Curse

cebalrai · May 30, 2008, 06:35 PM // 18:35

Lemme share my experience on my old desktop rig...

Athlon 3200+ single-core @2.2 Ghz
2 HDDs, not RAIDed
GeForce 6800 GS for a while then a 7600 GS (AGP)
1 GB RAM
2 case fans (not that they take much juice)

I blew through one Antec power supply per year for the three years on this rig. They were like 450W, 500W, 500W.

And one of them was a NIGHTMARE to diagnose. Power supply problems often mimic other hardware failures. The PSU is one thing isolated early in the diagnostic process though.

So I went to Circuit City and picked up another PSU... And I got the same problems (random boot failures, randomly not starting at all, then being fine for a while) with the replacement Antec. So that leads me to believe that the PSU isn't the problem so I start swapping out every little chunk of hardware I could get my hands on....

Many hours (like 3 days) later, completely frustrated with my lack of getting anywhere at all, I swapped in an old dusty PSU from some retired desktop. The problems completely cleared up.

So not only did my Antec die, but I actually had recieved a defective one from Circuit City to replace it, making me think it wasn't a PSU issue at all... Man that was a killer problem to fix... Stupid Antec...

So at that point in my life, I was kinda broke and heard a positive review on a cheapie PSU that actually had the watts/amps that my system required.

So I got this off Newegg:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817148027

Before you dismiss this thing as a cheapo piece of junk, read the Newegg reviews. It's been about two years now and this PSU is still giving me excellent performance. It's honestly the best (longest serving anyway) PSU experience I've had in ages, out of like 12 PSUs.

Would I recommend it for a new 8800GTX rig? No. But maybe my experience could be valuable to someone in some way. Antec... They're 0-for-3 with me. And Apevia saved the day.

If I was building a rig I might check this out:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817148012

Read the Newegg user reviews on it and you'll see their customer service reps trying to contact the odd unlucky folks that had a defective unit. Their reps are actually online trying to help their customers in a proactive way. That seems like good service to me... I haven't contacted them directly though since my Apevia runs flawlessly...

Im just some random person on the internet, but take this for what you will...

Lord Sojar · May 30, 2008, 07:28 PM // 19:28

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sab

Rahja the Thief: Awesome advice, a local supplier has a few of those you listed. I'll be sure to invest in PSUs more in the future. Thanks!

My pleasure!

Oh, and Enermax's high end stuff is superb, as is PC Power's offerings. The Enermax Galaxy series are amazing!

@cebalrai: Apevia is an interesting company. They make some really amazing stuff, and they also make the crappiest, most retarded, worst engineered stuff in the known universe. I used to have an Apevia tower with one of their PSUs. It worked pretty well. I donated that PC to a cousin of mine.

@Quaker: Because I am too lazy to do it, maybe you should write a power supply guide! Your post is filled with great info! Are you my clone?

Brianna · May 30, 2008, 07:36 PM // 19:36

Heh yeah, soon we're going to have a guide about every computer part; which isn't a bad idea at all honestly. I expect to get some very detailed information about that GTX 280 soon Rahja.

I know there is more to PSU's, but since I only know basics I can't offer as much info as Quaker and Rahja. None the less, you should be pretty filled now and know what to look for.

I noticed Apevia has some weird PSU's.. like those ones that have all the funky LED lights in them and they cost next to nothing. <.< Not saying that they wouldn't work.. I just wouldn't really buy it, lol.

Lord Sojar · May 30, 2008, 08:05 PM // 20:05

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brianna

Heh yeah, soon we're going to have a guide about every computer part; which isn't a bad idea at all honestly. I expect to get some very detailed information about that GTX 280 soon Rahja.

I know there is more to PSU's, but since I only know basics I can't offer as much info as Quaker and Rahja. None the less, you should be pretty filled now and know what to look for.

I noticed Apevia has some weird PSU's.. like those ones that have all the funky LED lights in them and they cost next to nothing. <.< Not saying that they wouldn't work.. I just wouldn't really buy it, lol.

Take a peek at this badass PSU. It has pretty lights, and a pretty price tag. Probably one of the best PSUs on the market now:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817814011

OMG!!!!!!!!!!! SAB!!!! BUY THIS OFF NEWEGG NOW!! OMG NOW!!! -100 dollars! OMG BUY THIS!

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817703009

OMG!?!?

Blackhearted · May 31, 2008, 03:36 AM // 03:36

Quote:

Originally Posted by IrishCB

Wow , how weird seeing this thread. This just happened in my lab last week. Antec 600w PSU overloaded the PCB and blew the caps.

Antec = Evil
Anyways, 500w should be fine; However I always say look to the future when buying PC parts. Remember everything doubles ~18months, so if 500w is ok for you now, get a 600 just in case you want to upgrade or add another peripheral.

Is that an old slot based athlon?

Sab · May 31, 2008, 08:24 AM // 08:24

Heh, I can't buy anything off Newegg because I live in NZ =P