Powerconsumption revisited

**PanzerHans** · 12-26-2006, 07:38 AM

I came over a rather nice website that gives an approximation of your PCs powerconsumption, Fill in the variables and press calculate to see if your system has the required powersupply rating.

http://www.extreme.outervision.com/PSUEngine

**sordavie** · 12-26-2006, 08:08 AM

Wee, they recommend 286watts for me.

A Core 2 Duo E6400
A Geforce 7900GS
A Soundblaster Audigy 4
2 sticks of DDR2 RAM
2 DVD drives
2 SATA drives
4 120mm fans

**Wimpinator** · 12-26-2006, 09:52 AM

Uh they recommend 577W for me. I'm running a 500W PSU that I have had for a very long time. I used to have plenty of head room but I added some devices that ate up the extra power.

**Apophis** · 12-26-2006, 10:10 AM

They recommended 788W for me. Not sure how I'm going to pull that one off!

xTYBALTx · 12-26-2006, 11:34 AM

I've used that PSU calculator before. It over-estimates the wattage needed by so much as to approach silliness. The author defends his calculations by saying that he wants to play it safe, and we should also note that most PSU companies vastly over-estimate their unit's capabilities, but I'd prefer to have a more honest assessment of my actual wattage needs and then be able to go from there. There are some PSU companies, for instance, which accurately state (FSP) or even underestimate (PCP&C) their PSU's capabilities.

Keep in mind, also, that the amperage - particularly on the 12V rails - is where most people fall short.

Edit: I wanted to add something, because I don't want to be overly harsh. The calculator is pretty decent (but it does still overestimate!) until one accounts for Surge Compensation and Capacitor Aging. Now, I frankly do not know the importance of these two items, so it's not really fair for me to comment on the legitimacy or any lack thereof regarding them. But it seems a bit suspect that my wattage requirements go from a slightly unreasonable (and probably overestimated) 500W to a somewhat insane (and definitely way way overestimated) 655W by adding minimal values for surge compensation and capacitor aging.

**sordavie** · 12-26-2006, 11:53 AM

Hm, why does it have my estimate at such a low value?

**Wimpinator** · 12-26-2006, 12:21 PM

I figured as much. I spent a lot of time researching my PSU before I bought it and it still has plenty of current sourcing ability available on the 12v rail. I just don't know how much the dvd RW drives use current wise.

**Dick Blonov** · 12-26-2006, 12:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wimpinator

I figured as much. I spent a lot of time researching my PSU before I bought it and it still has plenty of current sourcing ability available on the 12v rail. I just don't know how much the dvd RW drives use current wise.

Most of them use around 1.5A-2.0A on the 12V rail on spin-up, and about 0.5A on the 5V rail.

DB

B. Clawhammer · 12-26-2006, 01:12 PM

Speaking of power, I've been having an issue w/my pc for sometime that is just downright annoying. When I turn on my rig, when the windows screen appears, it does it's thing for a few seconds, then the screen goes black. It sounds as if my hard drive stopped spinning, then it spins back up and i get to the windows login screen and everything is fine. I figured I wasn't getting enough juice since I have a lot of peripherals plugged in as well. I was using an Ultra 600w psu, then i got this and put it in. I'm still getting the same symptoms even though I've unplugged most of my peripherals and taken out my other 7800gt. I'm thinking it's my hard drive now. What do you guys think?

**PanzerHans** · 12-26-2006, 01:43 PM

I say it is highly unlikely that this is a powerissue. If you had a powerissue you would likely see a bluescreen or an instant shutdown/restart. My best guess is a driver initialization that times out combined with your graphicscard switching to your windows resolution(windows start up in 640x480 intially if I´m not mistaken).

My powerating for a barebone system with a Geforce 6800 ultra, serial ATA disks / 6 USB units and two firewire units and 2 sticks of DDR ram gave me a sensible 388 Watts proposal. I´d say that is spot on for me.

I´ve not added anything to the surge compensation and capasitor aging.

B. Clawhammer · 12-26-2006, 01:48 PM

How do I go about fixing this? Like I said, it's not a big deal, but it delays my bootup by somtimes +30-60 seconds.

Specs:
Asus a8n 32 SLI delux
4400+ cpu
evga 7800gt
Antec truepower 650w
seagate barracuda 200gb
creative x-fi platinum

**PanzerHans** · 12-26-2006, 01:56 PM

Check out Bootvis, it is a boot optimalization tool from Microsoft. It allows you to time devicedriver bootup times and order them in a sensible way. It would also help you to spot which devicedriver might be the culprit.

