PC Power & Cooling Silencer 750W Power Supply Review

Cases & PSU/Power Supplies by KeithSuppe @ 2006-11-12

PC Power & Cooling is redesigning their product line to meet the voracious DC-current requirements of the next generations of graphic silicon. With video cards reaching 28cm in length and their power requirement in direct proportion things are bound to "heat up". The fleet of multi-rail power supplies out there are misleading the public into believing more Rails = more power when the opposite is often true. Today we peer into the PC Power & Cooling´s Silencer series via the Silencer 750 EPS12V for an interesting alternative to multi-rail anemia.

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Introduction

Madshrimps (c)


PCPower & Cooling comes about as close to a fairy tale success story as it gets. The company came from humble beginnings intending to produce silent fans, cases and power supplies. In their second year they abandoned the first two goals and decided to focus solely on PSU design, we have all been the better for it.

Unfortunately it's only been of late End-users have begun to appreciate how integral the PSU is to the health of their system. Lets face it, the power supply isn't "sexy", it doesn't produce wonderful 3D images nor play the latest games. In fact if your PSU is working properly you shouldn’t even know it's there. It's when your PC runs into trouble such as annoying re-boots you begin to take note (if it's the problem). Over the last few years PC-Enthusiast and Overclocking forum threads on the subject of the PSU have spread like the plague. Posts on that subject have increased ten fold and especially following the decision to change 12VDC specifications. Introducing a multiple rail concept has created more problems then it's resolved.

This is largely due to the infamous ATX/EPS 12V Power Supply current limitations 18A ~ 22A on all 12VDC rails which seems to have reeked havoc on high current dual core processors prior to Conroe and higher end graphic card power requirements, which continue to increase at an alarming rate. PC Power & Cooling has remained one of the sole voices of reason through these confusing times and their adamant refusal to follow trends for the sake of marketing simply to print an "in spec label" on their box has not swayed this company. This is exactly the attitude which sets PC Power & Cooling apart from the “herd mentality" most of whom choose profits over technology.

It's been PC Power's choice to re-design single 12V rail PSU's instead of abandoning that design which has industry leaders traveling to Carlsbad, California. The model we’re testing today, the Silencer 750 EPS12V will provide plenty of power without a need for ad hoc fixes such as "Fusion Rail" technology. With all due respect to Mushkin whom have contracted to supply a decent PSU, not only they are not PSU "designer's" per se, there are plethora of other PSU's sharing similar technology.

It's more profitable to implement rail load sharing then to build more powerful or proprietary rails. In fact approximately 80% of the PSU's sold under one name are built by someone else such as Fortron FSP.

PCP designs and build all their PSU's and the Turbo-Cool series is almost entirely fabricated in-house. While the 750 EPS12V is certainly a powerful design its two 6-pin connectors seem to indicate this is not a PSU ready for QUAD SLI, however we were able to run two 7950GX2 in QUAD SLI mode with it. We’re also fortunate to have the opportunity to test PCP’s new Turbo-Cool 1KW-SR soon. The 1KW-SR is most certainly a evlolution in PSU technology and one of very few PSU's which will be capable of driving multiple (QUAD SLI) Geforce 8800 GTX cards as well as Quad-Core CPUs.

Packaging


Madshrimps (c)


PCP has always used packaging which keeps their PSU's several inches from the outer box, using foam or lately cardboard braces. Most PSU’s are wrapped in thin bubble wrap in their original box. To be completely safe they need to be placed in a second box with packing, this increases cost. PCP can ship in their original box, which even if punctured should keep the PSU safe.

Madshrimps (c)


Once out of the box the PSU looks clean and has a unique "copper" color however, it is not made of copper. I like the break from the flat black, some do not and for the traditional folks black is available. The wiring is atypical, PCP eschewing modular gimmicks for all the right reasons, namely resistance and unnecessary potential failure points (plastic connectors).

