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To Replace or Not to Replace?

A

atd5000

n00b
Joined
Mar 19, 2014
Messages
2
Hi All,

Long time lurker, first time poster.

I am upgrading the core of my PC for the first time in about 4 years and I have a bit of a dilemma. First a few details. I am upgrading a Core I7 920 to either a Core I5 4670K or an I7 4770K. I'll be getting a Corsair H60 watercooler. Final overclock will be around 4.2-4.4ghz ideally. I'll be upgrading the MOBO and RAM as well. I'm thinking 8GB for now with an upgrade to 16GB later when prices moderate. I'll be reusing my 2x Raptor HDDs, 2x SDDs both in raid, and two 1TB storage HDDs (not raided). I am also reusing my GTX 770, my SB X-FI titanium and basic DVD burner. I'll be reusing my Antec 1200 full tower case as well.

All of those decisions (with the possible exception of the CPU) have been pretty straight forward. What I've been struggling with is whether I should use some of my $600 budget to upgrade my PSU, or reuse my existing 5 year old Corsair CMPSU-750TX?

I appreciate any advice!
 
Your existing PSU is probably fine but, PSU > 4yrs old and going into new build generally means it's time to replace PSU.

Just imo. I'm not an authority on this subject, but I know the PSU is the cornerstone of the build and they do degrade over time. I generally wind up using the old one in another less critical build.
 
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I don't think there is a need to upgrade your PSU, unless you want/need to security of a warranty. The max power usage of Haswell is around 35% less than Nehalem, so you'll still have plenty of room for overclocking. Component degradation is always a concern, but I think in general power supplies should be good for 10-15 years if it's a quality product.
 
You're actually going to be using less power with the Haswell chip (84W) vs. the 1st gen i7 (130W), so I don't see it really being an issue. 4 years is getting pretty long in the tooth, though, so I can understand you being ill-at-ease.
 
Thanks for the advice. I am going to continue using my 5 year old Corsair PSU. Hopefully she holds up for another 5 years!
 
I don't recommend the Corsair H60. It will underperform a decent air cooler at higher cost and the fan is rather noisy. I had two fans on my H70 before upgrading to a $50 Xigmatek Dark Knight. With a second slow fan attached to the Dark Knight, idle temperature literally dropped 10 degrees C vs the H70. I think even a Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo ($30) will edge out the H60.

The problem with AIO liquid coolers is the volume of total liquid is way too little to effectively dissipate heat. Unless you step up to a 2x120mm or 2x140mm radiator AIO, it's really a gimmick.
 
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