Guide for Selecting a Power Supply

[tarpon31]

Big_Dave is right the cx500 is a great choic especialy for the price.

As for graphics card IMO the GTX 460 is the best card that would work with that power supply. The GTX 460 is also probably the best card out right now for the money anytime you go for a card better than the 460 you come into diminishing returns and you start spending alot more money. If you get this card make sure you get the 1gb version and not the 768mb one also stay away from the "SE" version. Good Luck

[Big_Dave]

Hi Monaula,

The NVIDIA 550TI is a very good choice.  Open up your PC and do some measuring across the PCI-E x16 slot.  The NVIDIA 550TI is 8.25" in length.  The slot adjacent to the PCI-E x16 should be vacant.

These HP "how-to" articles should be helpful.

[Monaulga]

Thank you both for your responses and yes i checked and smiled when i seen i do have the available space which i did not consider checking before purchase so thank you for bringing that up and i also checked up on the GeForce GTX 460 1G and it is pretty sweet for the buck and i also did a hardware comparison between the 2 and would like to share that info.

http://www.hwcompare.com/9691/geforce-gtx-460-1gb-vs-geforce-gtx-550-ti/

Again thank you both for the help 😄

[the_Sean712]

This is my first post on the forums here, and I have never replaced a power supply before...so I apologize in advance for my lack of knowledge in this topic.

About 6 months ago I bought a new computer (HP Pavilion p6774y)...one of the downsides I read about the computer prior to buying it was that it ships with a 250W power supply, and that it could be a problem if you decided to add more RAM. Well, I just placed an order today that will boost my RAM up to the maximum of 16GB and I had totally forgotten about the mention that the power supply might be inadequate to handle that much RAM until AFTER my order for the RAM was already placed.

So...I'm just wondering if it will, indeed, be necessary for me to replace the power supply on my computer. And, if so, are there any recommendations for which power supply I should be looking at getting? A certain wattage, brand, model? I know absolutely NOTHING about replacing the power supply in a computer, so I don't want to just run out, buy a new power supply and then find out that it isn't going to fit in my case or be compatible with my motherboard etc.

Any help would be greatly appreciated. Here is the link to the specifications of my computer:
http://support.hp.com/us-en/document/c02629593

[Nautsj]

Good Day,

I have a  HPE H8-1090d, i understand the power supply is only 460 watts?, not enough for a GTX 570 (currently GTX 460).

Which brand power supply will fit the casing? I cannot find the dimensions anywhere. What should i do?

Thank you very much.

[Big_Dave · Accepted solution]

Hi Nautsj,

You should open up your PC and measure the physical dimensions of your power supply. Here is a list of things to consider:

1. Specifications
2. Total wattage - important
3. 12+ volt amperage rating - important
4. Modular - not mandatory but I like the flexibility
5. Warranty
6. i7 and SLI ready
7. Efficiency rating
8. Cost
9. Physical size -- standard ATX PSU is 5.5" by 5.9" by 3.4" give or take a few tenths
10. A single 12+ volt rail is a better choice.

www.newegg.com has lots of PSUs choices. Corsair, OCZ, Rosewill, Thermaltake.....

The typical EVGA GTX 570 in 9" in length.  The slot adjacent to the PCI-E x16 slot need to be vacant.  Open up your PC and do some measuring so that you know for sure if the card will fit.  I believe it will fit.

As for a power supply, the Corsair CX600 has very little growth but the Corsair HX650 will give you plenty of room to grow.

I am using the HX650 in two PCs.  It's a modular model so you have better options with the cable selection.

The HP "how-to" articles should be helpful.

TIP: When installling the power supply, unlatch the optical drive and slide it forward to ease the removal and installation of the new power supply.

[Nautsj]

Wow, thank you for your reply. I opened up the casing just now, looks very tight.

I am from South East Asia. Will bring the casing to the computer shop and get them to fix the power supply. Looking at Corsair or Cooler Master, depends on what they have in stock. 

Thank you very much once again for your reply.

Cheers and have a good day.

[Nautsj]

Is this ok?

http://www.coolermaster.com.my/product.php?product_id=5924&category_id=3576

[Big_Dave]

Hi,

The wattage appears to be sufficient and the physical dimensions are good.  You should be OK.

[broncbuster187]

Hi all,

I'm looking to replace my 300w power supply in a a6560t to a higher watt one for a new video card.

Motherboard: http://support.hp.com/us-en/document/c01324212

would this work:

http://www.cpusolutions.com/store/pc/Ultra-Lifetime-Series-Pro-650W-ATX12V-EPS12V-Power-Supply-p1598...

Any pointers would be great. seems dimension are the issue here.

Also, if you have video card suggestions, i'd love to have them, currently running a PCI-E x16 (1.0 slot) 512 Geforce 9500 GS (I thinK). so I assume I would need a 1.0 slot graphics card.