[SOLVED] suggestion for UPS

Oct 28, 2022
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2
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Hello

recently my computer suddenly blu screened and quickly shut down (not even the time to complete displaying the blue screen), when i turned it back on it wouldnt display an image but after a quick power cycle (unplugging it for a while) everything is now working.
afterwards, to be extra safe i reseated my RAM, the power cables on my GPU and went through some CPU and GPU stress tests, I've also played a few games for a few hours all seems normal.
because it happened in the early morning a this point I think the cause was someone in my apartment building used 1 too many hairdryers and caused a quick brownout that my PSU did not appreciate.

I decided to buy a UPS but i don't have a big budget for it rn so I was looking to buy this https://amzn.eu/d/7Fmi1YY , power is enough but it has a simulated sine wave and i read this can be bad.
i almost never have blackouts so I only need it to make sure my PC gets constant clean power, im new to this so i would appreciate some help!
should I save up for a better one with a pure wave or can I get away with this cheap guy? can it damage my PSU if I ever get a blackout with this cheap UPS installed?
thanks!

hardware: CPU 4790k
GPU gigabyte RTX 3070
PSU:https://amzn.eu/d/0h0hD0j Corsair 750cx Mod
 
Solution
When looking for an UPS, there are 2 things to look out:
  1. Output waveform (square wave, simulated sine wave and true/pure sine wave)
  2. Design (stand-by, line-interactive and online)
From here you can read about the differences between output waveform,
link: https://www.kstar.com/indexproblem/17355.jhtml

And here are explanations about the UPS design,
link: https://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1272971

Waveform and design
For PCs, line-interactive UPS would be more than enough since PSUs can easily handle the 2ms to 5ms transfer time of line-interactive UPS.
As far as output waveform goes, true/pure sine wave UPS is best used. While simulated sine wave UPSes are cheaper than true/pure sine wave UPSes...

Aeacus

Titan
Ambassador
When looking for an UPS, there are 2 things to look out:
  1. Output waveform (square wave, simulated sine wave and true/pure sine wave)
  2. Design (stand-by, line-interactive and online)
From here you can read about the differences between output waveform,
link: https://www.kstar.com/indexproblem/17355.jhtml

And here are explanations about the UPS design,
link: https://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1272971

Waveform and design
For PCs, line-interactive UPS would be more than enough since PSUs can easily handle the 2ms to 5ms transfer time of line-interactive UPS.
As far as output waveform goes, true/pure sine wave UPS is best used. While simulated sine wave UPSes are cheaper than true/pure sine wave UPSes, PSUs with Active PFC aren't compatible with simulated sine wave. You might get simulated sine wave UPS running with Active PFC PSU but there can be some major issues. Here's what, how and why.

How do you know which PSUs have Active PFC and which ones don't?
Simple, every PSU that has 80+ certification (e.g 80+ Bronze or 80+ Gold) has Active PFC.

What is Active PFC?
Further reading: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Power_factor#Power_factor_correction_(PFC)_in_non-linear_loads

What can happen when using simulated sine wave UPS with Active PFC PSU?
When simulated sine wave UPS switches over to the battery power, one of 3 things can happen:
  1. UPS displays error resulting PC to shut down immediately.
  2. UPS shuts down resulting PC to shut down immediately.
  3. UPS switches to battery power resulting PC to power off from UPS (PC stays on).
Why it happens?
Simulated sine wave UPS produces a zero output state during the phase change cycle resulting in a power “gap”. This gap may cause power interruption for active PFC PSUs when switching from AC power output to simulated sine wave output (battery mode).

What to do next?
As stated above, your PC can run off from simulated sine wave UPS but be prepared when you face issues with it. When issues do rise, your best bet would be returning the simulated sine wave UPS and getting true/pure sine wave UPS. Or you can go with true/pure sine wave UPS off the bat.

