What to Choose in a PSU- SO many questions now

[eidairaman1]

Ive been out of the Loop for some time on building a machine, Im Looking to get a PSU for the Build in my Sig Rig

Should go I with a 1000 Watt or Go Higher

Do I need a Single 12V Rail or Multi 12V Rails?-Does Higher Amperage Matter? I will at Most Run 2 Video Cards at a Time (Crossfire X, or Quad Crossfire X Dual GPU Cards) 290/290X/295X2- Sapphire Vapor-X or MSI Gaming

I will be overclocking this rig after a Stock Burn In time,

Check my Signature for Specs Pertaining to this.

Companies Ive Been Looking at are Antec, Corsair, Enermax, Seasonic.

 

[eidairaman1]

BUMP

 

[M0rt]

You'd almost certainly be fine with 850w, but I've seen some very large power draw increases reported from OC'd 290/290X's, so 1000w might be the smooth move. You won't need for anything more though.

Go with a single 12V rail and don't worry about amperage, it's a non-issue with any quality unit.

I'd go with the EVGA G2. A Super Flower Leadex platform with a 10-yr warranty.

Or, the Cooler Master V1000. A Seasonic KM3 platform.

Find the best price you can and rest easy.

 

[eidairaman1]

need more suggestions, thx

 

[Norton]

Single rail, 80plus Gold.... Corsair AX1200/1200i or Seasonic/XFX 1050 or 1250w are decent choices.

There are many other good psu's out there and a lot of competition so keep a watch for deals too!

 

[eidairaman1]

http://www.antec.com/product.php?id=706569&pid=9

http://www.corsair.com/en-us/ax1200...-80-plus-platinum-certified-fully-modular-psu

http://www.seasonicusa.com/NEW_X-series_1250XM2.htm

http://www.seasonicusa.com/Platinum_Series_XP3.htm

Those are the ones Im looking at

so your saying a 50 AMP on 4 rails isnt going to be better/safer than a Single 100 AMP rail?

 

[Frick]

Multi rail is not better, but actually safer. 100A is A LOT. In the words of oklahomawolf (for credibility):
-----
I wanted to take a moment to comment on that single massive 100.4A 12V rail. I've been seeing a backlash against multiple 12V designs, and I feel some comment from me is timely; though I've written about this before. As of right now, this is the largest single 12V design I've tested, with the Silverstone Zeus ZM1200M coming in a close second and Ultra's X4 1200W unit coming in third. I have mixed feelings about this. One one hand, I know why the single 12V rail is there and how it came to be in the marketplace. But on the other hand, it makes me a mite nervous. 100.4A is an awful lot of current. You can melt the insulation on some seriously thick gauge wires with that, never mind the 18-16 gauge wires most power supplies this size use to connect to your computer parts. Direct short circuits shouldn't be too much a problem, but what if something doesn't fail in a direct short? What if something partially fails, starts drawing massive 12V current through three or four small wires, and yet doesn't overdraw that 100.4A rail? There is a risk factor here when you start getting 12V rails this huge, people, whether you're talking about a Corsair, Ultra, PC Power and Cooling, or any other company's single 12V design. It's still a reasonably minor risk on a well built unit like this, but a risk is present nonetheless. My rambling point is this - multiple 12V rails aren't the devil, folks, especially on units that can pull more power out of the wall than your toaster.
-----

Of the linked ones I would just take the cheapest one.

 

[M0rt]

OP, you don't need 1200w!

Ain't my money you're pissing away though.

I'll say no more.

 

[buildzoid]

I like the antec HCP series because they're built by Delta which is on par or better(way more protection features) than seasonic but uses multiple 12v rails.

 

[Red_Machine]

My Silverstone 1000W PSU (launched in 2006/7 I believe) is rock solid. But make sure you get one with plenty of SATA plugs, otherwise you'll be using a lot of molex adapters!

