• Welcome to Overclockers Forums! Join us to reply in threads, receive reduced ads, and to customize your site experience!

Need advice for buying a CPU on BUDGET

Overclockers is supported by our readers. When you click a link to make a purchase, we may earn a commission. Learn More.
One thing i heard is well , if your PC lets say its running around 400 W ( not mine its just an example ) , you run a 500W PSU you be fine , but i heard you be stressing the hell out of the PSU.

But i did calculation before i guess 500W its pretty much sufficient for my build i must agree....for now i guess i stick with the 500W , and as i said its just 50 bucks more lol , if somehow when the day comes my build i had extra i go for the 600 W then , what you guys say = p ? ( Its weird sometime usually when i want to buy things , when the day come i have more money than i expected to save lol )
 
Running a PSU at 80% of its capacity should be fine. Remember that when we calculate how much your machine is going to draw, we're talking about maximum load. That's like running stress tests on all your components at the same time. Even intensive gaming will never get your actual power draw to its max, and we usually leave some breathing room anyway. If the max load of a PC is 400W, I would probably recommend a 500W.
 
I wouldn't say it's "stressing the hell" out of the PSU. But then again it all depends on the quality of the PSU. I have a 550W huntkey in a box somewhere that came for free with a case that is notorious for actually exploding when you try to pull it's labeled wattage (hardwaresecrets has a video of it). But in general, MOST good PSU's will be able to pull 70-80% W rating fine. Most can even pull more than their labeled rating (not recommended for long periods of time though). IMHO I think the sweet spot for PSU's and still keeping the price very very reasonable is around the 650W-750W. It gives you plenty of power for most systems and even dual GPU systems and even then still gives you a nice margin from max rating. There are plenty of PSU's that are 80+ Bronze in that wattage range for $80 or less here in the US and the prices from what I've seen in a lot of places overseas for a nice 650W 80+ PSU are not bad at all. But again, you don't HAVE to buy one in that range. ESPECIALLY, if you're running a low power HTPC system etc. Then the sweet spot is even lower at around the 450-500 range. So, if your budget allows (and the prices aren't crazy) I recommend choices like those. IF your build budget is tight however then you can easily put in a 500-550W PSU into a standard gaming rig and it will be more than fine.
 
But do you guys still think if a 550W PSU but its Platinum rated overkilling ? Thermaltake has them , im quite shock to see a Platinum PSU at such a low Wattage !

But i think its only around 120 - 150 USD ( If im not mistaken ) , its quite good price if you ask me. A PSU enough to power up a high end gaming rig ( 1 GPU of course ) and the PSU wont even break a sweat i guess = p

Then back again to having the right PSU , well i never really seen people do 4 X Crossfire / SLI , so not much info about it ,just curious , since 600W can power a 2X Crossfire nicely , if a 4X Crossfire i guess they will need those 1200 - 1500 W ? Or is it still overkilling something less will do ?

What is HTPC and IMHO lol till now i still don't know.

Also the stress test people do in review as you guys mentioned they forced it to the max load , how do they do that actually ? they OC everything till the max power which the PSU could provide ?
 
Platinum means it must have at least 92% efficiency at 50% load and 89% at 100% load. It's explained here in the chart - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/80_PLUS

What efficiency means = Let's say your computer is drawing 400W of power from the PSU, at 92% efficiency that means from the wall outlet the PSU is drawing 434 watts. In other words it's delivering 92% of the power it's drawing from the wall and only "losing" 8% (mostly in the form of thermal energy).

Edit - By the way, HTPC= Home Theater PC, IMHO = In My Humble Opinion
 
Last edited:
Wao i didn't know there is Titanium lol.

That's weird how come there's no 80+ rating for 230 V ? Only from Bronze and onward ??

My country uses 230 , actually its 240.

But how is it consider at 100% load ?

Guys should i get the Silverstone / Seasonic

Silverstone : http://www.phoronix.net/image.php?id=silverstone_strider_500w&image=silverstone_strider500_pkg_show

Seasonic : http://www.seasonicusa.com/images/S12II-Bronze/S12II-Bronze-02.jpg

Because I found a shop selling Seasonic 520W same price as the Silverstone 500W Essential , also this Seasonic model seems to be a Silence PSU
 
Efficiency is slightly higher at 240V.

Seasonic makes PSUs for Corsair, XFX, NZXT, and widely regarded as one of the best PSU manufacturers in the world.
 
Hey guys , 1 more month till my PC build lol.

Then again alot changes again !

Ok they didn't have I5 3450 , i heard they say Intel don't sell them anymore or something?

But doesn't matter he offer me I5 3470 instead for same price and 5 Ringgit cheaper (my money) LOL ! Well which is like 1.50 USD cheaper lol !

Anyways i guess its ok since its a higher model too.

I been thinking hard , do you REALLY requires to OC your system to actually GAME ?

I mean basically like my build now I5 3470 + 7850 1GB OC + 8GB RAM 133mhz , do i need to OC , to play games like BF3 , ULTRA MAX settings ? 1080p , 23" monitor , 1920X1080.

What my cousin told me is that , you don't really need to OC to play games.

Unless you go crazy playing on 3 monitors , or those 40+ " big screen TV. Then yes you will need to to able to support that setup.

So what is it ? I see literally everyone in youtube , here , almost any gamer i guess does OC.

Some basically just told me this , OC = free performance. If your rich , pay more and get a stronger build then you wont need to OC.

Another thing , i found out this interesting PC casing , what you guys thing ? Compare to Silverstone RL01 , this is slightly cheaper.

I think its a local brand , so you cant find any review anywhere. 1 year warranty. Seems unique and nice. What my magazine said is that , it reverse your Mobo position. So your GPU be facing on top and your CPU be on below.

Also it supports up to 5 fans (1 included) like Silverstone RL01 , supports both ATX / Micro ATX. What you guys think , maybe the material of the body isnt good as Silverstone i guess since its a local brand lol.

Casing : X-Five RTX-C2

http://www.x5.com.my/v2/index.php?route=product/product&path=20_100&product_id=166
 
Didn't we answer this in your previous threads?

Regardless, need... no. But you are at overclockers.com. :p
 
lol true true , but i seriously didnt recall about me asking do i need to OC just to play games lol but tks for the reply.

What about the casing what you guys think ?

I calculated abit on my budget , i think i can afford for a 3550 ! What you guys think , or do you think i should just save that 10 USD , its 10 USD more compare with the 3550 and the 3470
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

K
need help choosing a cpu cooler
Replies
8
Views
365
Woomack
W
Norcalsteve
Long time, no fold!--Back at it ;)
2
Replies
27
Views
584
dfonda
dfonda
K
need help choosing a mobo for a build
Replies
2
Views
390
EarthDog
EarthDog
eaglepi
Thinking about buying a new Graphics card would like some opinions
Replies
16
Views
511
eaglepi
eaglepi
dfonda
Down 25mill for a bit
Replies
13
Views
274
dfonda
dfonda
Back