[Oberon75]

Let me start with a little background: I used to sell computers (11 years ago) so I'm at least slightly knowledgeable about them. My current PC is a 7 year old Dell that got dropped in a move (the faceplate was destroyed, but all of the components still work...somehow), so the guts have been moved to an Apevia X-Alien case. I'm in the process of getting the parts to build a machine capable of running an operating system that will still be supported for a few years (Win7 64), and have most of the components selected. The one thing that has me totally stumped is the PSU. The only gaming I do is things along the lines of Age of Empires, Sims, nothing too graphically intensive.

Here's the system so far:
Apevia X-Alien Case
ASUS Sabertooth X58 MOBO
Intel i7 950
Corsair XMS 12GB (6x2) DDR3
XFX HD555-ZNF2 graphics card
320 GB Samsung Spinpoint (for the OS only)
Western Digital Caviar Black 1.5TB (everything else)
Thermaltake CLP0554 CPU Fan

I'm getting dizzy looking at all of the power supplies. Modular is a necessity (I want to be able to have only the connections I need inside the case!) but having an issue finding the right one. (Is there no such thing as a modular PSU that the only permanent connections are the MOBO & CPU power connections? With only one GPU, why would I want 4 PCIe power cables hard mounted to the power supply?) How much is too much power? What is too little? I've been eyeballing 850w-1100w models, but in trying to stay under 150$, it aint easy! I don't really care if it has LEDs or not. Don't care if it has transparent panels to be able to see all of the things inside that I can't ever get to. As my case has a clear side panel, I'd prefer it looks good rather than a plain aluminum chassis. But the really important thing is that I get a good quality PSU that's going to last me a long time, be modular, and not break the bank!

HELP!!!

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The Corsair 650HX fits your needs perfectly.

[stettybet0]

The Corsair 650HX fits your needs perfectly.

[Oberon75]

The Corsair 650HX fits your needs perfectly.

I'm trying to steer clear of Corsair PSUs. Not because there's anything wrong with them. It's like buying a Kohler toilet, you pay double just because of the brand, not because it's twice as reliable.

Anybody heard anything about the 800w Kingwin Mach 1? I can't find any real feedback on it, and it looks/sounds like just what I'm wanting!

[Neil Jones]

The concept of spending money on a power supply comes down now only to the brand but also the likelihood of what happens when said PSU finally falls over.

When a PSU decides to blow, the quality of the components inside them determine the rest of the life of the system. In serious cases with ultra-dirt-cheap power supplies they are known to take the entire rest of the system out with them.
At least one brand of power supply that's found in a common desktop branded machine lasts three years, malfunctions and literally cooks the rest of the system with it, eventually killing the main board.

The reviews of the KingWin PSU you mention on Newegg seem pretty positive, the only difference it would appear to have over the Corsair listed above is the fact it's modular, which is great for cable clutter inside the machine.

[stettybet0]

When it comes to PSUs, you definitely can't just go by the specs. The most important function of the PSU is to deliver sufficient, reliable, and clean power to your computer. The specs alone can't tell you if the PSU will do this.

I invite you to read the results of tests conducted on the Kingwin ABT-800MA1S (Mach 1 800W) and the Corsair HX620 (the predecessor of the HX650). The Corsair unit is simply a much better PSU overall, delivering much cleaner power much more efficiently. I just linked you to the conclusions of the articles, but I invite you to read the entire reviews. One thing of note I saw was how the Kingwin unit does not even follow the ATX12v specifications, which means it can deliver power at voltages so far outside what computer components are designed to accept, it could damage them.

Given how the Corsair HX650 is $100 after mail-in rebate, and the Kingwin ABT-800MA1S is $117 including shipping, it really makes no sense to go with the Kingwin PSU, even from an absolute price standpoint, disregarding the fact that it still would be very worth it to pay extra for the Corsair PSU if necessary.

[iammykyl]

(Is there no such thing as a modular PSU that the only permanent connections are the MOBO & CPU power connections? With only one GPU, why would I want 4 PCIe power cables hard mounted to the power supply?)
HELP!!!

No. Modular PSUs usually start off with, fixed 24pin ATX, 4 pin ATX 12v, for the Mobe.
1 x 8 pin PCI-E, Video.
1 Molex cable with 3 connectors and possible 1 floppy connector.
1 SATA cable with 3 connectors.
Plus a varying bundle of loose cables.

Your build is modest so will happily run with a 450w PSU but does not leave you much headroom if you decide to upgrade the video card (your selected card gets it power directly from the MObo, so does not even need the PCI-E cable) A higher wattage PSU could be used in another build. Here is a comparison page >
http://www.newegg.co...^17-379-005-S01 We all have our favourites, mine is Antec but you must ultimately choose.

You might like to look at your ram again. I do not know if your system will benefit for having much above 8GB.

[Oberon75]

Potential for upgrading is the reason I was aiming so high on power. At the moment the one I'm really eyeballing is the XFX Black Edition 750, but I'm currently reconsidering most of the components, so I'll keep ya'll posted.