Andy

im building a new computer, and i was wondering if the wattage on the PSUs really makes that big of a difference. im going with an amd 2800 and was going for a 350/400.

anyone suggest any place i can get one cheap also? im currently looking at novatech and pc rack for most of my parts - my friends gave good reviews.

Erbmaster

You haven't said where you hail from, so it's hard to recommend stores, but personally, i'd go for at least 400W. More if you can afford it - Better futureproofing that way.

I have 480W Antec TruePower and can heartily recommend one.

Also include your specs on yer Profile m8. It'll make it easier to see if ur running 1 drive with a DVD rom, or you have a RAID with 3 other IDE devices (i.e. you'll need more power.)

Yep, people like me read yer profile. Not cause we are sad losers as you indicate, but in order to help you with your problem (There's a space for yer specs!!)
Best polish those glasses matey !.

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Andy

these are the parts ive picked, my current system is a ****ty 700mhz compaq pressario.

Asrock K7S8XE motherboard, 400FSB, 400DDR, 5PCI, AGP8, LAN, 5.1 Sound
AMD XP 2800 333 FSB
120GB HDD 7200RPM
512MB DDRAM
Dual DVD Writer
Floppy Drive
Chenbro Gaming Box
Windows XP Pro (got the service packs and everything sorted)

anything im missing? im aware theres no graphics or sound cards, im using the onboard sound and my current graphics cards til i get some more money to get some really good ones.

ps. im from the uk. northern ireland really.

Erbmaster

Well you don't have heaps of hardware in there so you shouldn't run into heaps of problems.
You haven't mentioned that your PC is kitted out like a boy-racer's fiesta...i.e. all neon-lights, strobes and whistles etc.
That'll help!!
Basically you can get away with a relatively small PSU.
If future-proofing is important, go for a bigger one.

I too have purchased equipment through novatech, and found them to be without fault.
Other stores I can personally recommend are Aria's PSU selection
Plus you'll find some nice kit here>>>e-buyer PSU selection
and here Savastore

At the end of the day, you get what you pay for, and you haven't stated a budget max.
I'd say go for 400W minimum, and look for good exhaust options on yer PSU. i.e. 2 or more fans.

Hope this helps

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Unleashed

www.ebuyer.com - I got my Qtec dual fan GOLD 550W PSU from there for £20
Most of the reviews say its noisy etc, but i have absolutely no complaints with mine

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Andy

im an old fashioned kinda guy, i dont like all that neon light crap, and since the pc case will be stuck in the corner of my room, i see no need. plus the case ive picked looks pretty cool, so that'll do me fine.

my budget is about £300 - obviously ive gone over budget, but not very much, so i should be alright. ill be a fag and maybe post pics when im done, it'll be the first computer ive ever built from scratch, and if it goes well, i might make a pt job outta it.

thanks for your help, i plan to keep upgrading this so i wont have to keep buying a computer every few years, so maybe investing in a slightly larger psu would help delay buying a new one.

thanks!
andy

Erbmaster

You're Welocme m8.
Good Luck with the build

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LeeJend

Hybrid

"find a cheap power supply"

Not a good idea. It's better to go with a 350W Antec than some cheap no name 450W. Look for an Antec, or Enlight in the 350-400W range and unless you plan on installing 4 drives you'll be ok. Watch for sales. Compusa and Best Buy run good sales on the Antec models.

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Petros

Two quick points if you don't want to read the mini-novel I'm about to post (I want to warn you about something I learned the hard, expensive way):
- A £400 computer can be shocked to death by a £9 power supply that didn't filter a power spike.
- Hook yourself to your computer with a grounding strap!

I think both LeeJend and I are like-minded when it comes to PSUs. Since I'm lazy, I'll just copied the following from a previous post And I'll suggest a few brands to take a look at.

If you have a sweet PC, why send it unstable power, you could end up shorting restistors, blowing capacitors, and just give yourself an unstable experience overall? These can occur catastrophically, or they can just be a slow, steady drift of instability over a period of time.

Think of a power supply as the equivalent of a "heart" in your computer, because it feeds power to every single component you have. A bad heart doesn't pump blood as well as it should, and can cause problems for other organs...

Likewise, a cheap power supply will not be the best thing for your expensive computer components. Raidmax/Powmax power supplies are excellent mid-level parts, and they only run about $40-60 USD. They filter that nasty AC coming into your system far better than a $15 power supply would.

If you want to go high-end, Kingwin, Enermax, Antec, and iCute are what you would want to choose from. Raidmax/Powmax supplies are almost as good and cost half as much, though.

Erbmaster

Agree with those 2^^^^
You get what you pay for. False economy is a real pain in the butt.

In comparison to your other hardware it's a small cost to pay for peace of mind.

I recommended the Antec TruePower handybuddy, 'cos it has nice fat arteries and veins....perfect for delivering the "correct" amount of power, and keeping that heart in good shape.

Some cheaper PSU's don't deliver they power they claim
i.e it's not unusual for a "350W"
psu to actually deliver nearer 200W.

Look here for an explanation on "TruePower"

Antec-Inc

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Andy

http://www.ebuyer.com/customer/produ...duct_uid=34825

thumbs up, or down?

Petros

Got my vote! I'm very glad you've found a decent one Not too expensive, either.

Erbmaster

Looks good hybrid.
Reviews look really good.
Two fans, nice wattage, and the brand's not bad either...Good choice m8.
Nice price too

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Unleashed

Thats the one I have
Im happy with it, and if youre worried about power surges killing your comp, get a surge protector.

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Andy

any other tips for my build adventure?

i have a floppy drive, but it has a front on it that would slide in and sit out externally if put into a case which had a hole for it. the case im getting, however, has the front of the floppy drive inbuilt, so do i need to get a faceless drive, or can i take the front of the one ive got?

Erbmaster

The front is usually just a plastic fascia that snaps on/off.
Still :- Worse case scenario new floppies are under £10

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Andy

excellent.

if anyone has msn, you can add me - carboncopyhero@hotmail.com - i could use some boffins around just incase.

thanks.