Smell coming from my computer

[xweetok59]

Ever since I upgraded my GPU from an r9 270x to my r9 290, my computer has been emitting a faint smell, mostly when playing games. When not playing games, I can only slightly smell it when I hold my nose up to my computer. At first I thought it was my GPU, but later I noticed most of the smell seemed to be coming from the PSU. I don't exactly know what smell it is, but it is kindof a smell that more electronics seem to emit. For example, my new casio calculator also has this particular smell to it. Consider that my casio has the same smell, I don't think it would be burning plastic. Though I wonder, what could it be? My PSU is not really displaying any signs of failure, and everything else is fine hardware-wise. Anything I should be worrying about?

 

[Islaymoocows]

Check your temps, if everything is ok I wouldnt worry too much.

 

[xweetok59]

While gaming GPU typically goes up to 80 degrees C, rest of the system seems to hang between 60-65, with my HDD at ~ 50-55. I think I'm going to leave my case open while gaming, notice quite a decrease in temp that way.

 

[vrumor]

There is a pretty significant difference power wise between the 270x and the 290. What is the make and model of your PSU?

 

[Cristi72]

Hello,

Change your PSU ASAP! With an R9-290, you just doubled the power needed from the PSU; you'll need a good 650W PSU: at least +12V / 45 Amps (or 2x30 Amps if dual rail).

 

[xweetok59]

It is a 750 watt power supply (I'd like to note though that I have got 1 4-pin cable in my MOBO instead of the 2 4-pin cables, someone on this website told me it wouldn't matter), the brand is: MS-N750-VAL-CM.

It's probably another month until I can upgrade though.

 

[Cristi72]

It is a 750 watt power supply (I'd like to note though that I have got 1 4-pin cable in my MOBO instead of the 2 4-pin cables, someone on this website told me it wouldn't matter), the brand is: MS-N750-VAL-CM.

It's probably another month until I can upgrade though.

That is a very weak PSU, +12V / 2 x 19 Amps; its rating should be 450W maximum...

 

[xweetok59]

I had my eye on the Cooler Master G750M, would it be sufficient for my system? Though as I said, about another month till I can upgrade. Considering that this PSU went strong for a year already, do you think keeping it for another month would be troublesome?

Also, I didn't originally build this PC, although I did do a lot of work on it and replaced the mobo once aswell, is replacing the PSU a tough job? I see a lot of molex cables which I honestly don't even know what they do.

 

[Joseph DeGarmo]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Power Supply: XFX TS 750W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply ($67.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $67.99
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-02-21 10:07 EST-0500

 

[xweetok59]

Any recommedations for a good 600/650 watt unit then? One powerful enough for my specs

CPU: i5-4670
GPU: ASUS R9 290
One ram stick, one HDD

I live in the netherlands, by the way.

 

[Joseph DeGarmo]

The XFX TS 750w is a strong PSU manufactured by SeaSonic. It has a high efficiency rating, quality capacitors, and plenty of 12v amps. There is a promo sale on it right now and is a great bang for your buck.

 

[xweetok59]

I'm kinda trying to stay at around 70 euro's though, I don't think I can go higher than that.

Would any one of these do?:

Cooler Master G750M
Cooler Master B700
Cooler Master G650M
Sharkoon WPM600 Bronze

 

[Joseph DeGarmo]

How about this one?

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA NEX 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply (£77.38 @ Amazon UK)
Total: £77.38
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-02-21 15:18 GMT+0000

 

[xweetok59]

Well shoot, I misclicked best answer ._.

Anyway, the SuperNOVA is around 120 euros here, way too expensive for me.

Anyway, I guess I'll just check out that list then and see which one will be sufficient for my little system.

 

[Joseph DeGarmo]

I reversed the best answer for you. Just keep in mind that you can do this yourself if done in error. Anyway, check into the XFX and EVGA models and see if you can find one which works best for your budget.

 

[xweetok59]

Oh okay, thank you and thank you.

 

[Joseph DeGarmo]

The one tea urchin picked out should be a good unit.

http://www.dabs.com/products/xfx-750w-80--bronze-certified-single-rail-75R8.html?utm_source=google&utm_medium=ppc%20product%20search&utm_campaign=Components%20and%20Storage%20-%20Cases,%20Cooling%20and%20Power%20-%20Power%20Supply%20Units

If you find this to be a great deal, then you can reselect his answer as the best solution.

 

[Joseph DeGarmo]

Yeah. Return the R9-290 and get a GTX 970 instead.

 

[xweetok59]

GTX 970 is 400 euros here, compared to the 260 I paid for my R9 290. Also, I see absolutely no reason to replace it as it has been working fine since the day I bought it.

 

[Joseph DeGarmo]

Well, anyway, you'll need to replace that PSU of yours. The R9-290 consumes almost double the power of the GTX 970 and is a bit weaker. Not saying that the R9-290 is a bad card. It's a great bang for the buck, just power hungry.

 

[xweetok59]

GTX 970 is 400 euros here, compared to the 260 I paid for my R9 290. Also, I see absolutely no reason to replace it as it has been working fine since the day I bought it.

Sell the 270x, its worth 90 euros easy

I already sold my r9 270x for 90 euros to get my current card.
Also, I took a look around the XFX and EVGA, and they're mostly 120+ in my country. My biggest problem is that I simply don't want to spend that much money on a PSU =/.

I don't need anything top notch, I have a non-k CPU and I always stay away from OC'ing. I just want something else than a no-name PSU which will probably fail soon. I think I'll just get one of the G series, they're the only reasonable ones I can find here.

 

[xweetok59]

Just wanted to say that I upgraded to the g650m. I don't know whether it's the upgrade or some magical powder I might've had on my fingers while doing the upgrade, but since I got the new psu everything is loading so much faster. Normally I'd be waiting 10 seconds for my google chrome to load, now it happens pretty much instantly. Same goes for video files and almost everything else.