Wattage
As far as UPS wattage goes, you need to consider the power draw of your PC and monitors. Maybe speakers and wi-fi router too if you plan to plug those into the UPS as well. Though, printers, scanners and other such hardware (full list on your UPS manual) don't plug to the UPS since their startup power draw is way too much for UPS to handle and you can fry your UPS.

Taking PSU's max wattage as a baseline is good idea since it will give your UPS more headroom and you can get longer runtime out of your UPS. Since your PSU is 750W, at least one monitor is added on top of it. Depending on the monitor size, they use between 23W to 52W. For more accurate power consumption, i need to know your monitor make and model so i can look up it's power consumption. Wi-fi routers don't consume much power. For example, my Cisco EPC3940L consumes 12V at 3A which means 36W.

Good UPS brands to go for are CyberPower, TrippLite and APC. While there are other UPS brands as well, those three are the best out there.
Note: The more powerful UPS you have, the longer UPS can keep your PC running before it's battery is empty.

I was looking to buy this https://amzn.eu/d/7Fmi1YY , power is enough but it has a simulated sine wave and i read this can be bad.

The UPS you selected is 750VA but only 525W. And while it is line-interactive, it is also simulated sine wave. So, i wouldn't buy it (reasons above).

I decided to buy a UPS but i don't have a big budget for it rn

Though, it seems that you've greatly underestimated the cost of a proper, good quality UPS. Since UPS'es job is to keep your PC running when there's blackout by supplying good and stable electricity to your PC, they also cost a lot of money.

For example, i payed €230 Euros for one of my CyberPower CP1300EPFCLCD (1300VA/780W, true/pure sine wave, line-interactive) UPS and i have two of them in use, one for Skylake build and another for Haswell build (full specs with pics in my sig).

Since your PC is expensive, it's not easily replaced. Like it or not, if you want the protection, it's not going to be cheap. Though, if you want cheap and good UPS, you need to buy 2x UPSes; the cheap one and the good one.

So, if you're willing to buy a good UPS, then for your build, i suggest 1000+VA UPS. You could even go with the very same UPS as i'm using,
specs: https://www.cyberpower.com/hk/en/product/sku/CP1300EPFCLCD
amazon: https://www.amazon.it/CyberPower-Systems-CP1300EPFCLCD/dp/B0058RVIEC/

It is good quality UPS and it can keep my PCs running ~30mins, which is more than ample time to shut down our PCs during the black out. Bigger capacity also allows us to repurpose our UPSes to e.g charge our phones when something drastic happens and electricity should go away for a week or so.
 
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Solution
Oct 28, 2022
14
2
15
When looking for an UPS, there are 2 things to look out:
  1. Output waveform (square wave, simulated sine wave and true/pure sine wave)
  2. Design (stand-by, line-interactive and online)
From here you can read about the differences between output waveform,
link: https://www.kstar.com/indexproblem/17355.jhtml

And here are explanations about the UPS design,
link: https://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1272971

Waveform and design
For PCs, line-interactive UPS would be more than enough since PSUs can easily handle the 2ms to 5ms transfer time of line-interactive UPS.
As far as output waveform goes, true/pure sine wave UPS is best used. While simulated sine wave UPSes are cheaper than true/pure sine wave UPSes, PSUs with Active PFC aren't compatible with simulated sine wave. You might get simulated sine wave UPS running with Active PFC PSU but there can be some major issues. Here's what, how and why.

How do you know which PSUs have Active PFC and which ones don't?
Simple, every PSU that has 80+ certification (e.g 80+ Bronze or 80+ Gold) has Active PFC.

What is Active PFC?
Further reading: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Power_factor#Power_factor_correction_(PFC)_in_non-linear_loads

What can happen when using simulated sine wave UPS with Active PFC PSU?
When simulated sine wave UPS switches over to the battery power, one of 3 things can happen:
  1. UPS displays error resulting PC to shut down immediately.
  2. UPS shuts down resulting PC to shut down immediately.
  3. UPS switches to battery power resulting PC to power off from UPS (PC stays on).
Why it happens?
Simulated sine wave UPS produces a zero output state during the phase change cycle resulting in a power “gap”. This gap may cause power interruption for active PFC PSUs when switching from AC power output to simulated sine wave output (battery mode).

