The highly rated HP Pavilion Slimline PC thread

Taiki said:
So my understanding is I can fit the
SEASONIC PS SS-400H1U 400w PSU $100
Sparkle 9800GT Low-Pro $115
And add some fans externally, it would all fit?
Click to expand...

That PSU should fit...but you'd be the first to try the 400watt highly rated seasonic PSU so I am all ears to hear about your exp. How loud it is was my concern and the reason I opted against it. Given that I was able to modify and quiet down the sparkle 270 watt PSU to near silent I prolly could have done the same thing to the seasonic --- as can you.


You'll almost surely need a six pin pci-e adapter for the 9800gt.

You will need a sata power adapter for each: the hard-drive and the cd-rom. If there is only a single line with two sata adapters on that power supply-- the connectors will not likely reach the cd-rom and hard-drive since they mounted at 90* of each other. Thus you'll likley need a molex to sata adapter.
 
A couple a days ago I bought the slimline s3020.sc with TV-tuner card.

I bought it with at defect on board vga, screen only shows blue colors... and I have to replace the graphics card with a PCI-E card.

What card should I use, when I still wan't to keep the TV-tuner card, and my PSU only is 160 W.

Thanks in advance
 
birtheothello said:
A couple a days ago I bought the slimline s3020.sc with TV-tuner card.

I bought it with at defect on board vga, screen only shows blue colors... and I have to replace the graphics card with a PCI-E card.

What card should I use, when I still wan't to keep the TV-tuner card, and my PSU only is 160 W.

Thanks in advance
Click to expand...

ATI 4550.
 
I purchased a case with a motherboard and PSU the model is the s3400f.
So far I have an AMD 5050e, 2Gb Crucial DDR2-800, a Hitatchi 320Gb 7K1000.B HD (supposedly clocked just under the WD Raptor)

From this form I have read to replace the PSU is I want to run any Video card Higher than an 8600GT (even then I could be pushing my luck) so I got the Sparkle 300W PSU to replace the old one, then getting the 20 pin to 24 pin small ATX adapter (or making one have not decided).

But I hear nothing about anyone using another CPU Cooler in their rig...I see the HP part places have it but the cheapest I found it was $70 that's NOT including shipping!
Anyway most of the ones I have seen are too tall or look to big to fit in that small space. I have found only 1 that is a possible Link: http://www.silverstonetek.com/products/p_contents.php?pno=nt05&area=usa
It has a height of 92mm (spec) anyone know the depth of the case with the MB in place?

The only other solution other that bite the bullet and get the HP HSF is using this one http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835887018
and putting a couple of 40mm fans at the back of the case to vent the heat.

Anyone out there every try using another HSF on their slimline or have a link to a place that sells the HP "stock" HSF at a price that is closer to earth?
 
Hacad, your stock HP heatskink and fan should be 100% fine for the 5050e, that's a 45 watt processor and won't generate much heat at all. Do you not have the stock heatsink and fan?
 
Well here's the result of my 120mm case fan mod to my s3600t.
Q9300
9800GT
1.5TB drive
4GB RAM
60mm fan modded into 270 watt sparkle 80plus efficient PSU
120mm Yate Loon Case Fan modded onto side of slimline chasis

I used my trusty dremel and cut out this square to reduce fan noise and air blockage.
20iexe1.jpg


Final Result
2qb5caq.jpg


Camera flash on side image with Yate Loon Fan and grill from Xioxide.com
2znpnki.jpg


No camera flash of same thing
33ll0d2.jpg


Night shot
5133g4.jpg


Night shot from front
1z4ya6o.jpg


I'm debating on whether it's too bright --- Without the black mesh grill it was too bright -- but I think it may be still! --- I may wire it down to 7 volt or 5 volt to reduce some of the LED light output. The fan (at 12 volts) cools much better than the two 80mm fans did at five volt (though I didn't have a cut-out for the two 80mm fans) and the 120mm at 12 volt is about the exact same audible volume as the two 80mms at 5 volt. -- I'm thinking it will still push plenty of air at 5 or 7 volt. I've also noticed that my 270 watt sparkle PSU does not seem to spin up the modded 60mm fan any longer in games or benchmarks now that I've put the 120mm cooler on the slimline. The dremel cut out allows it to breathe and push enough air to really keep the case cool. The PC remains very quiet. The 120mm fan has a very light whoosh sound. It's silent enough to not be any kind of nuisance, and is much quieter than any other 120mm fan I own (I picked the Yate Loon for this because it was supposed to be a quiet LED fan) I think I could make it completely silent at 5 or 7 volts if I decide to go that route. (Though the sound is NOT bothersome now --- 1000x's better than that 40mm PSU fan that kept spinning up when I first put the sparkle 270 watt PSU in this case) I wanted complete silence on this machine and I'm very nearly there - perhaps close enough to be satisified.
 