Madshrimps (c)


Spreads out the connectors are well thought out with 24-pin baseboard, 8-pin & 4-pin CPU, 8-Molex (1-floppy), 6-SATA, and 2x 6-pin video. The connectors are not overdone, and lengths have been augmented avoiding the usual zip-tie fiasco or stuffing lengthy cables into empty bays, etc.

Madshrimps (c)


Another issue I've been introducing into my PSU reviews lately, (thanks to my friend Sunshine Dan) especially concerning high-current Power Supplies, has to do with the included power cord. Most PSU's I've tested even of late, have included an 18AWG (American Wire Gauge (maximum load resistance)) regardless of current. Only the Silverstone Zeus ST85ZF (to be reviewed here soon) included a 16AWG power cord. PCPP has included a 14AWG power cord with their 850SSI, 1KW Turbo-Cool and the Silencer 750 EPS12V tested today. Given the current draw of these high power units this is the last (or first as it were) place you (do not) want a bottleneck to occur.

Madshrimps (c)


Silencer 750 EPS12V Specifications


PCPower&Cooling Silencer 750 EPS12V
Operating Range: 90-264 VAC
.99 power factor
Frequency: 47-63Hz
Current: 12A
Efficiency: 83%
DC Output: +5V @ 30A
+12V @ 60A
-12V @ 0.8A
+3.3V @ 24A
+5VSB @ 3A
continuous = 750W
peak = 825W
Regulation: 3% (+3.3V, +5V, +12V)
5% (-12V)
Ripple: 1% (p-p)
OV Protection: +3.3V, +5V, +12V
OC Protection: 135% OPP
Agency Approval: UL/ULC/CE/CB/RoHS
Operating Temperature: 0° - 40°C
Humidity: 20% - 80% RH
Fan Type: 22 - 55 CFM ball-bearing
Noise: 28 - 42dB(A)
Compatibility: EPS12V / NVIDIA SLI certified
M/B Connectors: 24-pin, 8-pin, 4-pin, dual 6-pin Video
Drive Connectors: 15 (6 SATA, 1 mini)
MTBF: 100,000 hours


PCP now offers a test report with any PSU they sell for a $15 fee. Using a 75K$ Chroma tester they test all rails essentially finding the maximum current prior to shutdown. For this reason it's important to look for maximum amperes and the length of time the test was run. Thumbnails below exemplify the report sent along with our Silencer 750EPS12V, the second picture indicates maximum amperes on the 12V-Rail;

Madshrimps (c) Madshrimps (c)


Next, under the hood ->
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Comment from thorgal @ 2006/11/12
Respect to Liquid for this great review

Seems like a nice all round psu, maybe just a tad too expensive...

PS: link to this thread is not correct yet
Comment from jmke @ 2006/11/13
thanks, fixed!
Comment from David Lang @ 2006/11/17
I picked one of them up at fry's last weekend for $159.

it's high if you compare it to the 450w supplies for $50, but compared to the 1kw one at $500 it's dirt cheap (now I just have to see if it will handle my 15 hard drives powering up )
Comment from EsaT @ 2006/11/17
Here you go, you should be able to do the power consumption math:

http://www.storagereview.com/comparison.html
Comment from masterlaws @ 2006/11/29
Am I missing something here? I can't find anywhere in the review a documentation of the the sound levels that were recorded from the PSU. The article claims that it records the sound at 1 meter away, and notes in the conclusion that the PSU is "silent" in the PROs section. Yet there is no chart or numbers posted for dBA, etc. Was this omitted on purpose? One would think that if you're reviewing a PSU that's named "Silencer" and the focus of the product is to do just that, then the article would investigate this area as well.
I hope they just forgot to post the numbers.
I have been trying to get a good review of the silencer 750 with a real focus on noise levels. I am hesitant about buying this model because the last time I bought a PCP Silencer series (400 ATX) it was nowhere near silent. I hope PCP has improved their designs.
Comment from Liquid3D @ 2006/11/30
Your absolutely correct and I am very sorry. What suprises me is how many people must have read this and never bothered to ask about the noise measurments. Of course I'm not saying it's their fault that would be crazy, this was an unaccptable error on my part.

