Power Supply Options

[Miles Z]

Hi all, I am doing a computer build and need a bit of advice. I need to replace my previously ordered power supply, due to it having too low of a wattage. As far as my new one goes, I am aiming for the 850-1000 watt range and want it to be fairly affordable. Do any of you have any advice or opinions on what kind of PSU I should get? I'm using an ATX mobo with a bottom mount PSU area. Also, if any of you are interested, I am putting my old power supply up for sale. It's a Corsair CX600M

 

[tiny voices]

What are the specs of the PC you are building?

 

[Miles Z]

My case is a Rosewill Challenger
My mobo is an MSI A88X-G43 with a 24-pin connector and an 8-pin cpu connector
Processor is an AMD Athlon X4 760K with 3.8 Ghz operating frequency
GPU is an MSI R9 280 with 3gb GDDR5 memory

 

[tiny voices]

600w is more than enough for that system. The CX units are not very good quality, but a quality 550-650w unit will be plenty of power. No need for any more.

 

[Miles Z]

Well, it won't boot. I've had the PC looked at in order to verify what was going on. They said it was the PSU's lack of wattage.

 

[tiny voices]

They have no idea what they are talking about. Don't take advice from whoever that was.

 

[tiny voices]

R9 280 = 200w at full 100% load
x4 760k overclocked = 130w at full 100% load
motherboard + fans and everything else = 30w

System will use less than 500w at full 100% load.

Typical gaming power use will be even lower. Somewhere around 400-450w.

 

[Miles Z]

So then why won't the system boot up? I've verified that the motherboard, power supply, HDD, processor, and GPU are not defective or damaged. Also, the guy who checked out my rig said this happens to a lot of AMD users, in which they need a lot more power than you think.

 

[tiny voices]

The guy is wrong. Parts don;t just use more wattage for no reason. Also, even if you needed a bigger PSU it would still boot fine. It would just shut off under stress. The guy telling you these things has no clue. Sorry.

Try this checklist.