Best card for around $200?

JonM33 · 24 Jul 2010

Tepid said:

Keep in mind that if you have a number of USB devices that you connect on a regular basis. That 550W PSU may not be enough. You won't need a 1000W but,,, Personally, I wouldn't go with anything under 650W PSU in a gaming system and actually recommend a 750W.

Why? Because if you ever decide to upgrade the video card again, the chances that it may require more power and with a number of USB devices, you will have to upgrade the PSU again as well.

Just to give an idea of what I am talking about
Take my specs below.

I was using a 550W and with USB Keyboard and Mouse and 1 permanent connected external drive, I could hook up one other drive to it. I had 3rd drive that came with 2 USB connectors, one for Power the other for Power and Data, hooking this up with just the power+data cable would cause it to click from not enough juice to it. So, throw in the 750 and I don't have those problems anymore. I only need the power+data on that drive.

Yeah, it required a little more power than the others,, but the point is, it required more power than I could provide.

Please do not spread confusion on power supplies. I even provided a link for proof of the 300-330W that a GTX 460 would use. How in the heck will he need a 650W PSU?

I have a Corsair HX650 and could run a PAIR of Radeon HD 5850 in Crossfire. He is wanting a single GTX 460.

XGamer95 said:

That's why I was asking about the 650W (Newegg.com - COOLER MASTER GX Series RS650-ACAAE3-US 650W ATX12V v2.31 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Power Supply). Would it have everything I need for this setup?

I would say that's a good price but you don't need 650W.

smarteyeball · 25 Jul 2010

Sanvean said:

Just remember to "future pad", get the most powerful power supply you can budget, because a year or two down the road, that is one less component you will need to upgrade.

+ 1

Another advantage to going higher than currently necessary depends on how long you plan to keep and use a PSU. ie several years / several major upgrades etc.

Since their efficiency /output starts to degrade over time, running close to max from the get go is a recipe for quicker replacements if you plan to keep it for a long time.

As for that Cooler Master linked, 52Amps on the 12v rail is enough and CM have reasonable quality PSU's. Not top tier, but far better than generic nasties.

JonM33 · 25 Jul 2010

Sanvean said:

Just remember to "future pad", get the most powerful power supply you can budget, because a year or two down the road, that is one less component you will need to upgrade.

There is no such thing when it comes to computer technology. People bulk up on DDR2 memory only to have it replaced by DDR3 memory. People buy a 600W PSU with a pair of 6-pin PCIe connectors only to have that replaced by the need for 8-pin PCIe connectors.

For a 650W PSU that Cooler Master should have minimum four sets of 6+2-pin PCIe connectors and at least 8 SATA connectors. That's compared to my Corsair HX650 that has four sets of 6+2-pin PCIe connectors, 9 SATA connectors and 8 molex connectors. Instead the Cooler Master only has two sets of 6+2-pin PCIe connectors, 6 SATA connectors and 3 molex.

I think the 650W power rating of that Cooler Master is a bit exaggerated. With a power supply you buy ONLY for what you need currently because you never know what you might need for the future as technology and connectors change. Antec is a more reputable PSU brand than Cooler master as well.

XGamer95 · 25 Jul 2010

smarteyeball said:

Sanvean said:

Just remember to "future pad", get the most powerful power supply you can budget, because a year or two down the road, that is one less component you will need to upgrade.

+ 1

Another advantage to going higher than currently necessary depends on how long you plan to keep and use a PSU. ie several years / several major upgrades etc.

Since their efficiency /output starts to degrade over time, running close to max from the get go is a recipe for quicker replacements if you plan to keep it for a long time.

As for that Cooler Master linked, 52Amps on the 12v rail is enough and CM have reasonable quality PSU's. Not top tier, but far better than generic nasties.

Would you say Antec makes PSUs better?

Miltzi · 25 Jul 2010

460 performs better than 5830: GeForce GTX 460 1GB Dirt 2 (DX11) Performance | bit-tech.net

JonM33 · 25 Jul 2010

XGamer95 said:

Would you say Antec makes PSUs better than CM?

On another note: Can I trust the dimension specs on Newegg? I'm trying to make sure the card will fit, so I need accurate dimensions. It doesn't even list the width there anyway.

My first power supply was an Antec, about 10 years ago. They have been in the PSU business for a LONG time and have a very good reputation.

Cooler Master is much like Thermaltake. They both started out making fans and heatsinks. Eventually both drifted out to making computer cases and power supplies.

I honestly wouldn't get it if you cannot find any technical reviews online for it. I couldn't find any for the Cooler Mater GX series. I found this at THG, not that I am using THG as a resource. They all say to avoid the Cooler Master GX and to spend a little more for a Corsair TX series instead. Same thing I am saying.

XGamer95 · 25 Jul 2010

Can I trust the dimension specs on Newegg? I'm trying to make sure the card will fit, so I need accurate dimensions. It doesn't even list the width there anyway.

Tepid · 25 Jul 2010

I think my factual story adds to the information and I stand by it.

JonM33 · 25 Jul 2010

XGamer95 said:

Can I trust the dimension specs on Newegg? I'm trying to make sure the card will fit, so I need accurate dimensions. It doesn't even list the width there anyway.

NewEgg generally repeats what the manufacturer provides. Not sure which case you have but in most situations it is dependent upon where the hard drives are. The GTX 460 isn't a very long graphics card at all. If your hard drives are parallel to the PCIe X16 slot then you might need to worry.

Tepid said:

I think my factual story adds to the information and I stand by it.

I provided solid proof of actual power draw from one of the most reliable hardware review websites on the internet. Here are some more that support my 300-330W statement:

PC Perspective - NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460 Review - GF104 and the budget Fermi

Palit GTX 460 Sonic Platinum & Inno3D GeForce GTX 460 > Power Consumption & Temperatures - TechSpot

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460 Debut: ZOTAC, EVGA - HotHardware

Palit & Inno3D GeForce GTX 460 - Power Consumption & Temperatures

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460 1GB & GTX 460 768MB Review - Page 17

So, you are correct and all these other reviews are all conspiracy driven, right?

Tepid · 25 Jul 2010

If you say so. I stand by my statements

You may want to start thinking about total system loads including
Multiple Hard Drives, Multiple Optical Drives, everything and multiple USB devices.

I will elaborate....

More and more systems are starting to come or have requested multiple Hard Drives and possible multiple optical drives, and multiple GPU's, not to mention the mobo, ram, cpu.
Then Multiple External Drives, usb thumb drives of all kinds. You can not take into account only a set number of items on a single system. You also have to think about possible expansion.

If you look at real world results of system loads on PC's with numerous devices connected, trust me, that 330W PSU is going to choke and burn.