350w enough? or would 430antec solve possible problem

[hooah]

i have a turbocase x-dreamer case that came with a 350w psu. i've been using that to power 1x80gb hard drive, 1xati 9500np, 1xfloppy, 1xcdrw, 6 case fans and my 2.4c at 3.25ghz. would buying an antec 430 trueblue make my system more stable? or should my 350w cover that for the amount of stuff i have powered off of it? the air coming out of my current psu is warm, donno if that matters at all.

[Graphic67]

Read this thread by Larva...

http://forum.oc-forums.com/vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=150384

and possibly this article...

http://firingsquad.gamers.com/guides/power_supply/

[Graphic67]

If you are not having voltage problems or instability of your system then it your power supply is probably alright.

Your 5V and 12V voltage should be between 4.85 to 5.15V and 11.65 to 12.35V with your system under load.

[larva]

Well, it depends a lot on what 350W power supply we are talking about here. Now, as always, you haven't said anything by mentioning it's a 350W. You have to be more specific.

In any event, are you having stability issues? 3.25GHz is enough to test the best 350W supply (Fortron) but it is also a typical overclock result for a 2.4C. If the machine is stable, and the air output not truly hot, you are probably fine.

Another good way to test is to note the 12V reading in bios with your present settings, and then up the Vcore .1 to .2V for a short time and re-check. If you see the 12V decline with the extra Vcore, the 12V line is out of gas. It is unlikely you will exceed the 3.3 or 5V capacity with this type of rig.

In the end you won't know if you can achieve anything by switching without trying it. There are a lot of variables here, and the best "estimates" for power consumption are just innaccurate guesses. After you swap supplies you will know exactly what benefits are possible for your particular situation.

I would like to upgrade the 350 Sparkle in my machine, as its 12V is taxed at 3.2GHz. Unfortunately I missed the newegg refurb Antec True Power 480s ($39!) for the second week in a row :/

[hooah]

thanks guys. my 12v, vcore and just about every other voltages fluctuate quite a bit. the 12v goes 11.60 to 11.80 (usually 11.6's), vcore between 1.66 & 1.68 (its set at 1.65). the air is warm forsure but it is not usually hot. i guess my question is beside the cpu limit what else can really comprimise stability besides psu? i have good quality stuff except the psu, but the best price i've seen in canada is $130cdn for antec trueblue 480, or $116 for 430.

[Graphic67]

11.6V is too low for stable operation. The values that I gave you were +/- 3% of nominal, but quite a few people prefer 2% tollerance in the power supply.

Either of the Antecs will be a good investment and will give you sufficient power to add more drives in the future.

[hooah]

hmm, antec trueblue 430 or 480 it is. i figured 11.6-11.7 is getting low, i really hope this is why my system isn't always stable at high overclocks. at 3.24 i seem to be ok, but my temps are low 35-37 so with good psu maybe it'll go up alittle, if not atleast it should be 100% stable.

thanks guys, fast service too, lol.


i noticed on this one it hits 11.56, then 11.68ish then 11.80 all really fast, it changes all over the place. 11.56 is probably what is causing instability. it stayed at 11.56 and 11.62 alot underload with 2 prime 95's.

[hitechjb1]

Originally posted by hooah
thanks guys. my 12v, vcore and just about every other voltages fluctuate quite a bit. the 12v goes 11.60 to 11.80 (usually 11.6's), vcore between 1.66 & 1.68 (its set at 1.65). the air is warm forsure but it is not usually hot. i guess my question is beside the cpu limit what else can really comprimise stability besides psu? i have good quality stuff except the psu, but the best price i've seen in canada is $130cdn for antec trueblue 480, or $116 for 430.

From my experience for high level of overclocking of CPU:

With a Fortron 300W, it could overclock a Tbred B 1700+ DLT3C to 2.4 GHz, beyond that system became unstable and crashed with BSOD. Also from the hot air and line fluctuation, the PSU had reached its limit.

Changed to an Antec TP 430, it immediatedly solved the problem, and was able to overclock it to 2.60 GHz prime95 stable, also with better HSF. The line fluctuation on the 5V (that generates Vcore) was about 3%.

Tested with an Antec TC 550, the line fluctutation of the 5V drops down to around 1.6%. In this case, a 9500/9700 is also running. Testing an Antec True Power 550, overclocking CPU and GPU (http://forum.oc-forums.com/vb/showthread.php?s=&postid=1946976#post1946976)


What it shows is that, for the last 100-200 MHz of overclocking, the PSU and HSF (on air) are very important. It does not mean one has to get immediately a new PSU or HSF to achieve that MHz gain, especially may not justify for price performance reason.

But if maximum overclocking is a goal, and price/budget are not the main issue, then a good PSU with small line regulation and enough 12V current is a good thing to get and it can help to eliminate some uncertainties out of many to achieve higher overclocking.

Eliminating uncertainties for better overclocking (http://forum.oc-forums.com/vb/showthread.php?s=&postid=1889642#post1889642) (page 7)

Some thoughts on choosing PSU for overclocking recent motherboard, CPU, GPU, ... (http://forum.oc-forums.com/vb/showthread.php?s=&postid=1918287#post1918287) (page 8)


If you decide to get an Antec TP 430 (which I think is OK), I would suggest to get a TP 480 for $10-15 more, its 12 V current rating (22A) is closer to the top end, and would give more stable lines due to higher power reserve, especially if there are/will be lots of components such as HD's, fans, high end video such as 9700/9800, ...

[hooah]

i ended 2xprime 95 and the 12v is at 11.98 to 12.05 (not under 11.98!), so its definately psu i think causing some instability.

i ordered antec truepower 550! it was only $20 more than the 480 and the 480 was backordered so 1-2 days and i'll see if this fixes my stability problems.

[Graphic67]

550! Are you sure that your mains can handle that? :D

[hooah]

1-3 days it'll be here :D

i looked at my 12v at 3.4ghz and it was 11.56 - 11.62 with the occasional 11.7 so i think with this antec truepower 550 i'll hit 3.4ghz stable, maybe 3.5 :D (i've got my fingers crossed). $190cdn with 1-3 day purolator, taxes and everything.

i hope this helps me get more, i'll let ya know.

[hooah]

thanks guys, got the antec true power 550w psu today. 12v stays at 12v (11.98 rarely) with 2 prime running and internet. so now i'm trying for 3.3 stable, or 3.4, i'll see whatever i can get.

if i can't get more i'll know its not the psu, i'll never use 100% of 550w! the only other thing i can think of to limit my overclock now is the 2.4c itself :d

[hitechjb1]

Would like to hear your results, either way.

[hooah]

so far seems i'm stable at 3.3 but it freezes at 3.4 after 30 min or so. i was debating on taking the psu back and sellin my 2.4c to get a 2.8c but i don't think it would offer much improvement over 2.4c at 3.3. so i'm gonna keep it at 3.3 until the 3.0c's are lowered to $400cdn from their $570cdn.

i had to pick between 3.0 1:1 or 3.3 5:4, so i'm going with 3.3.