Last edited:
I do not have the heatsink, the case only comes with the motherboard PSU and of course the case....
I may just go the route with the low profile HSF since it's quiet then get a couple of quiet fans for the back..going for a quiet PC hopefully...the one I have now micro atx has a 120mm fan on the CPU Cooler and one cooling the board.

It's still fairly audible.
 
hacad said:
I do not have the heatsink, the case only comes with the motherboard PSU and of course the case....
I may just go the route with the low profile HSF since it's quiet then get a couple of quiet fans for the back..going for a quiet PC hopefully...the one I have now micro atx has a 120mm fan on the CPU Cooler and one cooling the board.

It's still fairly audible.
Click to expand...

That stinks. I just sold one a couple months back in the for sale forum for $10. I don't have any extras now...sorry. Maybe you could watch ebay?

Good luck finding a 40 mm that's quiet. I tried several different models and was unable to --- even at five volts they were the loudest thing in my case. (if that gives you any indication of how quiet I'm trying to go for)

I would advise buying a 50 or 60mm and running it at five volts. It will fit inside the case (part of it will be blocked, but it will still push as much air as the 40mm and be typically quieter.
 
An interesting, if disappointing discovery: I was planning on putting a PCIe x4 expansion card into the x16 slot, and run graphics via the integrated GPU. Unfortunately, the system refuses to POST if anything other than a GPU is in the x16 slot. I'd switched the BIOS to integrated graphics before making the switch so it's not a BIOS issue.

The best I can hope for is to file open the PCIe x1 slot and run my expansion card on reduced bandwidth.
 
I see your point Archaea, I have a Yate Loon 120 in my current rig but also got a very quiet fan evercool fan from an online site called svc.com they have quiet a selection for fans. They do have a 40mm from silenx at 14dba. In any event I think a lot of noise comes from the air moving through the grate so your idea of putting them inside is a good one! I also have a few zalman fan speed reducers to use as well.

I don't even have my case yet and won't until Wednesday so not sure I may actually have the heatsink but there is no CPU so I am assuming the HSF went with the CPU. Even so my build is costing me under 300 (so far). Not bad for a CADD rig.

I kept telling myself I was not going to build my own next time but I have the bug and almost prefer to configure my own. I would like to see you fan mod on your PSU did you post it here? I found my PSU used for 18 bucks shipped so no warranty to worry about. I actually like your 120mm idea I may kick that one around.

Oh and as for the HSF you sold for 10 I would have bought it for 20! Joking....
 
Nice mod. Actually I think the 270 W Sparkle is shorter and a little smaller than the 300W FSP300 plus the 300 has 2 fans one on each end. I may or may not mod it. Another person had posted saying it was louder than the shuttle but still quiet.

I have a Shuttle box to in the bedroom it is extremely quiet, a lot of people complain about the reliability but I have had mine for over 5 years no problems at all running an old Barton Chip on it with 1Gb of ram....it's mainly used by my wife to surf and email. Just surprised as to how long that build lasted.

I will have more to report and hopefully some pictures next month when I start the build got a vacation coming up.
 
Actually if I went with a 120mm I might use this fan...nice and flush...very quiet too at 20dba full power.

http://www.svc.com/21530-2.html

Oops follow up I did not even notice this is a 250mm fan.....Wow could probably use my pc as a leaf blower too!......LOL.

Anyway it would be a nice option but I think it might be even bigger than the motherboard....

SVC does have some nice fan options though.....worth a look. I am about an hour away from their actual store so if I order before 2pm I usually get it the next day..they are quick with the turn around on the shipping.
 
Last edited:
hacad said:
Actually if I went with a 120mm I might use this fan...nice and flush...very quiet too at 20dba full power.

http://www.svc.com/21530-2.html

Oops follow up I did not even notice this is a 250mm fan.....Wow could probably use my pc as a leaf blower too!......LOL.
Click to expand...

Flush that big fan is not.

