Problems with 9600 GT... Seeking advice on SMPS/PSU

[DSK_2xV]

Hey!

I just bought an nVidia 9600 GT based GPU, but I am experiencing some problems with it particularly while playing games… I guess my problems stem from the fact that my SMPS does not meet the cards minimum requirements…

I own a standard iBall 400 Watt SMPS, which has 17 Amps on the +12 Volt railing as against the required 26 Amps… I had even brought it to the seller’s notice, but he assured me that my SMPS will take the additional load! He was wrong and I now need to buy a new SMPS/PSU…

So what would be my best option for buying an SMPS for around 1,500-2,000?
I saw this ‘Cooler Master eXtreme Power 390W’ model and it suits my budget, I can also go in for the 460W version even though that’ll stretch my budget more than what I would like… the thing is that on both these PSU’s there are two +12V ratings, and they are both 18 for each…

So does that mean that the ‘total’ amps are 18+18=36? Or is it just 18, which would mean that these are not good enough for my GPU?

[200mph]

pick up the 350w from cooler master even that will run ur current card.

price 1650 as per them http://www.mediahome.in/index.php?pa...emart&Itemid=1

[dOm1naTOr]

no way a CM EP 350 can run that system. EP series cant even output its specified ratings. While Corsair, antec etc outputs way beyond its specified ratings.

see this overloading test:
http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/550/8
while a corsair VX 450 when overloaded outputs almost 127% of its specified ratings.
same is the case with antec EA 500.
http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/526/8
http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/540/8

CM Real power series are much better but expensive too.

[dOm1naTOr]

iball 400W PSUs are the worst among local PSUs.
even Oddeysey 550W PSu local which is 600~700 bucks one is way better.
and as GTX 260 nees 26A, surelly most local cant handle it.

[hsetir]

Best choice is zebronics 350w (real power I guess) which has 23A on 12V and more than 70% efficiency for 1500/-. Efficiency is little less than coolermaster but 12v current rating is better than same power cm psu, and good to run even hd4850. Don't get generic zebronic psu's which cost abt 500/-.

[dOm1naTOr]

zebby pro 450 looks OK. Actually they are better than Cm EP series. Zeb Pro are HEC OEM, which is a good brand and far better than Cm EP.

[DSK_2xV]

I am thinking of getting either one of these two…
http://www.mediahome.in/index.php?pa...emart&Itemid=1

http://www.mediahome.in/index.php?pa...emart&Itemid=1

They are build like these ‘extreme’ variants and have two +12V rails being mentioned in their configuration… which I would imagine is for SLI, but I only need to power one card…

The two +12V rails of the cheaper one above(Cooler Master eXtreme Power 390W) are of 16A and 18A, while on the expensive one(Cooler Master eXtreme Power 460W) they are both 18A… so does that mean that the ‘total’ Amps being produced are 16+18=34Amps and 18+18=36Amps respectively? If so, will either of these PSU/SMPS power my card adequately?

i know that my best option would be the Corsair VX450W, but having just bought a new GPU and after upping my system RAM, i am a bit stretched in the monetary department...

[dOm1naTOr]

never get the EP 390. Not much better than ur current one. 460 will be better.
but just read this review and decide for urself:
EP 460 fials pathetically in output and voltage noise levels.
http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/550

they cud only maneg to get 15A max from each rail.
so the problems are:
* 15A is much too less for a 9600GT
*their 12v arent balanced among each other. So u cant get 22 or 24A as required by ur 9600Gt even if u use only one rail.
*EP series has too much voltage noise which is not gud for ur card or h/w. its far beyond acceptable, which cud turn ut system unstable.
* never think bout ocing on it.

btw what is ur CPU?

[200mph]

if budget not an issue pick the cm 460 REAL POWER or else if budget is a concern the zebronics are also not a bad choice

[hsetir]

CM 460 EP is more than enough for 9600gt even if ocing. The review clearly shows the passed ratings as 13A on individual 12v rails. OC'ed 9600gt would max use abt 90w, so 222w is still available for other components like mobo, proccy, hdd, dvd drive , ram etc combined and typical draw of these is 160-180w. For being in safe side and limited efficiency, these power are always assumed to be drawn from 12v and cm460 ep does well here. But as I said, go for zebronics 350w, it's the best for its price and would allow some mild overclocking as well.

