Power Supply 13 years old, should I be concerned?

[Celeron_Phreak]

As the title says...

I purchased this SeaSonic S12 600W back in 2006 when I built my A64 X2 system and it has held up amazingly...knock on wood....I never expected to get THIS MUCH time out of it. This unit came out when "SLI Certified" was the thing, before 80 Plus became the standard, I think they are similar though.

My system is on 24/7, no sleep or standby shutdown modes enabled, and has always been connected to a good surge protector. I replaced the surge protector a few years back when we had a power outage during a storm, just as a precaution.

I don't game a whole lot anymore, maybe once or twice a year for a few days, but the system doesn't really see a lot of stress. Having a family and career made some changes to my priorities.

The current build on this same PSU is less power hungry than the other builds have been, now that I am running an 4570S i5 (no OCing), and solid state drives, with only one SSHD that is rarely accessed. The most power hungry component now is the GTX 960.


Do I have reason to be concerned? I cannot find a hard ware monitoring app that will show me the voltages to see how stable they are under load, but running benchmarks such as CineBench, Heaven, Valley, Tropics and Superposition don't fail, stutter or cause reboots.

...or, did I just make a good decision with the Lian-Li V1000B case and the SeaSonic PSU, as long term components?

 

[ihrsetrdr]

One rig I built in 2001 is still doing fine on its Enernax PSU; however the machine doesn't get many run hours in these days.

If that machine is your daily driver it probably deserves a fresh PSU.

 

[Celeron_Phreak]

Thats what I was thinking too, since it is my main PC that I use for everything once home from work. I have a nice Dell laptop that I bought about three years back with an i5 and I honestly very rarely use it, it's more of a portable PC to use when doing some out of the house photography.

Anyhow, I'm getting off subject.

While it may deserve a fresh PSU, is it critical to chance it out right now? It has been in use for so long, I'm almost wanting to keep it going to see how long it will last..lol

I blow out the computer using the air compressor with an ionizer every 4-6 months, which it has very little dust when I do.

Details intrigue me, what is the science behind determining if this unit should be replaced?

Here is a snapshot of the BIOS voltage readouts, if it helps at all.

View attachment 204336

 

[Blaylock]

I would replace it. Quality units are not expensive but can do a lot of damage when they fail.

 

[EarthDog]

I would replace at your earliest convenience as well.

 

[Alaric]

I'll pile on with replacing it, too. The old Seasonic can still be a backup on a shelf, it doesn't have to go in the trash.

 

[UltraTaco]

Devils advocate here.
But that psu isn't powering anything recent, so if all goes to taco, he can just upgrade not like he has rtx card and latest i7 9700 ?

 

[Alaric]

Devils advocate here.
But that psu isn't powering anything recent, so if all goes to taco, he can just upgrade not like he has rtx card and latest i7 9700 ?

Killing stuff because it isn't new? Don't let grandma hear that kind of talk. LOL

edit: Holy @#&! I'm blue!

 

[UltraTaco]

No, I never said that, don't tell gram'ma Lou. Overclocking is killing; running stuff on risky equipment is just being adventurous, besides, we don't even know, it might last another decade

 

[RollingThunder]

CP,

I'm from the 'other' school using two 13 year old Corsair HX520's on two mild E series Intel over clocks. I check voltage often with a multi-meter and both these units are still 12.10V power supplies after 13 years. These were top-end testers by our own Oklahoma Wolf back then. Since I'm not a high end clocker anymore "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."

 

[Celeron_Phreak]

CP,

I'm from the 'other' school using two 13 year old Corsair HX520's on two mild E series Intel over clocks. I check voltage often with a multi-meter and both these units are still 12.10V power supplies after 13 years. These were top-end testers by our own Oklahoma Wolf back then. Since I'm not a high end clocker anymore "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."

Glad to see you are still around RollingThunder! Whatever happened to Oaklahoma Wolf?

I suppose part of me is in that mindset as well. It has been running great thus far, not showing any signs of dying, I don't see a real need to replace it right away. New similar wattage units by SeaSonic are about $60-$70 cheaper than what I paid for this one, and manufacturers have a habit of lessening quality over time from what I have seen, which also makes me nervous to replace it with a new unit.

This is a similar approach to my 1996 Jeep Grand Cherokee that I daily drive. 257k miles, original motor and transmission, everything else has been serviced or rebuilt, but it keeps on keeping on without a skip, and I trust it with 600 mile work trips 5-6 times a year!

 

[Alaric]

Buying high quality PSUs to start with is definitely the first step. I should probably start looking at replacing my daughter's PSU. That CX750M is pushing 7 years on the job now.

 

[RollingThunder]

I'm not saying "Don't replace it" just run a MM check in a 12V and 5V connector from time to time on idle and under a load. Get a benchmark and if it goes under that it would be time to make the switch. Now that's just my unprofessional opinion but at the time the Corsair HX520/HX620 series were the best modulars available according to OW.

OW is still with us but not as active as before.

 

[Alaric]

Yeah, OW retired from jonnyguru last November, I believe. I have PM'd him with questions before, and got pretty quick responses. His writing is definitely missed.

 

[Niku-Sama]

I say leave it.
you've been up on keeping the dust out and thats usually what i see kill the things.

as an example, prebulits (so lower quality parts to start off with)

I "lost" 2 hp workstations at work in the last few weeks because of power supply failures.
these units were just as old, if not older than yours, shoved under desks, never cleaned, never turned off and of course, never backed up.

one went full dante's inferno on us big scorch marks in the top of the case, killed all the drives but with a new PSU it posted still. Regardless its in the recycle pile
2eccond not so bad, just a bunch of smoke, a PSU replacement would resurrect it to full working order but it still wound up in recycle pile due to age

you've got a quality unit and regular upkeep i cant imagine its going to pop soon but still take a meter to it like others suggested, its good insurance

 

[UltraTaco]

Chances are itll last another good 10 yrs!
My old no name psu from '99 is still charging lipos long after the rest of PC is gone.

 

[Celeron_Phreak]

Okay, so I did some meter readings off of the unit, here is what I have

12V in multiple points, coming from each run - 12.33 - 12.34 idle, under load 12.32 - 12.33

5V in multiple points, coming from each run - 5.12 - 2.13 idle, under load 5.11-5.12

3.3V testing each 3.3v wire - 3.31-3.33, same for load

These numbers seem familiar to me though, if my memory serves me right, it used to push out 12.36 at the most, on the 12V rails, and 5.14 or 5.15 on the 5V rail. I would need to dig out my build documentation from 2006 to be sure though.

 

[Alaric]

That's some pretty solid voltage.

 

[storm-chaser]

Yeah I say keep it. Power supplies built with quality in mind can last if treated properly and it sounds like you've don't just that.

I have an Antec 650W PSU that is close to 10 years old and it's never missed a beat. Then again I'm not a heavy gamer nor am I an extreme overclocker (I wish).

Of the school of thought If it isn't broken, don't fix it. And you have good #s to back it up.

 

[wingman99]

My HX 620 is 11 years old still running everyday strong. I'm from the school of thought if it's not broken don't fix it.