Yoiu can cram a Titan and a X99 CPU into a 7.2L case (Dan A4) or a pair of them and an X99 into the Kimera Cerberus (18L) or LukeD's Project Orthus (12L), which would push exisitn 500W SFX PSUs out of their comfort zone.
Dan A4 can use an SFX-L power supply, but a Titan (Pascal) + X99 CPU don't exceed 500W during load. Kimera Cerberus does use an SFX-L power supply, and extreme configurations can pull up 700w. Project Orthus uses a 1U power supply. This power supply is incompatible.
The point people are making is that this product is a solution looking for a problem. SFX(-L) PSUs are typically used in small, portable PC cases. 500W units are sufficient for any 1 CPU + 1 GPU system, which is the vast majority of systems. Very few people need something that exceeds that.
You are right, very few people need that. But there are those that may want to overclock both their CPUs and gpu's, and that can quit easily push power over 500w depending on the CPU, gpu, and overclock achieved in both. And doing all that in a small compact case is desirable by enough to bring a psu like this to market.
Part of the problem with extreme overclocking in SFF is that (without introducing intolerable levels of noise) heat builds up very quickly in small volume. The typical SFF PCs, where SFX-L PSUs are typically used, has only intake fan(s) (if any case fans at all). So waste heat is dumped in a ~13 liter case (for cases like the ML07 or RVZ01 or FTZ01) and it can only passively leave the case.
You can try to better force hot air out by using godly air pressure fans, such as the notoriously loud, high-rpm Delta fans, or the industrialPPC line of fans from Noctua, but you run into problems with noise generation.
I speak from experience here because I'm using three Noctua NF-F12 industrialPPC-3000 PWM case fans in my FTZ01, and a i5-4690k @4.5Ghz and GTX 970 (stock clocks). While I'm able to control the temperatures of my CPU well enough, the GPU compartment is a different issue, and the GPU can routinely hit ~90 degrees C after an hour or two of gaming, where it begins to throttle a bit. Part of that is my fault, as I bought the cheapest GTX 970 available at the time, which was an open air cooler and as a result it constantly recycles the warmer and warmer air it exhausts, but I don't believe a blower style GPU would help too significantly, either. And this happens even with using very high-pressure and high-rpm fans to try to force in as much positive case pressure as possible, to get stagnant exhaust air out of the case; it just doesn't work too well for my GPU so I leave it at stock clocks and undervolt it a bit.
SFF cases function best when GPUs aren't being overclocked, at the very least. They starve of fresh air too easily because the compromises of SFF cases don't allow the extra dimensions in the case to have enough case volume and fan (intakes and exhaust) to properly ensure that the GPU exhaust is leaving the case.
Whenever you do replace your GPU I think you really should go with a blower cooler. While they're justifiably much maligned by enthusiasts with big well ventilated cases for bad noise to temperature performance in their beasts, one of the reasons why reference designs generally use blowers is that they allow the card to vent all of its unwanted heat directly without having to worry about if the rest of the case is able to help any or not. Looking at your case I think the blowers intake should line up with the perforated area in the GPU compartment allowing it to suck fresh air in from outside the case directly and blast it out the back.
Airflow and case cooling isn't rocket science. With only intake and open air GPU and CPU cooling things will get hot. All it takes is air *flow* my friend. One exhaust fan or a smart placement of a large CPU fan can already do the trick, you can waste however much you want on super expensive case fans that push a ton of air but if there is no exhaust, it's gonna fail.
Flow of air (in-to-ex) > GPU cooler style (open > blower) > case fans.
Stick to that order for your next system in terms of cooling priority. Money better spent, lower temps.
Never heard of positive air pressure? If you have fans only blowing in, plenty of heat will come out. Unless you sealed your entire chassis with duct tape.
Also, LOL at a single GPU or CPU fan keeping up with the input of multiple case fans. Airflow doesnt work the way you think it works.
I don't believe you have any idea what you're talking about. The case is designed to have three fan placements, all designed to be intake-only. Additionally, the FTZ01 comes with fine-mesh fan filters.
