PSU concerns

DeusEx

Banned
Hey guys Ive ordered a new mini gaming PC from PCSpecialist:-

Case: COOLERMASTER ELITE 130 CASE
Processor (CPU): Intel® Core™i7 Quad Core Processor i7-4790k (4.0GHz) 8MB Cache
Motherboard: ASUS® H81I-PLUS: Mini-ITX, LG1150, USB 3.0, SATA 6GBs
Memory (RAM): 8GB KINGSTON DUAL-DDR3 1600MHz (1 x 8GB)
Graphics Card: 3GB AMD RADEON™ R9 280 - DVI, HDMI, mDP - DX® 11.2, Eyefinity
1st Hard Disk: 240GB KINGSTON V300 SSD, SATA 6 Gb (450MB/R, 450MB/W)
Power Supply: CORSAIR 450W VS SERIES™ VS-450 POWER SUPPLY
Processor Cooling: Corsair H55 Hydro Series High Performance CPU Cooler

Its currently in day 1 pre-production, but I cant help keep worrying that i've chosen not powerful enough PSU. The site stated that the 450w would be enough, and estimates the maximum required Power to be 408W. However my last PC had a 550w PSU and was far less powerful (its 10 years old), but i was advised to get a better PSU when I originally purchased it, and I never had trouble with power, unlike my very first PC which had numerous power related problems.

The new rig will most likely be used for mid to high end gaming and some media streaming. I wont be overclocking and I wont be upgrading the GPU or RAM for a couple of years so significant additional power needs wont factor in until then. But I will be adding perhaps 1-2 additional internal hard drives and a dvd writer as soon as I can, along with a m/k, and perhaps a couple of other external USB devices that will need power like a control pad.

The PCS build came to just under £900 which is my budget. I'd be very grateful if someone with more knowledge on the matter could advise on the most reliable (future proof) PSU or any other concerns just in case I need to amend my order and change some components around. Thanks.
 
Last edited:

keynes

Multiverse Poster
If the configurator doesn't show any warning then it would be fine however you are limiting future upgrades. Also the v300 SSD suffers from performance issues, you may want to consider a different one.
 

DeusEx

Banned
Thanks for the reply Keynes. I did a quick google on the kingston v300 but didn't find too much negative, at least no more than any other ssd. The benchmarks look great so im still leaning towards that model, also its within my budget for an ssd, and the other brands are more expensive.

I'm still undecided about the PSU. The site states my mini-PC build will use 408w, so that will leave me with around 40w spare. I guess I just want to be sure that once I've plugged in a PS/2 keyboard, mouse, a USB xbox 360 gamepad controller, and added my old optical dvd writer drive that it'll still be okay for power. Does anyone know what the above wattage is for the items I listed by any chance? (Google isn't really telling me), or is the M/K and jopad included in the motherboards power consumption rating?
 
Last edited:

SpyderTracks

We love you Ukraine
Thanks for the reply Keynes. I did a quick google on the kingston v300 but didn't find too much negative, at least no more than any other ssd. The benchmarks look great so im still leaning towards that model, also its within my budget for an ssd, and the other brands are more expensive.

I'm still undecided about the PSU. The site states my mini-PC build will use 408w, so that will leave me with around 40w spare. I guess I just want to be sure that once I've plugged in a PS/2 keyboard, mouse, a USB xbox 360 gamepad controller, and added my old optical dvd writer drive that it'll still be okay for power. Does anyone know what the above wattage is for the items I listed by any chance? (Google isn't really telling me), or is the M/K and jopad included in the motherboards power consumption rating?

I would also recommend stearing clear of the V300's, they're very expensive for normal HDD performance. Any of the reviews you've seen will have been for the original version which isn't sold anymore. There's an in depth article below, for very little extra money, choose any other model:

http://www.anandtech.com/show/7763/an-update-to-kingston-ssdnow-v300-a-switch-to-slower-micron-nand
 

DeusEx

Banned
Thanks for the article SpyderTracks, I see what Keynes was saying now.