Does this mean no one read my article? Well anyway it's been fixed, and all I can say is thankffully I save all the data, and all reviews backed up in MSWord, here the link to last page with dB(A) meter results;

http://www.madshrimps.be/?action=get...&articID=5 11
Comment from jmke @ 2006/11/30
I must have re-read the last page a couple of times, fixed paragraphs and cleaned up spelling/grammar here and there, but the absence of the actual numbers didn't caught my eye... doh
Comment from masterlaws @ 2006/11/30
Hey guys,
Thanks for the update. I have been looking all over for sound levels for this product. VERY helpful.
Comment from thorgal @ 2006/12/01
Well, this is crazy really : I had seen this from the beginning actually, but thought this was on purpose or something.

Anyway : I'm glad it's fixed
Comment from I Count My Cards @ 2006/12/01
Hello, Im very new to the power supply scene. However, I do realize that a lot of PSU's are misleading with the whole "SLI ready" and Multiple 12v rail claims. Anyways... Im building a new PC and I am not able to afford the 2nd SLI card (eVGA 7950GT 512MB GDDR3)... However, I am just making sure all my ducks are in a row b4 I purchase all of my parts. For the money... the only PSU I can really afford with the correct amount of amperes is the PC Power and Cooling Silencer 750. Basically I was hoping some1 could tell me if the parts I have chose will work out with this particular PSU, for around $ 200 this is very steep for my pocket, but... I want to be ready for future SLI card. Or Maybe Some1 could recommend a cheaper PSU Solution. OK... here are my parts.

- ASUS P5N32-SLI SE Deluxe
- Pentium D 945 Presler 3.4 Ghz
- 2 x 512 Mb Corsair XMS2 DDR2 800 - Sli ready <---- is sli memory a concern?
- 1 Sata II Western Digital 270 Gb HDD
- 1 EIDE Western Digital 250 Gb HDD
- 1 EIDE ASUS CD/DVD Burner W/ Lightscribe
- 1 EIDE Memorex CD/DVD Burner
- 4 Case Fans (LED)
- 3 UV Cold Cathodes
- 1 ATI TV Wonder Card (from my old PC )
- 1 eVGA 7950GT 512 GDDR3 (waiting for more $$$ for the second) {this card also requires 20 amps on +12v rail for 1 card and 28 amps on +12v rail for second card... does this mean a total of 48 amps are required on the +12v rail, if so will there be enough amperes leftover for everything else??? this is the part the really concerns me}
- PC Power & Cooling Silencer 750 wt
- Possible Upgrade to a Water Cooling Solution (not till way down the road)
- All of this Stuff in a SilverStone TEMJIN Silver Aluminum Case

Oh... Sorry for the novel... but one more Part to this chapter LOL... I REALLY WANT LEDS!!! for my PSU... is it possible to swap out the 80 mm fan for a LED one??? Also what is the fan RPM speed, and CFM. How would one swap out a fan like that(im sure its not recommended)... or would it be ok if i just modded the PSU Case an added another fan? I know this may seem stupid but I WANT MY LEDS!!!

All in all... I would REALLY like to thank everyone for their paitence and taking the time to read my post. All help is very much appreciated and wanted.

ALSO I thought the review Liquid did on the PC Power & Cooling PSU was VERY good and VERY informative. GREAT JOB!!!!