What to do next?
As stated above, your PC can run off from simulated sine wave UPS but be prepared when you face issues with it. When issues do rise, your best bet would be returning the simulated sine wave UPS and getting true/pure sine wave UPS. Or you can go with true/pure sine wave UPS off the bat.

Wattage
As far as UPS wattage goes, you need to consider the power draw of your PC and monitors. Maybe speakers and wi-fi router too if you plan to plug those into the UPS as well. Though, printers, scanners and other such hardware (full list on your UPS manual) don't plug to the UPS since their startup power draw is way too much for UPS to handle and you can fry your UPS.

Taking PSU's max wattage as a baseline is good idea since it will give your UPS more headroom and you can get longer runtime out of your UPS. Since your PSU is 750W, at least one monitor is added on top of it. Depending on the monitor size, they use between 23W to 52W. For more accurate power consumption, i need to know your monitor make and model so i can look up it's power consumption. Wi-fi routers don't consume much power. For example, my Cisco EPC3940L consumes 12V at 3A which means 36W.

Good UPS brands to go for are CyberPower, TrippLite and APC. While there are other UPS brands as well, those three are the best out there.
Note: The more powerful UPS you have, the longer UPS can keep your PC running before it's battery is empty.



The UPS you selected is 750VA but only 525W. And while it is line-interactive, it is also simulated sine wave. So, i wouldn't buy it (reasons above).



Though, it seems that you've greatly underestimated the cost of a proper, good quality UPS. Since UPS'es job is to keep your PC running when there's blackout by supplying good and stable electricity to your PC, they also cost a lot of money.

For example, i payed €230 Euros for one of my CyberPower CP1300EPFCLCD (1300VA/780W, true/pure sine wave, line-interactive) UPS and i have two of them in use, one for Skylake build and another for Haswell build (full specs with pics in my sig).

Since your PC is expensive, it's not easily replaced. Like it or not, if you want the protection, it's not going to be cheap. Though, if you want cheap and good UPS, you need to buy 2x UPSes; the cheap one and the good one.

So, if you're willing to buy a good UPS, then for your build, i suggest 1000+VA UPS. You could even go with the very same UPS as i'm using,
specs: https://www.cyberpower.com/hk/en/product/sku/CP1300EPFCLCD
amazon: https://www.amazon.it/CyberPower-Systems-CP1300EPFCLCD/dp/B0058RVIEC/

It is good quality UPS and it can keep my PCs running ~30mins, which is more than ample time to shut down our PCs during the black out. Bigger capacity also allows us to repurpose our UPSes to e.g charge our phones when something drastic happens and electricity should go away for a week or so.
I see thank you so much for all the info.
I'll probably go with the one you suggested to me when I get the chance or a similarly specced APC Back-UPS a lot of people and YouTubers suggest them.
hopefully my wall power doesn't betray me again for another 1-2 months, I've been using this computer for years off the wall without a problem, maybe the PSU or something in the building wiring is getting old...
 

Aeacus

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APC Back-UPS a lot of people and YouTubers suggest them.

Do note that most APC UPSes are simulated sine wave. There are some true/pure sine wave UPSes from APC as well, but you really have to dig into specs sheet of any APC UPS you're considering, to see which waveform it outputs.

If a Youtuber suggests you not to wear a seat belt when driving a car, will you do it? Or when Youtuber promotes X product to high heaven, will you take them at face value and buy it? :rolleyes:

maybe the PSU or something in the building wiring is getting old...

Your PSU, Corsair CXm series, at best, is mediocre quality PSU and only good enough to power office PC, without dedicated GPU. But for gaming rigs with dedicated GPU, it doesn't have good enough build quality.

For proper PSU, you could look towards Seasonic Focus/PRIME or Corsair RM/RMi/RMx/HX/HXi/AX/AXi.
(All 3 of my PCs are also powered by Seasonic, full specs with pics in my sig.)