:)

250 x 250 x 30 mm

My 120mm is 25mm wide - so it's actually narrower than that big one. That big one would still have to be mounted on the outside, because the part that is intended to go inside woudln't fit. The CD-Rom and the CPU heatsink are incredibly close to the side of the slimline case. An 80mm is the biggest fan that will fit mounted on the inside of the side of the case. It will just barely squeeze betwen the cd-rom and the CPU heatsink - right above the video card. I thought about going that route, but it seemed the measurements had to be very precise, and I could just envision cutting a hole in my case and mounting the fan only to figure out I was 1 or 2 mm off on the fan mount and now could no longer put my case cover back on.

I don't trust db measurements much. I've read a lot of places that companies just make them up basically because they take the measurement at any distance they want to make their stats look better. The Yate Loon has a 28db rating -- and they used the ISO standards method of generating this rating. That said it's quieter than a 40mm fan I bought that was rated in the high teens --- so take the DB ratings with a grain of salt.

I had a single 80mm Yate Lon fan before and it was the quietest fan I've had, so thats the reason I gave the 120MM LED Yate Loon fan a shot - despite its higher db rating.
 
Last edited:
Hey all,

Recently picked up an s3223w off craigslist for $75. It had a dead HDD but was fine otherwise so WIN for me.

I wanted to know what would be a good HDTV card I could put in there. I'd like it to have a remote. Input signal would be coming from an amplified HDTV antenna in my attic that currently sends an excellent signal to my TV. I don't have a particular price range in mind but maybe around $70-80?

To give you all an idea of the power envelope, it's got the stock 160W power supply, 65W 4400+ X2, 2GB ram (2 sticks), 400GB 7200rpm drive, and an X1650pro that the previous owner installed. I have a main desktop that I can grab swap a BE-2400 from. I'll probably swap out the X1650pro since it probably doesn't handle HD streams particularly well, unless I'm mistaken.

Thanks in advance.
 
Arch, that fan mod literally looks :cool:, but that bright light would get annoying for HTPC purposes.

Zoogle said:
Hey all,

Recently picked up an s3223w off craigslist for $75. It had a dead HDD but was fine otherwise so WIN for me.

I wanted to know what would be a good HDTV card I could put in there. I'd like it to have a remote. Input signal would be coming from an amplified HDTV antenna in my attic that currently sends an excellent signal to my TV. I don't have a particular price range in mind but maybe around $70-80?

To give you all an idea of the power envelope, it's got the stock 160W power supply, 65W 4400+ X2, 2GB ram (2 sticks), 400GB 7200rpm drive, and an X1650pro that the previous owner installed. I have a main desktop that I can grab swap a BE-2400 from. I'll probably swap out the X1650pro since it probably doesn't handle HD streams particularly well, unless I'm mistaken.

Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...
If you're willing to get a USB-based HDTV tuner, I'd recommend what I have for my Dell HTPC:
WinTV-HVR-1950

It comes w/ a remote control and I got it from Newegg for $100 shipped AR, which I realize is a little above your soft budget.

For an internal card, you could look at the WinTV-HVR-1250. It also comes w/ a remote control and a low profile adapter.
 
Zoogle said:
Any particular advantage to having a USB tuner over a PCI one?
Click to expand...

It's useful if you don't have an extra PCI-e slot available, like in my case. Otherwise, both should be equally as good performers. Well, the external one can also connect a VCR to it b/c of the additional input, but I didn't care about that feature.
 
I think I will give the USB version a try beowulf7. Hopefully no data transmission bottlenecks over the USB.

Off my original topic but how did you guys that have extra fans get them powered? I only see the main 24 pin and the two SATA power connectors on my power supply. Guess this means splicing is necessary?
 
Zoogle said:
I think I will give the USB version a try beowulf7. Hopefully no data transmission bottlenecks over the USB.

...
Click to expand...

I have not noticed any BW bottlenecks over USB2. Remember, USB2 is theoretically rated at 480 Mbps (granted, it's less in reality). HD requires much less (9 GB/hr.)

I haven't checked what Newegg is currently charging for the 1950, but they do have rebates on it occasionally. And Hauppauge is very fast w/ rebates. I got a $30 rebate in just 4 weeks!
 
