850Watts Enough For SLI GTX 470 SC

I don't see a problem with it. Two overclocked 470s can pull 650W, so unless you have a 200W processor you've got room.

By the way, for power draw the specs that are important are really just GPU and CPU. All the fans, hard drives and DVD drives are so minimal that it usually won't matter.

EDIT: Source I was using had posted system wattage. There's no way in hell you'll have a problem.
 
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You should be fine just make sure the amprage is correct don't you need something like 24a or 47a rails i can't remember i use the thermal take 850 out of the element G case
 
I would say no. It is about amperage NOT wattage. Thermaltake makes mid range products. So counting 80% efficiency and 2 x 470 are about 24 watts ea and your CPU you are right at the limit. Running a PSU right at the limit = early death for your PSU and that in turn will cause early death for your components.
 
Tsunade said:
I would say no. It is about amperage NOT wattage. Thermaltake makes mid range products. So counting 80% efficiency and 2 x 470 are about 24 watts ea and your CPU you are right at the limit. Running a PSU right at the limit = early death for your PSU and that in turn will cause early death for your components.
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my psu is "rated at 85% efficiency" and i know that just its rating, also +12V@69A on one rail- 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified... and again mixed reviews here too :(
 
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astyle said:
my psu is "rated at 85% efficiency" and i know that just its rating, also +12V@69A on one rail- 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified... and again mixed reviews here too :(
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I'm not trying to scare you but unfortunately power supplies aren't regulated tightly. Cheapo manufacturers claim 500 watt power supply when in reality it is a 350 watt. Companies like Corsair, Seasonic underrate their power supplies.

Thermaltake in no way is the worst company, again they are midrange alongside Antec.

My personal preference is to do overkill on the power supply because you have way more headroom in the future. Case in point, when I was shopping for a PSU for my i7 build, I was looking at a Corsair HX850 watt modular power supply. It was 199, but with my work discount I found this Cooler Master Silent PRO 1000 watt for 150. Reviews were good, and I pulled the trigger and over a year it has been good. I really don't run my rigs anywhere near their max load. Running it near max load speeds up capacitor aging = super bad.
 
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Tsunade said:
I'm not trying to scare you but unfortunately power supplies aren't regulated tightly. Cheapo manufacturers claim 500 watt power supply when in reality it is a 350 watt. Companies like Corsair, Seasonic underrate their power supplies.

Thermaltake in no way is the worst company, again they are midrange alongside Antec.

My personal preference is to do overkill on the power supply because you have way more headroom in the future. Case in point, when I was shopping for a PSU for my i7 build, I was looking at a Corsair HX850 watt modular power supply. It was 199, but with my work discount I found this Cooler Master Silent PRO 1000 watt for 150. Reviews were good, and I pulled the trigger and over a year it has been good. I really don't run my rigs anywhere near their max load. Running it near max load speeds up capacitor aging = super bad.
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Going overkill on the PSU will actually make it run less efficient as compared to getting what you need (not pushing the limit).

What's the TDP on those cards? Isn't it like 215? I wouldn't really recommend it if that's the case.
 
so, I would need to get atleast a 1000watt psu to run these two cards...? just to be safe

phobus the TDP is 215 on these cards
 
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I don't think it's the wattage, bro. 850w -- maybe even 800 ... -- should be plenty enough if you have a better quality PSU (maybe a Corsair or SeaSonic?) in terms of amperage.... I think?
 
850 is more than enough

My 470s ran fine off of a 750w supply.

Really, i would just try it. If you run into problems OCP will shut down the psu for you, so it won't damage anything. If it does that, then you know you need a better PSU, otherwise, 850 will be fine.

TL;DR; 850 is more than enough.
 
reflex99 said:
850 is more than enough

My 470s ran fine off of a 750w supply.

Really, i would just try it. If you run into problems OCP will shut down the psu for you, so it won't damage anything. If it does that, then you know you need a better PSU, otherwise, 850 will be fine.

TL;DR; 850 is more than enough.
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So you ran 2-470s on a 750 with no prob's ?
 
850W is more than enough, SLI 580's only pull 850W from the wall in furmark with an i7 920. Factor in your average efficiency of 85% and your PSU is making 722W.
 
If it is rated for 850W and it can supply it, 85% efficiency means it will pull more from the wall but still supply 850W to the components.
 
