - was the most likely reason that the PSU blew up because it was 4 years old, of lower wattage than the official recommended specs, and it was from a lesser-known supplier? Also the fact that it is bronze-rated?
  3. I purchased a Cooler Master MWE 750W 80+ Gold V2 - do you think that now if I plug in this PSU that I shouldn't have any further power issues?
Thanks for any help on this.

Liam
Click to expand...

I just want to confirm - was the most likely reason that the PSU blew up because it was 4 years old, of lower wattage than the official recommended specs, and it was from a lesser-known supplier?
Click to expand...
Longevity of a power supply, in relation to its' age, is somwewhat proportional to the quality and design of the unit. Gamemax does not make high quality power supplies.

Also the fact that it is bronze-rated?
Click to expand...
The rating tells how efficient the unit is at converting wall current to 12 volt for the system. It is not a good measure of the quality. There's plenty of bronze rated units of better design than some gold models.

The Cooler master is a step up from Gamemax but there are much better choices. Too bad you didn't come here and ask before buying a new unit. You won't know if anything got damaged until you connect the new power supply. Be sure to use all new cabling. Do not re-use any old cables from the Gamemax (if it was even modular).
 
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Hopefully you get lucky and no other components are fried. Good choice on the new PSU. It reviewed very well by Aris https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/cooler-master-v750-gold-v2-power-supply-review

EDIT: Why is everyone crapping on the Cooler Master 750w V2. It was a damn near perfect review other than some loose 12v regulation but it was still very good. It's on the A tier as well. SMH

rI6PDds.png
 
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jayjr1105 said:
EDIT: Why is everyone crapping on the Cooler Master 750w V2. It was a damn near perfect review other than some loose 12v regulation but it was still very good. It's on the A tier as well. SMH
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Even the best manufacturers make a dud or two, but CM has made so many crap models I simply won't give them a nod unless there's no other choice. One or two good models today does not erase many years of junk hidden in CM's history. Just my opinion.
 
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Archaic59 said:
Even the best manufacturers make a dud or two, but CM has made so many crap models I simply won't give them a nod unless there's no other choice. One or two good models today does not erase many years of junk hidden in CM's history. Just my opinion.
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Guess what, Cooler Master doesn't make power supply's. They are not an OEM. EVGA, Corsair, etc. are just as guilty for producing crap models. OP you did fine. You got an A tier PSU. Don't listen to other people's anecdotal biases.
 
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jayjr1105 said:
Guess what, Cooler Master doesn't make power supply's. They are not an OEM. EVGA, Corsair, etc. are just as guilty for producing crap models. OP you did fine. You got an A tier PSU.
Click to expand...
Sweet, that’s good to know! Guess I got lucky as I didn’t check the reviews and went based off price.
 
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jayjr1105 said:
Hopefully you get lucky and no other components are fried. Good choice on the new PSU. It reviewed very well by Aris https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/cooler-master-v750-gold-v2-power-supply-review

EDIT: Why is everyone crapping on the Cooler Master 750w V2. It was a damn near perfect review other than some loose 12v regulation but it was still very good. It's on the A tier as well. SMH

rI6PDds.png
Click to expand...
Thats not even the same power supply. 5 year warranty on the one he bought and not the quality I would buy.

https://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-Efficiency-Connectors-Semi-fanless/dp/B08M9LDLXH
 
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LiamIV said:
Yeah from what I can tell, given I only wanted to spend around $100 - $130, I couldn’t go wrong with what I purchased. It seems to do well in reviews, and is even in that list of passable cheap PSUs in your signature.

Considering my price range, I seem to have bought one of the most passable PSUs, so I’m happy.
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It's much better than what you had. Hopefully nothing got fried.
 
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Agreed, I like to research and sit on a few models and wait for them to go on sale but in this case, you don't have that luxury since you're dead in the water without a functioning PSU so you had to buy now. Usually there's at least one deal on an A tier 750w, whether it's your favorite brand /OEM or not. I picked up the SuperFlower Leadex III 750w 3 weeks ago for $90 with a $10 newegg gift card on top of it.

Power supply shopping is a slippery slope because Amazon reviews and brand recognition can be deceiving where it has a 4.5/5 rating with 1000 reviews but it can be an actual turd that's group regulated or just no name and lies about 80+ and wattage rating. It's always best to just reference the Tier list on LTT forums or PSUCultists and stick to an A or B tier unit, C tier if you don't play on using a GPU other than integrated.

7-10 year warranty is usually a pretty good chance it's going to be either A or B tier but that's not always true, just double check the lists.
 
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