There is lots of air going in. The problem is that warm air doesn't leave as quickly as it is generated, and gets trapped in small compartments inside the case. After several hours, it gets very toasty inside the small enclosure.
This has nothing to do with my intelligence or the way I built the system, that's the _design_ of the case.
I don't believe you realize that the FTZ01, ML07, and RVZ01 cases are all designed to have one intake case fan over the CPU and two in the GPU compartment. It's a 13 liter case, half of which is sectioned off to the GPU. The GPU takes up some volume and the fans take up some volume of that 6.5 liters of GPU compartment air. With an open air cooler, it's not unreasonable for it to be suffocating of fresh air when the compartment probably has less than 2 liters of open space.
Agreed. Also take in to account increasing efficiencies. My gtx 1080 at 180w demolishes top cards from previous generations that used to be in the 250-300w range. And my cpu is a 65w i7. Going by tdp, while not the best, that's less than 250w at full load. Power supply requirements will only continue to drop.
I think the bigger issue is that a cramped case that demands an sfx psu quite possibly won't have the extra space for this non-standard "sfx-l" design.
That starts to defeat the purpose of having a compact psu in the first place...
But I suppose if Silverstone made a case or two that used the sfx-l standard, then it might be worth it to them.
I just checked the clearances, and it will fit only because it's modular. Most of the space behind my PSU in the FT03-mini is taken for cable management of the PSU sources.
However, it's going to be hell running the "bottom row" of power from this PSU without losing the DVD cage, something I refuse to do with my case. I mean, there are hacks to get a full ATX PSU to fit if you are willing to sacrifice the DVD tray and the 3.5"\2.5" bay (leaving you a single 2.5" tray at the bottom) and at that point the case is ruined for functionality.
Again, not impossible, but let's just say you will need to install the PSU with cables already installed and routed, there is no way to manage/add/remove them once it's mounted and they are smashed against the DVD tray.
It has never been a user friendly case to work inside. It isn't like my hands get cut up or anything but simple tasks like removing the video card requires removing the PSU, DVD, 2.5" SSD, 3.5" HDD, memory DIMMS and depending on where the PCIe connectors go on the video card (such as out the rear instead of the top) you may even have to remove the radiator. Shorter 10" or less video cards are a cinch in comparison to twist and pull but when you are running an out of spec 10.85" card like I am, you go to hell to make it work.
Wouldn't give the case up for anything else though.
Lian Li recently launched some very interesting mATX/ATX cases limited to SFX-L PSUs. The point of this is that ATX PSUs - most of which exceed the ATX length spec, even, are a massive waste of space in most PCs. Just look how small the Cerberus is thanks to using a small PSU - and that's mATX with SFX-L. Having more choice is never a bad thing, and a wider selection of SFX/SFX-L PSUs will only add to the amount of cases supporting them. The current lack of cases, even for ITX, is simply due to there until recently being NO decent SFX PSUs for those of us wanting to use a GPU. SilverStone started this with their 500W SFX-L and 650W SFX, and others are jumping in. More cases = more PSUs again = more choice for users. This is good. We're growing past the need for huge towers being the norm for any and all PCs. With modern technology, a small, high-performance PC is more than feasible.
I have no idea why this would need to exist other than being a dancing bear. I have a i7-6700 and a GTX 1080 in a mini ITX build and it pulls about 250W off the wall under load
Unless you've unclocked/volted your parts somewhat you're not at full load. Combined TDP for the two parts is 245W, which means that (ignoring your ram, chipset, ssd, fans, etc) you'd need a 98% efficient PSU to only hit 250W; and as edziebra noted above higher end parts can put an mITX build well past the sweet spot on a 500W unit. In particular while a Titan is an exceptionally exotic beast; assuming that a future generation of AMD and NVidia GPUs ends up much more competitive in performance/watt, we'll probably see 250-300W mainstream cards again.