[DSK_2xV]

Ok… so I went to the guy… he had neither of the models…

He then made some phone calls and came up with these two models, the iBall Sprinter 450W and the iBall Sprinter 600W… these are iBall’s ‘high end’ SMPS and are not to be confused with the ‘normal’ iBall SMPS out there like the one I have now, or so I was told…

Anyway, the former costs 2,700 while the later 3,700… neither are in stock so he’ll have to order whatever I want, now he tells me that they both have 26Amps under +12V but the 600W model has a 12V 8-Pin cable so that will support my card and as such I simply ‘must’ go in for that, but I don’t get it…

My card only needs a 6-Pin 12V cable, and the 450W version has it… I checked out iBall’s website and found out that the 600W model has 2 such 6-Pin cables and an 8-Pin 12V cable… again, I only need to power 1 GPU so I think that the 450W version is good enough for me…

Actually, my GPU came bundled with a ‘hard drive power dongle to PCI-E 6 pin’ adapter so I don’t even need the one 6-Pin cable that the 450W version offers, but I don’t know… he makes the 600W sound like it’d be ‘just perfect’ for my system while I think that the 450W version will also work…

So as of now, I maybe leaning towards the iBall Sprinter 450W SMPS…

Other than the 9600 GT GPU, my system has an Intel Pentium D 2.67 GHz Processor, 2 GB DDR2 800 RAM, an LG-DVD Writer, 2 PATA Hard Disks, 1 Floppy Disk Drive, 1 TV Turner Card, 1 Internal Fax Modem and one ‘System Fan’… the motherboard also has generic features such as onboard LAN and Sound card…

[hsetir]

goto techenclave forum and pm username mediahome.in. He's quite a reliable dealer and is selling zebronics 350w for 1525 shipped. Don't get psu's reliablity of which you aren't sure of.

[dOm1naTOr]

cannot be sure of this iball thing. But opretty much sure of the Zebby Pro 550 as im owning one and it handles my 8800GT and X2 OC with ease. also got it after seraching lots of review of HEC and got a special discount from a friendly shop.
and by the HEC reviews the noise level is with acceptable levels.

CM 460W might work, but with such high noise, at heavy loads its not a good choise. Its ok if its an EP 600 or somethin as working at lower load minimizes noise too.
by the specs of that iball one, it seems more than OK, but has never heard of it before.

[200mph]

http://www.mediahome.in/index.php?pa...emart&Itemid=1

simply buy the 350w from here. no need to run anywere .

[dOm1naTOr]

better get pro 550 or an EP 600.

[DSK_2xV]

The dude seems pretty darn confident of these iBall SMPS... So maybe its not that bad... Plus, i have tried to run some high end games on my new GPU which caused the system to hang, so i guess that its better if i go for a PSU recommended by him just in case there is something messed up with the card now... it'd make things a little less 'complicated' if the card has to be returned...

And well, to be honest, its not as if i have a whole lot of choices... Limited choices... One of the many 'joys' of living in a tier 3 town in India...

So by the looks of it, for all intents and purposes I might be going in for the iBall Sprinter 450W SMPS now, and I’ll try and run some rather demanding games on it and see how that one copes…

But still, i guess it'd be better if i get some DVD's to back up all my data first, just in case!!

[DSK_2xV]

The dude seems pretty darn confident of these iBall SMPS... So maybe its not that bad... Plus, i have tried to run some high end games on my new GPU which caused the system to hang, so i guess that its better if i go for a PSU recommended by him just in case there is something messed up with the card now... it'd make things a little less 'complicated' if the card has to be returned...

And well, to be honest, its not as if i have a whole lot of choices... Limited choices... One of the many 'joys' of living in a tier 3 town in India...

So by the looks of it, for all intents and purposes I might be going in for the iBall Sprinter 450W SMPS now, and I’ll try and run some rather demanding games on it and see how that one copes…

But still, i guess it'd be better if i get some DVD's to back up all my data first, just in case!!

[dOm1naTOr]

mmnn
then do get that iball 600 to be on the safer side

[Tachyon1986]

I have a Geforce 9600 GT. And I highly recommend the Corsair VX 450W. Sure, it's expensive..but it's very reliable. Do not go for the I-BALL Smps. Thanks to it, my old Geforce 6600 GT went out the window.

