computer psu question

[luvvbuzz]

hi,
my computer is using a 300watt psu which is currently powering
1 dvd+rw drive
1 cdrw drive
1 dvd-rom drive
2 hard drives

should i think about upgrading my computers power supply to maybe 400 watt or 500 watt? am i stressing the current power supply with these items?
the case also has a fan at the front, the cpu fan and of course the psu fan, all this power consumption makes me wonder if i need to upgrade it.

[jeex]

if you're not having any problems, i wouldnt suggest fixing them.

i've ran dvd-rom, cd-rw, & 4 hd's on my system with a standard power supply without any problems for a long time.. then i got an a06, ditched a hdd, dvd-rom & cd-rw.. everything is still smooth

[edsmith77]

luvvbuzz,
as jeex said "dont fix it, if it aint broke." The underlying message of your concern is HEAT. You could turn monitoring on (if your mobo supports this) and see where you are.
For my older system a PIII (850) with a dvd and cd writers, 3 hdd, plus 5 pci devices my system worked just fine on a 250w psu. but then again, I had one computer case side panel removed. Sure worked great for heat dissipation and was superb at collecting dust and dirt. Neither of these are very compatible with long term computer use. However, a weekly squirt from a compressed bottle of air fixed the dust and dirt problems. However, my cats were another issue. Have not fixed that one yet. Water works well at keeping them off the kitchen table but.......

[luvvbuzz]

ok thanks for the comments guys. if i could just ask one question? it seems my computer is working fine with its standard 300 watt psu, so i guess i just wonder why are there 400 watt and 500 watt psu's out there? do you benifit from a higher wattage psu?
as for monitoring the motherboard i will have a look around and see if my mb supports that as it would be useful to see what its running like as i have recently started leaving my computer on for days at a time rather than switching it off every night.

[edsmith77]

luvvbuzz,
Well now that is a good question. Basically, the answer is to reduce heat production.

[Craig Tucker]

With what you have you are not really pushing it to the limit, my PSU is 350 watts

I have

CD burner
DVD burner
5 Hard drives
Zip drive
Internal media card reader usb/firewire hub
Floppy Disc
Soundblaser Audigy Platinum
6 Fans

All these items require power, (I have had to use several power splitters)

[Ripper2860]

If you are not O/C'ing and/or have experienced no problems, 300w should be fine w/ the peripherals mentioned. (BTW -- what 1.6 CPU are you running?)

** In my opinion the rating of a P/S is secondary only to the quality. There are good 300 watters that will outperform mediocre 400watters. Like anything else, quality is primary -- especially in PSU's.

If your system is stable, then leave it alone. Some instabilities are caused by a PSU not being stable w/ rather wild fluctuations in the 3v, 5v and 12v rails (i.e. +/- swings of greater than 10%) and can be attrivbuted to poor voltage regulation and heat. This can manifest itself in blue screens, lockups, program crashes and re-boots.

A good monitoring program will tell you an awful lot about the P/S. For monitoring, try Motherboard Monitor. Great tool and should auto-detect the sensors for voltage. If temp sensors are available, it can auto-detect them, but sometimes you need to set them up.

MBM5: http://mbm.livewiredev.com/download.html

It is considered the defacto BEST monitoring utility.

[luvvbuzz]

my cpu is an AMD xp1600 the link you gave to the motherboard monitor software does not work. i will have a look on google later. thanks for all the comments i think they have all helped put my mind at rest as far as needing to upgrade a psu goes, i will leave things a s they are seeing as nothing is wrong with it.

[Ripper2860]

Hmm. Works for me. Try this one ...

http://www.majorgeeks.com/download.php?det=311

[rallynavvie]

There are larger power supplies out there for power whores like me. Running 2 seemingly overclocked MP 2400s, 7 hard drives, 2 DVD burners, 1 DVD-ROM, a massive sound card, occasionally a powered video card (when I'm trying to get the GeForceFX to work with my computer), a few USB-powered peripherals (hardly any draw there), 9 assorted case fans, and one DD5 watching over my temps and fans. Oh and one FireWire-powered external hard drive... There's probably more. I use an Antec True550W PSU. It came with the case/mobo when I bought it since there have been problems with my board and flaky power supplies 86ing the ATX power connector. I must be doing pretty well since my DD5 shows me both 5v and 12v voltages and they never fluctuate any more than a few percent or so.

However keep in mind that it would be quite the trick to cause all the devices in your computer to spin up at once causing enough strain on your power supply to really test it. Now that I'd like to see

[indolikaa]

Power whore. Power whore. Power whore.

I cannibalized and sold all but one of my systems over Christmas. It's much like watching a child leave the house for college: sad to see them leave, but look at all that space and money we can spend on other things!

This is what I was left with, running on a 300-watt power supply:

AMD 1200/266 [some things never change around here ]
2 Hard Drives
2 HDD Coolers
4 CD/DVD Drives
1 Floppy Drive
1 AGP Card
3 PCI Cards
2 Case Fans
2 Port-Powered USB Devices

No problems reported. Very quiet and very stable.

[redwudz]

From dealing with PS's for several years, there is a simple test. Put your hand in front of the output fan and feel how much heat is coming out. Heat is the enemy of electronics, including PS's. I have a 300W good quality PS that puts out 70-80F and it is definately running in the safe zone. If on the other hand you can smell hot plastic and components, you will have a problem. I have 2 burners, a zip, and 4 HD's and 3 case fans that my PS can run with no problem.