Dell power supply

[jek]

Im currently debating on upgrading my current pc or bying a new dell. I've looked all around and the dells i've been looking at are cheaper than building it myself. The only thing im wondering is does dell still use proprietary power supplys or do they now use regular power supplys. The models im looking at will need more power to run a good video card. I thank you in advance for any help.

[lacywest]

I've got a Dell OptoPlex GX280 from Ebay headed my way and similar thoughts have been going through my head too.

I've thought about having an extra Power Supply sitting next to the GX280 to provide the extra current for the video card ... which would be a PCI Express type ... which I've never messed with yet.

Hopefully ... there wont be any problems with ground loops and other similar types of problems.

But your idea about replacing the power supply with a more powerful one would be a good idea. I'll do a search on the Net and see what turns up.

If you can ... look for some numbers on or around the power supply and use them for key words on your favorite search engine ... you might find an answer. Since my Dell GX280 hasn't arrived yet ... I can't do this yet.

[lacywest]

Here is one Dell Power Supply related link

http://hardware.mcse.ms/message215980.html

Here is a link for a Dell GX280

http://www.pcpower.com/products/viewproduct.php?show=S47D

ULTRA-QUIET DELL PSU: SILENCER® 470 DELL
Designed specifically for the Dell computers listed in the sidebar, the Silencer 470W Dell upgrade power supply provides 30%-100% more power than factory Dell units! For Dell owners planning to add the latest video cards, optical drives, or other high-performance components to their systems, our reliable and ultra-quiet Silencer 470W Dell is the perfect solution.


470W @ 40C (520W peak)
Reduces noise by up to 90%
.99 power factor correction
+12V @ 26A
24-pin M/B connector
1 PCI Express video connector
Automatic fan speed control
3-Year warranty and support

[jek]

I was hoping to put at least a 750w with 30amps on the 12v rail. I know in the past the pins on the motherboard plug where switched around for dells. Thanks

[jek]

Oh the models im looking at are e521 or xps series. Now if i can afford it id like to go with the xps 700 series, they have a 750watt or a 1000watt already. But i have found some good prices on the e521s and was wanting to put a geforce 7950 gt or a 8800gts in it. Thanks

[lacywest]

Well here is some info ... I opened up the GX240, it has a P4 1.6GHz CPU in it.

For at least a month with no problems it has had a ATI 9550 AGP video card in it.

I got GX240 on Ebay and then took it to work and my supervisor is letting me and my co-workers use it ... to replace the Gateway 600 MHz computer we did have here.

Since then I've added a Pioneer DVR-110D DVD Burner to it ... I put more RAM in it [now has 512 Megs] and the ATI 9550 AGP video card. Works fine for burning DVDs and the such.

Only gripe is ... I only have Dial-Up for logging onto the Internet. During the slow hours I disconnect the Fax Machine and get on the Internet using a 30 foot telephone cord.

Anyways ... about the power supply there is a label on the side but underneath is one of those shiny metallic labels ... I can't see it very well but I believe the info on it would be what I need if I wanted to find a replacement PSU for this GX240.

I hope this will help you ...

Here is another link ... to check out.

http://www.affordablesurplus.com/dell-300r-power-supply.asp

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Dell GX240 power supply

http://www.affordablesurplus.com/dell-ps-5251-2d-power-supply.asp

[lacywest]

Oh the models im looking at are e521 or xps series. Now if i can afford it id like to go with the xps 700 series, they have a 750watt or a 1000watt already. But i have found some good prices on the e521s and was wanting to put a geforce 7950 gt or a 8800gts in it. Thanks

Hmm I see your concerns ... I have my eyes on the ATI 1650 and a 400 watt PSU is recommended for it.

http://www.dell.com/content/products/productdetails.aspx/dimen_e521?c=us&cs=19&l=en&s=...&~tab=specstab

info on the page says >>> Chassis --- 305 Watt DC Power Supply

Not much of a power supply

Here is some info about the Dell e521

http://www.techimo.com/newsapp/i17276.html

I can see why your interested.

[jek]

Thanks for the info. I have been looking at the e521 series because its cheap price, I can get a atlon 64 x2 5000 and 2 gig ram all for 700 or under. I've also been eying the Dell outlet because they get some good priced scratch and dent and refurb at great prices. Well Thank You sir for all the help.

[TBoneit]

From what I've seen the newer Dells seem to work fine with standard ATX power supplys. We had one customer bought 8 higher wattage power supplies so they could use the high performance video cards they had bought to go with the new Dells. As I remember they were going to use them on a network for gaming.

One thing to note is that Dell power supplys that are working will fail when hooked up to a power supply tester since many of them seem to lack one wire on the mobo plug that the tester monitors.

The other thing is that most replacement Power supplies will have more fan noise than a Dell PS.

