Another "is this enough"

T

Tracch

n00b
Joined
Nov 20, 2009
Messages
14
I hate to add on to the weekly threads of "is this power supply enough" but I keep getting different results and confused doing my own research here.

What I have:
Q6600 not OC'ed
Gigabyte P35-DS3L mobo
4 gigs DDR2 (4 sticks)
3 7200 RPM HDD's
4 x 120mm fans
5 USB ports being used
8800GT
CORSAIR CMPSU-520HX 520W http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139001

I would like to add the following:
Radeon 5770 or a 5800 series to replace the 8800GT
1 more HDD
Possibly OC the CPU

My main concern is getting the most I can without having to purchase a new PSU or strain it to the point of failing or components failing.

Any help is greatly appreciated.
 
If you plan on adding a 5800 series and overclocking your Q6600 past 3.0ghz, the 520HX is probably the minimum for your system. You never want total system power consumption to come close to your PSU's max rated wattage or it will strain it too hard.
 
You're fine for now with the cpu and vid card as it is. You could probably OC the cpu quite a bit with that and be fine. You might run into issues though adding in a 5800 series card with a CPU OC. I am in a similar boat as you. As you can see in my sig I have a similar system with a 920 and 8800 gt SLI, I had to back down on my CPU OC significantly for stability sakes.
 
and713 said:
You're fine for now with the cpu and vid card as it is. You could probably OC the cpu quite a bit with that and be fine. You might run into issues though adding in a 5800 series card with a CPU OC. I am in a similar boat as you. As you can see in my sig I have a similar system with a 920 and 8800 gt SLI, I had to back down on my CPU OC significantly for stability sakes.
Click to expand...

I did have my 6600 OC'ed to about 3.0ghz but I was running into heat issues. I use a XIGMATEK HDT heatsink and the 120mm fan went out, the chipset heatsink would burn instantly to the touch and my memory was way to hot for my comfort level. Maybe further down the line I may look into cooling down everything and try again.
 
Tracch said:
I did have my 6600 OC'ed to about 3.0ghz but I was running into heat issues. I use a XIGMATEK HDT heatsink and the 120mm fan went out, the chipset heatsink would burn instantly to the touch and my memory was way to hot for my comfort level. Maybe further down the line I may look into cooling down everything and try again.
Click to expand...

Were you just running 9x333? That should not have caused an overheating problem at all, that is a supported frequency of the board, and the RAM should be running at stock speed if you set everything correctly. That chipset does get hot (the Gigabyte cooler on it sucks), however it should not be melting skin or anything at 333 bus speed.
 
I thought for sure I was following the over clocking guide and keeping the 333 speed.

If I turn the CPU heatsink the other direction to cover over the memory, I could add a new fan/heatsink chipset cooler. Although, one of the legs on the CPU heatsink is getting worn down and not sure how many more times it will secure itself to the board.
 
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