GA-7N400 PSU Info for Buyers - Beware

I just built up a computer for a friend who was looking to upgrade on the cheap (ie < $1000) so I bought him the following components:

Althlon XP 2500+ Barton (AQXEA)
Gigabyte 7N400
2x OCZ PC3500 Dual Channel Optimized
Thermalright SK7
80mm Pot controlled fan (52CFM max)
AOpen Audio Card

And he went out to buy an 80Gig SE and new CDR from officemax.

We were going to chuck the whole shibang into his old case and PSU, with another old HD and his FX5900, until he found a new case. I mentioned to him while we were building the shopping cart that having a good Antec PSU is an important factor when building a new computer, but we still decided to wait, since his old PSU was rated at 300W, and it should at least keep it running for another week or so, right?

Nope.

It seems that what used to run his Thunderbird and old components won't boot up the board properly. Although his PSU was old and cheap looking, it seemed like it should work, but for 5 hours I struggled trying to figure out why it wouldn't load any opsys (crashed at about the same point during install and rebooted). Finally I tore everything up, tested it, and came across the PSU. After using my 430W, everything worked perfectly.

So, if you're looking to buy a new mobo and you have a cheapo PSU, make sure to budget an extra $90 into the picture for an Antec True 480. The True series of PSU will give you top notch quality and never fail you, ever.

Case modders can also get the blue version.

My 2C.

EpochofEntropy,

Im glad that you posted this
This is exactly the kind of user experience that other's need to know about.

Im gonna save the link to this post for others to see.

Good reporting on what is an everyday question

that is some great info i only got a 350watt cheap ps right now. i might go look at the antec true blue. ive read its really good and alot of ppl like them

thanks for the info it will help me out for when i upgrade

Amen!

The Antec True 480 Blue is a great power supply, funny you should mention it because it is the one my friend decided to replace his shoddy old PSU with. (In a Chenming XSpider Gaming Bomb case, which is a great case for it's size, by the way) The one we recieved had black molex adapters (an added bonus) and was quite appealing, although I do wish it had more LED's in it.

My only other gripe would be that the Blue 480 we recieved was a "SATA ready" model, and came with two SATA style adapters on channels with only one other molex type adapter. The configurations of the cables was a bit weirder. ie: if I had two drives in RAID, and wanted to run them from the same channel I would have to run two channels down there. If I had two CD-ROM's I would have to run a channel for each...

But truthfully, it was nothing even worth griping about in comparison to having one of the best power supplies manufactured. Go check the PSU review at Toms Hardware or any of the other PSU shootouts. Antec True PSU's are always on top - for a reason.

By the way: I don't want to knock this mobo at all.

We eventually got the Barton 2500+ up to 2.2GHz @ 400MHz FSB and the RAM timings as tight as they could go. Albeit it doesn't have as many great overclocking controls as other boards ::ahem:: but it does do it's job for turning an $85 proc into a $455 one.....

My next board is most likely a Gigabyte.

Preacher has some great bios for the GA-7N400 Pro and NNXP called HARDM3NU (link: http://pr3ach3r.overkillsystems.net/7N400PRO/HARDM3NU/HM.htm) I use them and they work great (basically modded F11 bios for N400 pro). Also if you press "Ctrl" and "F1" you get more options. I'm running a 300W POS Allied with mine (for the moment, my Enlight 300W died a while ago), but I'm still running my 1.4 Tbird for now and I've got an Enlight 360W on order (before I upgrade the proc). These boards are pretty pick about psu (most are though nowadays) and people don't give their psu a second thought. It happens all the time...

Ive been building and servicing systems for a while now, and in my own personal opinion with a majority of systems having at least 1 hd, Burner and or cd rom and or dvd, 256-512 ram, video, ect.... I believe that systems should have a good 400 watt , you start talking gamers and hi end users and I think 400 is an absolute minimum.

All of my customers systems have 400watt, and power issues are not something we ever have to cope with.

I've personally taken it upon myself to rig every system that I build for friends or recommend to have at least an Antec 430 True PSU. The up front cost is slightly more, but the $30 spent is well saved in headaches in the future.

The less I need to debug with a computer I'm building for myself or others, the better.

It's like building a modern system without case fans. You may be able to get away with it, but how long will it be stable? What happens at 1pm if the sun shines right on the box?

PSU. Buy a good one today.

Damnit.

i have an antec 400SL that i am very pleased with, never a problem. same cn't be said of my 300x PCtoys