NEED QUICK HELP PLEASE (my new gfx-card and the PSU output)

Discussion in 'General Hardware' started by solidsnake313, Dec 26, 2008.

  1. solidsnake313

    solidsnake313 Maha Guru

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    Hello guys, I need a really quick help please.
    The thing is, I went for an upgrade yesterday and I got a new mobo, ram, PSU, and a PCI-e GeForce 9500 GT (Albatron). Before setting it up I read on the side of the gfx-card's package under the "Minimum system requirements" that:
    "Minimum 350W or greater system power supply (with a minimum 12V current rating of 18A) (based on a PC configured with an Intel Core2 Duo processor)"
    But the info on my new 600W PSU says only 14A under its +12V current. I'm really confused. My CPU is a celeron D 3.06GHz. does this 4A shortage mean my PSU is not strong enough to handle the gfx-card? I mean, it's 600W. My old one was 500W and says 28A under 12V (but I can't use it coz it's a 20pin one). Some expert please help me here. Should I get a new PSU? Would using this one damage the gfx-card or make it run slower or something?
    I really truly appreciate any help from you gurus. Thanx a lot in advance.
     
  2. Mega_Death

    Mega_Death Maha Guru

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    I would assume its not a single rail. Can you tell us the make of the psu?
     
  3. Tat3

    Tat3 Ancient Guru

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    That would be extremely low for 600w PSU. Must be dual rail (at least). Dual Rail would mean something like 14*2A ~ 25A
     
  4. solidsnake313

    solidsnake313 Maha Guru

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    By rails do you mean the number of 4-pin sockets that come out of the PSU? in that case it has 3. does that mean it has 14x3 amps for 12v?
     

  5. Mannerheim

    Mannerheim Ancient Guru

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  6. solidsnake313

    solidsnake313 Maha Guru

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    so how can i tell if it's single-rail or multiple? Should i open and look inside the psu?
    btw, is 14A not enough for a gfx-card that doesn't have an independent power-cable connection? can mobo get that much amperage (18A) through the pci-e port??
    i'm going to try it anyway.. any ideas?
     
  7. Makalu

    Makalu Ancient Guru

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    The info would be on the label. If it really is a 600W and has a 12V@14A rail then it's probably a triple rail unit like a CoolerMaster or Hipro or Thermaltake Purepower I'm guessing.
     
  8. solidsnake313

    solidsnake313 Maha Guru

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    When i add up what's on the psu label i get around 300w only (+3.3v * 14a, +5v * 18a, +12v * 14a) so what happened to the remaining 300w?
     
  9. Makalu

    Makalu Ancient Guru

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    well sometimes they lie and over exaggerate the amount of total watts a PSU can do. The individual rail specs are more reliable and yours indicate that it's only a 250W unit or so. The good news is your 9500GT only uses about 30 watts.
     
  10. solidsnake313

    solidsnake313 Maha Guru

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    so you think with my specs i'll be fine with 14amps on the 12v rail?
    (intel celeron D 3.06Ghz LGA, 2GB DDR2 800 (2x1), 1 DVD-writer, 1 80GB hdd, a 1GB geforce 9500 GT, and not much else..)
     

  11. Makalu

    Makalu Ancient Guru

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    figure about 6 amps for the CPU, 3A for the GPU, 1A for each drive and add another amp for the fans and your 12 volt consumption works out to about 12A peak load if you get everything working hard at once with multiple programs. Your gaming loads will be significantly lower. So anyway the quantity is there but the quality of the power supply is suspect.
     
  12. solidsnake313

    solidsnake313 Maha Guru

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    Thank you so much Makalu. You're the first to give me the good news! I truly appreciate your help. One thing that makes me think it should work is that i purchased all the stuff from 1 guy. He himself suggested this psu. Moreover, my wife's uncle who is a total electronics god said that the numbers on the psu sticky are rubbish, and even if it IS weak, it would simply stop the gpu from working, it wont hurt it. But anyway, im gonna try this thing. If it doesn't work, i'll kill the seller guy! But if it does, can i be sure that the gpu is working in its full power? I mean, what if it runs short of amps and lowers the gpu speed and power without giving me a sign or warning?
     
  13. Makalu

    Makalu Ancient Guru

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    well I hope you paid next to nothing for the PSU since that's probably what it's worth :) Signs of inadequate or bad power are graphics artifacts and anomalies, lock-ups, crashes, random errors, PSU latching off etc....chances are there'd be no noticeable drop in framerates.
     
  14. solidsnake313

    solidsnake313 Maha Guru

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    Thanx. Actually i paid next to nothing for the psu, but i never asked the guy to give me a cheap one. It was his own pick. My old psu is so perfect and reliable, 500w, an expensive one with huge amps. Too bad it's 20-pin. I wish there were some kind of convertor cable or something. There's no such thing, is there? My mobo's manual says a 20-pin may also be used, but the guy said it'll fry the mobo.
     
  15. Makalu

    Makalu Ancient Guru

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    yeah there are 20 to 24 pin cable adapters but also if your mobo boots fine with just a 20 pin installed then I wouldn't worry about frying your mobo as long as you are only using that 9500GT...a 20 pin connector will be able to supply enough current for that without pushing it's limits.
     

  16. solidsnake313

    solidsnake313 Maha Guru

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    Thanx a lot. I'll get that adapter
     

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