How long should I keep a PSU?

[Tellos]

ok so runnign my old Rig made it in 2013 currently runs a CORSAIR Enthusiast Series TX650 650W ATX12V/EPS12V 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC High Performance Power Supply, closing in on 5 years next year wodnering if it woudl be wise to replace it or shoudl it run fine for a whiel longer. [say 2 years tops when I'll have a solid build made and fully ready to go and possibly a lap top back up]

[Mooshi]

I'd keep it as long as it's warrantied for.

[Tellos]

@Mooshi I don have the oldbox saddly so dobut I could RMA it.

[LooneyJuice]

5 minutes ago, Tellos said:

@Mooshi I don have the oldbox saddly so dobut I could RMA it.

I don't think you need the box as much as you need all the accessories packed in a container that'll protect the product on the way back. In any case, I concur with keeping it more or less as long as the warranty lasts. Most decent PSUs come with at least a 7yr warranty, which I mean, if that's the case, you're looking at upgrading in 2024 for Pete's sake if you buy now.

[Tellos]

@LooneyJuice 5 years starting from time of purchase so it's 4 years at 8/1 this year and 5th year ends next year.

[Mooshi]

5 minutes ago, Tellos said:

@Mooshi I don have the oldbox saddly so dobut I could RMA it.

Should be fine, though. Businesses use ancient Dell boxes with lower quality psus all the time, so..

[LooneyJuice]

2 minutes ago, Tellos said:

@LooneyJuice 5 years starting from time of purchase so it's 4 years at 8/1 this year and 5th year ends next year.

Yeah so I'd say you're good up to at least 7 years of usage if you're pressed for money and the PSU hasn't sustained constant max load. When it comes to PSUs though, that's usually also why I pay a bit of a premium, and not just for components. A 10yr warranty sure is a load off my mind.

[Tellos]

@LooneyJuice this build was time/money crunch in one I think I did ok for the constraints I had. I didint wanna settle forl ess than a 80+ bronze for a PSU.

[LooneyJuice]

4 minutes ago, Tellos said:

@LooneyJuice this build was time/money crunch in one I think I did ok for the constraints I had. I didint wanna settle forl ess than a 80+ bronze for a PSU.

Yeah, sound policy. Not to mention that a single PSU can outlast 2 or 3 systems, so it's a pretty good investment to make, it's never lost money. By spending more on a PSU for one machine, even cutting down from something else, means you can splurge more later and have a sturdy PSU to lean on.

 

Generally speaking though, don't be under the impression it'll blow up or anything after warranty. Decent PSUs are generally built with a good margin, good components, and unless you've thermally stressed it more than you should (chocking the intake or depriving it of airflow through its lifespan), or it's been running at its rated max current 24/7, even something with a 5yr warranty can last in excess of 10yrs (rule of thumb, of course). Replacing it is more for peace of mind more than anything else. Recent PSUs come with surge protection, Overvoltage protection, Overcurrent protection and so on. They'll shut themselves off before they can do any serious damage. Also why you never skimp on PSUs.

 

So no worries in your case.

[Tellos]

@LooneyJuice well I figured if I skimped on the PSU and it went I already knew it could take the other parts with it. So yeah I bought the nicer PSU, and it's survived power outages and surges just fine.[still use a surge protector of course] and has lasted better than my folks last PC which went out after an outage. So my investment in a quality PSU by corsair has saved my PC at least 2 or 3 times. But if it should last the following year great saves me soem moeny toward my new build.

[STRMfrmXMN]

The TX is a good PSU. Just keep using it.

[LooneyJuice]

7 minutes ago, Tellos said:

@LooneyJuice well I figured if I skimped on the PSU and it went I already knew it could take the other parts with it. So yeah I bought the nicer PSU, and it's survived power outages and surges just fine.[still use a surge protector of course] and has lasted better than my folks last PC which went out after an outage. So my investment in a quality PSU by corsair has saved my PC at least 2 or 3 times. But if it should last the following year great saves me soem moeny toward my new build.