Yes I agree, it is plenty, but I would definitely NOT go with a modular PSU.

For that kind of money you should be looking at a Seasonic or Corsair or something along them lines. If the reviews are mixed, there is a reason. You must keep in mind many PSU manufacturers rater the PSU at PEAK, rather than what they can run, steady, with clean power.

Now, I don't know what else you have in your machine. But plug in what you have in this http://educations.newegg.com/tool/psucalc/index.html and it should help you.
Do not buy that thermal take unless its on sale at like half that.
 
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Opps My mistake, I did not read the fine print, your running a pair.

No, you should be looking at a 900-1000 watt PSU.

Yes, the 850 probably will run it, but you are pushing the envelope and that is a no no.

Be safe. Buy a Corsiar or something simliar and you'll be ok. Personally Ive had good performance with Antec and IMO their better models are up there with Corsair. Corsairs have a 5 yr warranty.

Here is one that will work for you. at 149 with fs for a 950, its solid.
[ame]http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-CMPSU-950TX-950-Watt-Certified-Compatible/dp/B002O3W3TW%3FSubscriptionId%3D16330PR1NAHTNCZP5602%26tag%3Dpriwat-20%26linkCode%3Dxm2%26camp%3D2025%26creative%3D165953%26creativeASIN%3DB002O3W3TW[/ame]

I promise to slow down and read the entire post and not just the parts that stick out, I see now that you OWN this PSU. Bottom line. You can try it. If you start getting reboots or erratic behaviour its probably the PSU telling you that you've stressed it. ThermalTake is definately not a high end component, but its not the bottom of the barrel either. If you've got the cards already, then just try it. As long as your not overclocking you probably will be ok, if your PSU fails, so what, it wasn't big enough anyway.
 
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Crackdaddy,

Modular PSUs aren't bad. PC Power & Cooler put out that crap, and at the time, sure, modular wasn't that great. But the technology has changed. Some of the best PSUs right now are modular (looking at the Seasonic X series, and it's derivatives).

PSU calculators, especially ones from a company that sells them (Newegg or Antec, even) are way off. They tell you that a system that pulls maybe 400W will need a 750W+ unit. Those aren't too reliable. There is one good one, but I forgot the link.

850W is plenty, actually. And Corsair isn't the only good PSU manufacturer. :P *cough* fan boy! *cough*
 
Ph?bus said:
Crackdaddy,

Modular PSUs aren't bad. PC Power & Cooler put out that crap, and at the time, sure, modular wasn't that great. But the technology has changed. Some of the best PSUs right now are modular (looking at the Seasonic X series, and it's derivatives).

PSU calculators, especially ones from a company that sells them (Newegg or Antec, even) are way off. They tell you that a system that pulls maybe 400W will need a 750W+ unit. Those aren't too reliable. There is one good one, but I forgot the link.

850W is plenty, actually. And Corsair isn't the only good PSU manufacturer. :P *cough* fan boy! *cough*
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Wow, name calling seriously?

I agree, The highest end stuff is probably not bad, but modulars run the risk of shorting, poor connection, etc. Especially with the mid-lower level PSU's. Like the one he said he had, it does not matter, he already owns it, I thought he was looking to purchase one.

IMO when it comes to modularity, Its just unnecessary as this is not a part your going to be removing every week, therefore modularity is somewhat of a gimmick, good wire management in a decent case, will do just as well, if not better. I guess if you have a "show" computer it factors in.

Short of pulling up every single model number of every part in his unit, every single PSU calculater could be considered off. So my advice, try 3-4 different ones, chances are they will all be around the same. I personally use the corsair one, its seems to be somewhat realistic and actually more conservative than most.

There is a lot of good PSU manufacturers, I'm just stating some of the more popular and accessible ones.

The bottom line is, clean, reliable power. Given a choice between Antec, Corsair, Seasonic and Thermaltake. My choice would clearly be seasonic, corsair,antec and thermaltake in that order. Oddly enough, thats about the order of cost too. I'm no fanboy of any of them, I just like value for my money and a good warranty helps too.

BTW- Efficiency is the ratio between the useful output of an energy conversion device and the input.*For example, if your computer uses 300W, but pulls 400W from the wall, then the efficiency is 300W/400W, or 75%.
Its not really complicated, the higher the better.

Note: At no point did I resort to name calling in this post. :chair:
 
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