I would like your experiences on this

[Pennarin]

About this article: http://www.overclockers.com/articles1452/

Which basically says a system that looks like it would need, say, 700 or 1000W, in fact, even under load, needs about 400...

Experienced this, anyone? Measured it? The article mentions the tester as a member of this very forum.

 

[KillrBuckeye]

Yes, mcoleg had a very long thread about his experiment before it became a front page article. There were MANY doubters at the beginning. People were predicting that his system would be very unstable or that the PSU would blow up. However, the results of his testing clearly show that the 380W Antec PSU was plenty for his mid-to-high end gaming rig, even under heavy load. I'm not sure if he still has this rig up and running--I haven't seen mcoleg around here lately--but I'd be curious to know if he has experienced any problems.

I haven't done any testing myself, but I can say that my Fortron AX500-A (~480W) has been PLENTY for the rig in my sig, even though many people here would recommend more powerful units. I think for any rig running a single video card, a quality 400-500W PSU is all that is needed, although some people like to get more powerful units for peace of mind. When you get into multiple video card set ups, the choice of PSU becomes more critical.

 

[Pennarin]

I will run one, and eventually two, 9800+ cards, perhaps 9900.

My rig is in my sig. What do you suggest?

 

[ratbuddy]

I will run one, and eventually two, 9800+ cards, perhaps 9900.

My rig is in my sig. What do you suggest?

9900 ain't out yet, who knows how much power it's gonna use up? A safe bet would be any honestly rated 650+ watt PSU. If you already have that 1kw unit, you'll be fine..

 

[Section8]

Yeah the Thermaltake line of PSU's are top notch. I highly recommend them.