help with 30-45 dollar psu

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vietkangta

Limp Gawd
Joined
Dec 18, 2005
Messages
316
my brother needs a power supply for his computer its a athlon 64 3200+ running a geforce 5900 with 1 hdd.

i need a good and stable one.
 
I have had great success with FSP/Fortron in that price range:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817104953

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817104952

I normally buy their models with the 120mm fan since it's quieter overall for me. I've done multimeter readings on 3 different PSU of #1 above. The 5v and 12v readings held very steady even under my top OC during prime95 testing. If you don't want to do a bit of future proofing by uping your price range, FSP/Fortron are the best choice IMHO.
 
Personally, this would be much better than either of those FSP. Believe me, don't be cheap of your PSU.
 
I agree, that setup doesn't require that much power, the FSP 400W will be just fine.
 
munkle said:
Did you guys read the title? He said $30-$45, not $60 or $70. The Fsp's are very good units, they make quality power supplys, get the one with the 120mm fan and your set.
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Umm, sometimes cheap PSUs mean just that, cheap. When they blow, they can take everything with it. I know Bbq knows PSUs and if he recommends something, it would be some good advice to heed. Sometimes it is worth it to spend a little extra money for something that is a little (or a lot) better.

FSP does have a lot of crappy units. Paul Johnson, jonnyguru, and Bbq all can verify this.
 
protias said:
FSP does have a lot of crappy units.
Click to expand...

They're not that bad... a lot of Seasonic's low end units aren't too much different. FSP is still pretty reliable over most of the lineup... certainly one can do better, but I don't see them toasting hardware often.

Personally, the only FSP design I really like is the one used in the Zen units because it's indy regulated.
 
Based on the OP conditions, the FSPs are the way to go. The other units are very good indeed but they fail to meet the stated conditions.
 
I am wary of any power supply above ~300w to ~350w that you get for 30-45 at E-tail minus rebates.


And yes there is considerable variability in FSP products, and IMO their overall quality has stagnated a bit with not a lot of really good progress while other companies ahave.
 
Linux_Box said:
I have had great success with FSP/Fortron in that price range:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817104953

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817104952

I normally buy their models with the 120mm fan since it's quieter overall for me. I've done multimeter readings on 3 different PSU of #1 above. The 5v and 12v readings held very steady even under my top OC during prime95 testing. If you don't want to do a bit of future proofing by uping your price range, FSP/Fortron are the best choice IMHO.
Click to expand...

I've tested and used the 400watt FSP model at high loads, It ran extremely well and efficient with all the tests I did. I second FSP for budget quality.
 
protias said:
Umm, sometimes cheap PSUs mean just that, cheap. When they blow, they can take everything with it. I know Bbq knows PSUs and if he recommends something, it would be some good advice to heed. Sometimes it is worth it to spend a little extra money for something that is a little (or a lot) better.

FSP does have a lot of crappy units. Paul Johnson, jonnyguru, and Bbq all can verify this.
Click to expand...

If you haven't used that model I would say you have no right to comment on the quality of it, I have personally built a Pc with the 400w with the 120mm fan its been running fine for over a year and half now and all the rails are still the same as the day I put it together, its a very good psu for the price.
 
scwam said:
I've tested and used the 400watt FSP model at high loads
Click to expand...

Just wanted to point out the AX400-PN and ATX400-PA are in fact two different models - only the latter is a 400W PSU while the former is a retail version of the ATX350-PN, a 350W unit. One's good for 29A combined at 12V, the other 24A.

I absolutely hate that FSP still does this with the model numbers.
 
munkle said:
If you haven't used that model I would say you have no right to comment on the quality of it, I have personally built a Pc with the 400w with the 120mm fan its been running fine for over a year and half now and all the rails are still the same as the day I put it together, its a very good psu for the price.
Click to expand...

Big deal if you have a system working with a certain PSU. I have an Antec TruePower II 550W that has been working for 1.5 years too, doesn't mean that the caps in it aren't failing (one of my caps is bulging and is leaking a little bit, but I can still use my machine). So because you say a PSU powers the machines, doesn't mean it isn't failing.
 
protias said:
one of my caps is bulging and is leaking a little bit, but I can still use my machine
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I was afraid of that - I'd recap or replace that unit ASAP - if it's bulging, it's failed and letting more than the usual amount of ripple get by. It could well be exceeding the ATX spec already. Even worse, it's likely you have other bad ones that aren't bulging yet :(

I've recapped three CWT built units so far... they're very good with the good caps in them, but replacements are hard to find sometimes due to the small diameters used in there.
 