Hi everyone,

Sorry if this post is long-winded, but I am at a loss. As of today, I am still having zero luck with getting my s3750t to recognize the Sparkle 9800GT when it is plugged into my PCI-e slot. The problem is that computer (I am running Vista Home Premium 64-Bit) does not even acknowledge that a graphics card is attached to the slot (i.e. it will not search for or find new hardware, and the Device Manager does not indicate the presence of any new devices). I have made sure numerous times that the 9800GT is firmly attached to the PCI-e slot and that the 6x PCI-e adaptor is securely fastened to both the graphics card and the two Molex cables coming from the PSU (an In-Win 300W). The 9800GT spins up completely and immediately when the computer is switched on, leading me to believe that this may be some sort of software/settings issue, rather than a power issue, but I may be wrong. Does anyone know if a computer will recognize an aftermarket video card if it is plugged into the slot, even if it is not necessarily getting the full power needed? I have tried every trick I can think of, including uninstalling the on-board GPU from the Device Manager, uninstalling all graphics drivers and installing the latest Sparkle drivers, and setting the BIOS to utilize the PCI-e slot for graphics. None of this works, and I get no response from either the HDMI nor the DVI inputs when I hook my monitor and/or TV up; I am forced to use the on-board video VGA to get any sort of picture. HP makes no indication that I may need to PHYSICALLY disable the on-board video in order to use the 9800GT, but I wouldn't know how to do this even if I needed to. Before I exchange the Sparkle card for a new one, I want to see if anyone has any ideas for me; I am always very grateful for the intelligence, expretise, and helpfulness of the members on this forum.

Thanks again.

BTW, I am running 4 GB Ram and a 2.33MHz Intel Quad-Core on an In-Win 300W PSU
 
I think I'm going to go with the MSI GeForce 9400 GT. It's cheaper, I'm assuming uses less power, and I'm going to be putting together an i7 build here soon so no sense in splurging on the slimline :p

s3421p
Athlon 64x2 5200+ 2.7GHz
Stock 160w PSU
Nvidia 6150SE (ewww)
(Would removing the Modem and HP drive/bay thing lower my power usage?)
I use maybe one USB at a time, and usually only when using my External HDD or Zune..

I read in the reviews on newegg, that someone said that it works with their 160w stock PSU.
The requirements on one site suggest 350w PSU, but another card comparison page says it has a max draw of 50w.. but I know some of the other mid range power cards have worked on the 160w PSU as well, any input is awesome.

It may be worth noting the most hardcore gaming I would be seeing is World of Warcraft. Just trying to get more than 15fps everywhere..

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127412

P.S. I took part my XBOX360 bottom-mount fan cooler apart and found a PC fan inside (connected to a long green glowing..cable?), though the fan sticks out a bit on one side, and I cant figure a way to actually mount it on, so it kind of hangs back there ;) plus USB power was a simplicity plus. Waiting on a GPU to finally crack the case open.

The Fan dangling on the backside by it's usb power cord over the PSU cord :p
ne9t2c.jpg


And the thing it came out of..
dpzez9.jpg


Also Archaea, how exactly do you mount your fans to your case? Just drill 'em on there? Going to be getting a 120mm fan for the side also (was the first upgrade I ever thought of, and now seeing it done would like to know more), and if you don't mind my ignorance, where do you plug case fans into? >_>
 
Last edited:
You can mount the fans using zip ties, bread ties, fan screws, a set of thin bolts and finish washers from the hardware store. You need to either splice wires on the stock PSU.


I wouldn't really go the 9400GT route with a 65 watt processor. Consider the HD4550 instead. It will likely use less power. (20-30 watts according to most sites)

yes removing the modem will save you a tiny bit of power. Removing the unused front drive bay is a good idea for cooling - though it won't save power. I've read that the memory card reader on the front does actually use a tiny bit of power, but the pocket drive bay would not.

I would recommend you consider a 45 watt processor too. You can get one for like $30 bucks which will give you some power to spare in comparisonto your 65 watt processor.

If you don't want to modify/splice the stock PSU cables you'll need to buy a sata power adapter splitter and then you can cut the end off one end to get your wires for running the fan.
 
Would splicing into the USB cord from the other fan be a bad idea? Like have them all go into a single USB port?

I have purchased the following on newegg..

Asus ATI Radeon HD4550 low-profile

90mm 4-pin Case Fan (free shipping..)

120mm Blue LED Fan (also free shipping)

I went for the fans that had free shipping, as they barely fit into my sub $70 budget, and I can splice them into an on/off switchboard that's connected to my USB fan... I think. I'll use the one hanging now and maybe, somehow, mount it to the back of the PSU vent?