For 2nd opinion about your PSU, yours is in Tier C, low priority unit,
PSU tier list: https://forums.tomshardware.com/thr...er-list-rev-14-8-final-update-jul-21.3624094/

While what i'm using and also suggesting, is Tier A.
 
Oct 28, 2022
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If a Youtuber suggests you not to wear a seat belt when driving a car, will you do it?
well, no because I know how seatbelts work. I don't know how a UPS works I started researching a few hours ago hence why I'm on a tech forum begging for help lol
thanks for letting me know thou.

Your PSU, Corsair CXm series, at best, is mediocre quality
you're really making at the time 17-year-old me really sad lol IT'S RUNNING A 3070 RN I TRIED MY BEST OK!!!

but I appreciate all the info nonetheless.
 

Aeacus

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you're really making at the time 17-year-old me really sad lol IT'S RUNNING A 3070 RN I TRIED MY BEST OK!!!

I'm straightforward person and i tell things how they are. I don't pamper, i don't suggarcoat, i won't hold hands. Instead, i tell the cold hard truth, regardless however inconvenient or saddening it is.

Though, none of us born with in-depth knowledge of PC hardware, instead, it is learnt over the years, if you're interested in PC hardware (i am). So, i come here and "enlighten" the common folk, when they have issues and/or want to know more about their PC.

No-one wants to fork out loads of money, while everyone wants to get good quality products. This, sadly, can not be done. You can not have good and cheap product in one. Higher build quality inherently costs more than cheap stuff. This is the reality.

For example, how come you're knowledgeable enough to select and buy €600 GPU, but think little (if any) about the PSU you have? :unsure:
You should understand that PSU powers everything, and thus, is the most important component inside the PC. Also, if PSU should go "pop" and release the magic smoke, low quality PSUs have the ability to fry everything they are connected to. Meaning your entire PC and your fancy €600 GPU as well. <- With this knowledge, how good do you feel now, after saving ~€50 from PSU purchase, by going with cheap Corsair CXm PSU?

To end all of this: "Experience is the hardest kind of teacher, since it gives you the test first, and the lesson afterward.". :)
 
Oct 28, 2022
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how come you're knowledgeable enough to select and buy €600 GPU
it's a very recent purchase (it was a 970 originally) I'm starting the slow process of upgrading the whole PC and I decided to start with the GPU to make sure modern games are playable before replacing MOBO CPU and RAM... and PSU of course lol.
At the time i had no idea what bronze or gold meant or how manufacturers ranked quality, I just knew "known manufacturer=good or at least decent enough".
the UPS is also intended to give my current PSU cleaner power to stress it as little as possible to give me time to replace it, it's obvious to me now that wasn't going to happen with that cheap POS.
now I think I'm much better at selecting PC parts than I was at 17 when this build was made, as you probably know my choice of GPU at the time wasn't exactly great either.
but hey, I did great with the CPU the trooper is still giving me decent performance on cyberpunk! but the time is coming for it the hang the pins on the wall.

With this knowledge, how good do you feel now, after saving ~€50 from PSU purchase, by going with cheap Corsair CXm PSU?
not good lol but I can't do much about it now.
I just pray it can hold a few more months, by Christmas it should all be brand new.
The good news is I measured my power with a plug measurer and the most my system can draw even with synthetic stress tests is ~450W, PSU fan has a dust filter I clean regularly and it's always running cool (as far as my hand can tell anyway), cables also seem to be running cool and general cooling is passable.
at least my GPU is under warranty for 3 years, if it doesn't outright catch on fire maybe I can get it through lol


Experience is the hardest kind of teacher, since it gives you the test first, and the lesson afterward
yep, banged my head against the wall for this PC a lot of times but I always managed to bring it back, rn I'm roaring to get the budget so I can make a decent build with good cooling and respectable cable management.
right now its... passable.
 