[kush]

The PCP&C unit (actually manufactured by Seasonic) linked above are some of the best PSUs available. I wouldn't hesitate putting one in my PC at all. The only reason I didn't put one in my current PC is due to trying to work a 7900gt/dual core into a budget that wasn't much over $1100 US (at the time), and DC Opterons were still @ ~$300 then too.

I guess the real question is what do you mean by a 'good' video card G7x/7900 level (or ATI equivalent), or G80/8800 GTX/GTS (and R600 or w/e the next gen ATI codename is)..Or something lower end? You don't *need* 30+ amps on the 12v rail, except maybe if you want a G80 based card - the recommended PSU levels from card makers is the crap PSU factor..There's far too many unscrupulous makers/re-branders out there that VASTLY over-rate their PSUs (Apevia/Aspire for example). The 470 PCP&C would handle nearly everything without issue. Fox example, plenty of people have run the slightly higher 510w Turbo Cool models, in SLI w/ high end G7x cards, and multi disk RAID arrays (even 6 drives), and not had issue.

If you *must* have a 750w unit (or @ least higher rated than the 470w'er), and are willing to pay the price premium for a PCP&C (or equivalent Seasonic), you can get either for $175-200 if you shop around.

examples:

Silencer 610w/*49a* on 12v single rail ($170) - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817703005

Silencer 750w/*60a* on single 12v rail ($210) - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817703006

Seasonic 600w/2x18a 12v rails ($145) - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817151025

Seasonic 650w/4x18a 12v rails ($160) - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817151028

...that should have you fairly well covered, although there's more models to look at, not necesarilly just in Seasonic or PCP&C (Silverstone is another fine maker (not sure of their OEM though). And I'd shop around as I said before, I just used NewEgg as an example, since I've have a good experience w/ them in the past (not always lowest price though). A trip to pricegrabber.com should be able to net PC&C and Seasonics in their searches.

A note on the 12v rails, esp the 4 rail Seasonic.. 4x18a is not cumulative (ie: 72a) [on the majority of supplies, although the 600w Seasonic is]...It's max output on all 4 combined is 52a (still ALOT of power for multi GPU graphics, RAID arrays, etc).

[lacywest]

Doing some searching and found this web page for Dell computers

http://www.pcpower.com/home/

Dell Upgrade Power Supplies from PC Power & Cooling

[Super Warrior]

I don't see the need for all those really high-up PSUs, like 500w, 750w, etc.

Unless you've got a nuclear reactor or something inside your tower, otherwise 350w-400w is PLENTY enough for most comp users.

[Terry06]

Hi there,

I'm just posting as someone who owns an E521 and successfully upgraded the default video card from a stock X1300pro to a N7900GS with stock PSU (305W mean). As a potential E521 buyer, there are a few things to consider:

1) Save yourself the hassle and forget ordering the integrated video. Dell's bios are proprietary and users have compaint that its cumbersome to deactivate the intergrated video.

2) E521 uses BTX form factor and mobo. This means the layout is reversed. Also means the PCI-E slot is laid out differently from ATX cases. In the E521, you cannot fit a double slot video card as there is no room to do so unless you plan to modify the back of the case by cutting it out. Some VC cards use oversized cooling fans and take up 2 slot spaces. Stay away from those.

3) Because of the BTX mobo, the CPU and its cooling ducts sit to the left of the PCI-E slot. This means the card you purchase cannot be long (For example the N8800 series). Again structurally it won't fit.

4) The E521 PSU does not come with a PCI-E connector. But it does come with a spare 4 pin molex cable. If you purchase a VC with a 6 pin Y spliiter power connector, you are short 1 4 pin molex to connect the video card. So you must purchase a 4pin Y molex cable as a bridge to attach the 6 pin PCI-E to Dell's spare 4 pin molex (called the P10).

5) Dell's PSUs are mean wattage rated. The E521 comes with 305 mean wattage. Mean also means that if you're lucky your PSU could max higher than others. Otherwise, don't expect your PSU to reach more than 10-15% of max power. So your Video card should require a minimum of 350 Watts (PNY and BFG have 7900GS series that only require 350W). Having said that, the amp and Volt rails are also (if not more) important. The stock E521 305 Watts PSU comes is rated 22Amps, 12Volt rails. Its stated on the PSU box itself. I would stay away from video cards that require 400++ watts minimum to run.

6) If you plan to upgrade your PSU in an E521, you need to consider that all devices in the box uses SATA connections. Also the Harddrive is located at the bottom opposite end of the PSU so SATA calbe length is important to reach this device. You might end up having to move the HD up below the optical drive bay at the top to connect the cables. But if you ordered 2 optical drives and a media card reader/floppy drive, then you've run out of space at the top for the harddrive.

In short, even though the E521 might be cheaper on paper, you get what you pay for. If you plan to upgrade the Video card and turn the E521 into a gaming machine, I hope you know what you're up against.

Hope this has helped .

Terry06.