• From: Manchester
  • Registered: 2006-11-03
  • Posts: 9,993

Topic: Power Supply Suggestions?

Hey guys,

Just wanted a quick spot of PC advice, I had some trouble with my PC a while back and took it in for repairs, the issue involved a problem with the motherboard and my G-card, they fixed the motherboard, but said the G-card issue was unfixable, and though it would work for a while it would eventually need to be replaced.

Well to cut a long story short, I've bought a new card (a Radeon HD 4870) for when this gives out, and my timing such as it is for a change, it looks like I got there just in time, as this one is starting to get twitchy. Of course it is never that simple and there is still a problem, my new card requires 2 6 pin PCI-E connectors which my current power supply doesn't support. So the quandary is. Should I just get a different G-card that doesn't require this? Or upgrade my power supply to one that does? I'm looking at Micro Direct right now, but I don't know a good one from a bad one to be honest. All I know is that I'm looking for a minimum of 500W, and of course the 2x6 pin PCI-E connectors.

So, has anyone got any suggestions of what might be a good brand that won't let me down, but also won't break the bank? Looking at them in general they don't look too expensive, so this might be a good move rather than downgrading to a new card that doesn't need these connectors.

I'll post the links to the ones I'm currently considering.

http://www.microdirect.co.uk/Home/Produ … d-12v-800T

http://www.microdirect.co.uk/Home/Produ … m-Pro-500W

Cheers in advance,

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  • CAAM
  • CAAM
  • FirstStrike Stress Tester
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  • From: Ft. Lauderdale, Florida
  • Registered: 2006-07-25
  • Posts: 543

Re: Power Supply Suggestions?

Just wondering, I bought a GFX card not too long ago and it came with a 4-pin to 6-pin adapter.

Does your current supply meet the Watt requirements? Then maybe you don't need to buy one right now.

The only thing is I looked at some Radeon HD 4870s and from the pics I've seen, it looks like you need two 4-pin leads available to make one 6 pin.  Meaning you'd have to have 4 of them free!

Of the links you posted, I like the looks of the 800W one but I'm not too familiar with that brand. The OCZ had good overall user ratings on a US site here. (Newegg.com)

Heh, Let me know if your lights dim when you turn your PC on after that upgrade. smile

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3 Reply by FSDev| TALON (edited by FSDev| TALON 2009-12-23 09:41:10)

  • From: Manchester
  • Registered: 2006-11-03
  • Posts: 9,993

Re: Power Supply Suggestions?

Hi Caam, cheers for the swift response. My current power supply has enough 4 pins to do that with the adaptor, but it is a 350W so that will be a major issue. Needs to be at least a 500W to run it, thing is with the material  that came with the G-card it says not to run it through 4 pin to 6 pin adaptors which is the main reason I'm looking at power supplies with the 2x6 pin config.

Going the OCZ route this looks a little better than the one I was looking at, and a little cheaper to boot.

http://www.microdirect.co.uk/Home/Produ … ear-Direct

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  • Twigs
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  • Registered: 2007-09-28
  • Posts: 4,233

Re: Power Supply Suggestions?

2 6 pin PCI-E?? Something sounds very wrong there. Typically your motherboard requires an extra voltae rail, with one slot on the card, usually 6 or 4 pin. If it has two, thats sometimes required for Crossfire support, you should only need to provide the extra voltage to one slot.

Any particular place you are looking to purchase from? Try to stick to decent brand names and don't be tempted to buy cheap. Get modular design if you can, these let you only plug in the leads you require, all the others get left in the box saving space and improving cooling.

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  • From: Manchester
  • Registered: 2006-11-03
  • Posts: 9,993

Re: Power Supply Suggestions?

Looking at Mirco Direct, they're usually pretty good, and have a shop in town so I can just pop in and collect if they have it in stock.

And yeah, it has requirements of 500W power supply with 2x75W 6 pin PCI-E connectors. (600W and 4x6 pin connectors for ATI CrossFireX tech in dual mode)

The card came with adaptors so you could plug 4x4-pins into the 2x6, but it didn't work, but that'll be because of the lower wattage than neccessary power supply, either way I'm gonna need a power supply upgrade.

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  • Twigs
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Re: Power Supply Suggestions?

Ah, if they are in town mate best bet is to just go it, tell them what you need and let them reccomend a couple. If you take your card in as well to show them what connectors you need they may even open one up so you can check it is exactly what you require.

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  • From: Manchester
  • Registered: 2006-11-03
  • Posts: 9,993

Re: Power Supply Suggestions?

Went with this one in the end...

http://www.microdirect.co.uk/Home/Produ … ear-Direct

Seems suitably high end, reasonably cheap, and has all the bits I need. Gonna rip my PC open tomorrow and install all this junk after I've backed up anything that may need backing up tonight.

Oh well, fun, fun, fun.

tongue

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