is 431w enough?

zeldaboy101

Solid State Member
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My dad (an IT guy) doesn't work with gaming computers, so he swears that 431w is enough to run the upgrade I plan on doing.

Here's the likely future setup:
intel core 2 duo e8500 (3.16ghz)
2x2gb 1066 ram (want to be able to run 4x2 1066 for future proofing)
2 hds
x-fi sound card
9800gt
2 burners
this gigabyte mobo http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128359
1 80mm case fan

So...will the 431w actually run this?
thanks,
Jeremy
 
i dunno, you should get atleast a 550W to make sure.

you might be able to run it, but that psu would probably crap out sooner then you think. I'd go with a 550W minimum.
 
1066mhz RAM is way overkill for that system unless you can get the FSB to 500mhz+, which is a pretty magical number as far as FSBs go, and yeah, get a beefier psu, at least 500w, a Corsair 520HX would run it easily, but that's the top of the line psu for that wattage (~500w), never, ever skimp on psu and try to leave some headroom for future upgrades, that 520HX will run any single gpu system you could put together...
 
1066mhz RAM is way overkill for that system unless you can get the FSB to 500mhz+, which is a pretty magical number as far as FSBs go...

i don't think he wanted us to "judge" his rig lol. he just wanted to know if his PSU will be able to power the rig. :p :cool:
 
Well I hadn't ordered the ram yet so opinions on that, the mobo, and cpu are appreciated too! The mobo I liked said it ran 1066 and 1366 but didn't list 800, would it run 800 for sure?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128359

I'd like to be able to run most games today on higher settings with a good frame rate, doesn't have to be 100% max settings though, current game would be empire total war that was really hurting my old system.

Not going quad core and the e8600 was a big jump in price, so the cpu and mobo seem like a pretty good match though it wouldn't let me do sli, but then again most of the cheaper sli boards didn't have the best reviews and i'm on a bit of a budget.

I probably need a new case (mine doesn't have a top vent for the fan on top of the psu) so I liked this combo deal:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.198951

Current case is an antec and it's held up probably a decade, the antec psu got good reviews too. Is 650w overkill even for future proofing?
 
nope...that combo looks like your best bet. 650W is not over-kill, and is plenty of room for upgrades.
 
Awesome, thanks for the input.

As for the mobo, are there any you guys recommend that would give me 2 pci-e x16 2.0 slots that are under $150? The current one i'm looking at gets great reviews but only has 1 pci-e x16 slot, though most of the cheap ones that have 2 get a lot of bad reviews mixed in.

Oh and the board i'm looking at lists the ram it works with as being 1366 and 1066, since you say 1066 is overkill would 800 still work on the board?
thanks!
 
Well I hadn't ordered the ram yet so opinions on that, the mobo, and cpu are appreciated too! The mobo I liked said it ran 1066 and 1366 but didn't list 800, would it run 800 for sure?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128359

I'd like to be able to run most games today on higher settings with a good frame rate, doesn't have to be 100% max settings though, current game would be empire total war that was really hurting my old system.

Not going quad core and the e8600 was a big jump in price, so the cpu and mobo seem like a pretty good match though it wouldn't let me do sli, but then again most of the cheaper sli boards didn't have the best reviews and i'm on a bit of a budget.

I probably need a new case (mine doesn't have a top vent for the fan on top of the psu) so I liked this combo deal:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.198951

Current case is an antec and it's held up probably a decade, the antec psu got good reviews too. Is 650w overkill even for future proofing?

yes, if it will run 1066 RAM, it'll run all the same type of RAM (DDR2) up to that speed, 667mhz, 800mhz, etc., in other words, it's backwards compatible...

and to clarify, your highest rated FSB is 1600mhz on that motherboard (4x400, the FSB is quad pumped), so 800mhz RAM (2x400, double data rate: DDR and DDR2) would match up perfectly at a 1:1 ratio, especially good 800mhz RAM that could overclock to match your FSB if your overclock past 1600mhz, but if you can get good 1066mhz RAM for the same price as good 800mhz RAM, sure, get it, but good 800mhz RAM is generally cheaper and will do the job just as well, AMD systems are different, as they don't have a limiting FSB when it comes to memory interface, I always find that my system runs smoother when I run a 1:1 ratio between my FSB and memory...

and yeah, that combo looks good, also, this is some of the good 800mhz RAM I was talking about, not only do they sound cool, "Reapers", the timings are tight and they have handle bars, handle bars, how cool is that...? OCZ Reaper HPC Edition 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400)...
 
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