[SullivanthePoet]

HELP!! The power supply on my hp a510.uk Desktop is on the way out (making a racket and smelling hot) and, despite spending hours combing the net I can't find the original spec so I know what to order as a replacement... I know, pull out the old one and read the label. The problem is it is already an 'on the cheap' replacement from a local pc 'teccie'- the "knock three times and ask for Ruby" type you find on the top floor of a derelict office block - and judging by the fact half the screws don't line up not necessarily the right one anyway... PC world do a range and Maplins do a couple but I don't know what's compatible - and I don't want to spend a fortune on an ancient but nonetheless reliable PC.

Anyone?[font="Times New Roman"

[coastie65]

SullivanthePoet, on 02 April 2012 - 02:40 PM, said:

HELP!! The power supply on my hp a510.uk Desktop is on the way out (making a racket and smelling hot) and, despite spending hours combing the net I can't find the original spec so I know what to order as a replacement... I know, pull out the old one and read the label. The problem is it is already an 'on the cheap' replacement from a local pc 'teccie'- the "knock three times and ask for Ruby" type you find on the top floor of a derelict office block - and judging by the fact half the screws don't line up not necessarily the right one anyway... PC world do a range and Maplins do a couple but I don't know what's compatible - and I don't want to spend a fortune on an ancient but nonetheless reliable PC.

Anyone?[font="Times New Roman"

Hi and welcome to the forums. This should do it: http://www.pcworld.c...934186-pdt.html

[LiveBrianD]

SullivanthePoet, on 02 April 2012 - 02:40 PM, said:

HELP!! The power supply on my hp a510.uk Desktop is on the way out (making a racket and smelling hot) and, despite spending hours combing the net I can't find the original spec so I know what to order as a replacement... I know, pull out the old one and read the label. The problem is it is already an 'on the cheap' replacement from a local pc 'teccie'- the "knock three times and ask for Ruby" type you find on the top floor of a derelict office block - and judging by the fact half the screws don't line up not necessarily the right one anyway... PC world do a range and Maplins do a couple but I don't know what's compatible - and I don't want to spend a fortune on an ancient but nonetheless reliable PC.

Anyone?[font="Times New Roman"

You just need an ATX power supply, they're pretty standard. I suspect that the local guy gave you a really cheap, poor quality unit (like the ones you can get on ebay). The Antec Basiq psus are ok, but not great, and not very efficient (I have one and it runs hotter than the Seasonic I replaced it with). An Antec Earthwatts 380W unit should work well.

[SullivanthePoet]

LiveBrianD, on 02 April 2012 - 04:06 PM, said:

SullivanthePoet, on 02 April 2012 - 02:40 PM, said:

HELP!! The power supply on my hp a510.uk Desktop is on the way out (making a racket and smelling hot) and, despite spending hours combing the net I can't find the original spec so I know what to order as a replacement... I know, pull out the old one and read the label. The problem is it is already an 'on the cheap' replacement from a local pc 'teccie'- the "knock three times and ask for Ruby" type you find on the top floor of a derelict office block - and judging by the fact half the screws don't line up not necessarily the right one anyway... PC world do a range and Maplins do a couple but I don't know what's compatible - and I don't want to spend a fortune on an ancient but nonetheless reliable PC.

Anyone?[font="Times New Roman"

You just need an ATX power supply, they're pretty standard. I suspect that the local guy gave you a really cheap, poor quality unit (like the ones you can get on ebay). The Antec Basiq psus are ok, but not great, and not very efficient (I have one and it runs hotter than the Seasonic I replaced it with). An Antec Earthwatts 380W unit should work well.

That's brilliant guys - thanks! But what about the wattage? I see they come in 250/300/350 etc; What are the advantages/disadvantages of more 'grunt'? Will a big wattage improve my pc's performance (I have upgraded the memory to 1 meg from .256 and have a wireless card to fit yet) or will it just burst into flames if I go too heavy on the watts?

This post has been edited by SullivanthePoet: 03 April 2012 - 02:25 AM

[LiveBrianD]

More wattage will not improve performance. However, you need a psu with enough wattage (for a basic machine, 300W is ok) - otherwise, the system might be unstable (due to voltages getting out of spec) or the power supply might shut down or blow up. (with a good unit, like the earthwatts, this isn't a concern) Let's put it this way - if I have a light bulb that needs 120V 125mA, I can give it 120V 125mA or 120V 2A (aka 2000mA), and it'll work fine, with the same result either way. However, if I feed it 120A 60mA, it won't work.

