Power Requirements?

[SuperDave1685]

Hey there guys. I couldn't get a response in the video card forums, so I figured I'd ask here My system is in my sig. I'm looking to upgrade to a x1900XT or XTX. Ati's website says they recommend a 450W PSU with 30A on the 12v rail... I was wondering if my Antec Neo480 is going to be enough power for this beast of a card, especially when I overclock it.. Any thoughts?

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[Super Nade]

I would not advise it, but you can try. You must absolutely ensure that your case is cool or your PSU may give way with a bang. The XTX has a propensity to raise ambient temps by quite a bit

 

[burebista]

You'll be fine. In picture below system was powered by an S-12 330 (Connect3D X1900XTX voltages 1.575/2.22/2.12/1.58, 1.73 Vcore, 3.7V RAM).

 

[Dave65]

Hey there guys. I couldn't get a response in the video card forums, so I figured I'd ask here My system is in my sig. I'm looking to upgrade to a x1900XT or XTX. Ati's website says they recommend a 450W PSU with 30A on the 12v rail... I was wondering if my Antec Neo480 is going to be enough power for this beast of a card, especially when I overclock it.. Any thoughts?

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Id take Super Nades advise,I have a Neo Power 480,I don't know what the X1900XT uses amp wise,but my EVGA 8800GTX when I added it the 480 could not keep up.

 

[SuperDave1685]

Well according to MBM, the voltages look ok on my PSU.. I think I'll buy an OCZ Powerstream 520, but go ahead and try my Neo480 just to see if it can... if it can, then I'll just return the 520, if not, well OCZ here I come! Dave65- I think the 8800GTX uses quite a bit more amps and power than the X1900XTX, no? If you still have your X1900XT, could you throw it in and give her a test run to see if she can hold up?

 

[Super Nade]

The issue is not so much as the power requirement of the card (your unit will do fine on paper), but with the reliability of older CWT built Antec units. These have the dreaded Fujjhuyu caps in them, which go out with a bang at elevated temperatures. This is very much the danger with a toasty hot x1900xtx.

 

[SuperDave1685]

SuperNade, could you elaborate on the CWT issue? Is that a company that built Antec's PSUs? I'm assuming that they built my particular PSU then if you're mentioning them.. Is there anyway I can tell which caps my PSU has in it (ie taking it apart)? The back of my PSU is already quite warm- you think I could mount a fan on the back of my PSU to help it keep cool?.. my PWMC (or however you spell it) usually sits around 51C... is that safe? I have a DFI SLI-DR, and my video card uses the first PCI-E slot (closest to the cpu). With that bigass cooler on the card (the one that exhausts the hots air outside the case), how can that raise temps enough to blow my PSU?

 

[SuperDave1685]

http://www.ocforums.com/showthread.php?t=480349

Just a quick question SuperNade.. you think this PSU will fit the bill ok?

 

[funnyperson1]

Yea the CWT built Antec powersupplies mostly use shoddy capacitors as SuperNade pointed out. It is easy to see what capacitors you have by taking the PSU apart, simply undo the 4 screws on the top and pull the cap off the PSU. You should see these small cylinders with Fuhyjiyyu written on them.

What you are looking for is something that looks like those things you see in the 3rd picture on this page that shows the inside of the power supply:
http://www.jonnyguru.com/review_details.php?id=33

What SN said about these caps not liking heat is well documented. My Ultra X-Connect which spit hot fire out the back died recently and when I opened it up sure enough there were some blown Fuhjiyyu caps.

Your PSU can handle that card, but I would either get it recapped (may not be worth the trouble, but it is a nice way to learn some soldering if you aren't too concerned about the PSU itself), or upgrade the fan to something more powerful.

Of course the safest action here is to just get a new PSU. The Enhance 5150GH is $76 shipped from eWiz and is a great choice for under $100. That would definitely be enough as long as you don't want to go Crossfire with that video card.

edit:
I just saw the PSU you proposed above, and the answer is that it would likely have the same problem as your current PSU because it also uses the Fuhjiyyu caps which don't like heat. It would probably work fine for a while, but I'm just not confident in the long-term survival of that PSU.