-THANK YOU
Comment from jmke @ 2006/12/02
SLI memory has nothing to do with SLI as in dual graphics SLI, SLI for memory is rather a memory standard developed by Corsair and NVIDIA to help the memory and mobo cooperate better to offer the best timings at different memory speeds, so you don't need to manually tweak it to get the most out of it. you can see it as an advanced SPD for memory.

the things is though that this advanced SPD only works with motherboards which support it, that ASUS P5N32-SLI SE Deluxe is not one of them I'm afraid, but it's nothing to worry about.

your configuration will never go over 400W usage under maximum load, so the this PSU has got you covered.

about the LED fan, from the photo Liquid3D took I can't see any 3-pin connector for a fan, which leads me to believe it's hard wired to the power circuitry of the unit; since the fan is set to auto speed regulate depending on temperature and load, replacing it will remove that functionality; LED fans are known to be more noiser compared to their no-led brothers and since they are after market *bling* products and not quite industry grade fans, their failure rate compared to the 80mm fan coming with this PSU, is most defintely higher.

a sure way to get your PC to fry is by getting the PSU to overheat; best case scenario the PSU shuts down in time and all is good, next step is PSU fries and shuts down the system... or the 3rd... which is complete destruction.. I've seen this happen once (with a none-name PSU)... not a pretty sight.

I would consider putting a blinking neon light/bar somewhere near the PSU for any *bling* effect, this would not impact the cooling performance, but still look cool; you can paint the PSU exterior with UV paint to give it a more fancy look
Comment from I Count My Cards @ 2006/12/02
You have been VERY informative and VERY helpful... I figured as much for the power supply... I'm going to put a 4 inch UV cathode by it... As For the Memory situation... Is it still ok if I use that Memory or will my system not boot and become unstable if I use that stuff, If so, could you suggest what type of DDR2 800 RAM would be good for this MoBo (ASUS P5N32-SLI SE Deluxe)... I am considering OC'ing a lil bit and I figured memory with a cas latency of around 4 or 3 would be good... I have heard Corsair is supposed to be good memory, However... If you feel that Corsair is not a good brand... maybe you could suggest another? I would like to get some stuff with some heat spreaders on it already (more cost effective for me that way and they LOOK COOL!)

PS. Sorry for the underlines... This is my second build of a computer... I just want to make sure EVERYTHING is OK. OH yea, I have some UV reactive paint for that PSU... its like 2 or 3 yrs old... but i figure if i shake it up real good... it should work LOL

- THANKS a BUNCH
Comment from Gamer @ 2006/12/02
That memory will work without a problem.
Corsair is a good brand, and it has heatspreaders on the memory so that's ok.

Good luck.
Comment from EsaT @ 2006/12/02
Quote:
Originally Posted by jmke View Post
your configuration will never go over 400W usage under maximum load, so the this PSU has got you covered.
Not even to 300W, 250W might be quite near practical max peak consumption.

That graphic cards peaks around 60W/5A


Quote:
best case scenario the PSU shuts down in time and all is good, next step is PSU fries and shuts down the system... or the 3rd... which is complete destruction..
Now isn't second scenario actually that PSU goes boom possibly taking some components with it... and third one being complete auto destruct.

Like said unless price is well higher it's quite sure that bling will be away from quality.


But if you're wanting quiet PC why you're even considering old, king of inefficiency&heat production, NetBurst CPU?
Even slowest Core 2 Duos practically wipe toilet seats with fastest NetBurst CPUs which produce over double amount of heat. And those can be overclocked quite far with quiet air cooling. (non stock HSF)
From noise perspective 120mm fan PSUs are also better because 80mm fan needs much higher RPMs for same airflow which leads to higher pitched more easily noticeable noise. (which dB measurements don't tell well)


For overclocking memory you should get something with Micron D9Gxx chips.
D9GKX chips are highest binned by Micron but with further binning memory makers get about same from D9GMH
XtremeSystems Forums is absolutely best place for finding which memories have those chips. (finding review of just that particular memory kit can be hard)

