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PSU efficiency/ 80 PLUS gold certified

C

CraftyOtter

Gawd
Joined
Jun 25, 2004
Messages
663
Seems like a simple argument/decision to make to go with the most energy efficient PSU you can get if you are going to be folding 24/7 (GPU and/or CPU) ..... right?

Does anyone have and before/after stories about a "standard" efficiency PSU and then switching to a 80 PLUS Gold certified PSU with relation to your electric bill?

Or does F@H just snow-plow over the features these "save electricity/money" PSU's promote?

I'm eyeballing my electric bill and thinking about swapping out a few PSU's with 80+ gold units. Might do it either way but was wondering specifically about DC applications and any experience/results you may have had.

Just thinking [/sometimes bad/] .......:D

PS: EvilAlchemist ... I'm not pulling off to the side of the road when you fly by me in 4 days and steal my #33 rank on Team #33 ...... just so you know. :)
 
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I am slowly swapping mine out.

They might not make a huge difference in the bill, but you can sell the old one to make up some of the cost, and like the seasonic x650 is fully modular so it cuts down on cable clutter, and improves airflow.

So their are benefits to doing it, it just depends on whether or not it is worth it to you.
 
All my PSUs are 80+

Have not gotten myself to get silver or gold though....

Power is cheap here (on a relative basis) so spending the extra 50% in cost on a PSU is not quite worth it. If I lived in Cali... different story.
 
in the long run its well worth the cost to get the most efficient psu you can afford.. night and day difference between my corsair 550w which is 82-85% and my thermaltake TP 750w which is 78-80% on a good day on the same system.. saves me about 5-10 dollars a month on power.. which in a year is 120 dollars.. 2 years 240 dollars.. 3 years 360 dollars.. if you look at the long term it makes a huge difference..
 
It's definitely worth it. As our good Sir Monkey pointed out, with a high-powered PSU and system it can save a fair amount of money each year, which would quickly earn you back the cost of the PSU, let alone the higher price over a less efficient unit.

Besides, 80+ Gold units generally are high-quality units too, so it's a good deal all around :)
 
My power is extremely cheap, but I still would not run anything less than an 80+ Bronze unit mainly for quality concerns. When I bought my HX1000 silver and gold units were not readily available that I was aware of. If I knew I could sell my current PSU for nearly new price, I might consider it. With my power rates, a 5% increase in PSU efficiency for a 1000W load will save me less than $30/year on my bill.
 
flogge said:
My power is extremely cheap, but I still would not run anything less than an 80+ Bronze unit mainly for quality concerns. When I bought my HX1000 silver and gold units were not readily available that I was aware of. If I knew I could sell my current PSU for nearly new price, I might consider it. With my power rates, a 5% increase in PSU efficiency for a 1000W load will save me less than $30/year on my bill.
Click to expand...

I highly doubt you have a 1000w load.

Just because you have a 1000w PSU doesnt mean its pullinig 1000w
 
Thanks for all the replies/confirmations. I have one Antec 450W "Gold PLUS (Bronze)" in my mix of Antec/OCZ PSU's. This will change soon.

My office door was closed this afternoon when I got home. 92F ambient. It's going to be a long summer....:D
 
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