Looking for Budget PSU for Gaming

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deadman_uk

[H]ard|Gawd
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Jun 30, 2003
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I'm looking for a PSU for my dads PC (not mine in the signature) as we suspect either his motherboard or PSU has a fault (so we're going to get a new PSU and a second-hand motherboard). It will be used for gaming on an AMD 7950 (and future cards). We never have plans to use more than one GPU so extra power for SLI/Crossfire is not needed. The CPU is an Intel i5 2500 (non k) with an aftermarket fan cooler and about 5 case fans. What wattage would be needed? We are in the UK and have a budget of £50 - £90 max (please no USA prices, in the UK we pay more). It would be nice if the PSU had a long warranty. Overclockers UK and Scan UK are the websites we usually shop with but Dabs, Amazon, eBuyer among others are also fine if the price is good.

Any recommendations? The Corsair Builder Series CX 750W V2 '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply looks good but I don't really know much about PSU's. I don't understand why some PSU are double the price of others yet have the same wattage.
 
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A system like that will be fine on a real 450 watt PSU (450 on 12v rail). Given the PSU market, I would recommend looking for a 550 watt PSU. I cannot recommend that CX PSU, there are better PSUs to fit your needs at the same price.

As for why some PSUs are more expensive than others:
1. Modularity. Modular (detachable) cables add 10-20 to the cost.
2. Efficiency. More efficient PSUs tend to cost more. Ties in somewhat with 3.
3. Internal components used. Better components deliver cleaner power and more stable voltages, and typically better efficiency. Biggest reason for cost differences.
4. Extras like cable sleeving software, monitoring, warranty, etc.
 
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There is a 620w Corsair PSU in there now but it's over 5 years old. We really want something at least 600w or more for the future in case the power demands of GPUs goes higher. What are some better PSU for the price than the CX PSU I listed?
 
the EVGA G2s are very good if you can find one at the right price

Corsair RMi and HXi are good
Seasonic PSUs are good quality

Corsair CX only have a 3 year warranty and the lack of quality reflects it
 
I have that exact PSU and have not had a single problem with it over this past year. Albiet like others have said it is a low end Corsair PSU.
 
The EVGA G2's are out of my price range (except the 650w version), so are the Corsair RMi and HXi. What Seasonic PSU's would you recommend? I'll try and shop around and see if I can get a 750w EVGA within budget, if not, it will be the 650w version or a Seasonic (if you can name one)
 
https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-044-SF&groupid=701&catid=123&subcat=2057 looks very interesting to me:)
CA-044-SF_115180_350.jpg

SuperFlower Leadex Platinum 550W Fully Modular ...first one i saw anyway;)
£74.99 inc VAT - Warranty: 5yr

Im not positive, but i think that corsair system builder is junk in comparison
 
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Superflower makes the EVGA G2 PSUs. That should say enough about their quality. The Leadex Platinum is a step up from their Leadex Gold platform.

GPU power requirements are not going to go up. First reason is heat dissipation. You can only dissipate so much heat from a dual slot blower. Second is a matter of the connectors. AMD and nVidia will severely limit their market with a reference single GPU card that requires more than 1 8 pin and 1 6 pin (PCI-E spec says that a maximum of 250 watts can be drawn from 1 8 pin and 1 6 pin). Any single GPU single CPU system should be sufficiently served with a 550 watt PSU. Especially at stock speeds.
 
deadman_uk said:
Superflower? I've never heard of them, are they good? This one or the 650 Evga g2?
Click to expand...

I think both are pretty badass and that evga unit in particular looks very new and nice. I might lean towards the evga one:D
 
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