I doubt xenol's system, when loaded pulling 250W will require over 250W more if its asked to do as much as absolutely possible. A 500W PSU is _very_ reasonable for a single GPU & single CPU system. Since power supply manufacturers have begun to compete more aggressively with one another, the idea of what people think they need to feed their PCs has climbed too. Often the rated output of a PSU an end user thinks is necessary is far in excess of what's actually needed for a given scenario. It seems the most oft cited reason for the unused headroom is "future upgrades" which I don't think is reasonable in a world where most consumer computer parts are designed first with mobility in mind where power and heat constraints are significant rather than the less limited desktop environment that's now playing second (well maybe 3rd or 4th behind phones, tablets, and laptops) chair.
380-530 watts is the perfect window for a single CPU/GPU system, depending on the CPU/GPU. You don't want to ever run your PSU over 80% load, but you don't really want to run it under 10% load, either.
I typically build my PC's to use 60-70% of the PSU capacity at maximum load to leave room for overclocking, adding another drive/memory, etc. I just assume if I'm going to upgrade the video card it'll be the same tier generational bump which is typically around the same TDP (770 to 970 to 1070 have all been within 30 watts of each other.)
Basically, you don't want to put a 800 watt PSU in a single GPU system and you don't want a 500 watt PSU in a dual GPU system. It's safe to assume 100 watts for each Intel CPU+chipset (150 watts for each AMD CPU+chipset) and 200 watts for each video card. RAM 3 watts/DIMM, SSD/HDD 5 watts each, fans 2 watts, liquid cooling 5 watts, DVD 5 watts, PCIe cards are a variable 10-70 watts depending on the card, with most 1x being 10-25 watts.
Or go by actual wattage instead of rounded numbers. The CPU portion of i7 chips doesnt pull 100 watt, hasnt since sandy bridge. Unless you OC and OV to the moon, of course. GPUs like the 1070 only pull about 150 watt.
I was monitoring the wattage while running the GTA V benchmark. I don't measure when running Prime95 + Furmark since that's not a typical scenario and usually is deliberately caused.
I have to agree with the consensus that a 700w Sfx psu is a bit much.
But your numbers don't add up. I'm running an i3-6100 with an EVGA 1080 and seeing max load at the wall peaking at 290w playing WoW and 305w playing Doom, witcher 3, and Fallout 4. I'm using a kill-a-watt to measure at the wall.
These types of comments are leaving me scratching my head. I have an overclocked 6600K and an AMD R9 Nano, also overclocked and both are water cooled. I have two intake fans (on on a 120mm rad) and 2 exhaust (both on a 240mm radiator.)
When I had a 450W PSU with the AMD R9 Nano and an AMD 65W processor, the thing *shut down* when overclocked.
750W is what AMD recommends for a Nano system. Even though it's 275W TDP max, there are going to be voltage spikes and you have to have headroom for overclocking.
Then there are multiple SSDs, an HDD, an NZXT HUE+ lighting system, USB devices, etc.
There's nothing wrong with buying a platinum certified 700W PSU for this need. It's also one of the few high capacity SFX-L PSUs out there, and works fantastically well in a case such as the Fractal Design Nano S, with an SFX to ATX PSU adapter.
And then finally, what do you folks suppose the cost difference is between a 500W and this 700W PSU? It's not enough to be arguing over whether someone (who is not you) needs that extra 200W. It's not like *any* PSU is drawing max current at all times, and it doesn't waste *more* power when it is drawing the power, so why does everyone feel the need to comment on what someone does or does not need?
That's true, I never thought of peak/spike draw. That has been an issue on AMD cards recently because their power circuitry cuts corner presumably on capacitance. This surges the PSU.
However, I just can't imagine a single CPU system with any video card needs more than 500 watts, but there are obvious exceptions especially when overclocking or running more than a single drive.
At the point where you're using a Titan, overclocking everything, and intentionally raising TDP limits, you're probably not putting your parts into an SFX case and probably not going to need to worry about the wattage limitations of power supplies available for that platform. That situation is at the extreme end of halo computing and represents a very small number of systems. People doing those things presumably understand what they're doing, but we're still talking about a very small portion of actual computer users.
