Power supply for 470 gtx

[Dyjon54]

just got a 470 gtx for cheap. Current system is running a 2120 i3. Wandering what a good power supply I should get? Was looking at this but was wandering if if would be enough. (470 gtx suggests 550 power supply) Thanks.

Heres the link to the one I was looking at. http://www.amazon.com/PC-Power-Cooling-100-Percent-Capacitors/dp/B0064XAJ30/ref=sr_1_2?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1363839092&sr=1-2&keywords=Silencer+MK+III

 

[edogawa]

Here: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151119&Tpk=seasonic%20550&IsVirtualParent=1

 

[atomicWAR]

if you aren't running a bunch of fans or mech hdds then you can probably squeak by...but if you do end up over stressing your PSU you could shorten your entire systems lifespan. i would just pony up for the extra 50watts

 

[MANOFKRYPTONAK]

I would go Seasonic and higher than 550W for sure, maybe a 650 watt. Seasonics will last a long time.

 

[edogawa]

for 650 watts here: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151088

 

[confuciused]

There is nothing wrong with that PC P&C 500W, it's actually manufactured by Seasonic. The 470 was a pretty inefficent card but even then your system wouldn't drawing more than 400W max. So as long as you don't plan to overclock that card, the PC P&C PSU you're looking at will be fine.

 

[atomicWAR]

There is nothing wrong with that PC P&C 500W, it's actually manufactured by Seasonic. The 470 was a pretty inefficent card but even then your system wouldn't drawing more than 400W max. So as long as you don't plan to overclock that card, the PC P&C PSU you're looking at will be fine.

pc power and cooling do have some of the best PSU's as does seasonic but i disagree that 500 is enough, safely. As i said earlier it may work but its not worth shorting your system life over fifty watts.

 

[confuciused]

I understand your preference for greater headroom, however in this case I don't believe it is necessary.

Granted, 550W may be what was generally accepted as minimum for the 470 when it was released. Let's not forget that at that time we had 130W tdp 1st gen i7 systems to match with it. OP is using a 65W tdp i3... there's your 50W plus some already.

See here: http://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/geforce_gtx_470_480_review,13.html

overclocked i7-965 + 470 = max total system power draw of 419W. Now assuming a PSU with 90% efficiency (unrealistic but to err on the safe side) that's a total of 377W drawn from the PSU.

I note that they also suggest a min 35A on the 12V rail, that PC P&C is 38A.

As far as shortening the system's life, I assume you are referring to the potential damage to components due to eccessive deviation in voltage regulation and/or ripple? Being a quality unit, I expect the increase in deviation and ripple at higher loads would be negligible. Certainly not enought to cause any damage. The only other area you might see increased wear is in the caps within the PSU due to higher temperatures. Fortunately the PC P&C is fitted with japanese 105c capacitors, so again, any wear would be negiligible.

In the end, I doubt OP would experience any difference between the 500W PC P&C or the 550W Seasonic.

Edit: can't do math, need to go back to school

 

[Marcopolo123]

Thumbs up for seasoic 550w

 

[ko888]

For a system using a single GeForce GTX 470 graphics card NVIDIA specifies a minimum of a 550 Watt or greater system power supply that has a maximum combined +12 Volt continuous current rating of 38 Amps or greater and that has at least two 6-pin PCI Express supplementary power connectors.

Total Power Supply Wattage is NOT the crucial factor in power supply selection!!! Sufficient Total Combined Continuous Power/Current Available on the +12V Rail(s) rated at 45°C - 50°C ambient temperature, is the most critical factor.

Overclocking of the CPU and/or GPU(s) will require an additional increase to the maximum combined +12 Volt continuous current ratings, recommended above, to meet the increase in power required for the overclock. The additional amount required will depend on the magnitude of the overclock being attempted.

The PC Power & Cooling Silencer Mk III 500W (PPCMK3S500), with its maximum combined +12 Volt continuous current rating of 38 Amps and with two (6+2)-pin PCI Express supplementary power connectors, is sufficient to power your system configuration with a single GeForce GTX 470 graphics card.

 

[atomicWAR]

For a system using a single GeForce GTX 470 graphics card NVIDIA specifies a minimum of a 550 Watt or greater system power supply that has a maximum combined +12 Volt continuous current rating of 38 Amps or greater and that has at least two 6-pin PCI Express supplementary power connectors.

Total Power Supply Wattage is NOT the crucial factor in power supply selection!!! Sufficient Total Combined Continuous Power/Current Available on the +12V Rail(s) rated at 45°C - 50°C ambient temperature, is the most critical factor.

Overclocking of the CPU and/or GPU(s) will require an additional increase to the maximum combined +12 Volt continuous current ratings, recommended above, to meet the increase in power required for the overclock. The additional amount required will depend on the magnitude of the overclock being attempted.

The PC Power & Cooling Silencer Mk III 500W (PPCMK3S500), with its maximum combined +12 Volt continuous current rating of 38 Amps and with two (6+2)-pin PCI Express supplementary power connectors, is sufficient to power your system configuration with a single GeForce GTX 470 graphics card.

as i said before it will work in a pinch. but even by the numbers you are all using. he would be pushing the PSU to close to its MAX output. i think its unwise and will shorten you PSU and potenitally the rest of your systems life span. my rule of thumb is never get "just enough". buy yourself a little head room and do your self a favor unless money is so tight and you have no other option.