Either way a card is on it's way, and I can't wait to void my warranty :p
 
Last edited:
Hi all. I'm back to report a developing issue maybe you have input on.
I upgraded my 3720 with the in-win 300w and the sparkle 9800 gt.
Worked like a charm for a couple of weeks, thing runs silently and low heat, but about a week ago it just shut down while surfing the internet. It started right up and kept going. But the shutdowns continue about once a day...it is now difficult to turn my computer back on as I have to click and click the power switch, wait and click some more then it powers up.
I recall this problem somewhere in this vast thread someone having a similar prob but they were running the sparkle on the stock psu I believe.
Uggghh, what is going on here? at this rate I'm going to wear out the power on switch.
Thanks all
 
petrip74 said:
Hi all. I'm back to report a developing issue maybe you have input on.
I upgraded my 3720 with the in-win 300w and the sparkle 9800 gt.
Worked like a charm for a couple of weeks, thing runs silently and low heat, but about a week ago it just shut down while surfing the internet. It started right up and kept going. But the shutdowns continue about once a day...it is now difficult to turn my computer back on as I have to click and click the power switch, wait and click some more then it powers up.
I recall this problem somewhere in this vast thread someone having a similar prob but they were running the sparkle on the stock psu I believe.
Uggghh, what is going on here? at this rate I'm going to wear out the power on switch.
Thanks all
Click to expand...

Hey Petrip,

As you can see from my post above, I am having an even more difficult time with my InWin + Sparkle combination. I have a question, if you don't mind. With the 6-pin PCI-e to 2x Molex adapter, are you using the Molex plugs from each separate cable on the InWin to power the Sparkle? Also, did your computer immediately recognize the Sparkle card when you plugged it in, or did you have to manually disable the on-board video? I am really having a difficult time with my upgrade, and any additional feedback would be very helpful.

Thank you
 
I took the slim 2.5 HDD out of fault crappy laptop. I wanted to test Notebook Harddrive with HP Slimline, if it work. Yes it actually work! YAY!
img8256x640.jpg

img8246x640.jpg

I will use notebook harddrive in hp slimline for Windows SE7EN instead of HP factory (vista) harddrive .. ;)
 
Taiki said:
Would splicing into the USB cord from the other fan be a bad idea? Like have them all go into a single USB port?
Click to expand...

A USB port is only good for 500ma on the 5volt rail. You can't put all those fans on one USB header or you'll blow risk blowing that USB header. 500ma is 1/2 amp on the 5 volt rail --- or 2.5 watts. A single 120mm LED fan typically takes more than that alone. They typically take .3 amps on a 12 volt rail or thereabout. .3 amp on the 12 volt rail (line) is about 4 watts. The power requirement varies per fan --- make sure and read the draw on the 12 volt fan you buy and make sure it's not outrageous.

I'd advise wiring the fans into the power supply or utilizing some of the unused USB headers on the motherboard (located under the cd-rom to the front of the case from the RAM. If you google search you can lookup a USB pin layout and figure out which ones are power. If you don't need the pocket drive you can just cut the cord off the metal cage side and you'll have one fan powering device right there. Use that USB header cord to splice into one of your fans. Just make sure you get your power lines singled out and spliced correctly and you don't have power grounding to a data pin --- or again --- you'll blow out a USB header.
 
pigskin80 said:
Hey Petrip,

As you can see from my post above, I am having an even more difficult time with my InWin + Sparkle combination. I have a question, if you don't mind. With the 6-pin PCI-e to 2x Molex adapter, are you using the Molex plugs from each separate cable on the InWin to power the Sparkle? Also, did your computer immediately recognize the Sparkle card when you plugged it in, or did you have to manually disable the on-board video? I am really having a difficult time with my upgrade, and any additional feedback would be very helpful.

Thank you
Click to expand...
Hi pigskin. The sparkle was recognized right on startup, giant fonts till I got the driver.
I had never done anything like this before, and how I got the plugs right I'll never know- like, what the hell is the little 4plug xtender on the 24 spin 20 converter?!.
As for powering up the sparkle, I could only find one available plug left from the inwin with which to plug in the molex adapter and connect to the card- I would have plugged both molex in if there was another....(you have another?)...but just connected the branch that had the most wires in it (the other molex connector had only 2 wires in the plug).
I'm a total rookie so hope this gave you some ideas.
Hope you have it figured out by now.
No shutdowns for me in 48 hours, I played CoD for a couple hours fine.
 
