Adam Favre wrote:

>I am preparing to add an ATI 9800Pro video card to my pc
>I spoke with the individuals at my local PC store and they suggested I
>might need to upgrade the power supply.
>Here are my current specs, including power supply.
>Enlight 360w Power Supply


Well, I would think that what you have is a rather power hungry system. The
fact you bought an Enlight case (assumption) with a 360w power supply is for
the most part suitable. Providing you don't get over zealous with power
consuming hardware. There is always a nagging about how much power is
enough.
According to John Yacono who wrote a tech tip for "Computer Reseller News"
relating to power supplies, which may or may not relate to your situation he
says, and I quote,

Extra attention should be paid to selecting a computer's internal power
supply for customers in regions or buildings with poor power distribution.
In places with low power-line voltage or frequent voltage sags, choosing a
power supply with higher wattage could avoid hard-to-diagnose system
failures. A higher-wattage power supply can make up for sags in input
voltage by increasing the amperage it draws to maintain the voltage in the
PC. A lower-wattage power supply cannot draw as much current and therefore
cannot adapt to voltage drops with the same degree of flexibility. Instead,
its output sags with its input.

In my opinion, the higher the wattage the better it can handle the load. In
a house, when an appliance comes on, the voltage dips in the whole house. If
more than one appliance comes on... The voltage drop is significant. Anyway,
I would choose a power supply according to the wattage of all the components
in the system. If you were a gamer, I would recommend a 450w power supply
due to the fact these folks like to kick it up a notch. Over clocking seems
to be the norm for them.

Add the wattage for all the components you have and make your decision based
on the results. Take into consideration future needs in the way of add-ons.
NVIDIA has a new board that requires its own portion of the power supply.

360w may be all right. A 400w wouldn't hurt but then again, this is only an
educated guess based upon, "my current specs, including power supply."

Sincerely,

Frank Suszka
netTek Computers
[log in to unmask]








-----Original Message-----
From: PCBUILD - Personal Computer Hardware discussion List
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Adam Favre
Sent: Saturday, August 14, 2004 20:10
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: [PCBUILD] Is Enlight 360W Power Supply Enough to Power Rig w/
Bigger Vid Card?

I am preparing to add an ATI 9800Pro video card to my pc (unless one of you
would argue the BFG 5900 Ultra Overclocked card would be better).  I spoke
with the individuals at my local PC store and they suggested I might need to
upgrade the power supply.  Here are my current specs, including power
supply.

Enlight 360w Power Supply
AMD Athlon XP 3200+
Thermatake Heatsink w/ 80 mm fan
ABIT AN/7 MOBO
2 80 mm Case Fans (1 antec, one Thermatake)
Radeon 9600 XT Video Card
2 512k Muskin Green PC 3200 memory sticks (total 1gb) running Dual channel
1 WD 160gb Hard Drive
1 3.5 Floppy
1 DVD +/- RW drive (Lite-On)
1 CD RW Drive (Samsung)
1 Microsoft Wireless Keyboard and Mouse (running off of USB port)
1 Nostromo Gaming Array (running off of USB port)

Ocassional other USB plug in peripherals.

I think I have included all items that would tax the power supply in some
way, shape, or form.

From what you see, do any of you think I need the upgrade?  How will I be
able to tell?  Will it just not power up, will I ruin a component?

When I bough the case, I paid the extra $$$ over the el cheapo cases at NEW
EGG because the salesman indicated the power supply included w/ this case
was a quality item, not a piece of dook.  Any insight would be appreciated.
If you need more details, please let me know.

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