Just blew my psu... :(

Well, it had been making 'sparking crackle' type noise for the past hour, then a pop and the acrid smell of blown electrical stuff and a puff of smoke. Luckily no damage done to rest of system, and I have unplugged/changed hardware to run off of a antec silent 400W I had in another rig temporarily. It was a ColorsIT 550W psu and I was questioning its ability since I couldn't get a stabe oc above 3.38

So i'm looking for a new psu for my mai rig:

Prescott 3.2, IC7Max3, X800XT PE, 2048mb RAM, 3 hdd, 1 DVD+RW, 1 CDRW, Lots of fans and pci cards.

I'm looking at the Antec Trupower II 550W (550PEPS12V GB), which looks decent enough (and twice the price of the old one) I see it has a dual 12V. Don't (or didn't) they cause problems for a pressy?

How is the "Akasa Active PFC 650W PSU with Sanyo Denki Fan" comparable to the Antec unit? It has a quad 12V rail, would that cause the same problems as dual 12V (or lack of as the case may be)



Any help pointing me in the right direction is appreciated.
Thanks

Tim

I would avoid dual 12v units including that Antec for a Prescott. That Akasa 650w is the same unit as the 650w Silverstone - it's a good unit, but it's not really ideal either due to the 4 12v rails (not to mention loud).

My suggestions would be to look at the OCZ PS520, Sparkle FSP550-60PLG or FSP550PLG-SLI, Zippy HP2-6500P or PSL-6701P, PC P&C 510w, or the new Silverstone 560w.

Thanks Oklahoma Wolf,

Difficult to get those brands in the UK, I have found a place that sells the OCZ, but they are out of stock on the 520. Hows the 600?

OCZ PowerStream 600w ATX2 Power Supply (CA-015-OC)
The OCZ PowerStream™ power supply family offers the quietest, most versatile and adaptable PSU available today. With its universal ConnectAll™ connector, the PowerStream power supply offers all-in-one connectivity. (ATX, BTX, Serial ATA, P4 and EPS12V) Every OCZ power supply offers PowerShield™ power leads with enhanced EMI-control technology to reduce RF interference, stabilize input current and filter out “ripple noise”. Each OCZ PowerStream family member includes the PowerFlex™ feature for fine-tuning the three adjustable power rails. An LED sits below each of the three adjustment dials; a green light indicates voltage is within ±5% of optimal, a yellow light indicates undervoltage, and red indicates overvoltage. OCZ PowerStream PSU's are covered by a 5 year manufacturers warranty. With Active PFC and UK certified.

- OCZ PowerWhisper™ Technology
- OCZ PowerFlex™ individually adjustable power rails with LED indicators.
- OCZ ConnectAll™ universal connector. (ATX, BTX, SATA, P4 and EPS12V)
- ATX12V 2.01*
- OCZ PowerShield™ power leads
- ActivePFC**
- 5 year warranty backed by OCZ’s exclusive PowerSwap™ replacement program.


My old one was just a generic £20 psu, offering good numbers on paper, but failed to deliver.

+3.3 +5 +12
28A 35A 30A

I read on the suppliers website that others who bought the psu around the same time as me have had them recently fail (mine lasted 9 months). It doesn't seem worth the effort to send it back for a replacement (which will fail in another 9 months).

Thanks

Don't get the 600w, it's a waste of money and not as good as the 520w due to the dual rail design.

I also wouldn't recommend the 600w. It isn't as good as the 520w version, and from the looks of the internals, has more in common with the Modstream series than the other Powerstreams. It's also more expensive than the 520w.

What other brands are available?

If your retailer can get the 600w, there's no real reason I can see that they can't order the 520w in for you.

Sorted.

Spoke to a dealer that I get a load of stuff from for work, and he is able to get the 520 for me, but there isn't any stock in the UK so it wont be here till the weekend

Thanks for the help

as another uk poster i felt i should help. i also had a COLORSit psu that has just decided it doesnt want to work for me [see my thread].
i normally look at www.ebuyer.co.uk or www.overclockers.co.uk. otherwise amazon might have the OCCASIONAL deal or you could search for he specific item in www.pricerunner.co.uk, and it'll try to find the cheapest available on the net. not that i've tried then for psu's yet.
shop wise maplin's are ok, but a bit expensive.

Can't get the powerstream anymore - didn't come in at the weekend and there is no new eta for it.

I am getting prices for the Sparkle FSP550-60PLG and Zippy HP2-6500P. Are there any others? Good single 12V supplies are difficult to get in the UK. I may be forced to get the Antec due to no availability!

Thanks!

Look for the Etasis EPAP-560 or its Silverstone cousin, the Zeus ST56ZF.

The Zippy HP2-6460P and PSL-6701P will also power that system. The 460w should be cheaper than the 500w while the 700w beast is usually more expensive than just about anything else around.

You may also find the OCZ Powerstreams as the Topower P6 line somewhere around... look for the TOP-626P6 or TOP-706P6.

I belive the Zippy are commercial quality server grade units. I'm still learning from OKWolf, and Larva on all these units. I did some reading over the weekend on the Zippy Units. I run accross a couple articles while surfing, and from what I read they are good quality units.

Looks like OCZ may have run out of units over the X-mas sales boom. It wouldn't surprise me at all...they are nice units, and a gopod buy as well.

Thanks for the help.

Well, the Zippy units are out as well - They are not 'E' marked (basically they have not been approved for use on european electrical supply).

Got a choise of:
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/acatalog/Online_Catalogue_Power_Supplies_123.html

or
http://www.dabs.com/productlist.aspx?&NavigationKey=11259&CategorySelectedId=11259&PageMode=2

Still looking at the Antec - How bad will the dual rails be for me? It looks like the best I can get...

Dual rails will be okay, but your overclock might suffer. Another choice for dual rails, albiet an expensive one, would be the seasonic s-120 600w powersupply. It's very quiet and very well build.

Lonew0lf said:

Well, the Zippy units are out as well - They are not 'E' marked (basically they have not been approved for use on european electrical supply).

Click to expand...

I find that very hard to believe: http://www.zippy.com.tw/AZ_Award.asp?lv_rfnbr=2

They all have active PFC as well.

Lonew0lf said:

Can't get the powerstream anymore - didn't come in at the weekend and there is no new eta for it.

Click to expand...

wow that's crazy. Here in NZ you just look it up on the price search engine and there'll be 20 shops that have it or any other brand you might care for.

There was one time when a big seller said there was none (of adobe acrobat writer) in the country but that was, apparently, only because he didn't want to order it in because every other shop in the city had it. Does the UK really not have a very robust computing community? We have them on every street corner almost.