Hey Archaea,

I got the case today good news! It has the cpu cooler! so no worries there. It sure is light though! Is the standard fan included pretty quiet? or should I change it out? I have heard the systems in the store and they seem quiet enough.

So I have my AMD 5050e, 320GB HD, 2GB (2 x 1G) dual channel crucial, a 300W Sparkle PSU coming. Video card is a TBD at this point. Not a heavy gamer but lots of rendering CADD, occasional games, lots of pic editing. Figuring something in the Nvidia 9000 series for the video card.

I will be putting XP Pro on this system not big on Vista yet but do like the interface, maybe at a later date I will jump right into Window 7.

Fingers cross that it actually runs.....LOL anyway gone for a few weeks so no time to play with the new toy just getting things together.
 
I'm looking to get a low profile video card and the ATI 4650 piqued my interest. I've already swapped out the standard 65W 4400+ with a 45W BE-2400 and I've conservatively calculated that if all other parts are running at full load (which would be pretty rare), my total power consumption without the video card is 90W.

HDD - 10W
CPU - 45W
MOTHERBOARD - 10W
DVD - 20W
RAM + FANS - 5W

I'm guesstimating that the motherboard would probably fit in the total Intel Atom power envelope of 11W.

I can't seem to find any figures for the HD4650 power consumption on its own and was wondering if I could squeeze it in with the existing 160W power supply. Anyone test this before?
 
Zoggle you have to remember the watts spec'd are maximums, you usually do not max out the whole system at one time.
The video card you show uses anywhere from 10 to 80W depending.

You would be looking at around 170W if you ran everything at the same time. Meaning burned a DVD, from a file on the hard drive while playing a game...if you get my point.

The other problem could be on boot up when your system posts you could theoretically draw too much power at that time and you won't post. I fought with this on another system and once I removed 1 component the PC booted fine.

I prefer to have a little factor of safety on systems I put together. Taxing you PSU for extended periods can shorten it's life considerably.
 
Zoogle said:
I'm looking to get a low profile video card and the ATI 4650 piqued my interest. I've already swapped out the standard 65W 4400+ with a 45W BE-2400 and I've conservatively calculated that if all other parts are running at full load (which would be pretty rare), my total power consumption without the video card is 90W.

HDD - 10W
CPU - 45W
MOTHERBOARD - 10W
DVD - 20W
RAM + FANS - 5W

I'm guesstimating that the motherboard would probably fit in the total Intel Atom power envelope of 11W.

I can't seem to find any figures for the HD4650 power consumption on its own and was wondering if I could squeeze it in with the existing 160W power supply. Anyone test this before?
Click to expand...

The motherboard uses more than 10 watts as a theoretical maximum, and RAM is generally estimated to use 10 watts rather than 5. A dvd player can use more than 20 watts. You don't have power enough to spare for a 4650 in my strong opinion.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sapphire/HD_4650_OC/24.html


The card uses very little power on idle, but as you can see in the graph it uses at least 60-80 watts at when playing a game. and your PSU just doesn't have that to spare. Remember that you shouldn't run a PSU at more than 80% load for extended periods of time.
 
hacad said:
Hey Archaea,

I got the case today good news! It has the cpu cooler! so no worries there. It sure is light though! Is the standard fan included pretty quiet? or should I change it out? I have heard the systems in the store and they seem quiet enough.

So I have my AMD 5050e, 320GB HD, 2GB (2 x 1G) dual channel crucial, a 300W Sparkle PSU coming. Video card is a TBD at this point. Not a heavy gamer but lots of rendering CADD, occasional games, lots of pic editing. Figuring something in the Nvidia 9000 series for the video card.

I will be putting XP Pro on this system not big on Vista yet but do like the interface, maybe at a later date I will jump right into Window 7.

Fingers cross that it actually runs.....LOL anyway gone for a few weeks so no time to play with the new toy just getting things together.
Click to expand...
You got case that is hp slimline? if so, where you get the hp slimcase case?
 
hacad said:
Zoggle you have to remember the watts spec'd are maximums, you usually do not max out the whole system at one time.
The video card you show uses anywhere from 10 to 80W depending.

You would be looking at around 170W if you ran everything at the same time. Meaning burned a DVD, from a file on the hard drive while playing a game...if you get my point.

The other problem could be on boot up when your system posts you could theoretically draw too much power at that time and you won't post. I fought with this on another system and once I removed 1 component the PC booted fine.