For standard clock speed Core 2 Duos DDR2-800/PC6400 memories provide enough bandwidth, faster memories start to benefit when CPU is overclocked. (increasing FSB bandwidth)
Comment from I Count My Cards @ 2006/12/02
for helping me in my computer building decisions... I appreciate ALL of your input, and it helps me to better understand the nature of the beast. Thank you very much for your time, support, and most of all, your paitence. I seem to babble on and on about stuff when I dont understand it. I would also like to say that this has been a very fun and pleasurable learning experience for me. Again, Thank you everyone for helping me to make VERY informed decisions.
Comment from jmke @ 2006/12/02
let us know how your new PC turns out, post some pics of that *bling*
Comment from I Count My Cards @ 2006/12/03
I will definately send some pics after I get my rig up and running, It wont be soon however. I have at least 2 more months left b4 I can round up all my cash for it... The grand total of this thing is a big chunk of cash for me, so... as soon as I get it built... the sooner I can send some pics. You guys can let me know what you think. Also, I have one more question... with all the cold cathodes Im gonna be using (switch controllers for them are PCI expansion), and im also using a PCI expansion slot exhaust fan, most of my PCI expansion slot will be filled. I have not found any type light controller panel for say my 3 1/2 bay or the 5 1/4 bay. Maybe some could point me in the right direction for a mod or controller panel for cathode lights. I have seen on light controller panel for 3 1/2 but its made by vantec only compatible with vantec spectrum cathode lights. I would like to put the switches in one of my bay drives. And Im not to sure on how I could go about doing that. More help on this situation would be very much appreciated.

- Thanks

- also... I spose I'm probly posting this stuff on the wrong thread... I mean this thread is for a PSU... not mods. LOL sorry. I probly should of read your forum rules b4 I started typing away. Sorry in advance.
Comment from I Count My Cards @ 2006/12/03
Quote:
Originally Posted by EsaT View Post
Not even to 300W, 250W might be quite near practical max peak consumption.

That graphic cards peaks around 60W/5A
(hope I did the quote thing right....) Anyways I seem to have overlooked something... if that card only draws 60 watts/5a (not sure how he got the amperes part, although I know there is some simple mathematical formula to find that number... not sure what it is though) what would 2 do in SLI. And... does that mean I would be ok with XION Supernova XON-600R14-201 ATX 600W PSU or a KINGWIN ABT-600MA1W ATX 12V Ver.2.2 600W PSU? Although for the XION PSU that is a MAX peak of 600W not sure what the continuous is, same goes for the Kingwin. Boy it really feels like im getting overwhelmed here with choosing a power supply. That card recommends Minimum of a 400 Watt power supply. (Minimum recommended power supply with +12 Volt current rating of 20 Amps.) Minimum 500 Watt for SLI mode system. (Minimum recommended power supply with +12 Volt current rating of 28 Amps.) OR... Should I stick with the PC Power & Cooling Silencer or maybe a cheaper version of it like PC Power & Cooling Silencer 610 EPS12V EPS12V 610W Continuous PSU? Please help me out here... Im starting to get real confused.

- as always THANK YOU!!!!
Comment from EsaT @ 2006/12/05
Quote:
Originally Posted by I Count My Cards View Post
(hope I did the quote thing right....) Anyways I seem to have overlooked something... if that card only draws 60 watts/5a (not sure how he got the amperes part, although I know there is some simple mathematical formula to find that number...
P=UI
I=P/U

SLI about doubles that, especially idle consumption. In that aspect SLI is quite bad thing because it doubles heat production of GPU side even when doing nothing.

Quote:
Although for the XION PSU that is a MAX peak of 600W not sure what the continuous is, same goes for the Kingwin.
That makes them both stink big time. In quality PSUs peak values aren't used in anything, maybe except mentioning that for short time it handles 10-20% higher load than rating used to sell it.
PSU recommendations are just for these BS rated junks. Even one graphic card seller, BFG, sells such BS rated p.o.s PSU which starts to have serious problems after 50% of rated load! For comparison here's results of quality PSU under extreme crossload and light overload.

