OOPS... need help deciding how much PSU to buy for current box

[Q.T.Quazar]

erm... somehow i failed to notice that my ThermalTake KK 500 was not a 500W, but rather a very pretty 400W box.

I'm currently running a 8800GT 512MB OCed to 666 MHz Core, Champion Fatality Sound Board (or something--the one with the face plate et al.), on a E6750 OCed to 3.1 GHz--ASRock P45TS-R MoBo (not the greatest, I know)--2G DDR2 800 (5-7-7-24). All of this stable in Prime95 (well, stable at core temps of 110-115 degrees Celsius)--Rivatuner/ATITool/memtest86--powered by this 400W--for the last year.

Somehow, all of this is running, although when I tried recently to OC past 3.1GHz, my system crashes in Prime95 (it boots fine to Vista though)

So...

1. What should I buy for adequate power to power all of this--especially what total wattage? I'd like to get my system up to at least 3.2 GHz, and my next purchase will *likely* be Core i5/i7, so I'd like the PSU to make the upgrade. I don't plan on using SLI/Crossfire in the future, but I may bump up from stock cooling (if I can prove that the current OC problem is my PSU).

2. Can inadequate power cause high heat? My Vcore is only set to about 1.36V. After reading through this forum, I'm surprised my system is even booting.

3. A spontaneous shutdown during Prime95 is most likely caused by insufficient power, or by the thermal threshold being surpassed? This was just during the blend test.

4. Suggestions on a reasonable, mid-range price cooling solution?

Short term, I am looking to mod Oblivion as much as possible with this system, and so am trying to drag up all aspects of performance.

Any and all help appreciated.


edit: forgot to mention, also running two Seagate 7200s and a DVD burner.

 

[RollingThunder]

erm... somehow i failed to notice that my ThermalTake KK 500 was not a 500W, but rather a very pretty 400W box.

I'm currently running a 8800GT 512MB OCed to 666 MHz Core, Champion Fatality Sound Board (or something--the one with the face plate et al.), on a E6750 OCed to 3.1 GHz--ASRock P45TS-R MoBo (not the greatest, I know)--2G DDR2 800 (5-7-7-24). All of this stable in Prime95 (well, stable at core temps of 110-115 degrees Celsius)--Rivatuner/ATITool/memtest86--powered by this 400W--for the last year.

Somehow, all of this is running, although when I tried recently to OC past 3.1GHz, my system crashes in Prime95 (it boots fine to Vista though)

So...

1. What should I buy for adequate power to power all of this--especially what total wattage? I'd like to get my system up to at least 3.2 GHz, and my next purchase will *likely* be Core i5/i7, so I'd like the PSU to make the upgrade. I don't plan on using SLI/Crossfire in the future, but I may bump up from stock cooling (if I can prove that the current OC problem is my PSU).

2. Can inadequate power cause high heat? My Vcore is only set to about 1.36V. After reading through this forum, I'm surprised my system is even booting.

3. A spontaneous shutdown during Prime95 is most likely caused by insufficient power, or by the thermal threshold being surpassed? This was just during the blend test.

4. Suggestions on a reasonable, mid-range price cooling solution?

Short term, I am looking to mod Oblivion as much as possible with this system, and so am trying to drag up all aspects of performance.

Any and all help appreciated.


edit: forgot to mention, also running two Seagate 7200s and a DVD burner.

QT,

You need to reassess your cooling ASAP! You ARE saying your CPU runs to 110 - 115 CELCIUS then shuts down? Not good!

Power Supply Sticky:

http://www.ocforums.com/showthread.php?t=589708

That Corsair VX450 would do just fine but your cooling needs to be fixed right away if it's 110 - 115 C. Check the cooling sections here for what they are using and recommending. Anything on that sticky list @ 450 watts or more if you find a good sale price is ok.

 

[ratbuddy]

110-115? Hehe that might be a record

What case do you have, and what heatsink are you using now?

I'm sure no matter what it is, even slapping a decent but el-cheapo http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835233014 on there would work wonders

 

[Q.T.Quazar]

Just a regular case, and the Stock Core 2 Duo heatsink.

Note that it doesn't *regularly* get to 115--that was only during the Prime95 runs. but yeah, i guess idling close to 60 isn't a great sign.

I'll go pick up a cooling solution tonight. I'm in South China, where most of them are made, and yet finding a good one can be hard.

Thanks for the advice on the PSU. I think I'll move a bit higher into the 500+ range,using the sticky advice on this forum.

 

[ratbuddy]

Just a regular case, and the Stock Core 2 Duo heatsink.

Note that it doesn't *regularly* get to 115--that was only during the Prime95 runs. but yeah, i guess idling close to 60 isn't a great sign.

I'll go pick up a cooling solution tonight. I'm in South China, where most of them are made, and yet finding a good one can be hard.

Thanks for the advice on the PSU. I think I'll move a bit higher into the 500+ range,using the sticky advice on this forum.

How bout this little guy? http://www.newegg.com.cn/Product/35-c03-054.htm

Throw in http://www.newegg.com.cn/Product/77-C30-009.htm (best value for a decent PSU I can find on the egg) and you're all set, even if you go to an i5/i7 with a 5870 or similar.