By the way, things like ram and wireless cards have very very little impact on the power supply, and you don't need to worry about it at all. Hard drives can draw about 10W, but that's still next to nothing. The real concern is the CPU and the GPU - those can draw 100W or more each in some cases (particularly the GPU, as most CPUs max out at 125W and the low end desktop ones are 65W).

[SullivanthePoet]

LiveBrianD, on 03 April 2012 - 10:43 AM, said:

More wattage will not improve performance. However, you need a psu with enough wattage (for a basic machine, 300W is ok) - otherwise, the system might be unstable (due to voltages getting out of spec) or the power supply might shut down or blow up. (with a good unit, like the earthwatts, this isn't a concern) Let's put it this way - if I have a light bulb that needs 120V 125mA, I can give it 120V 125mA or 120V 2A (aka 2000mA), and it'll work fine, with the same result either way. However, if I feed it 120A 60mA, it won't work.

By the way, things like ram and wireless cards have very very little impact on the power supply, and you don't need to worry about it at all. Hard drives can draw about 10W, but that's still next to nothing. The real concern is the CPU and the GPU - those can draw 100W or more each in some cases (particularly the GPU, as most CPUs max out at 125W and the low end desktop ones are 65W).

That is starting to make sense - Thank you! Both for your time and your knowledge. I saw this chappy on the PC World site - http://www.pcworld.c...x-criteria.html - JEANTECH VP-300-E ATX PSU - 300W -
am I right in thinking, given what you've said, that this item is pretty much up to the job at a very modest price? It appears to be exactly the same configuration of fan etc as the one in there and is rated at 300W.

This post has been edited by SullivanthePoet: 03 April 2012 - 11:05 AM

[LiveBrianD]

Wait, which one on there? It looks like the EW 500W is on sale for just £29.97, the cheapest of any of the EWs, so you may as well get it.

Edit: I've never heard of Jeantech. Those units don't look great, and I can't find a ton of information on them.

This post has been edited by LiveBrianD: 03 April 2012 - 11:09 AM

[coastie65]

SullivanthePoet, on 03 April 2012 - 11:03 AM, said:

LiveBrianD, on 03 April 2012 - 10:43 AM, said:

More wattage will not improve performance. However, you need a psu with enough wattage (for a basic machine, 300W is ok) - otherwise, the system might be unstable (due to voltages getting out of spec) or the power supply might shut down or blow up. (with a good unit, like the earthwatts, this isn't a concern) Let's put it this way - if I have a light bulb that needs 120V 125mA, I can give it 120V 125mA or 120V 2A (aka 2000mA), and it'll work fine, with the same result either way. However, if I feed it 120A 60mA, it won't work.

By the way, things like ram and wireless cards have very very little impact on the power supply, and you don't need to worry about it at all. Hard drives can draw about 10W, but that's still next to nothing. The real concern is the CPU and the GPU - those can draw 100W or more each in some cases (particularly the GPU, as most CPUs max out at 125W and the low end desktop ones are 65W).

That is starting to make sense - Thank you! Both for your time and your knowledge. I saw this chappy on the PC World site - http://www.pcworld.c...x-criteria.html - JEANTECH VP-300-E ATX PSU - 300W -
am I right in thinking, given what you've said, that this item is pretty much up to the job at a very modest price? It appears to be exactly the same configuration of fan etc as the one in there and is rated at 300W.

Hi. AS far as the system goes, a 300w would in all likelyhood be up to the task. The problem comes in when you add a dedicated card, then it becomes crucial to have enough power, particularly on the +12v Rails. a majority of the Videao cards will function well on a 450w PSU if you can find one with at least 25 amps on the +12v rails ( the higher end cards need a bit more ). I haven't heard of that particular brand as I think that may be a UK / European thing, so can't really speak to the quality or lack there of, of it.

[LiveBrianD]

Coastie, I looked around, and didn't find much on that psu at all. The things I did find were based in Europe though.

[coastie65]

LiveBrianD, on 03 April 2012 - 03:33 PM, said:

Coastie, I looked around, and didn't find much on that psu at all. The things I did find were based in Europe though.

They do carry the brands we would recognize, but also a lot of brands that are sold over there and not here. I was seeing Zotac Video cards over there before I saw them here ( they are pretty good cards ). I spend a bit of time over in those sites checking out stuff as we do have people come in from that part of the world.

[SullivanthePoet]

Thanks Guys! Both for your generosity with your time and your obvious expertise...