In reality 500W is enough for high end PC with 8800GTX SLI. Anandtech got ~440W as peak consumption of such (with Core 2 X6800). I would myself add ~20% of extra power reserve on top of that consumption.


I would suggest getting other PSU than PC P&C Silencer if low noise is important, while those are quite surely much quieter than their server PSUs BS... PR departments can't change laws of physics, like fact that 80mm fan needs much much higher RPMs for moving same amount of air as 120mm fan.
But one 12V rail (like in new Seasonic made PSUs) is definitely preferable over current limited virtual rails.

Is there any special needs you would want PSU to include? (like modular cables which would be handy in small cases)
Also what PSUs you have available there were you live?
Comment from I Count My Cards @ 2006/12/07
I will be purchasing my parts from Newegg.
I have a budget of $2,000
I've decided to go with a Conroe E6600
I want a 680i chipset Mobo... I have been heavily weighing my decision on the ASUS P5N32-E Sli Mobo and EVGA 680i Mobo... the EVGA Mobo seems to have a lot of problems with it however, Mouse and Keyboard problems, sound issues for onboard audio, etc. I have always been more of a fan with ASUS anyhow. Although the memory seems to be a problem with that board now (ASUS)... I checked out the QVL sheet and it says the Corsair XMS2 800DDR2 modules dont support FULL dual channel on all 4 dimms which is unfortunate... I have been considering the 2 gig set however. Also if its SLI mem I was wondering if the RAM needs to be 1.8v to get a post, Unless if it can set itself up to post then I manually change voltage settings. I say this becuz that ASUS board apparantly needs a 1.8v stick to post, and I REALLY dont have the cash to buy a 1.8v stick just to post it. So a suggestion of a ram module with SLI for that board would be nice... but i would like to keep my options open for further Dual channel upgrade. Also I just orderd WIN XP Pro (32-bit) edition. Will this be a problem with the ASUS board? As for the Power supply issue... I would prefer a modular one, and sound isnt to important but if i could get a quieter one... that would be nice too. As for the case Im using... LIAN LI PC-60APLUSII W which has 4 case fans... so Im sure it will get kinda loud. Any suggestions for my Rig will be greatly appreciated, as I may have stated earlier this is my second build... and with the newer advance in technologies... I find myself VERY overwhelmed This isnt like what it used to be... The PC im using now is P III Tualatin Core OC'd to 1.4 Ghz With ASUS Mobo 1 gig of RAM. LOL and a 4x AGP Radeon 8xxx series. IM DUE for an UPGRADE.LOL.
Comment from I Count My Cards @ 2006/12/07
I have been looking at that Seasonic M12 Modular PSU... I really like it... AND its modular,... max amps are 48.... So this should be good right? I read somewhere on the SLIZONE.com page that 5.5a are needed at each rail for high end Video cards. Only thing that is messing with me is Multiple 12v Rails, How do these work?...Will there be enuf amperes for my second 7950 Gt card?, Or would 550 or 500 watt PSU be good... Sorry for babbeling, so many questions.... so over whelmed... I feel like im having an anxiety attack LOL

here are some other PSU's I have been looking at:
Thermaltake W0106RU Complies with ATX 12V 2.2 & EPS 12V version 700W <---- this is another one Im seriously considering
ENERMAX Liberty ELT620AWT ATX12V 620W Power Supply <---not sure if this is continuous or Peak wattage... max amps @ 36 it also only has 2 12v rails
Cooler Master iGreen Power 600W Continuous - RS-600-ASAA <--- This ones max amps are 38... I think... I took its max wattage (not Peak) of combined 12v rails and divided by 12. 456/12=38
PC Power & Cooling Silencer 610 EPS12V EPS12V 610W <--- this one isnt modular but it is a single rail
SILVERSTONE SST-ST60F ATX 600W
CORSAIR HX520w ATX12V v2.2 and EPS12V 2.91 520W
Thermaltake W0057RU-01 PurePower TWV ATX 12V 2.0 500W
SeaSonic M12 SS-500HM ATX12V/ EPS12V 500W
Thermaltake Toughpower W0128RU ATX12V/ EPS12V 650W