Oklahoma Wolf said:
I was afraid of that - I'd recap or replace that unit ASAP - if it's bulging, it's failed and letting more than the usual amount of ripple get by. It could well be exceeding the ATX spec already. Even worse, it's likely you have other bad ones that aren't bulging yet :(

I've recapped three CWT built units so far... they're very good with the good caps in them, but replacements are hard to find sometimes due to the small diameters used in there.
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I'm glad you told me to pop the thing open. Everything seemed to work fine, but with 2 caps bulging and leaking, I don't want to risk my $1000 (when it was built) machine for something that can be much better. I ripped out the PSU right after I saw one of the bulges.

I have no idea how to replace caps and would not be worth my time. I would probably spend more time replacing the caps than just buying a new unit. I am actually looking at the SeaSonic S12 SS-550HT or even the Corsair CMPSU-450VX.
 
Oklahoma Wolf said:
Just wanted to point out the AX400-PN and ATX400-PA are in fact two different models - only the latter is a 400W PSU while the former is a retail version of the ATX350-PN, a 350W unit. One's good for 29A combined at 12V, the other 24A.

I absolutely hate that FSP still does this with the model numbers.
Click to expand...

Definitely agree with the model naming. They have quite a bit of difference in their 400w line. Some can do up to 25a, another does 29a and one does 31a or so. Even Newegg and Fortron can't seem to agree on the 12v rails. The best thing to do is look at the side of the PSU (if possible) then cross reference with the website. Watts mean little since the 12v lines are the most important overall these days.

Here is the one I recommend: http://www.fsp-group.com/english/1_product/2_detail.asp?mainid=1&fid=52&proid=197 It's the Fortron ATX400-PN. It's rated 18a/18a on the two 12v rails with a max output for 12v of 29a. Most forums rate the Fortron/FSP products as good values for the money, usually in the middle area and rarely/never on the "Do not buy" list. YMMV of course.
 
Linux_Box said:
They have quite a bit of difference in their 400w line. Some can do up to 25a, another does 29a and one does 31a or so.
Click to expand...

Heh - I'm serious about the AX400-PN being a 350W unit. All one has to do is take a look at the PDF and it says as much right in there ;)

Not sure where it can be found online these days, but I have a copy on my hard drive.

The UL database page for FSP also reveals the truth.
 
Apologies to OP... don't mean to hi-jack your thread.

Oklahoma Wolf is correct. I've been searching around the many different FSP/Fortron type sites on the internet. I'm not sure which is official (do a yahoo or google and you'll see what I mean). The AX400-PN = ATX350-PN is rated closer to 350W with a 25a max 12v. The 350w doesn't bother me but the 25a on the 12v rail is of concern. The ATX400-PN (note ATX, not AX) is the model to get because it has more amps on the 12v (29a) for approximately the same price ~$40.

I didn't pay attention to the 'T' which makes a huge difference in this case. I appreciate the information as it definitely could make a difference. :)
 
Linux_Box said:
I have had great success with FSP/Fortron in that price range:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817104952
.
Click to expand...

That's my review (3rd down) for that model. But one big mistake in my numbers is I completely forgot to calculate the efficiency of the model with the numbers I posted. IIRC, seasonic meter read .97 to .98 on the PF rating while I did those tests. It's still running fine in my friends system today. I would guess that my system was actually using 340 to 400 watts at peak (it was a power hungry system).
 
scwam said:
That's my review (3rd down) for that model. But one big mistake in my numbers is I completely forgot to calculate the efficiency of the model with the numbers I posted. IIRC, seasonic meter read .97 to .98 on the PF rating while I did those tests. It's still running fine in my friends system today. I would guess that my system was actually using 340 to 400 watts at peak (it was a power hungry system).
Click to expand...

PF is just the ratio of the real power to the apparent power.
 
the eXtreme 600 / 650 is a seventeam 500w.
the eXtreme 500 is a hipro.
 
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