Download: http://www.majorgeeks.com/download.php?det=664

B. Clawhammer · 12-26-2006, 02:01 PM

Nice. That sounds like something I need. Thanks Panzer! I'll check it out when I get home.

**marstein** · 12-26-2006, 04:08 PM

Claw -I have a nvidia 7800GT and I believe it is a nvidia driver issue. I don't know, maybe they clear video memory or play it safe by inserting empty loops in their code. Reason is that this behavior (screen blanks after 'windows is starting up' and HDD does nothing for endless (10-20s) time) started after installing the nvidia drivers.
nvidia is really loosing me as a customer for their bad software.

Please post what that Bootvis tool tells you!

B. Clawhammer · 12-27-2006, 12:57 AM

Well Panzer and Marstein, here's a screen shot of Bootvis. I let it boot a few times consecutively just to see what happens and this is the result.

12-26-2006, 07:38 AM	#1 (permalink)
PanzerHans Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: By the PC Age: 35 Posts: 2,256	Powerconsumption revisited I came over a rather nice website that gives an approximation of your PCs powerconsumption, Fill in the variables and press calculate to see if your system has the required powersupply rating. http://www.extreme.outervision.com/PSUEngine __________________ -- VI VI VI - the number of the beast

12-26-2006, 08:08 AM	#2 (permalink)
sordavie Join Date: Nov 2005 Age: 27 Posts: 2,099	Re: Powerconsumption revisited Wee, they recommend 286watts for me. A Core 2 Duo E6400 A Geforce 7900GS A Soundblaster Audigy 4 2 sticks of DDR2 RAM 2 DVD drives 2 SATA drives 4 120mm fans __________________ Last edited by sordavie; 12-26-2006 at 10:14 AM. Reason: specs

12-26-2006, 09:52 AM	#3 (permalink)
Wimpinator Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: United states, TN Age: 35 Posts: 2,912	Re: Powerconsumption revisited Uh they recommend 577W for me. I'm running a 500W PSU that I have had for a very long time. I used to have plenty of head room but I added some devices that ate up the extra power. __________________ \|TG-6th\|Wimpinator BF2 Rules and SOP's\|Teamspeak information\|TG on IRC

12-26-2006, 10:10 AM	#4 (permalink)
Apophis Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Rhode Island, USA Age: 36 Posts: 8,923	Re: Powerconsumption revisited They recommended 788W for me. Not sure how I'm going to pull that one off! __________________ Diplomacy is the art of saying "good doggie" while looking for a bigger stick.

12-26-2006, 11:34 AM	#5 (permalink)
xTYBALTx Join Date: Aug 2005 Posts: 3,852	Re: Powerconsumption revisited I've used that PSU calculator before. It over-estimates the wattage needed by so much as to approach silliness. The author defends his calculations by saying that he wants to play it safe, and we should also note that most PSU companies vastly over-estimate their unit's capabilities, but I'd prefer to have a more honest assessment of my actual wattage needs and then be able to go from there. There are some PSU companies, for instance, which accurately state (FSP) or even underestimate (PCP&C) their PSU's capabilities. Keep in mind, also, that the amperage - particularly on the 12V rails - is where most people fall short. Edit: I wanted to add something, because I don't want to be overly harsh. The calculator is pretty decent (but it does still overestimate!) until one accounts for Surge Compensation and Capacitor Aging. Now, I frankly do not know the importance of these two items, so it's not really fair for me to comment on the legitimacy or any lack thereof regarding them. But it seems a bit suspect that my wattage requirements go from a slightly unreasonable (and probably overestimated) 500W to a somewhat insane (and definitely way way overestimated) 655W by adding minimal values for surge compensation and capacitor aging. __________________ Current good song: Justice - Stress "$250,000 a year won't get me to Central Park West."

