testing power consumption ...

[copenhagen69]

I am just curious how people test power usage for single parts in their system. Like Idle usage and Load usage.

Are there any good guides are articles on how this is done?

Looking specifically for GPU and CPU stuff.

I think this could tell me load stuff (maybe?)... but nothing specific ...

also what could the P3 Kill A Watt monitor be useful for? Could I get a base idle wattage and then load something like the GPU and see how much the wattage goes up? or what?


thoughts/ideas/links would be greatly appreciated!

[Jizzler]

It's not good at being a doorstop (not heavy) or a spoon (hard to clean the socket area), but it does measure electricity draw, so that's a plus.

If you're after the draw of each individual part, you'll probably want to look elsewhere. It's good for measuring from-the-wall draw - getting an idea of how much your electronic devices are costing you.

[copenhagen69]

Originally Posted by Jizzler

It's not good at being a doorstop (not heavy) or a spoon (hard to clean the socket area), but it does measure electricity draw, so that's a plus.

If you're after the draw of each individual part, you'll probably want to look elsewhere. It's good for measuring from-the-wall draw - getting an idea of how much your electronic devices are costing you.

thats what i figured and was curious what people use to get the actual wattage of stuff

[copenhagen69]

throwing it up to see if the late nighters have any ideas

night

[W1zzard]

measuring whole system power consumption is done using the device you mentioned above.

for per-component testing you need to isolate them from the power circuitry of the rest of the pc and measure their power draw which is usually done by measuring voltage + current. depending on what you are measuring you need to modify components and buy fairly expensive measuring gear.

what are you trying to achieve with your measurements?

[copenhagen69]

Well basically I would like to figure out how much my CPU and GPU draw, power wise, at certain points of usage. Just a little project I was considering working on if it didnt cost an arm and a leg for the equipment.

[Sasqui]

With the Kill-A-Watt, you can get a fair idea by running tests that stress one or the other (CPU vs. GPU). The other way to isolate is get a really low end 2D PCI card (I have a matrox lying around) and run some stress tests to measure CPU load, like Linpack or Prime95.

If you run OpenGL Furmark test, I don't think that draws much frm the CPU, but I could be wrong. One tell is to look at task manager to see what the CPU load is.

Measuring DC current does take some hefty ($$$) electronics.

[copenhagen69]

ya I was thinking the Kill-A-Watt could help me get a pretty close idea on how much the CPU or GPU is using at load. I just am not sure on the idle side of things

[CJCerny]

As far as your GPU goes, all the wattage numbers are in the GPU reviews on this web site. Most reviews of other hardware now include wattage numbers. Probably a lot easier to just get those numbers from pre-existing reviews. No need to re-invent the wheel.

[copenhagen69]

Originally Posted by CJCerny

As far as your GPU goes, all the wattage numbers are in the GPU reviews on this web site. Most reviews of other hardware now include wattage numbers. Probably a lot easier to just get those numbers from pre-existing reviews. No need to re-invent the wheel.

ya, i know, thats what gave me the idea to check mine out. I was just wondering if there was an inexpensive way of doing so.

[W1zzard]

Originally Posted by copenhagen69

ya, i know, thats what gave me the idea to check mine out. I was just wondering if there was an inexpensive way of doing so.

there isnt

[TIGR]

Like W1z said, it's gonna cost you time and $$ to measure individual components precisely. However, a quick note on the Kill-A-Watt: keep in mind when using it that your PSU does not convert AC to DC with perfect efficiency. I would expect your system at 100% CPU and GPU load to measure around 450w usage at the wall (really depends though as I know nothing about your water cooling setup). At those levels, your PSU is around 88% efficient IIRC, meaning the components would actually be drawing a total of around 400w.

[copenhagen69]

Originally Posted by W1zzard

there isnt

well dang ...

alright well thanks for the input


just curious ... could you give me an about price of how much it would cost to be able to do that?