Need help in choosing a psu for gaming

S

I am upgrading my current gaming PC. I need a new power supply unit, and I'm given to understand that the corsair ones are better than most.

I have a couple of questions:

1) Some of the corsair PSU's (like this one: Corsair VS450 450 Watt PSU - Corsair: Flipkart.com) seem to have an exhaust fan on the top. My cabinet does not have any exhaust vent on the top, so I will need a new cabinet for this. But a lot of gaming cabinets don't have that vent on top. So, are there like specific cabinet-PSU combinations?

2) I will be running either a GTX660 or a AMD 7870 (not yet decided), and my current CPU is an i3-2100. But I will be upgrading to a new i7 CPU soon, so I need a PSU that will work even then. Is 450-500W enough? I won't be overclocking any component, and I will have a maximum of 2 hard-drives and a DVD drive working at any time.

3) Is there any advantage to a gaming cabinet? I don't care about the looks. Apart from the "more space to fit a bigger graphics card" thing, is there any significant advantage over my current cheap iBall cabinet? Its supposed to be a tin-can that fits the hardware....why is it so expensive?

Thanks in advance guys. And if you wanna help me choose a graphics card: *www.thinkdigit.com/forum/graphic-c...-gigabyte-7870-vs-asus-660-a.html#post1895135

> What's your budget for PSU?

> Only in the cheaper cases is the PSU tom mounted. In good cabinets, the PSU is always bottom mounted. In those cabinets, there are vents in the bottom of the cabinet and the PSU fan sucks air through these vents to cool itself. In cheap cabinets, the PSU fan is kept down (facing inside the cabinet) and the only option is to suck air from inside the cabinet. Since PSU's are much resistant to heat, this does not create a problem.

> If you have the cash, then go for NZXT Gamma available for 2600. Its a very good cabinet with good cable management and ventilation.

> The good thing in better cabinets, apart from looks and more space, is cable management provisions and good air flow. fans are provided everywhere necessary, HDD bays are removable and are tool-less, build quality is good which can last for multiple builds.

S

harshilsharma63 said:
> What's your budget for PSU?

> Only in the cheaper cases is the PSU tom mounted. In good cabinets, the PSU is always bottom mounted. In those cabinets, there are vents in the bottom of the cabinet and the PSU fan sucks air through these vents to cool itself. In cheap cabinets, the PSU fan is kept down (facing inside the cabinet) and the only option is to suck air from inside the cabinet. Since PSU's are much resistant to heat, this does not create a problem.

> If you have the cash, then go for NZXT Gamma available for 2600. Its a very good cabinet with good cable management and ventilation.

> The good thing in better cabinets, apart from looks and more space, is cable management provisions and good air flow. fans are provided everywhere necessary, HDD bays are removable and are tool-less, build quality is good which can last for multiple builds.

Thanks for the reply. But if in cheaper cabinets, the PSU is placed upside down (top mounted slot), we are basically pumping hot air into the cabinet....which cannot be good. So, for those PSUs, a proper gaming cabinet is essential, isn't it?

And my budget for a PSU is around 3K-3.5K.

siddhanthgupta said:
Thanks for the reply. But if in cheaper cabinets, the PSU is placed upside down (top mounted slot), we are basically pumping hot air into the cabinet....which cannot be good. So, for those PSUs, a proper gaming cabinet is essential, isn't it?

And my budget for a PSU is around 3K-3.5K.

> PSU fans are intake, not exhaust.

> you should really get either Corsair GS500 or Seasonic S12II 520W.

1)Psu - get seasonic s12 520w psu @rs 3.9k.this is very good psu and best under 4.5k and enough for your entire rig

- *www.theitdepot.com/details-Seasonic+520W+Power+Supply+(S12II-520)_C14P7879.html

2)case - get new case it is very imp for rig specially if you have med-high range gpus.get nzxt gamma cabinet @rs 2450

- NZXT Gamma MID TOWER Black interior chassis

S

harshilsharma63 said:
> PSU fans are intake, not exhaust.

Thanks for clearing that up. That actually makes a lot of sense.

ASHISH65 said:
1)Psu - get seasonic s12 520w psu @rs 3.9k.this is very good psu and best under 4.5k and enough for your entire rig

- Theitdepot - Buy Seasonic 520W Power Supply (S12II-520) online in india

2)case - get new case it is very imp for rig specially if you have med-high range gpus.get nzxt gamma cabinet @rs 2450

- NZXT Gamma MID TOWER Black interior chassis

A local dealer offered me a Corsair VS 550 for 3.5K. Is it a good deal?

siddhanthgupta said:
Thanks for clearing that up. That actually makes a lot of sense.

A local dealer offered me a Corsair VS 550 for 3.5K. Is it a good deal?

NO no no no, stay away from those PSUs. Either get a GS series PSU or get a Seasonic PSU. I now prefer Seasonics.

S

harshilsharma63 said:
NO no no no, stay away from those PSUs. Either get a GS series PSU or get a Seasonic PSU. I now prefer Seasonics.

What's wrong with the VS 550? Online power supply wattage calculators tell me I need a 350W PSU. I assumed that even if the wattage on the PSU is over-rated, 550W would do the trick.

It's not just about the Wattage, its about the Ampearage on different voltage lines, about the efficiency, about the build quality and overall product quality. Corsair VS series psu's are the cheapest the company offers. The psu's aren't well built and components aren't of high quality. CX it the minimum one should go for. Currently, Corsair has changed its manufacturer, so the availability of those psu's is low and the new ones aren't of the best quality. So, I rather recommend a Seasonic s12 520W which will be enough for your build too.

Seasonic S12II 520W gets another vote. You can consider Coolermaster GX Series.

S

harshilsharma63 said:
It's not just about the Wattage, its about the Ampearage on different voltage lines, about the efficiency, about the build quality and overall product quality. Corsair VS series psu's are the cheapest the company offers. The psu's aren't well built and components aren't of high quality. CX it the minimum one should go for. Currently, Corsair has changed its manufacturer, so the availability of those psu's is low and the new ones aren't of the best quality. So, I rather recommend a Seasonic s12 520W which will be enough for your build too.

I'm having difficulty finding Seasonics locally. Corsairs are readily available though. So a CX or GS 500W is good enough then?

siddhanthgupta said:
I'm having difficulty finding Seasonics locally. Corsairs are readily available though. So a CX or GS 500W is good enough then?

Yes ther are good. Prefer GS over CX. Seasonics > GS > CX.

siddhanthgupta said:
I'm having difficulty finding Seasonics locally. Corsairs are readily available though. So a CX or GS 500W is good enough then?

then order it from Fk but most of the PSUs are are overpriced.

3.5K for VS550 is waaaay overpriced. the shopkeeper is duping you.

get a GS/Seasonic 550W for that price and it can easily power you i7 + 7870/GT660.

S

Thanks guys. I've decided to go with a Corsair GS600.

^good choice

best of luck