any suggestions? these all are more in my price range, As stated earlier, I will still be using the same parts, just with the differences of MoBo and CPU.
Comment from EsaT @ 2006/12/08
Two 7950GTs would peak around 120W, 80W would be enough for considerably overclocked E6600 so 250W would be quite realistic upper limit for maximum peak (non continuous) power consumption.


That Enermax and Coolermaster have weak 12V output for total rating, and in case of Coolermaster there's way too many virtual rails with low current limits.
Efficiency of that Silverstone ain't good (more heat)
And I've never been impressed by Thermaltake's PSUs, first of all their specs are often vague considering total 12V output, their modular 750W model don't live up to its rating, that 500W model is relatively weak in 12V (~31.7A) and they use more restrictive fan grills. (holes/gaps stamped to steel case)


None of new Seasonic M12 and S12E+ models cares about this nuisance of virtual rail mania and those are mentioned in sticker just for PR and because originally design would have included them so it doesn't matter what is connected to what cable. (same applies to Corsair PSUs which are made by Seasonic, also PC P&C Silencer EPS12Vs use Seasonic's design)

Seasonic's design can give nearly all power from 12V, 38A/456W for 500W model (48A/576W and 56A/672W for bigger models) so those are very good for todays PCs.
Those PC P&Cs use 80mm fans which are bound to be more noisy/keep higher pitched noise which is more annoying, Corsairs use cooling similar to Seasonic's S12/S12E+ serie so at high loads M12s might make very slightly more sound because of secondary 60mm fan but that slow speed 60mm fan is there for cooling hot spot left by "big bottom fan" cooling design and would very propably never start at loads caused by your PC.

Also I would keep quality of top end Seasonics quite equal to those made by server PSU makers which are so glorified by some. I wonder could even all server PSUs work so well under these temperatures:
http://www.jonnyguru.com/review_deta...=13&page_num=2


Considering small size of case I would keep modular cables as quite much must have feature.



Quote:
Originally Posted by I Count My Cards View Post
I say this becuz that ASUS board apparantly needs a 1.8v stick to post, and I REALLY dont have the cash to buy a 1.8v stick just to post it.
One trick for that is to install only one module, boot to BIOS and increase voltage to that specified for modules in question, shut down and install second module (and set latencies) only after that.

http://www.pcstats.com/articleview.cfm?articleID=1999
Comment from I Count My Cards @ 2006/12/08
So do you think if I went with Seasonics M12 600watt I would be good? It does have 4 12v rails however, but at that price it is something I can really afford. I hope those 12v virtual rails wont be an issue. Im also planning on doing water cooling later on, with 2 HDD sata (1 HDD will have IDE to SATA adapter) about 5-6 case fan, 2 dvd burner, floppy diskette drive, 1 PCI card, and about 3 - 4 USB connections with a FIREWIRE I probly wont use but may. What do you think? Another thing I noticed was the 4 pin floppy power connector... it looks a little short... will that even reach the end of my case??? Although they DO look like extension clips on the one end so Im guessing the clip onto a 4 pin regular molex correct? I guess there is some kinda problem with the 32-bit version of WINDOWS XP PRO, something to do with the memory allocation it reserves it for something other than higher supported memory at 3 Gigs. All in all... I really want to thank you for taking the time to help me build my computer. I only have about 2-3 months left before I start buying everything, and it seems like the more research I do on PSU's the MORE confused I get. that 12v rail thing is really messing with me too. What Im concerned with is im hoping the instructions included with those kind of PSU's tell you which rail goes where and what should be hooked up to them. I know this may sound silly... but im just really concerned with getting everything right. Kinda makes me mad I bought the OEM version of WIN xp Pro 32-bit version at Newegg, no return policy for OEM products, now Im stuck with a max 3 gigs of mem. But I have heard that windows VISTA can fix this... So I could be alright there.
Comment from EsaT @ 2006/12/08
Quote:
Originally Posted by I Count My Cards View Post
So do you think if I went with Seasonics M12 600watt I would be good?
That's enough for powering two PCs with those components.

