need new power supply, suggestions please

fatcatfatcat Mizzou Icrontian
edited February 2005 in Hardware
~$100

had a antec 430w true for 2yrs 3months and it decided to blow tonight, so i will need an new one. i have about a week before i can buy one, so im looking for suggestions.

system
nf7-s v2
2400m overclocked ~2.3-2.4
512x2
9500 64mb
2x40gb hdd
dvd-rw
cd-rw
2x120mm fans
folding@home 24x7

i can prolly go little over $100 if its worth it...also want a psu that can handle athlon64 down the road. so lemme hear your opinion.
TIA

Comments

  • ThraxThrax 🐌 Austin, TX Icrontian
    edited February 2005
    Seeing as the old 430 lasted for so long, wouldn't it make sense to use another 430 true? Newegg has them for slightly over $80 shipped.
  • fatcatfatcat Mizzou Icrontian
    edited February 2005
    Thrax wrote:
    Seeing as the old 430 lasted for so long, wouldn't it make sense to use another 430 true? Newegg has them for slightly over $80 shipped.

    will it be strong enough to run an athlon64 come xmas time tho? i dont feel like buying another then.
  • ThraxThrax 🐌 Austin, TX Icrontian
    edited February 2005
    Yeah. 430w is more than enough to run SLI 6800 Ultras, the fastest Athlon64 money can buy, 3+ hard drives, 2+ optical drives, a motherboard and 1GB+ in RAM.
  • Geeky1Geeky1 University of the Pacific (Stockton, CA, USA)
    edited February 2005
    And if you really want extra headroom, go for a True550 or TrueControl550...
  • TheLostSwedeTheLostSwede Trondheim, Norway Icrontian
    edited February 2005
    Fatcat, do you use a modded case and/or are you into the looks about the system?
  • MediaManMediaMan Powered by loose parts.
    edited February 2005
    Check out our PSU reviews on the main page...plus I just put another up...just now.
  • muddocktormuddocktor
    edited February 2005
    I see that Newegg also has a few of OCZ psu's in your price range too. They have a ModStream 450 watt for $90 and a Powerstream 420 for $101.50 and a Powerstream 520 for $120. I've read good things about the OCZ psu's at Anandtech.
  • RADARADA Apple Valley, CA Member
    edited February 2005
    Hi Cat,

    My new system is running a Antec Neo-Power 480. I have it hooked up to a ASUS P4C800-E Deluxe MoBo, 160 gig Seagate SATA drive, a Lite-On 52X48X52 CDRW, a Lite-On 16X DVDRW, a BFG 6800 Ultra OC video card, and
    a quad of 80mm fans.

    It runs without a hitch, and is incredibly stable. This power supply got a "KICK ASS" award rating from Maximum PC last month, with only the PC Power and Cooling 510 Deluxe beating it. ( PC P&C 510 is $220++ incedently)
    Love the detachable cables, it has really reduced the clutter inside my new case. (Pics soon! :D )

    I got mine off Newegg a few weeks ago, it was on sale for $95.00 w/ free shipping. Its back up to $125, so you may want to do some searching for a better price.

    Hope this helps,

    RADA
  • rykoryko new york
    edited February 2005
    Everyone has good suggestions here, but if you are looking for something a little different, i would try this Fortron Source psu....

    http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=17-104-934&depa=0

    They are definitly under-rating this thing too. Other manufacturer's could have easily rated it at 600w+. It is also 24pin native and dual 12v rails. :thumbsup:
  • rykoryko new york
    edited February 2005
    MediaMan wrote:
    Check out our PSU reviews on the main page...plus I just put another up...just now.

    I guess i should have checked the main page first!.....good choice of psu though. :cool:
  • MediaManMediaMan Powered by loose parts.
    edited February 2005
    I am quite pleasantly surpised about FSP. They do make PSU's for other companies that shall remain unmentioned.

    I find the FSP branded much more reliable than the cheapy Sparkle name. I've had this particular PSU in the review chugging away for about a month now with no apparent problems.
  • fatcatfatcat Mizzou Icrontian
    edited February 2005
    MackanzOCZ wrote:
    Fatcat, do you use a modded case and/or are you into the looks about the system?

    mack...function over form
    my chenming case looks like a bad hole-saw experience...but i got the 120's keepin it cool. i see someone mentioned OCZ psu, any take on these mr OCZ :)

    i will check out the reviews on the main page.

    on the Fortron, I have heard of them. the link is to a 500w blue storm, but i also see they have a 530w version, any remarks?

    its modular(detachable cables) the way to go these days? like i said i dont need uber looks, just im anal about airflow. also is PFC a smart thing to have?

    thanks for the replies so far guys...only another week without my beloved nf7-s, a new psu is coming baby :bawling:
  • MediaManMediaMan Powered by loose parts.
    edited February 2005
    PFC = Power Factor Control. Applicable to large scale industry users only and power supplies in PCs are only part of a much larger pictures. Big generators or other AC machines can have PFC.

    Read the review for the layman's defintion. A lot of other sites have mistakenly commented that PFC is akin to surge protection...which is 1000000% wrong. It also doesn't make your PSU more "fuel efficient"...eg: a PFC PSU will use less than a non-PFC.

    There's a link in the review to an "expose" on PSUs too.

    Detachable cables? Nahhhh. Look at what you need to connect...what your future growth will be and then look to the how many leads, molex's etc. you need.

    I like Fortron's way they sleeve and shrink wrap their cables though...very tidy. The tidiest I've seen. I've yet to see a noticeable difference between this class of PSU and more popular like ANTEC. (OCers will have other comments too) Best thing you can do...is read a few reviews.

    One thing is clear...though there is debate on which is the best...it becomes pretty apparent and mutually agreed what is the worst. Really cheap PSU's...like DEER..are exactly that...cheap and not worth it.
  • madmatmadmat
    edited February 2005
    With the PSU only being 2yrs old why not RMA it, it is still under warranty unless you've modded it in some way, I know that this won't help you now but you can still use it as a backup.

    I'm a firm believer in Antec PSU's, I've got this True Blue 480w and it's running at just about perfect voltages and my sister's got a True 430w I've modded a pair of LED fans into and it's rock solid as well, it's pretty close to 3yrs old too.

    I think that when it comes time to buy another PSU I'm going to go with the 480 NeoPower Antec, MM might scoff at removable cables but I've got a wad of cables at the top of my case I'd dearly love to just unplug and toss in a drawer.
  • fatcatfatcat Mizzou Icrontian
    edited February 2005
    cant RMA...i opened it the day i got it ;D

    yea i know "the best" is user opinion...but just wanting some opinions since i got a week before i can buy it.

    TIA
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