PSU Advice needed

[RushingD3ad]

Would this PSU have enough cables to support a gtx 970?

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00H33SFJU/?tag=tec06d-20

Thanks in advance

 

[Bill_Bright]

You need to visit the EVGA website for that PSU and see what comes in the box. Then do the same for the card you want to see what it needs. Then you can answer your own question.

 

[erocker]

Yes. I say this because I have that PSU in my HTPC.

Good to go.

 

[64K]

Would this PSU have enough cables to support a gtx 970?

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00H33SFJU/?tag=tec06d-20

Thanks in advance

Yes it has enough for any GTX 970 and bear in mind if you can find a better deal on a PSU that only has one 6+2 pin you can still run the Asus 970 Strix.

 

[RushingD3ad]

Thanks for replying. Also, should I pay more for the bronze version because of the power efficiency, or is that not that big of a deal?

http://www.evga.com/Products/Compare.aspx

 

[64K]

Thanks for replying. Also, should I pay more for the bronze version because of the power efficiency, or is that not that big of a deal?

http://www.evga.com/Products/Compare.aspx

I would pay a little more for the Bronze because otherwise you don't know what you will be getting efficiency wise. The rating only has to do with the efficiency of the PSU but quite a few PSUs that don't even have the Bronze rating are crappy PSUs anyway.

If you would like some more info on ratings here's a quick read

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/80_Plus

 

[RushingD3ad]

Might be a little dumb to say and please correct me if I'm wrong, but if it only differs in efficiency and the difference is only 2-5%, wouldn't it be better to just buy the cheaper one?

 

[RCoon]

Might be a little dumb to say and please correct me if I'm wrong, but if it only differs in efficiency and the difference is only 2-5%, wouldn't it be better to just buy the cheaper one?

It's not always about % of efficiency. You can get dirt cheap Bronze PSU's but it doesn't mean they won't explode when loaded fully. There's a select few brands I trust to deliver the power for the life of the part, and EVGA are one of those. All depends on the OEM of the PSU.

 

[RushingD3ad]

But if we're specifically speaking EVGA, just those two PSU's, you wouldn't expect anything wrong from the cheaper one apart from less efficiency?

 

[Bill_Bright]

IMO, you should pay more for Gold certified, if Bronze is not in the budget.

As RCoon noted, it is not always about % efficiency - though that is a big part. Note a PSU has different efficiency ratings depending on the load - and that varies a lot with computers throughout the day, depending on what you (and the OS) are doing at the time. And over the life of the PSU (which you should expect to be 5 years or longer), the better certified PSUs will have a higher efficiency across the full range of expected loads so you can easily get your money back and more in lower electricity costs.

Plus, the better quality PSUs will have lower ripple. That means your motherboard regulation circuits will not have to work as hard to suppress them, keeping them cooler, potentially adding to the motherboard's life expectancy too - as well as improving over all computer stability.

Plus less heat generated by the PSU, and less heat generated by your motherboard's regulator circuits means less heat being generated into your room your air conditioner needs to deal with (during the summer anyway). And lower heat in the PSU means the PSU fan can spin slower, and make less noise.

Would you buy a brand new Porsche and fill it up with generic gas at the corner "Big Bubba's Tobacco and Bait Shop"? A car engine can miss a beat and keep running. Not so with high-speed digital electronics.

When looking to save a few pennies in the budget when building or upgrading a computer, look everywhere else - not at the PSU.

 

[64K]

The PSU that you picked out above is fine imo.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00H33SFJU/?tag=tec06d-20

I'm not sure what the difference is in cost between that one and the Bronze but if it's only $5 or $10 then I would get the Bronze. You will probably come out ahead over the lifespan of the PSU in electricity savings just due to a slightly better efficiency.