Aeacus

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I'm starting the slow process of upgrading the whole PC and I decided to start with the GPU to make sure modern games are playable

1st upgrade should've been PSU. Since PSU is essentially foundation of the PC and also defines which GPU you can go for. But priorities lied elsewhere... (like it is with almost all people, GPU matters most).
Better luck next time. :)

At the time i had no idea what bronze or gold meant

Ummm..... use Google? :unsure: Like so: https://letmegooglethat.com/?q=80++gold

or how manufacturers ranked quality, I just knew "known manufacturer=good or at least decent enough".

Can't blindly trust manufacturer. Just because the brand is popular, doesn't instantly mean it's good.
E.g Razer. Known for making PC peripherals, but their hardware is plagued by software issues and reliability issues. But what makes Razer popular, is the fancy RGB they add with their stuff. So, people look and see: "oh, this looks pretty", and buy them. And at later date, when issues arise, they complain about Razer. But by that time, it's too late. Razer has already gotten your money from you.

With PSUs (actually with all hardware), without reading reputable review, how can you tell that the PSU is good? Well, you can't. So, PSUs are guilty until proven innocent. And you need reasons to buy a PSU, not reasons to reject a PSU.

For example, here's review of my PSU; Seasonic PRIME 650 80+ Titanium [SSR-650TD],
link: https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/seasonic-prime-titanium-650w-psu,4690.html

Looks good, doesn't it? :)

now I think I'm much better at selecting PC parts than I was at 17 when this build was made, as you probably know my choice of GPU at the time wasn't exactly great either.
but hey, I did great with the CPU the trooper is still giving me decent performance on cyberpunk! but the time is coming for it the hang the pins on the wall.

For people who struggle building their PC, selecting components, we have tech forums, like Tom's Hardware forums, where people can come and ask industry experts of their advice and suggestion. It doesn't hurt to ask for help. :)

For example, 9 years ago, even i started out in TH forums with the topic of asking help regarding PC components,
my 1st topic: https://forums.tomshardware.com/threads/partial-pc-upgrade-for-600-700€.2802353/

With dedication and further education, i've risen to the Ambassador status and now, i'm helping out others in TH forums, with my knowledge, like you for example. :)

if it doesn't outright catch on fire maybe I can get it through lol

CXm isn't so poor quality that it would catch fire. At least i don't know any instances of CXm burning. But far worse PSUs have catched fire, burnt down even entire houses and sadly, with loss of life as well.
One example: https://www.thesundaily.my/archive/...wer-supply-unit-computer-updated-LTARCH461974

Speaking of PSUs;
Since i care a lot about all my PCs, i won't put a mediocre quality unit (Tier B or lower) into my PC that fails to meet ATX PSU standards set in place for all OEMs to follow, so that the PSUs are safe to use and doesn't damage other components. In fact, i've gone above and beyond regarding PSUs in my PCs.
Some may call me nuts :pt1cable: that i payed €206.80 for a PSU that sits in my Skylake build (Seasonic SSR-650TD) and my latest PSU purchase for Haswell build costed €205.50 (Seasonic SSR-650TR), while i would've been safe with a PSU that costs €80.50 (Seasonic GX-550). While that can be true and i could've saved a lot of money, i feel safe and comfortable that my two main PCs are powered by the best offered by Seasonic. :sol: For my 3rd PC (AMD), i lowered my PSU requirement a little, by buying €101.50 Seasonic Focus PX-550.

and respectable cable management.
right now its... passable.

I guess there's visible ratsnest of cables somewhere? :unsure:

If interested, here's how i did cable management in my PCs;
Left: Skylake (my main build)
Middle: Haswell (missus'es build)
Right: AMD (my old main build, currently around for retro gaming, games pre-2005)
Full specs with more pics in my sig.

ZxrwPrW.jpg
 

punkncat

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I have owned literally dozens of Corsair power supplies. Quite a few of those were the "green label" CX models. I have NEVER had a Corsair power supply fail on me.
Where it may not be the "optimum" power supply, it is heads and shoulders above the typical prebuilt or "white" rated PSU you see so commonly.