Aaaaaaaaand your point being? Not sure I understand the relivence of your post. Maybe to make a minor grammatical correction and show off your math skills? Bravo I guess
That's why there's a 120mm fan to keep it cool, and it simply loses efficiency at that temp, it doesn't shut down (unless it's actually overheating) or melt. I have one and I don't even hear the fan kick on - which it will automatically when it gets hot.
My SFX PSU fan rarely ever comes on, because it doesn't even crack 30C when the system is at idle. It starts spinning after 20 minutes of web surfing. Same with my video card, 970 blower doesn't even run until I go into a game.
I have bought two of Silverstone's sfx-L power supplies, both had problems with the fan. The PSU looks awesome, but the fan's 0rpm mode doesn't work right, or it randomly makes weird sounds (crunching, or rising beep tone sounds, never heard that coming out of a PSU before). Check newegg reviews you'll see people with similar problems.
After giving up on them selling me a quality PSU, I bought the new Corsair SFX power supply, and it is awesome. Save yourself the trouble and buy the Corsair one. You'll thank me.
Also get the Lian Li Q10 case. It can cool anything. Literally it is amazing cold in there even with one 120mm fan. I have a GTX 1080 and overclocked to max i5-6600K and it is cool with the fans set to 600rpm. I even fit the Noctua U12S in that case!!!
Tony Ou from Silverstone posted about this on another forum, and there is a more recent version of the 700w PSU with updates to the fan controller that should make things a bit less awkward for lower usage scenarios. To differentiate updated SX700-LPTs, you have to check the serial number. Numbers starting with 1621 or earlier are the original ones while numbers starting with 1624 and after are updated units.
Usually power supplies are not that much effective and for pc normal use or gaming i am desperate to have such a thing so that my pc board is not at risk.
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Eden-K121D - Friday, September 30, 2016 - link
Interesting product although I don't think anyone needs SFC PSUs of more than 500 Wattsedzieba - Friday, September 30, 2016 - link
Yoiu can cram a Titan and a X99 CPU into a 7.2L case (Dan A4) or a pair of them and an X99 into the Kimera Cerberus (18L) or LukeD's Project Orthus (12L), which would push exisitn 500W SFX PSUs out of their comfort zone.JoeyJoJo123 - Friday, September 30, 2016 - link
Dan A4 can use an SFX-L power supply, but a Titan (Pascal) + X99 CPU don't exceed 500W during load.Kimera Cerberus does use an SFX-L power supply, and extreme configurations can pull up 700w.
Project Orthus uses a 1U power supply. This power supply is incompatible.
The point people are making is that this product is a solution looking for a problem. SFX(-L) PSUs are typically used in small, portable PC cases. 500W units are sufficient for any 1 CPU + 1 GPU system, which is the vast majority of systems. Very few people need something that exceeds that.
wolfemane - Friday, September 30, 2016 - link
You are right, very few people need that. But there are those that may want to overclock both their CPUs and gpu's, and that can quit easily push power over 500w depending on the CPU, gpu, and overclock achieved in both. And doing all that in a small compact case is desirable by enough to bring a psu like this to market.JoeyJoJo123 - Friday, September 30, 2016 - link
Part of the problem with extreme overclocking in SFF is that (without introducing intolerable levels of noise) heat builds up very quickly in small volume. The typical SFF PCs, where SFX-L PSUs are typically used, has only intake fan(s) (if any case fans at all). So waste heat is dumped in a ~13 liter case (for cases like the ML07 or RVZ01 or FTZ01) and it can only passively leave the case.You can try to better force hot air out by using godly air pressure fans, such as the notoriously loud, high-rpm Delta fans, or the industrialPPC line of fans from Noctua, but you run into problems with noise generation.
I speak from experience here because I'm using three Noctua NF-F12 industrialPPC-3000 PWM case fans in my FTZ01, and a i5-4690k @4.5Ghz and GTX 970 (stock clocks). While I'm able to control the temperatures of my CPU well enough, the GPU compartment is a different issue, and the GPU can routinely hit ~90 degrees C after an hour or two of gaming, where it begins to throttle a bit. Part of that is my fault, as I bought the cheapest GTX 970 available at the time, which was an open air cooler and as a result it constantly recycles the warmer and warmer air it exhausts, but I don't believe a blower style GPU would help too significantly, either. And this happens even with using very high-pressure and high-rpm fans to try to force in as much positive case pressure as possible, to get stagnant exhaust air out of the case; it just doesn't work too well for my GPU so I leave it at stock clocks and undervolt it a bit.
