Second X1650 on 500w?

[Korrd]

I've got a Q6600-based system running on a Sunmax 500w PSU (specs below). The system performs great and is perfectly stable (PSU voltages are well within +/- 5%, haven't checked amps). The user is thrilled with the system, but wants another video card so he can assign color profiles to each of his two monitors for his work with Photoshop. It's already got one PCIe X1650, so I figured I'd just get him another (MSI P6N SLI Platinum, two x16s).

It's purely a budget card and performance isn't terribly important, but I do have concerns about power requirements. The system will never be used for gaming, so I shouldn't think these cards will be pushed too hard, but how likely is it we can get by on a 500w PSU?

Q6600 / 4GB DDR2 / MSI P6N SLI Platinum
2x 320GB WD HDDs / 2x Optical / Zip / Floppy
PCI Firewire, USB, and Serial Cards

 

[Wolf-R1]

Overall I'd think he'd be alright with a quality 500w PSU as long as he doesn't hammer that system. Then he might be in iffy territory.

 

[Korrd]

I'm always uneasy with the more generic power supplies. Sunmax, in my mind, fits squarely in that category. I'm just not sure how much the power requirements vary if those cards aren't going to be pushed very much (i.e., Photoshop vs. gaming), but if the current PSU has no chance of handling the load, adding another card may not be the best course since it'd necessitate a new PSU as well (and his budget is limited now that he's retired).

 

[lamboman]

Hi there, I'm am new here, and this is my first post. You might have seen me roaming other forums (quite a few).

Your PSU should be fine, X1650's don't use much power. It is more longetivity and reliability in the future you should be concerned about. These PSU's can often breakdown WAY earlier than expensive non-generic ones.