12-26-2006, 11:53 AM	#6 (permalink)
sordavie Join Date: Nov 2005 Age: 27 Posts: 2,099	Re: Powerconsumption revisited Hm, why does it have my estimate at such a low value? __________________

12-26-2006, 12:21 PM	#7 (permalink)
Wimpinator Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: United states, TN Age: 35 Posts: 2,912	Re: Powerconsumption revisited I figured as much. I spent a lot of time researching my PSU before I bought it and it still has plenty of current sourcing ability available on the 12v rail. I just don't know how much the dvd RW drives use current wise. __________________ \|TG-6th\|Wimpinator BF2 Rules and SOP's\|Teamspeak information\|TG on IRC

12-26-2006, 01:12 PM	#9 (permalink)
B. Clawhammer Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Central Valley, CA Age: 30 Posts: 1,839	Re: Powerconsumption revisited Speaking of power, I've been having an issue w/my pc for sometime that is just downright annoying. When I turn on my rig, when the windows screen appears, it does it's thing for a few seconds, then the screen goes black. It sounds as if my hard drive stopped spinning, then it spins back up and i get to the windows login screen and everything is fine. I figured I wasn't getting enough juice since I have a lot of peripherals plugged in as well. I was using an Ultra 600w psu, then i got this and put it in. I'm still getting the same symptoms even though I've unplugged most of my peripherals and taken out my other 7800gt. I'm thinking it's my hard drive now. What do you guys think? __________________ \|TG-33rd\|Clawhammer [squadl] [sniper][unit] BF2 Rules & SOPs

12-26-2006, 01:43 PM	#10 (permalink)
PanzerHans Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: By the PC Age: 35 Posts: 2,256	Re: Powerconsumption revisited I say it is highly unlikely that this is a powerissue. If you had a powerissue you would likely see a bluescreen or an instant shutdown/restart. My best guess is a driver initialization that times out combined with your graphicscard switching to your windows resolution(windows start up in 640x480 intially if I´m not mistaken). My powerating for a barebone system with a Geforce 6800 ultra, serial ATA disks / 6 USB units and two firewire units and 2 sticks of DDR ram gave me a sensible 388 Watts proposal. I´d say that is spot on for me. I´ve not added anything to the surge compensation and capasitor aging. __________________ -- VI VI VI - the number of the beast

12-26-2006, 01:48 PM	#11 (permalink)
B. Clawhammer Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Central Valley, CA Age: 30 Posts: 1,839	Re: Powerconsumption revisited How do I go about fixing this? Like I said, it's not a big deal, but it delays my bootup by somtimes +30-60 seconds. Specs: Asus a8n 32 SLI delux 4400+ cpu evga 7800gt Antec truepower 650w seagate barracuda 200gb creative x-fi platinum __________________ \|TG-33rd\|Clawhammer [squadl] [sniper][unit] BF2 Rules & SOPs

12-26-2006, 01:56 PM	#12 (permalink)
PanzerHans Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: By the PC Age: 35 Posts: 2,256	Re: Powerconsumption revisited Check out Bootvis, it is a boot optimalization tool from Microsoft. It allows you to time devicedriver bootup times and order them in a sensible way. It would also help you to spot which devicedriver might be the culprit. Download: http://www.majorgeeks.com/download.php?det=664 __________________ -- VI VI VI - the number of the beast

12-26-2006, 02:01 PM	#13 (permalink)
B. Clawhammer Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Central Valley, CA Age: 30 Posts: 1,839	Re: Powerconsumption revisited Nice. That sounds like something I need. Thanks Panzer! I'll check it out when I get home. __________________ \|TG-33rd\|Clawhammer [squadl] [sniper][unit] BF2 Rules & SOPs

12-26-2006, 04:08 PM	#14 (permalink)
marstein Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Half Moon Bay, CA, USA Age: 42 Posts: 828	Re: Powerconsumption revisited Claw -I have a nvidia 7800GT and I believe it is a nvidia driver issue. I don't know, maybe they clear video memory or play it safe by inserting empty loops in their code. Reason is that this behavior (screen blanks after 'windows is starting up' and HDD does nothing for endless (10-20s) time) started after installing the nvidia drivers. nvidia is really loosing me as a customer for their bad software. Please post what that Bootvis tool tells you! __________________ Gigabyte P35-DS3R, 2GB, 8800GTS 640MB, Core2Duo E8400

12-27-2006, 12:57 AM	#15 (permalink)
B. Clawhammer Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Central Valley, CA Age: 30 Posts: 1,839	Re: Powerconsumption revisited Well Panzer and Marstein, here's a screen shot of Bootvis. I let it boot a few times consecutively just to see what happens and this is the result. __________________ \|TG-33rd\|Clawhammer [squadl] [sniper][unit] BF2 Rules & SOPs

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