SFF cases function best when GPUs aren't being overclocked, at the very least. They starve of fresh air too easily because the compromises of SFF cases don't allow the extra dimensions in the case to have enough case volume and fan (intakes and exhaust) to properly ensure that the GPU exhaust is leaving the case.
DanNeely - Friday, September 30, 2016 - link
Whenever you do replace your GPU I think you really should go with a blower cooler. While they're justifiably much maligned by enthusiasts with big well ventilated cases for bad noise to temperature performance in their beasts, one of the reasons why reference designs generally use blowers is that they allow the card to vent all of its unwanted heat directly without having to worry about if the rest of the case is able to help any or not. Looking at your case I think the blowers intake should line up with the perforated area in the GPU compartment allowing it to suck fresh air in from outside the case directly and blast it out the back.usernametaken76 - Saturday, October 1, 2016 - link
It's not "all" it's "most."Vayra - Monday, October 3, 2016 - link
Airflow and case cooling isn't rocket science. With only intake and open air GPU and CPU cooling things will get hot. All it takes is air *flow* my friend. One exhaust fan or a smart placement of a large CPU fan can already do the trick, you can waste however much you want on super expensive case fans that push a ton of air but if there is no exhaust, it's gonna fail.Flow of air (in-to-ex) > GPU cooler style (open > blower) > case fans.
Stick to that order for your next system in terms of cooling priority. Money better spent, lower temps.
TheinsanegamerN - Monday, October 3, 2016 - link
Never heard of positive air pressure? If you have fans only blowing in, plenty of heat will come out. Unless you sealed your entire chassis with duct tape.Also, LOL at a single GPU or CPU fan keeping up with the input of multiple case fans. Airflow doesnt work the way you think it works.
JoeyJoJo123 - Monday, October 3, 2016 - link
I don't believe you have any idea what you're talking about. The case is designed to have three fan placements, all designed to be intake-only. Additionally, the FTZ01 comes with fine-mesh fan filters.There is lots of air going in. The problem is that warm air doesn't leave as quickly as it is generated, and gets trapped in small compartments inside the case. After several hours, it gets very toasty inside the small enclosure.
This has nothing to do with my intelligence or the way I built the system, that's the _design_ of the case.
JoeyJoJo123 - Monday, October 3, 2016 - link
I don't believe you realize that the FTZ01, ML07, and RVZ01 cases are all designed to have one intake case fan over the CPU and two in the GPU compartment. It's a 13 liter case, half of which is sectioned off to the GPU. The GPU takes up some volume and the fans take up some volume of that 6.5 liters of GPU compartment air. With an open air cooler, it's not unreasonable for it to be suffocating of fresh air when the compartment probably has less than 2 liters of open space.Ej24 - Friday, September 30, 2016 - link
Agreed. Also take in to account increasing efficiencies. My gtx 1080 at 180w demolishes top cards from previous generations that used to be in the 250-300w range. And my cpu is a 65w i7. Going by tdp, while not the best, that's less than 250w at full load. Power supply requirements will only continue to drop.ImSpartacus - Friday, September 30, 2016 - link
I think the bigger issue is that a cramped case that demands an sfx psu quite possibly won't have the extra space for this non-standard "sfx-l" design.That starts to defeat the purpose of having a compact psu in the first place...
But I suppose if Silverstone made a case or two that used the sfx-l standard, then it might be worth it to them.
JoeyJoJo123 - Friday, September 30, 2016 - link
They have plenty of SFX-L compatible cases.ML07: http://www.silverstonetek.com/product.php?pid=503
ML08: http://www.silverstonetek.com/product.php?pid=607
RVZ01: http://www.silverstonetek.com/raven/products/index...