 

[AsRock]

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Seasonic/X-750/

 

[rtwjunkie]

I like the antec HCP series because they're built by Delta which is on par or better(way more protection features) than seasonic but uses multiple 12v rails.

The Antec HCP series would be a good bet. Multi-rail design, with large amp figures per rail, will allow you to spread out the power-draw of that beast system you want. They are very high quality units!

 

[eidairaman1]

Lol some say i dont need 1300 watts, well ill be expanding the build later down the line. That Antec has the highest across 4 rails vs other 4 rail psu makers. I will be ocing the gc after burn in aswell.

 

[rtwjunkie]

I've got the HCP 1250 and voltages are stable as granite!

 

[eidairaman1]

4 rail or single?

 

[rtwjunkie]

It's 4 rails.

 

[eidairaman1]

Sounds good. I read from jonnyguru that at 87 amps the cabling could act like an arc welder and a partialshort could cause the magic smoke effect in worst case scenario. 50 amps on each rail could be good for oc on a gc correct.

 

[MxPhenom 216]

The Antec HCP series would be a good bet. Multi-rail design, with large amp figures per rail, will allow you to spread out the power-draw of that beast system you want. They are very high quality units!

They have quite a bit of voltage ripple on the 12v rails. Performance side of things, the hcp 1000 platinum in particular didnt score that great at JohnnyGuru

 

[rtwjunkie]

According to the review available right here on TPU I believe, it was almost ripple-less. Once I get a break at work I'll dig it up. (referring to the HCP-1250)

Here it is for the HCP 1200 (my mistake, had a brain-fart and was thinking 1250). Anyway, According to Johnny Guru, ripple suppression was perfect:

http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story&reid=198

EDIT: Not for sale anymore as far as I can see. Last time I checked on Newegg two months ago it was there, so it's moot for this beast unless you found one on another site somewhere, sitting around unsold.

 

[fullinfusion]

Nothing beats a single rail.. Feed the beast

 

[eidairaman1]

I think a 9.5 or higher is great in my book.

so whats the advantage of having a single rail vs multi rail setup. I mean safety is the factor for multi rail but what about single rails

According to the review available right here on TPU I believe, it was almost ripple-less. Once I get a break at work I'll dig it up. (referring to the HCP-1250)

Here it is for the HCP 1200 (my mistake, had a brain-fart and was thinking 1250). Anyway, According to Johnny Guru, ripple suppression was perfect:

http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story&reid=198

EDIT: Not for sale anymore as far as I can see. Last time I checked on Newegg two months ago it was there, so it's moot for this beast unless you found one on another site somewhere, sitting around unsold.

 

[rtwjunkie]

well, a single rail allows all the amperage on that one rail, and certainly makes it easier to use video cards that have high amp requirements without say, having to plug separate plugs from separate rails on the psu.

if properly used though, multirail designs can be just as useful. I dont have a preference. Ive got the multirail antec, and as you can see, single rail seasonics. Its personal preference i say more than anything.

 

[eidairaman1]

U might say the 1300 Antec with 50 Amps on each 12v rail is pretty good and has plenty of headroom?

update

i just read this. It does help further explain the difference.

the antec 1300 has the highest amps per rail. But it does equal the single rails (both multi and single =100 total) Either way 50 amps is way more than enuf to kill a human too.

 

[TheBrainyOne]

Single rail trades safety for convenience. It's your choice.

http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDFAQs

 

[THE_EGG]

I recently got a Cougar GX-1050W and have it running a 7950 and two 280xs just fine for mining. Price-performance is fantastic and it feels like a real quality unit too. Good reviews as well and is extremely quiet (my major concern for me). Also it has flat cables for the modular cables.

If you have the money though, I hear the Antec 1300HCP is one of the best choices out there.

I've never had an issue with multi-rails. I still run a Zalman 1000HP in my main rig and i think it has 6 rails. Been running great for the past 3 or 4 years. I can't remember when I bought it, it has been so long haha.