What are the signs of an inadequet power supply?

[BillHarrison]

I am running an Asus A7m266d with 2 tbred 1700+ chips oc'd to 2100 mhz. I cant get them much higher, and am not having any problems with temps (38-40c under load). I have noticed, that when I start a CPU intensive program IE prime95, I can actually hear a "tone" change in the fans, as if the power draw is making them sound different.

I am wondering if my power supply is not up to the task. It is a "generic" 435watt power supply. The specs on this board only call for a 400watt, but my 5 volt hovers around 4.87.

Is this a sign that even though it "meets" the specs it still doesnt have the oomph? I can get a "trupower" of a bit higher wattage if that may help the problem

THanks!

Bill

 

[repo man11]

4.87 is acceptable, but getting a little low. With mine, a Heroichi 350 watt, it will sometimes drop as low as 4.84. Sometimes a little lower, which virtually always results in a reboot. My PSU has never prevented me from getting more out of my CPU, but I've had to back down the OC that I maintain because of its limitations. If you are at your limit, and the PSU never drops below 4.87, I don't think I would put replacing it on the top of your priority list.

 

[deathstar13]

i go by whatching mbm voltage sensor and slam on prime and whatch how far the voltages fluctuate.

this even becouse a bigger problem when you start using high vcore and other high voltage options on the mobo.

my 8rda was maxed on every voltage settings and added some volt mods also.my psu was choking badly and needed replaced.
swinged from 4.92 idle to 4.7v load.

on my current a7n8x which doesnt have so many high voltage options the psu is just fine.

so i say its a case to case issue.
but if you see those big swings from idle to load id replace it and yes it can hurt ocing as running a cpu@ full load and 4.7v the cpu isnt getting the necesary voltage it needs.

 

[dave4925]

yeah, just use a quality PSU and save the rest of your components health.

 

[eeglot]

you definately have some of the signs of a PS that is struggling. Those Generic PS that come with a case for example are junk, I dont care what wattage they are rated for.

I had the exact same sysmptoms as you, and I replaced the PS with an Antec True Power 430 watt. Awesome piece. No more pitch changes when rendering graphics

DO yourself a favor and get a good PS,a nd forget about it.

 

[boffin2163]

the q-tecs are cheap and pritty good for the price