Looking for a Power Supply

[Bloodycrow]

No, not the cd by Portastatic. 

My fiance's PSU bit the dust, so we need to find another. I'm making a thread due to the fact that funds for us are pretty tight (we have an awesome, adorable 10 month-old), so instead of buying a new or refurbished one, I was hoping someone here perhaps had an extra, used PSU they'd be willing to part with for a modest fee.

550 watt is the minimum her build will run, so higher is preferred, but beggars can't be choosers. 24 (or 20+4) pin main connector, at least 3 SATA, possibly a 6-pin PCI-E (though I think we have a molex-to-6-pin connector around here) and hopefully 4 molex.

I'm aware that there are super cheap $8, $15, and even $30 PSU's out there we could order, but I don't have high hopes of them lasting very long. I know a good amount of people on this forum really know their stuff, and have much more faith getting used parts from here than a manufacturer I've never heard of.

We live in Oregon and are willing to pay for moderate shipping.


UPDATE: I've gotten in contact with a kind soul who is giving me a great deal on a used unit. Thank you everyone for your informative views, suggestions and corrections.

[DFDelta]

I could recommend the corsair HX650W. I've bought their 750W version a while back, and I am more then pleased with it.

Very silent, power efficient, and thanks to the modular cables you only have the cables inside your computer that you really need. (no loose ends that you have to leave hanging around or tie to your frame.)

Price is around 100$ for the 650W version.

[sleepysheep]

I could recommend the corsair HX650W. I've bought their 750W version a while back, and I am more then pleased with it.

Very silent, power efficient, and thanks to the modular cables you only have the cables inside your computer that you really need. (no loose ends that you have to leave hanging around or tie to your frame.)

Price is around 100$ for the 650W version.

And corsair will replace the psu free of charge if you even remotely think its broke no questions asked. Best customer service period.

[Bloodycrow]

I could recommend the corsair HX650W. I've bought their 750W version a while back, and I am more then pleased with it.

Very silent, power efficient, and thanks to the modular cables you only have the cables inside your computer that you really need. (no loose ends that you have to leave hanging around or tie to your frame.)

Price is around 100$ for the 650W version.

I appreciate the recommendations; Corsair is indeed a great brand, but unfortunately gear that good is waay out of our price range.

After some shopping around, at this rate we're looking at something like (ugh) this A-power 680w which has all the right connectors she needs, or this (eww) Logisys 575w which though still cheap looks like it has more protection (over-power, over-voltage, short circuit).

Even if these cheapos aren't worth it in the long (or even short) run, she needs her computer up and running to make the money to be able to get a decent replacement. 

[Mitchpate]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817153023

Verify your power requirements with this:
http://extreme.outervision.com/psucalculatorlite.jsp

[-AAA-]

I'd recommend anything by ThermalTake.  They might be a bit more than other brands, especially the modulars, but the quality is unbeatable and I've never had one fail in 10 years.

[Bloodycrow]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817153023

Verify your power requirements with this:
http://extreme.outervision.com/psucalculatorlite.jsp

Thanks, Mitch! Came up as 450w, so we'll start looking for a 500w PSU instead (better to have some leeway since going cheap). Should hopefully give us some better options.

I'd recommend anything by ThermalTake.  They might be a bit more than other brands, especially the modulars, but the quality is unbeatable and I've never had one fail in 10 years.

Good to remember, thanks AAA.

[-AAA-]

You'll probably want to go 100w more than you absolutely need to account for wear over time and give you more overhead if you add things like a second video card, more RAM, etc.  Depending on how often your PC is running, and at what loads, the actual wattage of the PSU will decrease.  A good rule of thumb is about 20-25w per year of degradation.

[Mitchpate]

That calculator I posted can take capacitor aging into account

[AlfalphaCat]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=100007657%2050001622&IsNodeId=1&name=Raidmax

I have one of the Hybrids models.  Have had it for 3yrs+, not a single problem, and the prices are quite reasonable.

[Mitchpate]

Thermaltake has a 5 year warranty on all their power supplies and Corsair has a 7 year on most of theirs.  If the manufacturer isn't that confident in their product you really shouldn't be confident in it either.  Better to pay $10-15 more now than have to get a new one in 2 years.

[Bloodycrow]

I have one of the Hybrids models.  Have had it for 3yrs+, not a single problem, and the prices are quite reasonable.

Good reviews too, looks like something worth looking into. Thanks Alfa.

If the manufacturer isn't that confident in their product you really shouldn't be confident in it either.  Better to pay $10-15 more now than have to get a new one in 2 years.

Indeed. It pains me to put any risk of damage due to a super cruddy PSU, but that $10-$15 could be the difference in getting a PSU at all. Getting her computer running is what's needed to get that extra cash to replace any shoddy PSU for a decent one.

That was my reasoning for looking for a used PSU in the first place. Of course as the saying goes, gotta have money to make money.

[ratbuddy]

What CPU and GPU does the rig use? Those calculators are pretty crappy, they tend to way overestimate PSU needs.

[Mitchpate]

What CPU and GPU does the rig use? Those calculators are pretty crappy, they tend to way overestimate PSU needs.

I've been using that one for years...

[Bloodycrow]

What CPU and GPU does the rig use? Those calculators are pretty crappy, they tend to way overestimate PSU needs.

It's a Athlon Phenom x3 8750 Black and Geforce 9500GT. I don't mind trusting those calculators, really, as I would get a PSU with higher wattage than they would state is necessary anyway.

Also, almost every power supply under 500w doesn't even have a six-pin PCI-E connector needed for the video card, so I'm doubtful that anything lower could handle the total power requirements.