I decided to take your guys advice and swap to the 250GB Samsung 850 EVO SSD. I also decided to put my mind at ease and upgrade the PSU to the CORSAIR 650W VS SERIES™ VS-650 POWER SUPPLY. And to compensate for budget I downgraded my graphics card to the 2GB AMD RADEON™ R9 270X. I'll most likely be replacing this in a couple years anyway. The amendment saved me £1.00. lol

BTW does anybody know what the noise levels are like for the CORSAIR 650W VS SERIES PSU?
I'll be using the mini-pc in the living room so i'd like a reasonably quiet machine. Doesn't have to be whisper quiet as long as it doesn't sound like a wind tunnel, i'll be happy.
 
Last edited:

MiniPCNut

Member
Wouldn't the extra wattage that is not required create unnecessary heat to be dissipated?

You now have a bigger power supply than my Corsair 550W (VS SERIES™ VS-550) and I am running a 4Ghz i7, 16GB of RAM, a 24x Dual Layer DVD Writer, 2x 3.5'' Sata HDD's, a USB wired Razor Mouse (DeathAdder), a wireless Xbox 360 Controller, a backlit keyboard, several big internal fans and a GTX 980 4GB. I haven't had any problems with anything but it is a different Motherboard to your one and an Obsidian 250D case. I have the Asus maximus vii impact Motherboard.

By the way, I think downgrading your GPU was very unwise. You have decreased your graphical power and increased your Power supply to a level you are very unlikely to ever need. The efficiency of todays components are amazing, even die shrinks alone make a huge difference before they have even done anything specific to increase efficiency. They are not to be underestimated.

I was very tempted to buy a bigger power supply than required so I understand the urge but decided against it after research.
 
Last edited:

keynes

Multiverse Poster
A 650w psu would offer more room for upgrades, I think that's a good choice if you plan to upgrade your gpu.
 

DeusEx

Banned
The current build states the Maximum Required Power is 508W, so im not sure i would have much room to upgrade in the future if I downgrade to a 550w. And if i downgrade the PSU, it would only give me £20 to play with, and thats not enough for the next GPU up. And I cannot break my budget.

Having said that, should I be worried about cooling? Ive never had a mini ATX case before, and I have read they tend to get hotter due to less airflow.

I thought about downgrading the processor and upping the GPU instead, but I figured its much less of a hassle to upgrade a GPU in the future than it is a processor.
 

keynes

Multiverse Poster
The current build states the Maximum Required Power is 508W, so im not sure i would have much room to upgrade in the future if I downgrade to a 550w. And if i downgrade the PSU, it would only give me £20 to play with, and thats not enough for the next GPU up. And I cannot break my budget.

Having said that, should I be worried about cooling? Ive never had a mini ATX case before, and I have read they tend to get hotter due to less airflow.

I thought about downgrading the processor and upping the GPU instead, but I figured its much less of a hassle to upgrade a GPU in the future than it is a processor.
If it is mainly forngaming I would go with an i5 and a better gpu. The 650w psu shoildnt generate more heat that 550w.
 

DeusEx

Banned
Hmm. I was going to gamble on the i7 hyper threading technology to become a bigger factor in performance in the future.

The only problem I see with upgrading the GPU to anything better than the R9 270X is that it states on the GPU description page that the radeon R9 280 and above have a minimum 750w PSU requirement (quite expensive). Apparently the Geforce equivalent cards dont have such a high PSU requirement with it being only 500w, unless its a titan.


EDIT: This is the message I got when I changed my PSU.

You have selected a 550W power supply, but based on our calculations you actually only need a 350W power supply. We have calculated your specification to require around 288W of power including a 20% allowance. Although it is not a mandatory requirement to select a lower wattage power supply, doing so will save you money and the last thing we'd like to do is over charge you!

Really confused regarding the PSU now. lol.


EDIT 2: Okay I had a chat with one of the PCS guys and they said I can absolutely trust the PSU pop-up requirement so I downgraded back to a 450w and upped the GPU back to a R9 280, and downgraded the CPU to a I7 4790 3.6ghz, and kept the Samsung SSD. I think this is a much more balanced build.

Thanks guys for all the help. I wouldn't have looked again at any of this if not for your feedback. I really appreciate it. +1 Rep to all.
 
Last edited:
Top