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Hi, guys.

I'm on my way to build my first computer and I don't know what power supply to buy. Could you help me?

These are the specifications of what that PC is gonna have inside:
Intel Core i7 2600k
4x4 GB DDR3 1600 PC3 12800 Memory
3TB 7200RPM SATA III HDD
10X Blu-ray SATA Writer
NOCTUA NH-D14 6xHEATPIPES CPU COOLING
GeForce GTX 570
ASUS P8P67 PRO Motherboard
Case is Antec Dark Fleet DF-85 and it have 7 fans (1 more optional).

And later on I plan to add a sound card: Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty
And maybe add another GTX 570, but I'm not really sure about the latter. I might not need it.

I was thinking on buying a Corsair TX750W (v1 or v2), but after reading some reviews about PSU I'm quite unsure about this issue. It kinda looks like this rig is going to consume a lot.

If you have some time, please, I would appreciate the advice of experienced users.

Thanks in advance.


Zizou.

Do you plan on OC'ing? Do you plan on ever running SLI? The TX 750 would be a bit overkill if you are not going to do either. There is generally a pretty big misconception of what is a necessary power supply for certain systems. That being said, the TX 750 is still an excellent PSU and would leave that room for upgrade later on. I would personally go for a 650W seasonic... mmmm Gold Certified.

I've found that in general, as long as you avoid the bottom-of-the-barrel generic brands, your odds aren't particularly better or worse than if you purchase a brand that is currently favored by the enthusiast community. Antec and Thermaltake -- which both have been recommended here in the past, including by yours truly -- have had their share of problems. I think it may come down to "who are they contracting their manufacturing out to this month"...

Seasonic has a cleaner record than most, so BloodSoul's recommendation is a reasonable one.

Lately I've been buying Ultra PSUs. Don't laugh... yes, I know they don't have the best reputation, but I've had zero issues with them in the past 3-4 years, which is more than I can say for any brand other than Seasonic. And they tend to be quite reasonably priced.

@BloodSoul
Hi, BloodSoul.

No, I don't have any plan on overclocking neither my processor nor GPU. Overkill? That sounds creepy. Will something happen to my other parts?

That TX 750W will work even if I later buy another GTX 570? A more watts PSU is going to affect my electricity bill?

Thanks. I really appreciate you sparing time assisting me.


@just brew it!
Didn't know about the Seasonic ones. It looks like they are excellent, but more expensive too.

Overkill is just when you get something too excessive. For example, you need a car to drive your kids to school... you buy a new Ferrari. Will the Ferrari work? Absolutely. Will it have too much power for what you are doing? Yes.

Nothing will happen to your parts if you are using a PSU that can handle more, but you should always try to stay within the 20%-80% load range. So if you are using a 750W PSU you should try to have a system that stays within 150W-600W. This will ensure that your PSU is always running efficiently. A solid 750W PSU shouldn't really have a hard time running two GTX 570's.

I may be mistaken, but a 750W PSU shouldn't draw more power from your wall than any other PSU unless your system asks for it. Your electric bill may go up slightly if your PSU isn't running in its most efficient range though.


Just brew it makes an excellent point though, you can often times get away with buying PSU's that aren't known to be top of the line. However I typically recommend Seasonic due to their squeaky clean record. They cost more, but the likelihood of your PSU going out is lower.

Best of luck.

So that's what "overkill" means. That's a relief. I think I'm going for the Corsair TX 750W; it fits my budget.

Hey, guys, thank you very much.


Zizou

Have you considered whether you prefer a modular PSU or not?

The 750TX is a good idea if you plan on upgrading to two graphics cards at some point.
I didn't notice this at first, but you had selected a 3TB 7200RPM drive. I would strongly suggest that you look at a different storage solution as the failure rates of 3TB drives have been much higher than other drives. Perhaps 2 or 3 1TB drives, or even a solid-state drive and a 1TB drive would be enough storage space for you? If you get the solid state drive you could use that as a boot drive for Windows and as a programs drive which would make your system feel much faster.

lonleyppl wrote:

I didn't notice this at first, but you had selected a 3TB 7200RPM drive. I would strongly suggest that you look at a different storage solution as the failure rates of 3TB drives have been much higher than other drives.

Yeah, it is generally a good idea to avoid bleeding edge *anything*, since there's a chance that all of the bugs haven't been worked out yet. Just ask all the people who bought Sandy Bridge motherboards right after they came out...

just brew it! wrote:

It is generally a good idea to avoid bleeding edge *anything*, since there's a chance that all of the bugs haven't been worked out yet.

You can always tell the pioneers by the arrows in their backs.

just brew it! wrote:

Just ask all the people who bought Sandy Bridge motherboards right after they came out...

That's water under the bridge now. Asus replaced my motherboard at no charge, shipped the replacement in advance of the return, paid overnight shipping both ways, extended the warranty on the new board and gave me a set of earphones as a gift.

JustAnEngineer wrote:

just brew it! wrote:

It is generally a good idea to avoid bleeding edge *anything*, since there's a chance that all of the bugs haven't been worked out yet.

You can always tell the pioneers by the arrows in their backs.

just brew it! wrote:

Just ask all the people who bought Sandy Bridge motherboards right after they came out...

That's water under the bridge now. Asus replaced my motherboard at no charge, shipped the replacement in advance of the return, paid overnight shipping both ways, extended the warranty on the new board and gave me a set of earphones as a gift.

Im english, my options were limited to sending the board back, wait a while for them to send new one. I didnt fancy not having a PC for however long it took, so still rocking my original SB board. I'll take the risk.