6800 Ultra PSU Requirements

wachtourak

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31 May 2004
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I think I'm finally going to treat myself to a much needed graphics card upgrade and get a 6800 Ultra as the AGP ones are coming down in price quite a bit (over here in New Zealand) and I was gonna get an Antec 480W PSU at the same time cos my 300W no-name one isn't gonna cut it.

Is 480W overkill or will 400W or so not be enough. I only have one Hard Drive at the moment and my CPU doesn't exactly suck a lot of juice (Barton 2500).

Thanks
 
480w is not really overkill. It will afford you some headroom for the future. If you're looking to save a few bucks though, you could go with the 430w for a little less.
 
I just got myself a GeForce 6800 Ultra a few days ago - and in the book that came with it theay say 300w psu is enough - i dont think it is mind you.

They also say that if you want to overclock it you should get a 480w psu.

I have a 650w psu (have one or two drives in my box) so have enought to spare.

If in doubt just grab a 500w psu just in case you add anything to your pc later
 
Watt's aren't everything, Don't forget that. Make sure it's got a reliable 12volt rail

I'm running a 480 TruePower Antec with my Ultra, no issues whatsoever
 
Thanks guys, I can get an Antec 480W PSU for like $10-15 more than an Antec 430W one, so I may as well just do that.
 
Mine is running fine at 400watts, Nvidia has reported alot of people are running 6800u with 350watts just fine. The card will tell you anyway, it has sentinal drivers which monitor the power, if its underpowered you get a warning box popup in windows
 
From what I've read, 6800 Ultras require two separate external power connected to the card. And PCI-e cards can consume between 70-90W of power while AGP cards are around 45-60W.
*Stands to be corrected*

If you are heading for a 6800 card, you should be looking for at least 420-450W just to be on the safe side, especially if you're not wanting to upgrade the PSU again when you upgrade the mobo/cpu or add an extra device/card inside your machine. There's no harm in getting a higher rated PSU either - gives you the buffer just in case you need it.
 
From what I have read on different sites in reguards to power consumption of peripherals, anything from a 400W on up is a good enough PSU. Just remember that the PSU has to have smooth stable power. No fluxuations in it's output. Go with reputable name brands (Antec, Enermax, OCZ, Vantec, even Thermaltake). Depending on how many drives and extras you have getting power from your PSU will determin how much more over 400W you go.
 
Yeah, wattage isn't enough make sure you read reviews and go with a trusted brand that can maintain itself properly (that basically means those fanless solutions are just not ready yet). Being cheap on your power supply could cost you dearly in the long run.
 

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