[DSK_2xV]

So when I went to the guy, he was now quoting 3,800 for the 600W version… which is crazy, because for only a few hundred more I can order the Corsair 450W online… I mean there is a reason why I am opting for these iBall PSU’s, and that reason is because I am strapped for cash! So I went for the 450W version, and I was able to bring its price to 2,500…

Performance wise, it seems ok… I’ve run Doom 3 at ‘ultra’ setting with no probs, its still the yard-stick right? And I’ve also run Left 4 Dead, Oblivion and Lost: Via Domus, all at max settings and at 1024x768 resolution, with no problems… And there is no particular noise coming from the SMPS either, other than the noise of the fan, so I think everything looks set…

But a great big 'Thank You' to all of you for all your valuable advice... its truly appreciated!

Originally Posted by Tachyon1986

I have a Geforce 9600 GT. And I highly recommend the Corsair VX 450W. Sure, it's expensive..but it's very reliable. Do not go for the I-BALL Smps. Thanks to it, my old Geforce 6600 GT went out the window.

Hey, did you use the ‘normal’ iBall SMPS, like the one I had before, or did you use one of the ‘high end’ SMPS from iBall, like the one I am using now?

[dOm1naTOr]

gud to know everythin is holding in one piece.

[DSK_2xV]

Just a little update… nothing major, just that my GPU got fried… literally! And the SMPS was also messed up… and this happened within one week! Since then I was having a hard time getting a refund from the seller, but finally did get one… and now I’ve bought a Plait 9800 and… and a Crosair VX 450W SMPS… i bought them online, and not from the 2 'computer shops' i have in my dump of a tier three 'town'... and yes, I’ve learned my lesson… when you buy something expensive it may be painful on your pocket once, but its always more painful to buy something cheap and substandard!

Originally Posted by Tachyon1986

I have a Geforce 9600 GT. And I highly recommend the Corsair VX 450W. Sure, it's expensive..but it's very reliable. Do not go for the I-BALL Smps. Thanks to it, my old Geforce 6600 GT went out the window.

Dude, I so wish that I had taken what you had said as the gospel truth!

[acewin]

well, now you should have a perfect belief in what iBall is, I never trusted and will never trust any product from iBall. have seen my frns using keyboard mouse cabinets(damn cabinets can give u electric shock easily their earthing is bad), and do not talk about their bad PSUs.

[DSK_2xV]

Originally Posted by acewin

well, now you should have a perfect belief in what iBall is, I never trusted and will never trust any product from iBall. have seen my frns using keyboard mouse cabinets(damn cabinets can give u electric shock easily their earthing is bad), and do not talk about their bad PSUs.

Well, I am using an iBall wireless keyboard and mouse and everything seems ok thus far, but its funny that you mention their cabinets because I am using an iBall cabinet and I have been at the receiving end of quite a few jolts from it… somehow I’ve always thought that it was something else, never really knew that this was a standard problem with all iBall cabinets!

[dOm1naTOr]

OMG!

[acewin]

i have used circle cabinets, not much know brand even their cabinet seemed to be better than iBall

[dOm1naTOr]

OMG!!!!

[Techn0crat]

I too use Circle cabinet.It's really way better than i-ball.
As of smps,check for VIP 500W one.or if you can afford,go for Corsair.

[dOm1naTOr]

OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[asingh]

DSK_2x2:
Read through this whole thread. Sad to see how your GPU burnt out, due to a faulty PSU -- and that on the recommendation of a supplier.

At times, here in India (and specially small towns, where high end equipment is hard to source), we are faced with the dilemma to use low quality stuff.

The rule I follow:

1. Is it critical to my system..?
2. Can it damage my system..?
3. Difficult to replace...?

If all 1,2,3 are 'no' I too go for desi stuff.

For example a keyboard, or mouse. They cannot short your system. If they go bad, just throw them out your window (or dog) and get a new one.

I infact use some cheap company speakers as of now. I can 'make do' with it...!

Now when deciding on UPS/PSU stuff which is the foundation of your system...go for the best. Believe me, you will sleep well at night...! (while torrents are downloading)

Best of luck..!