Guide for Selecting a Power Supply

[CptStubing]

I can't believe the problem I just ran into trying to replace/upgrade the PSU in my e9820t.  Thanks a lot for posting your experiences here, guys... It's really great to get some confirmation that this Truckee motherboard really can't handle more than a certain amount of wattage.

I have a Truckee rev 1.04e with bios 5.24 in an HP e9820t.  I also am running a Visiontek (Radeon) HD5570, quad head pci-e x16 graphics card.  This gfx card is a low power model, and doesn't even need any extra power from the PSU.  I used to run a beefier dual head card that was all 3d bells and whistles, but I don't game on the machine and just wanted more monitors for 2d use.

Anyway, my original 460w model DPS-460DB-3 A, made by Delta Electronics ( http://www.delta.com.tw/product/ps/sps/sps_main.asp ).  I can't even find this model or similar on their website, though.

My fan has started failing in my PSU, so I decided to replace it.  I figured I'd get something really nice that would last me, and probably go into a later PC build at some point, so I bought a Thermaltake SP-750M (750W) PSU.

I swapped in the new PSU and had the same exact experience that others have reported in this thread -- the machine powered up, graphics card fan, case fan, cpu fan, SATA devices all spun up, but no signal on the monitors.  Thinking I may have shocked the graphics card, I swapped in my old one that *does* take power from the PSU, and still had the same symptoms. 

At that point, I was thinking motherboard, so I tried a couple things out. I could hear the system booting up, judging from the HDD activity, so it seemed like most of the system was working.  I tried my caps/num/scroll lock buttons on my USB keyboard, and they did not light up when I hit them, however, when I unplugged and replugged it into a USB port, I did see all 3 light up.  This tells me that the USB port had power, but no signals were being processed through it.  I also checked the switch that my onboard ethernet is plugged into, and the port was not lit up, meaning there was no power on the wire.

I was kind of pulling my hair out at that point, and worrying about having to do a whole mobo swap, and then I searched the web from another machine and thankfully found this thread.  You guys saved me a lot of worries, and I swapped my old 460W PSU back in and got back up and running without any issues so far.  That PSU is still on its last legs, though, so I left the tower case open and took one of those house fans (a vornado AC fan like you'd use to move air around a room when the weather's warm) and placed it right next to the computer, blowing full blast right onto the PSU.  Hopefully if the PSU fan dies completely, this will keep it from overheating.

I want to buy a different PSU that will *work* in this computer now.  I see you guys reporting that the Corsair 650W units are confirmed to work.  Those look a bit expensive, though.  The thermaltake 750 I got was only $90, and those are weaker and cost $120 ($110 after rebate). 

Can anyone confirm other makes/models of PSUs that work properly on the Truckee 1.04e (or similar rev, probably close enough) motherboard?

If I can't find a cheaper option in the next day or 2, I'll probably just order one of the Corsairs, because it's not worth the trouble right now for me to be messing around with this much longer.   I use my computer for work, and downtime is really bad for me.

Thanks again to all who have posted their experience.. Like I said, this info was really helpful... Big thumbs up! 

[CptStubing]

P.S., I have a friend who is a really accomplished electrical engineer, and he said that this idea is completely nonsensical to him:

"...this Truckee motherboard really can't handle more than a certain amount of wattage."

Devices just draw the amount of amps @ a given voltage that they require, and the overall capacity of what's feeding them has no bearing on that unless the device exceeds the capacity of the PSU.  So, it might not be the wattage, but maybe something else about some PSUs that is incompatible..  Just thought I'd throw that out there.

[CptStubing]

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@OCBeachbum wrote:

I went back out and bought the Corsair HX650w, model number: CMPSU-650HX. This PSU is working perfectly so far in my m9600t with the Pegatron Truckee v1.03.

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Hi OCBeachbum...

Can you check or confirm which version of the HX650 you have?  Apparently Corsair use to make a Bronze-rated model Bronze-Rated HX650

Now they have revised that model and it is a Gold-rated PSU Gold-Rated HX650 

I'm having trouble finding specific model numbers that would identify which is which, though.  Also, I've seen a ton of people coplaining about a notorious fan squealing problem with the HX650.

[Big_Dave]

Hi Capt.,

I have the HP e9280t, mobo 1.04e  and bios level 5.29.  I have no issues using the Corsair HX650.  I have the seven year warranty.

The fan in the Corsair HX650 that I am using is totally quiet.  I have two of these PSUs.