RVZ01-E: www.silverstonetek.com/raven/products/index.php?model=RVZ01-E
RVZ02: http://www.silverstonetek.com/raven/products/index...
FTZ01: http://www.silverstonetek.com/product.php?pid=533
Samus - Friday, September 30, 2016 - link
Don't forget the legendary FT03-Mini. Liquid cooling, 3 drives, 10.5" videocard, X99 ITX, optical drive, integrated cable management, in less than 18 liters.ImSpartacus - Friday, September 30, 2016 - link
Really? The FT03 Mini supports it?Ok, that, alone, justifies the existence of this psu.
Honestly, while writing my comment, I was literally thinking, "if it doesn't fit in something like the ft03 mini, then why bother?"
Velocialume - Friday, September 30, 2016 - link
Hmm. I've always been under the impression that case didn't support SFX-L .. I just got that 600w corsair to power my new 1080.Samus - Saturday, October 1, 2016 - link
I just checked the clearances, and it will fit only because it's modular. Most of the space behind my PSU in the FT03-mini is taken for cable management of the PSU sources.However, it's going to be hell running the "bottom row" of power from this PSU without losing the DVD cage, something I refuse to do with my case. I mean, there are hacks to get a full ATX PSU to fit if you are willing to sacrifice the DVD tray and the 3.5"\2.5" bay (leaving you a single 2.5" tray at the bottom) and at that point the case is ruined for functionality.
Again, not impossible, but let's just say you will need to install the PSU with cables already installed and routed, there is no way to manage/add/remove them once it's mounted and they are smashed against the DVD tray.
It has never been a user friendly case to work inside. It isn't like my hands get cut up or anything but simple tasks like removing the video card requires removing the PSU, DVD, 2.5" SSD, 3.5" HDD, memory DIMMS and depending on where the PCIe connectors go on the video card (such as out the rear instead of the top) you may even have to remove the radiator. Shorter 10" or less video cards are a cinch in comparison to twist and pull but when you are running an out of spec 10.85" card like I am, you go to hell to make it work.
Wouldn't give the case up for anything else though.
piroroadkill - Saturday, October 1, 2016 - link
Even the smallest case that can fit decent hardware (Dan Case A4-SFX) can fit an SFX-L PSU.TheinsanegamerN - Monday, October 3, 2016 - link
There are many SFX class cases that cant take SFX-L.Valantar - Sunday, October 2, 2016 - link
Lian Li recently launched some very interesting mATX/ATX cases limited to SFX-L PSUs. The point of this is that ATX PSUs - most of which exceed the ATX length spec, even, are a massive waste of space in most PCs. Just look how small the Cerberus is thanks to using a small PSU - and that's mATX with SFX-L. Having more choice is never a bad thing, and a wider selection of SFX/SFX-L PSUs will only add to the amount of cases supporting them. The current lack of cases, even for ITX, is simply due to there until recently being NO decent SFX PSUs for those of us wanting to use a GPU. SilverStone started this with their 500W SFX-L and 650W SFX, and others are jumping in. More cases = more PSUs again = more choice for users. This is good. We're growing past the need for huge towers being the norm for any and all PCs. With modern technology, a small, high-performance PC is more than feasible.tb752 - Tuesday, January 19, 2021 - link
Good day sir, it's 5 years on and I have an overclocked Strix 6800xt I'd like to put in an SFF case, so I'm glad this PSU exists!xenol - Friday, September 30, 2016 - link
I have no idea why this would need to exist other than being a dancing bear. I have a i7-6700 and a GTX 1080 in a mini ITX build and it pulls about 250W off the wall under loadDanNeely - Friday, September 30, 2016 - link
