MaximumSid

No. Unless the legit one is able to get an update that improves performance that the pirated one cannot, which doesn't happen mostly.

Thanks a lot for the help guys, I went with the RM850x. What EMC said was quite true, corsair link will lose its novelty soon, plus it will also take a USB header on motherboard, and lastly, I should be able to make up for the ~2% efficiency difference on load somewhat with higher wattage. Also, $20 bucks is $20 bucks

So after realizing that Cooler Master MasterWatt 750 wasn't 'ideal' for my 2080 Ti + i9 9900K build, I decided to go for a Tier 1 PSU. The only good choices available in stock in my area are either Corsair's RM850x (2018) or HX750i, HX750i is like $20 more expensive, which I can for, if HXi is better (it's a 2017 unit, if that matters). So should I go for mor watts with RM850x or platinum efficiency with HX750i (+ Corsair Link)? the power I need is around 650W and I doubt that I am going to be overclocking a lot. I have also heard about better sleeving of cables being better on RMx, but it has in cable capacitors that reviewers are criticizing (not sure if HXi has the same, or if in cable capacitors are even an issue). So which is actually a better power supply between these two? I am sure that both of these are excellent, but is one of these better?

Okay guys, so I decided to go for a better PSU, most probably the Corsair RM750x or HX750i (few choices are 'In Stock' in India). I realized that even though the MasterWatt would've been 'fine enough', it may not be worth not getting a better PSU in a build where I've spent more on RGB fans. The bigger reason was that every reviewer said that the MasterWatt was a pretty 'meh' and was a very 'budget solution'. Besides, I could use the MasterWatt in my old i7 6700 GTX 1070 build which is currently running on a Corsair VS550 PSU, which is also considered to be a pretty bad PSU, even though I haven't had any issues with that. Thank you for the responses.

Lack of proper knowledge when it comes to buying PSUs. I spent more on RGB Fans, not proud of that. But again, would this fry anything? If it stops working, I'll just get a new one, just don't want anything to get damaged (especially that 2080 Ti). Won't overclock a lot, but may oc the cpu somewhat as I am getting a 360mm aio cooler.

I am also concerned about this, just bought a Tier 3 CM MasterWatt 750 80 Plus bronze for my 2080 TI + i9 9900K build, which I can't return (New Amazon India Return policies), are these PSUs going to be 'unsafe' for a system like mine?

Thanks for the replies guys. The only concern for me is the safety of these expensive components, I don't care if the PSU itself doesn't last long (I'll get a new one), and heat, power, and silence are also not a concern. I understand that better capacitors are theoretically more reliable, but is there any objective reason for this PSU to be 'risky' for my MoBo/CPU/GPU in any way? These components will be pushed to their limits frequently while gaming with my 4K monitors, though I already have a 100w overhead from nVidia's recommended 650 watt power recommendation for 2080 Ti.

So due to some oversight, I got the Cooler Master MasterWatt 750 80 Plus Bronze for my upcoming 2080 Ti + 9900K + A lot of RGB build. I could easily go with the CM's Tier 1 V series (80 Plus Gold), but I didn't properly check the reviews. But now I keep seeing how reviewers are saying that this MasterWatt PSU is good for a secondary computer but not for your primary setup, or that you'd get a higher end one for a higher end system. I've been reading people criticizing the use of Taepo capacitors in this PSU instead of the Japanese or better brands of capacitors. I will be doing video editing and gaming on this PC. Since I can't return it now, my question is: 1. Ignoring the efficiency, is there anything 'wrong' or even 'unideal' with this PSU choice? 2. Would this PSU be 'unreliable' for my PC? Are there any 'risks' associated with using a lower tier PSU? (btw it has a 5 year warranty) 3. Would it be a good idea to buy a new PSU, and find some other use for this MasterWatt PSU? (keeping in mind that I'd prefer not spending more money) Thanks.

@Mark77 I'd say that Linus' audience is all kinds of tech users (TechQuickie channel, basic comparisons etc.), also a gamer enthusiast/overclocker wouldn't actually need something like a 'CPU Buying Guide'. I'd agree that the non-K versions are a little 'boring' in comparison, not because of the performance difference, but just because 'they do not overclock' and people EVERYWHERE keep recommending the K variants, presenting them as a 'smarter' choice. Though thanks for reminding that I totally forgot about how OCing affects longevity and voids the warranty of CPU, making K variants suitable for even a lesser number of people.

So I watched Linus' Intel CPU Buying guide, in which he recommended i5 6600K for the gamers and i7 6700K for the 'budding content creator'. But since it was such an exhaustive list, I think that including the non-k variants wasn't a bad option. The reason is that it's not just the 10-15% cost on the K variant CPU that you have to pay extra, but you also have to include the price of a good cooler, and a z170 motherboard (as opposed to a b150 motherboard. which I think is fine for people on a budget who don't want SLI, RAID, OCing), so when selecting a K variant for the advantages it offers, one also has to keep in mind the cost of other components if they want to get the full advantage of an unlocked variant. One also has to keep in mind how much they'll be able to overclock, for example, the place I live in (India), the ambient temperature goes up to 45 C, so I am sure I wouldn't have been able to overclock as much as other people. The difference between the performance of non K and K variant is minimal, as even though 6700K works at 4.0 base clock, it has turbo of 0/0/0/2 (only one core upto 4.2 ghz, no turbo at even 2 cores) as opposed to 3/4/5/6 of 6700 (all cores turbo upto 3.7ghz, one core upto 4.0 ghz). I just purchased a new PC recently, and I was aiming for i5 6600, but then upgraded to i7-6700, both non K variants. My final price of components turned out to be INR 90,000, which is around $1350 (excluding SSD, HDDs, PSUs which I had earlier). Now had I wanted to get a K variant CPU, I'd have to spend around (at least) $210 more for being able to OC properly, and even then, I'd have been able to get around 5-10% of better performance in benchmarks, and almost minimal real world performance gain. $210 is a significant amount which can be used to upgrade other components (I went from GTX 1060 to 1070), you can even save that amount and upgrade your PC earlier in future. And I am not even going to add the 40% extra TDP of the K CPU, but that could have an impact in the long run. Now Linus did mention better resale value, but I think it depends a lot on your situation and whether you're able to get a good deal or not. $30-$50 USD may not be much for you, but keeping in mind the budget conscious, I think it'd be a better idea to save that amount if it's not going to give a justifiable benefit. So my point is: 1. Getting a K variant only increases around 15% on the cost of CPU, but to utilize that amount, you'd have to spend around $200 more. 2. A Non K variant can be a better option for majority of people. 3. In an exhaustive CPU buying guide, Non-K CPUs should also have a place. I hope I have been correct in my analysis.