 

[ko888]

as i said before it will work in a pinch. but even by the numbers you are all using. he would be pushing the PSU to close to its MAX output. i think its unwise and will shorten you PSU and potenitally the rest of your systems life span. my rule of thumb is never get "just enough". buy yourself a little head room and do your self a favor unless money is so tight and you have no other option.

NVIDIA's PSU recommendation is based on a system using an Intel CPU with 130 Watt TDP.

The OP's CPU is an Intel i3-2120 with 65 Watt TDP.

Measured Peak Power Draw (i.e. typical gaming load) graphics card only:

ASUS GeForce GTX 470: 171 Watts

Palit GeForce GTX 470 Dual Fan: 198 Watts

MSI N470 GTX 1280 MB GDDR5: 190.51 Watts

EVGA GeForce GTX 470 Superclocked+: 184 Watts


So how is a 500 Watt power supply just enough?

 

[edogawa]

550watt should be plenty enough.

Hell, my system never exceeds 300 watts from the outlet during gaming, so i think 550 is plenty.

 

[atomicWAR]

as i said before it will work in a pinch. but even by the numbers you are all using. he would be pushing the PSU to close to its MAX output. i think its unwise and will shorten you PSU and potenitally the rest of your systems life span. my rule of thumb is never get "just enough". buy yourself a little head room and do your self a favor unless money is so tight and you have no other option.

NVIDIA's PSU recommendation is based on a system using an Intel CPU with 130 Watt TDP.

The OP's CPU is an Intel i3-2120 with 65 Watt TDP.

Measured Peak Power Draw (i.e. typical gaming load) graphics card only:

ASUS GeForce GTX 470: 171 Watts

Palit GeForce GTX 470 Dual Fan: 198 Watts

MSI N470 GTX 1280 MB GDDR5: 190.51 Watts

EVGA GeForce GTX 470 Superclocked+: 184 Watts


So how is a 500 Watt power supply just enough?

this is why its not enough...

80+ for a 500W supply is 400w...total draw is 399W on that system under full load...as i said its pushing the PSU to its limit. you forgot fans, hdd, ram, dvd drive etc....all require power!

try the PSU caclulator yourself!
http://www.thermaltake.outervision.com/

 

[edogawa]

I've used the power supply calculator, it's not very accurate, it gives you a general idea though.

 

[atomicWAR]

I've used the power supply calculator, it's not very accurate, it gives you a general idea though.

nothing is dead on but it is close...and even you take 20watts less...that is still very close to max output. its better to get more wattage.

 

[edogawa]

Read this: http://www.guru3d.com/articles-pages/geforce-gtx-470-480-review,13.html

If he did want to SLI later I think he should get more watts. Him being about 150 watts under is fine.

He's running an i3, and not overclocking, it's not going to be a very demanding system.

 

[ko888]

If the CPU is running at 100% as you have it in your image then the system is CPU bound and games would perform horribly.

Basic system using an Intel i3-2120 & GeForce GTX 470:
Minimum PSU Wattage: 324 Watts
Recommended PSU Wattage: 374 Watts

 

[atomicWAR]

again you picked no fans, no hard drives, no ram so you numbers are faulty to say the least.

 

[edogawa]

Fans barley use any power, and even a couple hard drives won't make much of an impact.

 

[ko888]

again you picked no fans, no hard drives, no ram so you numbers are faulty to say the least.

Are you blind? Look at the image again. It's all there.

 

[atomicWAR]

again you picked no fans, no hard drives, no ram so you numbers are faulty to say the least.

Are you blind? Look at the image again. It's all there.

my bad but one thing still is off...you only have 90% load...go 100% and your numbers will match mine.

 

[ko888]

again you picked no fans, no hard drives, no ram so you numbers are faulty to say the least.

Are you blind? Look at the image again. It's all there.

my bad but one thing still is off...you only have 90% load...go 100% and your numbers will match mine.

There's a reason why the CPU utilization isn't at 100%. System performance is horrible when the CPU is running at 100% utilization. At least use a realistic utilization percentage instead of some artificially inflated one.

Do you run your system at 100% CPU utilization most of the time?

 

[atomicWAR]

again you picked no fans, no hard drives, no ram so you numbers are faulty to say the least.

Are you blind? Look at the image again. It's all there.

my bad but one thing still is off...you only have 90% load...go 100% and your numbers will match mine.

There's a reason why the CPU utilization isn't at 100%. System performance is horrible when the CPU is running at 100% utilization. At least use a realistic utilization percentage instead of some artificially inflated one.

Do you run your system at 100% CPU utilization most of the time?

no i don't not 24/7 but i do hit it regularly. converting blu-rays, encoding video, some games like crysis 3.....and if i can hit it (as can he) it will add more wear and tear on the PSU. again yes i believe he can squeak by with 500...but i think its foolish to just squeak by. computer hardware is to expensive to risk over a measly 50 watts.

 

[edogawa]

Who's saying 500 watts anyway? A 550 watt power supply with more than adequate amps has been recommended.

This arguing is ridiculous, a 550 Seasonic will be great for him(or similar). You can't assume he will do the same type of stuff as you, especially not with an i3.