Computer Upgrade Process

Transfer the data you plan to keep to your external hard drive first. Be certain to backup all encryption keys as well. Also, be sure the data has not been corrupted during the transfer. You can use Windiff for this purpose.

http://www.mediafire.com/?q4itqumlzfg
(File>Compare directories)


What is the brand name and model of the power supply you intend to use?

I would remove most, if not all hardware from the case. Clean an empty case in any way your desire, just make sure it's good and dry before replacing components. Replace the PSU first. Mount the CPU, heatsink and fan to the motherboard outside of the case. Mount the RAM. Replace the motherboard, taking care to count and align the case standoffs correctly. Mount hard drives and optical drives. Install the video card and any other PCI/PCI Express cards. Connect SATA, power, and any other cables, keeping all of them well away from spinning fans. Lastly, power it up.

The power supply is an Antec 430W True power trio model TP3-430

Edited by huskyTdubbs, 24 March 2010 - 11:24 PM.

Going strictly from published specs, the TP3-430 should be able to power your new hardware. My concern is with the quality of the internal components in the unit and how long it will last under loaded conditions.

a test system with higher specs ( i7 920 @ 4.0Ghz ...6 GB of ram) than your proposed system but used the 5770 like your using only drew 251 WATTS under full load for the whole system at the wall...
the only question I have is how old is the Antec 430W

@happyrock:

Interesting. I read of a slightly OCed system with the i5 750 and the HD 5770 drawing 251W from a loaded system. I really don't see this PSU getting 16A each on all three +12V rails, therefore I would not push it too hard.

the TruePower Trio TP3-430 is 80 PLUS Certified...
and 251 Watts is only 57.7% of the 430 ...it leaves a little headroom...about 23%
my only concern would be if its 3 or 4 years old...
if thats the case I would replace it just be on the safe side

Thanks for the info, I think I'm going to end up building a new system from the ground up.

I was thinking of starting from scratch and using slightly cheaper components. My primary uses will be downloading/streaming audio/video, watching/burning DVD/BD, and video encoding. I will be hooking the system up to a samsung 120hz LCD. Will the following list serve my purposes adequately, and will I be able to view with 1080p? I plan on adding a Blu Ray drive and a tuner card later.


MOBO/CPU:Gigabyte GA-H55M-S2H Motherboard/Intel Core i5 650 combo

GPU:none/integrated

MEMORY:OCZ PC3-10666 Platinum RAM - 4GB

HD:Western Digital WD15EARS Caviar Green Hard Drive - 1.5TB

CASE/PSU:Apevia X-Master Desktop HTPC Case - Front USB, Firewire, Audio ports with 500-Watt Power Supply