Power Supply

[Pshawn5]

hopefully this is in the right forum...
today i went out to buy one those system cooler thingies that take up a pci or isa slot and well when i go to hook it up i notice that i dont have anymore avaliable power outlets, currently i have 250W Power supply...i was wondering if i could just upgrade and get a 300,350,or even a 400W power supply? or will my motherboard not support it??
i have an AZZa PT-DVBX/PT-DVAX Version 2(thats what the mb manual says)
and i'm running a 450 mhz pentium II. currently the power supply is giving power to a 16x pionner dvd, a hp cd-writer, a 8.4 and 30.0 gb hds and the floppy...
so let me know pleasE! thanks :-)

[Bovon]

Your motherboard will support the higher rated psu. Its the low volts that motherboards, and the stuff attached to it that don't work so good. All psu's put out the same volts for a computer, but as the psu goes up in watts, the ampere rating goes up too...and thats good...your system will love some extra power available.

[Pshawn5]

ok thanks for the reply, i was talking to my friend and he said i should just use a y-splitter? for some reason i think that would just be dumb, maybe i'm being naive and want my part to get hte full possilbe power they could get...so which would u guys recommend a 400w power supply or using the y-splitter? and if power supply anyone know of a good brand where it does nice cooling and link of a good price :-) maybe that's asking a lot...we'll see what responses come up!

[Bovon]

Yes, a 'Y' splitter will work just fine...if the 250 watt psu you have now is supplying enough power, with a little to spare.

As you add stuff to your computer, a burner maybe, and other power hungry devices...these will not work as needed, and you start to pull down the available power from the psu...this affects everything.

A 250 watt supply is not bad, and many folks use that amount very well...others have a hic-up every now and then, and usually find out later that a better psu cured a lot of minor glitches that had been going on for awhile.

If you do not want to spend a lot (about $30 for a 300 watt psu to maybe $60/$80 for 450 to 500 watt psu) get a 'Y' splitter and that will give you one more power outlet. Then, watch things...if the computer starts acting up, then try a better psu.

I'll have to look up some places where you can buy one, or compare prices...I have some places bookmarked, and will leave some here later...as I'm sure others will as well.

I just went back and re read your first post. I see where you already have a CD burner. Burners use quite a bit of power. While burning a CD, the power must be up to snuff, or you may get failures due to the power needed to run the laser just isn't available. It works sorta like this...you need 12 volts at maybe 5 amps (using off the wall figures here, I really don't know what amperes are needed) But, you only have maybe 11.5 volts while burning. The amperes are reduced because the voltage is reduced...the laser cannot perform to its rated output because the power needed isn't there.


[This message has been edited by Bovon (edited 09-01-2001).]

[Bovon]

Here is a few places to go to look at power supplies, and get a feeling for prices. There are a lot more sites that sell power supplies, at prices under these. I would suggest that if you get a new power supply, do not cut corners on price. Many power supplies that say they are 400 watt, and sell for maybe $30 bucks, are not built well, and use good parts. A low quality psu can be worse than the one you now have.

A good brand psu will be more costly, but will also have the better quality components installed, which means more actual power and will last longer.

http://www.crazypc.com/products/powersupplies/powersupplies.htm

http://www.antec-inc.com/antec_store.html

http://www.axiontech.com/cgi-local/hardware.asp?category=Power+Management

http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduct.asp?submit=manufactory&catalog=58&manufactory=1400

[miXter]

If your system's running fine with the current PS, why spend the $$$? The Y splitter will work. Have you been experiencing any spontaneous reboots? That's a primary indicator your PS is getting maxxed out. PSs with dual fans and name brands...Enermax, Antec, PC Power&Cooling are the way to go. I'm running an Antec 400 watt(403X) with my Athlon 1.4 overclocked to 1.5. My only complaint is it's not dual fanned. Antec does have a new 350 watter with dual fans(352X) that would serve you well. Directron( http://www.directron.com ) has 'em for a nice price.

[This message has been edited by miXter (edited 09-02-2001).]

[eagle1]

I suggest you try the Y splitter too!
But some system coolers (are you talking about exhaust blowers?) already come with this, or with a male plug and a female plug??? Am I mistaken?

[RayH]

I notice that you are from the Land of Eectrical Enegry Crisis. Stay with the lower power supply until you need it. A Y will do just fine.

I just built my son a 1 GHz system with a CD-RW and DVD and a 250 Watt supply. It has no problems.

[Bovon]

RayH, ummm...I don't quite understand your reasoning for using a lower wattage psu due to living in an area where power is limited.

A device only uses as much power as is needed. Power consumption relates to watts consumed no matter if the psu is rated at 200 watts or 2000 watts, the amperes drawn from the psu is called watts.

The formula for this is P = E I, where P = watts, E = volts and I = current.

Say for instance the voltage is 12, the current is 5 Amps, then the power in watts is 60. The actual power rating of the psu does not enter into the equation.

On the other hand, it can be shown that an over stressed psu can cause a higher wattage consuption than a higher wattage rated psu due to the efficiency of the overstressed psu being very low.

[Sizume]

your motherboard will work with any higher power suppply, i happen to have a NEW 300 watt power supply i can sell to you for $15 and whatever the shipping cost will be, probably like $5

it's never been used before

email me at:

sizumesystems@programmer.net

or

enterthecho@hotmail.com