Got my sights set on an Antec HCP-1200, anything that might compete with it?

C

CompuG##K

Gawd
Joined
Jul 9, 2008
Messages
593
So I'm gearing up for a system overhaul that I'll do later this year (x79 :cool:) and I want to go ahead and get a power supply that will feed said beasty. Why get a psu now and not when I do the overhaul? Well I would like to use my recently acquired second GTX 480 in SLI with my current one as soon as possible. The new beta of SLIPatch just came out and it now supports the 275 forceware drivers, which means I should be able to do SLI no sweat on my Rampage Formula X48. This should tie me over until the system overhaul, at which time I plan to migrate the 480 SLI to that setup and await the maturation of the 28nm gpus.


I've researched and looked over reviews of the Antec HCP-1200 quite a bit and it looks like a very good unit. Is there any other unit out there that is in the same ballpark as the HCP-1200 quality-wise/rail-wise/noise-wise?

The one thing I have to be weary of is the depth of the unit. I have a hard limit of 190mm of space in my case (CM Storm Sniper) before I have to remove the bottom intake fan, which I'm not wanting to do. The Corsair AX1200 is another unit I considered, but it is about 200mm deep. The HCP-1200 on the other hand is about 180mm deep.


I would very much prefer to stay at least 1100w to give me some breathing room for this setup and my future setup. I plan on using quite a few drives + SSD and I do plan on overclocking a good bit.


So with all that said and all of my "search filters" applied. Any other units I should check out before I pull the trigger in a week?
 
Your system with two 480's can be handled by a good 750 watt power supply, and by a 850 watt with room to spare. As long as you're not planning on upgrading to tri-SLI or tri-crossfire, or doing SLI with overclocked Xeons on an SR-2 motherboard, I would just say stick with a good 850 watt like a Corsair AX850 or Seasonic X850 (essentially the same units).
 
I would prefer purchase a power supply knowing I'll have plenty of room to expand in the future. I may not be considering it right now, but I don't want to leave the prospect of a triple card setup completely by the wayside. I want to be absolutely certain I won't have to purchase another power supply down the road just to add on a third card or something like I'm having to do right now for two cards. A few years ago when I purchased my current unit I wasn't considering SLI or Crossfire, so I didn't really put much though into expandability. I won't be making that mistake again. I've seen some power draw tests of SLI GTX 480s hit in upwards of 750-800 watts when fully loaded by a gpu stress tester like Furmark. I know that doesn't represent actual power draw during gaming, but I figure if I keep clear of the "worst case scenario" for power draw then I should have no reason to worry at all.
 
I'd say the HCP-1200 is close to one of the best units you can get. Not much else comes to mind.
 
SLI GTX 480's on load is probably wall power draw. That's power pulled from the wall, which is higher than power pulled from the power supply. Actual power pull from the power supply is around 600-680, assuming 80% efficiency.

If you are set on wanting future expandability to tri-SLI, a 1000 watt power supply is enough. 1200 watts is overkill. That said, the HCP-1200 is pretty much the best you can get, with the Corsair AX1200 a close second. The Sparkle (the graphics card company) Gold Series 1000 and 1250 watt also got really good reviews. The OCZ Gold 1000 watt and 1250 watt are the platform as used by the Sparkle power supplies.
 
Seasonic has the X-Series Paltinum units showing at Computex under their brand and XFX in 1000W+ plus flavors.
 
Also -- see the [H]'s review of the Enermax (the most recent 1350watter).... looks pretty good there too!
 
I'd be surprised if the upcoming Seasonic X-1250 isn't better than the HCP-1200. Since you won't be building your PC until later on, you have time to wait. That's what you should do.
 
Tsumi said:
SLI GTX 480's on load is probably wall power draw. That's power pulled from the wall, which is higher than power pulled from the power supply. Actual power pull from the power supply is around 600-680, assuming 80% efficiency.

If you are set on wanting future expandability to tri-SLI, a 1000 watt power supply is enough. 1200 watts is overkill. That said, the HCP-1200 is pretty much the best you can get, with the Corsair AX1200 a close second. The Sparkle (the graphics card company) Gold Series 1000 and 1250 watt also got really good reviews. The OCZ Gold 1000 watt and 1250 watt are the platform as used by the Sparkle power supplies.
Click to expand...

Just know yours and others I see make posts like these don't fall on deaf ears.

I'm not convinced by the over marketing of psu's these days..
 
Paul_Johnson said:
Seasonic has the X-Series Paltinum units showing at Computex under their brand and XFX in 1000W+ plus flavors.
Click to expand...

when can we see a review of Seasonics new 1000+ units? I've been holding out a LONG time for them.
 
I just received my Antec HCP-1200 yesterday. Haven't hooked it up yet, but very impressed so far. I am not a believer in skimping on power supplies. I think that buying a top end power supply is almost always a good idea.

A LOT of people around here like to buy power supplies in the 750 to 850 range. They thinking buying a top end unit is always a waste of money. I was harassed in the general hardware forum for buying a good power supply.

By the way, I got a GREAT deal on this at Superbiiz. Excellent experience with them and it was significantly cheaper than NewEgg or Amazon.
 
mls1995 said:
I just received my Antec HCP-1200 yesterday. Haven't hooked it up yet, but very impressed so far. I am not a believer in skimping on power supplies. I think that buying a top end power supply is almost always a good idea.

A LOT of people around here like to buy power supplies in the 750 to 850 range. They thinking buying a top end unit is always a waste of money. I was harassed in the general hardware forum for buying a good power supply.

By the way, I got a GREAT deal on this at Superbiiz. Excellent experience with them and it was significantly cheaper than NewEgg or Amazon.
Click to expand...

We recommend power supplies based on the hardware needs. And we DO NOT recommend low-quality power supplies. Money saved from not getting a top-end power supply can be used for something that provides performance benefits, like a SSD. For example, if your computer only needs a 750 watt power supply, getting a XFX 750 watt over a HCP 1200 would save you at least 150, which you can put towards a good SSD. Not everyone has money to blow, but if that's how you want to spend your money, be our guest. Not everyone can afford the best.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top