I prefer to have a little factor of safety on systems I put together. Taxing you PSU for extended periods can shorten it's life considerably.
Click to expand...

Archaea said:
The motherboard uses more than 10 watts as a theoretical maximum, and RAM is generally estimated to use 10 watts rather than 5. A dvd player can use more than 20 watts. You don't have power enough to spare for a 4650 in my strong opinion.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sapphire/HD_4650_OC/24.html


The card uses very little power on idle, but as you can see in the graph it uses at least 60-80 watts at when playing a game. and your PSU just doesn't have that to spare. Remember that you shouldn't run a PSU at more than 80% load for extended periods of time.
Click to expand...

Your comments are duly noted. I figure I can ignore the DVD power requirements since if I'm gaming I won't be using the DVD drive at the same time. I guess this means that I'll have to stick with the 4550... darn...
 
Zoogle said:
Your comments are duly noted. I figure I can ignore the DVD power requirements since if I'm gaming I won't be using the DVD drive at the same time. I guess this means that I'll have to stick with the 4550... darn...
Click to expand...


Consider that you can buy a Sparkle 270 watt PSU that will easily power any setup you can throw in a slimline ---- for $45 at censusPC.com using the $5 off coupon. (Model discussed in first post) Then you need a overpriced adapter - $15 from atxpowersupplies.com, and a couple various adapters. molex to SATA, molex to PCI-E.

So for about $75 dollars shipped you can run anything you want in the slimline. Sell off your old 160 watt PSU for ~ $25 on ebay --- making your upgrade PSU cost only $50.
 
GMERGOD said:
You got case that is hp slimline? if so, where you get the hp slimcase case?
Click to expand...

I've got an extra one I'll sell if you are interested with a couple stock power supplies.

$40 shipped to a US address with 160 watt PSU.

$50 shipped to a US address with 180 watt PSU.
 
Finally, after weeks of turmoil, frustration, and the creation of a den that resembles a science experiment gone wrong, I have a fully upgraded and working Slimline that is using a 300W In-Win PSU to power a Sparkle 9800GT, DVD drive, hard drive, 4 GB RAM, and a 2.33 MHz Quad-core CPU!

Petrip - believe it or not, your setup of attaching only ONE Molex plug to the PCI-e adapter did the trick! It appears that using both Molex plugs results in the video card trying to pull to much power from the power supply; the computer will not even start when hooked up like that. I have now kept the computer on for over 12 hours straight with no overheating or noise issues whatsoever. The PSU stays low-to-medium in volume at all times, granted I have not done any major gaming yet. At this point, the $33 In-Win looks like a steal compared to the inconsistent and potentially underpowered $87 Shuttle PC50.

Special thanks again to Petrip and Archaea for your helpful tips and information. I'll keep everyone updated as to how the computer performs under more heavy usage. At this point, my only problem is figuring out how to stuff all these cables neatly into the case so that I can put to cover back on.....
 
pigskin80 said:
Special thanks again to Petrip and Archaea for your helpful tips and information. I'll keep everyone updated as to how the computer performs under more heavy usage. At this point, my only problem is figuring out how to stuff all these cables neatly into the case so that I can put to cover back on.....
Click to expand...

Incredible! Good work. I too am impressed with the silence of the in-win, as to the dependability I still occasionally have that random shutdown during normal use (so if anyone has any input on that, still trying to solve it).
My case is an open mass of wires, with all the excess wire on ATXpowersupplies converters it seems impossible to try to stuff it without shortening the adapters. I just don't want to risk cutting the air flow, and stuffing that in there would be ridiculously hard and dense. Not going to push my luck on that one!
I found I had to remove the HP Pocket drive totally, anyone need one?
 
petrip74 said:
My case is an open mass of wires, with all the excess wire on ATXpowersupplies converters it seems impossible to try to stuff it without shortening the adapters. I just don't want to risk cutting the air flow, and stuffing that in there would be ridiculously hard and dense.
Click to expand...

I am going to look into the possibility of further cutting into the cage that houses the DVD drive and hard drive. I already lopped off a big chunk of metal when I was trying to fit the cables from the even larger Shuttle in there. One thing's for sure....given the possible overheating and power issues, and subsequent need to reset the power supply, I don't think I'll ever permanently screw the cover back on. If anything, I'll just slide it over the mass of wires and keep it laying on it's "side," such that the motherboard is resting on the table....I guess I'll see how it goes
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top