[the kazman]

i am planning on buying a new computer, and i don't know what power supply i should get in terms of Watts. I have seen many ranging from 400W to 1200W. I would say that i use my computer fairly intensively because i do a lot of video editing, rendering, exporting etc. My question is what would be the sufficient amount of Watts for a power supply that i should get, and also what is a good brand of power supply. Thanks.

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Order of brand names that are best:
PC power and cooling
Silverstone
Antec

Those are the best in the business and they are usually the most reliable.
The only way I can determine whats best for your rig is if you list your components.
Anything over 850W is overkill regardless of what you have, with few exceptions.
600W-650W is usually the sweet spot for most build, but depending on your graphics card you may need more.
Also look into how many AMPS are on the 12V as this is very important for your graphics card, make sure there is no less the 18A.
James

Edited by james_8970, 07 June 2007 - 04:48 PM.

[james_8970]

Order of brand names that are best:
PC power and cooling
Silverstone
Antec

Those are the best in the business and they are usually the most reliable.
The only way I can determine whats best for your rig is if you list your components.
Anything over 850W is overkill regardless of what you have, with few exceptions.
600W-650W is usually the sweet spot for most build, but depending on your graphics card you may need more.
Also look into how many AMPS are on the 12V as this is very important for your graphics card, make sure there is no less the 18A.
James

Edited by james_8970, 07 June 2007 - 04:48 PM.

[Neil Jones]

Brand names to avoid regardless of wattage:

Bestec
Q-Tec (not to be confused with QTechnology who make some decent and quiet power supply units)
Liteons, quite often found in HP machines, tend to be better than Bestec and are hit and miss. Best avoided.

[the kazman]

here is a list of my proposed specs for my new computer:

CPU= Intel E6700
Motherboard/Chipset= Intel P35
Video Card= NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GTS 320mb
Hard Drive=
1.Western Digital Raptor WD1500ADFD 150GB SATA Hard Drive
2.Seagate SATA 500GB
3.Seagate SATA 160GB x2 (RAID 0)

RAM= Corsair 2GB (2 x 1GB Kit) (TWIN2X2048-6400) PC-6400 DDR2 RAM
Monitor= 22"Acer AL2216WD
Speakers= Logitech x-530
Case= Thermaltake Soprano DX VE7000BWS

Any recommendations for what PSU Wattage/Brand?

Edited by the kazman, 10 June 2007 - 07:02 PM.

[james_8970]

Whats your budget,
This is what I recommend
http://www.newegg.co...N82E16817256021 $150 (Very good for the money, having all the A on one 12V rail is a large bonus)
http://www.newegg.co...N82E16817371001 $130
http://www.newegg.co...N82E16817371002 $100

On a PSU calculator you are estimated to take in around 450W at load, I recommend a minimum of 100W over your load point.
Choose whatever fits your budget.
James

Edited by james_8970, 07 June 2007 - 07:57 PM.

[the kazman]

so 650W would be enough for my computer specs?

[james_8970]

For sure, with room to upgrade in the future, though there aren't enough amps for SLI or crossfire. Though I don't recommend SLI of xfire anyways.
James

Edited by james_8970, 07 June 2007 - 09:10 PM.

[the kazman]

thanks for your help

[the kazman]

Whats your budget,
This is what I recommend
http://www.newegg.co...N82E16817256021 $150 (Very good for the money, having all the A on one 12V rail is a large bonus)

Isn't having more rails better for stabilty and overload prevention?

[james_8970]

Depends on the amount of amps it has this could be true. However this power supply has 54A on the rails which translates into better stability.

As far as overload prevention goes I not 100% on this, but I don't think it has anything to do witht the rails but the features that the overall power supply contains. But again I could be wrong on this.
James

[the kazman]

i dont think the SilverStone Decathlon DA750 is sold in Australia. Would a Silverstone Strider 750w ST75F be a somewhat equivalent of the Decathlon? Or is there something better?

Edited by the kazman, 10 June 2007 - 02:33 AM.

[james_8970]

Striders are slightly more due to it being modular. What this means it that you can remove cables from the power supply if there is no need for them thus increasing air flow.
Here's a review for it if you like.
http://www.overclock..._750w_st75f_psu
Voltages don't regulate and it has a efficiency greater then 80% which is a large plus.
James

[james_8970]

opps posted the information here for your motherboard thread

Edited by james_8970, 10 June 2007 - 09:58 AM.

[the kazman]

its come down to either the Silverstone Strider ST75F, or the Silverstone Zeus ST75ZF. Both are roughly the same price. But i cant decide which one. i have read the reviews, and they both seem equally as good. What are the pros and cons of each? Any recommendations on which one to choose?

Edited by the kazman, 10 June 2007 - 07:03 PM.