Unless you've unclocked/volted your parts somewhat you're not at full load. Combined TDP for the two parts is 245W, which means that (ignoring your ram, chipset, ssd, fans, etc) you'd need a 98% efficient PSU to only hit 250W; and as edziebra noted above higher end parts can put an mITX build well past the sweet spot on a 500W unit. In particular while a Titan is an exceptionally exotic beast; assuming that a future generation of AMD and NVidia GPUs ends up much more competitive in performance/watt, we'll probably see 250-300W mainstream cards again.BrokenCrayons - Friday, September 30, 2016 - link
I doubt xenol's system, when loaded pulling 250W will require over 250W more if its asked to do as much as absolutely possible. A 500W PSU is _very_ reasonable for a single GPU & single CPU system. Since power supply manufacturers have begun to compete more aggressively with one another, the idea of what people think they need to feed their PCs has climbed too. Often the rated output of a PSU an end user thinks is necessary is far in excess of what's actually needed for a given scenario. It seems the most oft cited reason for the unused headroom is "future upgrades" which I don't think is reasonable in a world where most consumer computer parts are designed first with mobility in mind where power and heat constraints are significant rather than the less limited desktop environment that's now playing second (well maybe 3rd or 4th behind phones, tablets, and laptops) chair.Samus - Saturday, October 1, 2016 - link
380-530 watts is the perfect window for a single CPU/GPU system, depending on the CPU/GPU. You don't want to ever run your PSU over 80% load, but you don't really want to run it under 10% load, either.I typically build my PC's to use 60-70% of the PSU capacity at maximum load to leave room for overclocking, adding another drive/memory, etc. I just assume if I'm going to upgrade the video card it'll be the same tier generational bump which is typically around the same TDP (770 to 970 to 1070 have all been within 30 watts of each other.)
Basically, you don't want to put a 800 watt PSU in a single GPU system and you don't want a 500 watt PSU in a dual GPU system. It's safe to assume 100 watts for each Intel CPU+chipset (150 watts for each AMD CPU+chipset) and 200 watts for each video card. RAM 3 watts/DIMM, SSD/HDD 5 watts each, fans 2 watts, liquid cooling 5 watts, DVD 5 watts, PCIe cards are a variable 10-70 watts depending on the card, with most 1x being 10-25 watts.
TheinsanegamerN - Monday, October 3, 2016 - link
Or go by actual wattage instead of rounded numbers. The CPU portion of i7 chips doesnt pull 100 watt, hasnt since sandy bridge. Unless you OC and OV to the moon, of course. GPUs like the 1070 only pull about 150 watt.xenol - Monday, October 3, 2016 - link
I was monitoring the wattage while running the GTA V benchmark. I don't measure when running Prime95 + Furmark since that's not a typical scenario and usually is deliberately caused.TDP is also not power consumption.
wolfemane - Friday, September 30, 2016 - link
I have to agree with the consensus that a 700w Sfx psu is a bit much.But your numbers don't add up. I'm running an i3-6100 with an EVGA 1080 and seeing max load at the wall peaking at 290w playing WoW and 305w playing Doom, witcher 3, and Fallout 4. I'm using a kill-a-watt to measure at the wall.
usernametaken76 - Friday, September 30, 2016 - link
These types of comments are leaving me scratching my head. I have an overclocked 6600K and an AMD R9 Nano, also overclocked and both are water cooled. I have two intake fans (on on a 120mm rad) and 2 exhaust (both on a 240mm radiator.)When I had a 450W PSU with the AMD R9 Nano and an AMD 65W processor, the thing *shut down* when overclocked.
750W is what AMD recommends for a Nano system. Even though it's 275W TDP max, there are going to be voltage spikes and you have to have headroom for overclocking.
Then there are multiple SSDs, an HDD, an NZXT HUE+ lighting system, USB devices, etc.
There's nothing wrong with buying a platinum certified 700W PSU for this need. It's also one of the few high capacity SFX-L PSUs out there, and works fantastically well in a case such as the Fractal Design Nano S, with an SFX to ATX PSU adapter.
