Psu

[FbernZ]

Now that I have your attention!....

 

Yes, I'm looking to purchase another PSU.

 

I have a few questions though;

 

Why does the DFI NF4 Ultra-D motherboard require more than 480W? I'm not trying to argue, but why? Is it the components used? or what?

 

Second;

 

I have heard some issues that the Seasonic S12 500/600 series has problems powering up DFI motherboards due to something like the DFI motherboard sucking up too much 5VSB+ ?

 

I guess my main question is - How different are DFI boards [ultra-D] when they're not overclocked, compared to say, an ASUS A8N-E - that requires them to use a 480W psu?

[Oceanborn]

I guess you better ask the admin of this forum, apparently that IS the minimum requirement for the boards, no argument there...I just think it would be nice for costumers to know this fact BEFORE they choose this board...because on the package and in the DFI's website this little fact is NOT mentioned, on the sticker that comes onto the power conector it doesn't state 480w at all....but a 350w....so costumers like me who bought the board thinking the power supply I had would be enough, come here thinking everything is fine and then are told that we're not getting any support if our PSU is not a minimum 480w and are obliged to buy a new power supply.

[FbernZ]

I know what ye mean Oceanborn.. But you gotta remember that most people that buy DFI stuff in the first place do craploads of research.

[deeselcyde]

Get the OCZ PowerStream 520 Watt......so stable. The adjustable rails are very very nice.

[Oceanborn]

bernZ']I know what ye mean Oceanborn.. But you gotta remember that most people that buy DFI stuff in the first place do craploads of research.

 

I did, and not once have I seen anywhere stating that 480watts was a minimum requirement back in october last year...heck, not even here in this forum until recently was this "stated" ....

 

Bottom line is, it should be on the DFI website, I know sometimes manuals that ship with boards are outdated, but nothing prevents the company from updating their own website...

[NEOAethyr]

Actually the 480w requirement has been around for along time now.

[Oceanborn]

Actually the 480w requirement has been around for along time now.

 

Can you tell me where in the DFI website that is stated?

[NEOAethyr]

Nope, I was talking about the support forum here.

I don't goto the website at all.

 

I would though for new bios rev's and such though, but I have'nt done that in quite some time.

 

 

Pick your psu like you pick the rest of your parts.

You can save lots of money on things, but pick wisely.

If you decide to get a 350w psu, good or bad, no one here is likely to support you.

 

Why?

The reason is because even a good psu at that rating is likely to cause some problems.

Another problem is that most psu's can't deliver what they rate them at, this is'nt the server market.

 

It's a waste of time to even bother with less then 480w these days.

That's why it's bare min spec here.

 

Where I said pick wisely, thre is a ton of 480w psu's that don't cut it.

Are we being picky, yes!

Would you like your rig fried or house on fire fom a bad psu?

We also want clean power, which keeps us running wihout power issues.

Power issues are the worst, they can be very hard and time consuming to trouble shoot.

 

 

I know this has been discussed a few times in the past.

So there's others around here that can explain it better the I can.

Some of which may give you the cold truth about it.

 

In any case, me or anyone else could sit here and try to explain it forever, so... :

 

That spec here is there for good reason.

No reason to discuss it and no reason to fight it.

That's just the facts, spend the extra cash to doit right.

[FbernZ]

Well.. I was just wondering why 480W. I know about the ratings and all that... that power supplies are not 100% efficient [and hell, not that many are 80% efficient]

 

But I was just wondering - is it a question of how much it draws from the 12V rail/s?

 

And -

 

What uses the 3.3V rail [other than memory]

and the 5V rail?

 

Should I be looking into a power supply that gives devotes more wattage to both the 3.3V rail and the 5V rail, or one that mainly powers the 12V rails?

[NEOAethyr]

Oh....

 

I'm not totally sure about that one.

It seems as if, just a guess, that you'de want a psu that is strong in all areas when it comes to the dfi's.

I'm not totally sure, I don't think this has really been answered before.

 

The only thing we can do is base on other's experiences with a psu and there overclocks and such.

From that standpoint I don't think anyone has put together a list of min amps needed for each rail.

 

It would be nice to have a baseline like that, along with max ripple on each rail.

However that is asking to much allmost .

 

Some of these reccomended psu's are not quite up to the task either I think personally.

It's not the board's fault though.

Just that when stressing and checking, something that would normally be considered just fine and running allright, is pure garbage.

 

User experience like I said is key for now.

That's what I believe anyways.

Though not everyone knows what a good psu really is, would be commen sense I suppose to think like that.... :

 

It's not as easy as finding a good chip type for memory, that's for sure.

As anyone might beable to boot a super high fsb/htt with 1:1 ratio, but makign it stable.., but that's offtopic.

None the less, booting at such a high speed shows there's potential.

However with psu's, running means nothing, because people stress things in diffrent ways and methods.

There's all sorts of things diffrent people might not notice when it comes down to a psu.

 

So if you're looking for a psu, maybe it's best to write down what is on the reccomended list, from there you can get an idea of what brands are good even if the model is'nt on the list(like a newer better model).

From there look around or ask around(both!) for what others think about the psu that you are looking up.

 

I hope others have some opinions here...

[FbernZ]

Well you see, the reason I'm going around and asking is because I was looking for a cheap-er PSU, *super quiet mind you*, ala NeoHe430. But of course, the NeoHE is infamous for its problems.. and its under 480, so DFI won't even bother troubleshootin.

 

I'm basically looking for a well built PSU that's supported by DFI-street and is super quiet [think NeoHE430 quiet, or SeasonicS12-430 quiet] according to SPCR's testing methods. Am I asking for too much here? ^^''.

[EdLSmith]

I can give you a hint on power requirement of 480 and one is that overclocking eats power. Overclocking a single core such as the 4000+ San Diego eats about an extra 110 watts over stock operation. Since these boards are built to fly, the idea is to make it possible. I suppose you are aware that many power supplies are not well buffered and the result is ripple and instability. Thats knocks a lot of the PSU off the A list. Costs of PSU go up rapidly with certain added qualities because the material used in construction gets more expensive as supplies get better. That is why you hear mention of the Rolls Royce and the cadillac of PSU's.

 

Now another problem is that some PSU builders stretch the facts when marketing their product and we consider them trash, like Thermaltake for instance. Marginal power supplies that are operating at 100% capacity can not meet contingencies and power problems cause a lot of equipment to die.

 

Now this is the reason for certain requisites such as a specific wattage requirement for these boards. The policy is that they tell you what is required and if you disregard the advice then you are on your own. Don't bother to cry, just suck it up.

 

This may sound like rant but I hope this helps you to understand reason for minimal wattage requirements.