It'll last you way more than that if that's your concern. I was very cavalier with my previous PSU (Thermaltake Toughpower 700W c. 2009). It had about a 5 year warranty I think, but due to going through a pretty bad spell, it lasted me through 3 machines until about 3 months ago. A 790 chipset board with an Phenom 2 X3 720, and an HD4890 Vapor-X, a Z77 board  which bricked itself with a 3570k and HD7850 crossfire, and then this P67 board I found + 2600k @ 4.6 and GTX 970. It was a solid 7.5 years of low to moderate/heavy load.

 

So, you can give it some stick for a while, especially given that modern components are way more power-efficient overall.

[Trekt Nation]

12 minutes ago, LooneyJuice said:

Yeah, sound policy. Not to mention that a single PSU can outlast 2 or 3 systems, so it's a pretty good investment to make, it's never lost money. By spending more on a PSU for one machine, even cutting down from something else, means you can splurge more later and have a sturdy PSU to lean on.

 

Generally speaking though, don't be under the impression it'll blow up or anything after warranty. Decent PSUs are generally built with a good margin, good components, and unless you've thermally stressed it more than you should (chocking the intake or depriving it of airflow through its lifespan), or it's been running at its rated max current 24/7, even something with a 5yr warranty can last in excess of 10yrs (rule of thumb, of course). Replacing it is more for peace of mind more than anything else. Recent PSUs come with surge protection, Overvoltage protection, Overcurrent protection and so on. They'll shut themselves off before they can do any serious damage. Also why you never skimp on PSUs.

 

So no worries in your case.

He has had it for 5 years or so, he probably wasn't under the impression that the PSU was going to explode

[Tellos]

@Trekt Nation next year is 5 years. Not so much worried about blowing up as it starting to drop in output to where it won't turn on due to low power.

[LooneyJuice]

1 minute ago, Tellos said:

@Trekt Nation next year is 5 years. Not so much worried about blowing up as it starting to drop in output to where it won't turn on due to low power.

Oh hell no, they do not exhibit anywhere near such a dramatic change.

[Tellos]

@LooneyJuice if so again great thanks. Got soem other guy telling me my PSU doeisnt actually do 650 watts just less and that I need to watch for a "true" wattage. Somehwo he gets this mysterious data but cnanot say where he finds it.

[LooneyJuice]

7 minutes ago, Tellos said:

@LooneyJuice if so again great thanks. Got soem other guy telling me my PSU doeisnt actually do 650 watts just less and that I need to watch for a "true" wattage. Somehwo he gets this mysterious data but cnanot say where he finds it.

 

Well, I don't know what it is when it comes to people backing up claims like that. I mean, yeah, if you search online for articles regarding the ins and outs on PSUs, you'll find that the Watt rating is a total Watt rating between 12v and 5v rails etc. So one or the other can't necessarily pull 650W on its own. That being said, PSUs in general tend to have a margin built in. So they can draw more than the total at times. That's not to say they're meant to be used within that margin, it's just there for peak momentary loads.

 

Sites like http://www.jonnyguru.com/ are a great resource for PSUs. Jonny "Guru" Gerrow is a long time PSU... well... guru, and is now working for Corsair on PSUs. There's lots of documentation, tutorial articles and the like to check out if you're into this sort of thing. That way you find out things on your own, crosscheck sources and come to your informed conclusions. 

[Tellos]

@LooneyJuice i get peak shrot bursts but if a PSU says 650 Watt I dobut it means you rally only get 300 watts and pray you only need higher for a breif time.

[LooneyJuice]

Just now, Tellos said:

@LooneyJuice i get peak shrot bursts but if a PSU says 650 Watt I dobut it means you rally only get 300 watts and pray you only need higher for a breif time.

No, definitely not. Strictly for reference, my current setup, if I load up everything, CPU + GPUs + RAM and throw in some storage drive work on a synth benchmark or something, will draw some pretty hefty wattage. More realistic calculators will tell you about 750W or so for this setup, but it's within a pretty wide margin, especially when you consider Overclocks. I'd estimate it's actually a bit lower than that given how often the fan spins up. My current setup is the only reason I even have an 850W, but it's not 'cause I'll necessarily have to draw 850w though, but more so I have some thermal headroom, and because PSUs are at their most efficient at about 50% load (You can check any PSU efficiency curve in product sheets, or reviews). Also for reference, review samples of the RM850 f.ex cut out past 900W, so they can definitely draw their rated Wattage. You just have to check out any PSU review from any reputable outlet. They put them through their paces for that reason.