I am not going to say that buying something better (read as more expensive) isn't a good idea, but really don't think you need be concerned that your CXm is going to burn the rig down either.
 

Aeacus

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I have owned literally dozens of Corsair power supplies. Quite a few of those were the "green label" CX models. I have NEVER had a Corsair power supply fail on me.

Yet, forum is filled with topics where people have CX/CXm series PSU and are seeing restarts/shut downs, often during heavy workload (gaming). <- Good quality PSU does not restart the PC if it sees any meaningful load. Poor one does. Some unlucky ones have even lost their GPU and/or MoBo during those PSU hiccups.

Btw, just because you haven't had a PSU failure, doesn't mean Corsair CX/CXm PSUs never fail. It's like me saying: "I have never had AIO leak, so no AIO ever leaks.". :rolleyes:

but really don't think you need be concerned that your CXm is going to burn the rig down either.

Speaking of it, found this, where OP's MoBo catched fire, after brand new CX750m was installed and ran ~5mins, until gave out the magic smoke and damaged the MoBo,
topic: https://forum.corsair.com/forums/to...m-psu-surge-3-dead-hds-and-msi-board-damaged/

So... you were saying? :unsure:
 

punkncat

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Yet, forum is filled with topics where people have CX/CXm series PSU and are seeing restarts/shut downs, often during heavy workload (gaming). <- Good quality PSU does not restart the PC if it sees any meaningful load. Poor one does. Some unlucky ones have even lost their GPU and/or MoBo during those PSU hiccups.

Btw, just because you haven't had a PSU failure, doesn't mean Corsair CX/CXm PSUs never fail. It's like me saying: "I have never had AIO leak, so no AIO ever leaks.". :rolleyes:



Speaking of it, found this, where OP's MoBo catched fire, after brand new CX750m was installed and ran ~5mins, until gave out the magic smoke and damaged the MoBo,
topic: https://forum.corsair.com/forums/to...m-psu-surge-3-dead-hds-and-msi-board-damaged/

So... you were saying? :unsure:

I was merely sharing my own experience, not in absolutes. I have also always used said power supplies on systems which they could handle from a wattage perspective. There are loads of people here who have preference for certain products and brands based on their own experiences as well.

I mean, why be on a forum if you can't discuss your own experience and point of view?
 
Oct 28, 2022
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Do note that most APC UPSes are simulated sine wave. There are some true/pure sine wave UPSes from APC as well, but you really have to dig into specs sheet of any APC UPS you're considering, to see which waveform it outputs.

If a Youtuber suggests you not to wear a seat belt when driving a car, will you do it? Or when Youtuber promotes X product to high heaven, will you take them at face value and buy it? :rolleyes:



Your PSU, Corsair CXm series, at best, is mediocre quality PSU and only good enough to power office PC, without dedicated GPU. But for gaming rigs with dedicated GPU, it doesn't have good enough build quality.

For proper PSU, you could look towards Seasonic Focus/PRIME or Corsair RM/RMi/RMx/HX/HXi/AX/AXi.
(All 3 of my PCs are also powered by Seasonic, full specs with pics in my sig.)

For 2nd opinion about your PSU, yours is in Tier C, low priority unit,
PSU tier list: https://forums.tomshardware.com/thr...er-list-rev-14-8-final-update-jul-21.3624094/

While what i'm using and also suggesting, is Tier A.
hey I'd like another suggestion if you could.
I've looked for a better PSU and this looks like one of the models you suggested https://amzn.eu/d/iQi74Aq
am I correct?
also, should I invest in a better PSU first or a good UPS? cant do both immediately.
 
Oct 28, 2022
14
2
15
I have owned literally dozens of Corsair power supplies. Quite a few of those were the "green label" CX models. I have NEVER had a Corsair power supply fail on me.
Where it may not be the "optimum" power supply, it is heads and shoulders above the typical prebuilt or "white" rated PSU you see so commonly.