 

[SuperDave1685]

Whats the rating on that Ehance? (watts) What do ya think about the one I posted a link to in the classifieds funny?

 

[funnyperson1]

That Enhance is 500W, and it seems like its internals are identical to the one you see reviewed here:
http://www.jonnyguru.com/review_details.php?id=23

I just checked mine which is sitting downstairs, and the amp ratings were indeed identical to that Silverstone in the review.

On top of being excellent at supplying power, the Enhance/Silverstone units are 80% efficient or better meaning that you will save yourself, or the US govt. some money on power (not sure if you're living on base lol).

The TP550 you posted is still built by ChannellWellTech and still uses those Fuhjiyyu caps which dislike heat (kind of like the heat put out by an X1900). It would work fine for a while, and likely die eventually. From what I have read from JonnyGuru and people like Ok. Wolf and SN, the CWT units are solid power supplies, but the caps make them prone to failure.

 

[Oklahoma Wolf]

SuperNade, could you elaborate on the CWT issue? Is that a company that built Antec's PSUs? I'm assuming that they built my particular PSU then if you're mentioning them.. Is there anyway I can tell which caps my PSU has in it (ie taking it apart)?

CWT is the OEM for the Neo 480. Below I have a pic of that very model outside its case... look at the caps on the far left side of the pic next to those three coils and see if any are bulging or leaking.

 

[SuperDave1685]

ouch.... thanks OKlahoma for the picture... Do you think if I could get a fan on that 550W PSU in the classifieds that it would survive the heat from a X1900?

 

[Oklahoma Wolf]

Maybe - cooling is the biggest problem with these. However, I would have reservations about buying something used that I knew was full of Fuhjyyu unless I had capacitors to recap it with.

 

[Super Nade]

For anybody who is interested, Wolf is doing a recap of that unit and a detailed test to study the effects of a recap. Looking forward to your results Wolf.

 

[SuperDave1685]

Now to recap it, what brand of capacitors do you use? I'm leaning towards buying that PSU in the classies just because I've had my Neo480 for well over a year now and its been run 24/7 since day one at almost full load and has never hiccupped. I think that if I can keep it cool enough, she will be OK, as has my Neo480, which people bashed me for getting as well. I plan on ventilating the X1900 really well and I run my PC without the side on it, so I honestly don't think heat buildup will be too much of a problem.. And if she does die, well at least yall can laugh at me and say "I told you so!" lol

 

[Oklahoma Wolf]

Actually, I'm running into a huge headache finding replacement caps for this thing. The Neo 480 uses 10mm diameter caps in high values, and most of the good Japanese replacements don't go that skinny at or even close to the same values. I may be looking at trying to shoehorn 12.5mm caps into there, and it may not work. Fortunately, jonnyGURU has some connections that may provide the correct diameters. But this doesn't look good for the average DIY'er who wouldn't have these contacts

Older CWT units usually have enough room for 12.5mm, and there are spots in the Neo they will fit without too much hassle, but the ones up against the coils are a nightmare.

I use Panasonic FM/FC and United Chemi-Con KY for replacements usually.

 

[Super Nade]

Wolf, maybe someone over at badcaps may be able to help. You could contact BigPope or one of the other regulars. I would use UCC/NCC whenever possible. For motherboards, I would prefer the Sanyo/Oscon series.

 

[Oklahoma Wolf]

Yeah... I'm debating trying to use 12.5mm anyway though just to give people hope that it's actually possible. Might end up having to shave the secondary heatsink down a bit so I can move the coils a bit more to the right. Would rather not though.

 

[Super Nade]

Depending on how those secondary caps are wired, you could replace the ones in parallel with a single larger equivalent. Have you looked into the Sanyo/Oscon Aluminum types? They seem to have a few 10mm ones in there. What values are you looking at? > 470 uF ?

http://www.secc.co.jp/retri_e/al_rlt_index_e.html