Seasonic doesn't have virtual rails, for some reasons those have been left to label. (maybe for PR because so many glorify that nuisance)
Quote:
I asked Seasonic about this "descrepency" and it was stated that the "deception" is really quite innocent. Apparently the initial design was for quad rails, and if rails did need to be split up into three or four rails, it would be easy to implement without completely redesigning the platform. Multiple rails can be split up with a separate OCP circuit board, typically screwed to the top of a heatsink.
What Seasonic tells me is that there was an issue with high end video cards overloading a single 12V rail. So with Intel's blessing, Seasonic removed the OCP.
http://www.jonnyguru.com/review_deta...=13&page_num=3

Floppy connector is adapter cable which can be connected to any free Molex, if put to last connector of Molex cable total length is near one meter.
Comment from I Count My Cards @ 2006/12/08
OH apparantly you answered my post right before I edited it... does this thread tell you when posts are edited? LOL. God im a loser.lol anyways, just to make sure I understand... this PSU is gonna be just what the doctor ordered then? and water cooling in the future will be ok? Thanks again man... you have really helped me. And I feel a lot more comfortable now about the whole PSU thing.... One last thing the memory voltage thing for getting my post,... you really think that might work? If im understanding that article correctly those OCZ sticks required a HIGHER voltage to start, maybe im messed up here but isnt 1.8v a lower memory voltage? or did i miss the whole concept of what I was just told?
Comment from jmke @ 2006/12/08
Last edited by I Count My Cards : Today at 19:56.



concering the voltage, the memory companies are once again increasing voltage to increase speed, thus needing more than 1.8v to get them to run properly; we need DDR3 to go back down in voltage again
Comment from I Count My Cards @ 2006/12/08
WOW this is awesome, makes me feel a lot better when I know whats going on, I hate to guess at stuff and you make it A LOT easier for me to understand this stuff. Thanks SO MUCH for your support. Again, This has been a really FUN learning experience for me. I really love computers and this is definately I forum/site I will be coming to often... My questions are always answered promptly and with a lot of information. This in itself speaks of high quality representation on your behalf. And I would HAVE to say IM QUITE pleased. Thank you for you support and undertanding. It has been a pleasure.

-Thank You
Comment from I Count My Cards @ 2006/12/09
Gee, you know... I was thinking, just for kicks and giggles, and if it is in your guys' power, Maybe you guys could do a review on a P5N32-E SLI MoBo. LOL
Just a suggestion, but it would be cool, HEH.
Comment from I Count My Cards @ 2006/12/09
I JUST CANT HELP IT!!!!! I know it... Im crazy I GO ON AND ON AND ON... but anywayz heres the scoop, Now while i know that seasonic M12 600 watt is a decent PSU... now Im considering the Corsair 620watt. Mainly because of its looks and modular cabling, much nicer. But two things that concern me are... on jonnyguru's review he found that the +5v rail dropped like .16v or maybe it was .18v thats pretty high isnt it? but he said that most PC's dont need more than 20a at full load. BUT... doesnt the +5v rail power cpu and MoBo??? is this a big concern? Also I've heard of some PSU's causing noise from the video card. What is the cause of that? And is this a concern? What struck me odd is that under one of neweggs customer reviews that Skenzer wrote states this. I mean he is using the same card as I am... but I was just curious.

Your probably thinking.... WHEN DOES THIS GUY SHUT UP!!!!

 

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