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What happens if you don't have enough power from the power supply?


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#1
jackflash1991

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What happens if you don't have enough power from the power supply? I was thinking about adding some things onto my computer and was wondering what are the effects of not having enough power from the power supply? Do things just slow down or do they just stop working all together?
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#2
Neil Jones

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Depends on the unit. Most decent ones will just stop working one day or not power up at all as soon as they realise they need to supply more power than they can.
How big is your current power supply? At least 400w is recommended, you can never have too much. What devices were you planning to add?
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#3
jackflash1991

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I have a 500 Watt and I was planing on adding just another fan and maybe in the future a better video card or new processer. But for now it is just a fan and I was wondering if I don't have enough power then will my computer slow down at all?
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#4
Neil Jones

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Another fan won't kill it.
Depending on what graphics card you have now and what card you want to replace it with (likewise for the processor) then an upgrade for power may not be needed.
In terms of power, the only real issue you see with them (aside from either they work or they don't) is the issue of fluctuating voltages. Basically there are different "rails" of different voltages and if one of these goes down then you find that an item powered by that rail either doesn't work at all or works intermittently.
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#5
jackflash1991

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Thanks! :whistling:
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