And then finally, what do you folks suppose the cost difference is between a 500W and this 700W PSU? It's not enough to be arguing over whether someone (who is not you) needs that extra 200W. It's not like *any* PSU is drawing max current at all times, and it doesn't waste *more* power when it is drawing the power, so why does everyone feel the need to comment on what someone does or does not need?
usernametaken76 - Friday, September 30, 2016 - link
There's no edit feature, that should have read "one on a 120mm rad and the other on the case."Samus - Saturday, October 1, 2016 - link
That's true, I never thought of peak/spike draw. That has been an issue on AMD cards recently because their power circuitry cuts corner presumably on capacitance. This surges the PSU.However, I just can't imagine a single CPU system with any video card needs more than 500 watts, but there are obvious exceptions especially when overclocking or running more than a single drive.
usernametaken76 - Saturday, October 1, 2016 - link
There are 425W BIOS mods for the original TITAN X. I had one. It's definitely needed in some cases.xenol - Monday, October 3, 2016 - link
I don't see how that adds up considering the PCIe connectors should only be able to supply (within spec) 300W.TheinsanegamerN - Monday, October 3, 2016 - link
WITHIN SPEC is the key there. People flashing higher TDP mods to GPUs are running everything out of spec. That's the definition of overclocking.BrokenCrayons - Monday, October 3, 2016 - link
At the point where you're using a Titan, overclocking everything, and intentionally raising TDP limits, you're probably not putting your parts into an SFX case and probably not going to need to worry about the wattage limitations of power supplies available for that platform. That situation is at the extreme end of halo computing and represents a very small number of systems. People doing those things presumably understand what they're doing, but we're still talking about a very small portion of actual computer users.gopher1369 - Saturday, October 1, 2016 - link
"[I'm] seeing max load at the wall peaking at 290w"Assuming your PSU is 85% efficient then 290 x 0.85 = 246.5 Watts consumed.
wolfemane - Saturday, October 1, 2016 - link
Aaaaaaaaand your point being? Not sure I understand the relivence of your post. Maybe to make a minor grammatical correction and show off your math skills? Bravo I guessxenol - Monday, October 3, 2016 - link
And so was I, and the most it spiked up to was 250W.Stuka87 - Friday, September 30, 2016 - link
Its only rated for 40C?! That is not that hot, its very easy to get the insides of a PC case that high during heavy gaming.usernametaken76 - Friday, September 30, 2016 - link
That's why there's a 120mm fan to keep it cool, and it simply loses efficiency at that temp, it doesn't shut down (unless it's actually overheating) or melt. I have one and I don't even hear the fan kick on - which it will automatically when it gets hot.Samus - Saturday, October 1, 2016 - link
My SFX PSU fan rarely ever comes on, because it doesn't even crack 30C when the system is at idle. It starts spinning after 20 minutes of web surfing. Same with my video card, 970 blower doesn't even run until I go into a game.Alistair - Friday, September 30, 2016 - link
I have bought two of Silverstone's sfx-L power supplies, both had problems with the fan. The PSU looks awesome, but the fan's 0rpm mode doesn't work right, or it randomly makes weird sounds (crunching, or rising beep tone sounds, never heard that coming out of a PSU before). Check newegg reviews you'll see people with similar problems.After giving up on them selling me a quality PSU, I bought the new Corsair SFX power supply, and it is awesome. Save yourself the trouble and buy the Corsair one. You'll thank me.
Alistair - Friday, September 30, 2016 - link
Also get the Lian Li Q10 case. It can cool anything. Literally it is amazing cold in there even with one 120mm fan. I have a GTX 1080 and overclocked to max i5-6600K and it is cool with the fans set to 600rpm. I even fit the Noctua U12S in that case!!!jdon - Thursday, October 6, 2016 - link
Tony Ou from Silverstone posted about this on another forum, and there is a more recent version of the 700w PSU with updates to the fan controller that should make things a bit less awkward for lower usage scenarios. To differentiate updated SX700-LPTs, you have to check the serial number. Numbers starting with 1621 or earlier are the original ones while numbers starting with 1624 and after are updated units.Gadgety - Wednesday, October 5, 2016 - link
This or the LianLi PE-750? Opinions pleaseInterClaw - Thursday, October 6, 2016 - link
Any news on the SX800-LTI announced at Computex?waltercarroll - Monday, October 17, 2016 - link
Usually power supplies are not that much effective and for pc normal use or gaming i am desperate to have such a thing so that my pc board is not at risk.