I am not going to say that buying something better (read as more expensive) isn't a good idea, but really don't think you need be concerned that your CXm is going to burn the rig down either.
how long have you used them? My 750W green label is approaching 8 years I don't think I can expect it to keep going for long :/
 

punkncat

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how long have you used them? My 750W green label is approaching 8 years I don't think I can expect it to keep going for long :/

Given it's age and the graphics card you are using it with, I don't think it is a bad idea to consider a higher quality newer unit.

With that said, I have (a line on) at least two active green label CX series PSU going strong that were used by me and passed along to people I am in touch with. One of them is a CX430 confirmed to be purchased in April of 2016 powering a first gen Ryzen and a GTX 960 and showing no signs of giving issue. A friend of mine still owns this system it this configuration and we were discussing just today upgrading it to Ryzen 3xxx. I have used and passed along multitudes of others, most recently the RM or SF series. I have plans to purchase an SF750 when prices normalize.

I will restate that I don't think buying quality units is a bad idea at all. I also, personally, am not one to discount workable options that make sense from a price perspective. I would venture to say that there are a whole lot more "green label" Corsair power supplies out there than the higher end units based on price alone. Many PC users have no idea at all about all the things that make high quality power supplies worth spending the money on. A result of that would logically be that we hear about more failures from them. Let us not even consider all the "silver box power supply shaped objects" being used that are far worse than....
 
Oct 28, 2022
14
2
15
Given it's age and the graphics card you are using it with, I don't think it is a bad idea to consider a higher quality newer unit.

With that said, I have (a line on) at least two active green label CX series PSU going strong that were used by me and passed along to people I am in touch with. One of them is a CX430 confirmed to be purchased in April of 2016 powering a first gen Ryzen and a GTX 960 and showing no signs of giving issue. A friend of mine still owns this system it this configuration and we were discussing just today upgrading it to Ryzen 3xxx. I have used and passed along multitudes of others, most recently the RM or SF series. I have plans to purchase an SF750 when prices normalize.

I will restate that I don't think buying quality units is a bad idea at all. I also, personally, am not one to discount workable options that make sense from a price perspective. I would venture to say that there are a whole lot more "green label" Corsair power supplies out there than the higher end units based on price alone. Many PC users have no idea at all about all the things that make high quality power supplies worth spending the money on. A result of that would logically be that we hear about more failures from them. Let us not even consider all the "silver box power supply shaped objects" being used that are far worse than....
I see thank you
 

Aeacus

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I've looked for a better PSU and this looks like one of the models you suggested https://amzn.eu/d/iQi74Aq
am I correct?

Yes. RMx is solid PSU with nice 10 years of warranty.

also, should I invest in a better PSU first or a good UPS? cant do both immediately.

Since you're experiencing electricity grid issues, UPS would be better choice. Moreover since when you would go with RMx, you still can experience power cuts. Power loss as such, at bare minimum, can corrupt your OS, especially when OS was writing something. At worst, it could kill PSU as well. Though, RMx is such a high quality that it won't bring any other components with it (at least i haven't heard any such instances).

So, get UPS 1st. And since you're keeping your load at ~450W, your 750W CXm should be fine, until you get better PSU.
 

punkncat

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your 750W CXm should be fine, until you get better PSU.


I am not sure I understand your flip flopping opinion on this subject. Above you chide me for suggesting the PSU is fine, you basically have OP thinking it's going to burn his rig and house down, but "suddenly" it is ok until later?

At least stay consistent with your advice. Perhaps consider that others with differing views and experiences might have some validity rather than inferring erroneous information.
 

Aeacus

Titan
Ambassador
I am not sure I understand your flip flopping opinion on this subject. Above you chide me for suggesting the PSU is fine, you basically have OP thinking it's going to burn his rig and house down, but "suddenly" it is ok until later?

In an event, where there are severe electrical grid issues, which of the two options, in your opinion, is better:
  1. No UPS and RM750x PSU?
  2. Good UPS and CX750m PSU?
If you read what i wrote, you should understand why, in this specific situation, going with UPS 1st is better idea.