BTW, the PSU is mounted fan UP towards the top so it pulls in cool air from the vents along the top of the cabinet.

I noticed the two Corsairs are physically different sizes and spec'd differently.  I have the gold rated model according to the Newegg order history.  This may be doubtful about whether it's gold. 

[OCBeachbum]

Capt, it doesn't say anywhere on the box whether it is gold or bronze. It is not a wattage problem, it is something else. I tried a corsair 550w and a 750w and they both did not work. The recommended CMPSU-650HX worked perfectly and my desktop has run flawlessly for a few weeks now. I bought it at Fry's for around $84 and sent in a $10 rebate.

[CptStubing]

Thanks for the info, guys.  More digging, and it seems that the new Gold model is the one that many are reporting to have that squeaking problem.  The best I can find for telling the Bronze and Gold HX650's apart is:

1) outer dimensions

Bronze: 150mm x 86mm x 150mm

Gold: 150mm x 86mm x 160mm

2) Max power on the 12v rail

Bronze: 624W (corsair says max of 52A for +12v)

Gold: 648W (a great pic of the specs on a very detailed review)

OCBeachbum -- Thanks a lot for the tip.  Knowing that this specific one has been working for you is good enough for me, and the price is right.  I see it on frys.com for $85 and there's a $10 rebate.  The description there says it's a Bronze, and the specs confirm that.  I'll let you guys know how it goes.

Dave_G -- Thanks for your info too.  I was a little confused when I first starting having fan noise and I looked at the PSU and didn't see any fan...  I "knew" I didn't have a hole in the top of my case, but as it turns out, that top piece unscrews at the back and slides off to reveal the actual top of the case which does have an intake cut out of it.  BTW, that would be easy for anyone to miss while cleaning dust out of the case, and mine was pretty nasty after a couple of years of not realizing it was there.

[Baowoulf]

First time posting here so I hope I picked the right spot for my question.

I'm currently using a HP Pavilion Elite m9177c as a tempoarily computer until I can build my own. It's been working great but I found out that this computer for all it's good specs only has a 8500GT no idea why parent got it through costco and gave it to me to use when my dell power supply went bad and has to be replaced.

So I picked out a EVGA 9800 GT

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130534

But I found out my HP most likely has just a 350watt power supply(checked online still need to open up the case to be exact before I buy) while the card requires 400 watts accoring to the details.

I tried calling HP support for Power Supply type wattage and dimensions but that was a hassle. One guy said all power supplies were the same size(maybe he meant the hp ones for my computer but he never said so), another guy told me that without a warranty he couldn't even tell me the wattage and a third lady said my dimensions were 9.6inches by 9.6 inches or 24 centimeters.(not sure if she was trying to give me a microatx measurements and I misheard the 3 as a 9 or what. And the first guy claimed it was a microatx Power Supply while another just said atx.

So after some googling I found these links

1. http://www.censuspc.com/HP-Hewlett-Packard-5188-2859-350-Watt-SIRAH-350-Replacement-Desktop-PC-Power... - this one seems to be what I have but it calls it ATX 12v version

2.http://www.911forpcs.com/5188-2859.html - this one seems to be something I could upgrade too but I don't know if I might be better off with a full on brand name like Corsair.

3.http://support.hp.com/us-en/document/c01736200 - This is for a different Pavilion Elite model but so far it looks like how mine does. The same video for some reason doesn't exist on the page for my model.

I found two power supplies that seem to fit the same dimensions as in link #1 but a 0.1 inch bigger on one measurement but I'm hoping my hp case allows for a slight wiggleroom.

1. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139028 - A 600watt Corsair

2. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817153151 - A 530watt Thermaltake

Just was curious if anyone has any better info on what exactly is in my case and what is the best PSU to buy. I still plan on opening the case before buying but just moved and such and calling tech help kind of wore me out. Even so just wanted to say the computer has been great minus the graphic card thing. Thanks

Edit: I made a new Post about my problem since this thread already had a Solved in it. Not sure how to delete this one so I can keep answers to my problem in my main thread.

[Kantucki]

Of what you are showing I'd go with the Corsair. It will fit no problem.

[banzaigtv]

OK, I have an HPE-580t and inspected the interior to confirm that an EVGA GeForce GTX 680 graphics card will fit. Pass. Now I need to confirm if this is the exact power supply that I will need to power up the PC and the new graphics card.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Corsair---Professional-650-Watt-ATX-CPU-Power-Supply/9635532.p;tab=overv...

[Big_Dave]

banzaigtv,

The HX650 will work.