Will I Need a New PSU?

[avrona]

So I am planning on upgrading my PC slightly with a new CPU in the future, but I don't know if it will require me to get a more powerful PSU or not. Here's my current setup:

 

CPU: fx-8350

Graphics card: GTX 1080 Ti

Motherboard: ASUS M5A97

RAM: 16GB DDR3

Sound card: Sound Blaster Z

Storage: 2x hard drive, 1x SSD (SATA), 1x disc drive

Cooling: 3x case fans, 1x CPU fan

USB peripherals: 4x USB peripherals, 1x headset.

 

All of that is currently running off of a 550W PSU supply. But later this year or even further in the future I would like to upgrade to a Ryzen 2700x, an Aorus B450 Elite motherboard, and 16GB DDR4 RAM, and potentially a new CPU cooler. Will that require a stronger PSU or will 550W still be enough?

[Oshino Shinobu]

It will use less power than the 8350, and DDR4 should use less than the DDR3, so you'll be fine, provided the PSU is decent quality

[avrona]

1 minute ago, Oshino Shinobu said:

It will use less power than the 8350, and DDR4 should use less than the DDR3, so you'll be fine, provided the PSU is decent quality

It's a XFX TS 550.

[Oshino Shinobu]

Just now, avrona said:

It's a XFX TS 550.

Not great, but not terrible either. If you have some budget to spare for a PSU upgrade, I would advise doing so, but it will run fine on that. 

[XR6]

1 minute ago, avrona said:

It's a XFX TS 550.

It should be alright. Not brilliant but it does the job.

[NunoLava1998]

It should work fine, but for such a powerful build I'd probably upgrade to a TXM or RMx. Get a RMi if you want Corsair Link

[avrona]

1 minute ago, NunoLava1998 said:

It should work fine, but for such a powerful build I'd probably upgrade to a TXM or RMx. Get a RMi if you want Corsair Link

But will it work completely fine though with my current PSU though, and will getting a new one have any advantages whatsoever apart from being future-proof?

[NunoLava1998]

1 minute ago, avrona said:

But will it work completely fine though with my current PSU though, and will getting a new one have any advantages whatsoever apart from being future-proof?

It will work fine, but the PSU in question is a Tier 4 (from Tier 1 (best) to 7 (worst), and 1-2 is generally the recommended power supply for a 2700X and 1080 Ti) power supply (unless you have the 80+ Gold version, in which it's Tier 2 and completely fine). 

 

Basically if you didn't understand the statement above, the power supply you currently have is meant for more basic PCs and it would be better to upgrade to a more suitable one as your system is pretty high end.

 

Your current one is nothing that will fail or make your hardware catch on fire, but in my opinion you should get a RM650i as it's good, has Corsair Link so you can monitor wattage and amperage, and it has 80+ Gold Certification, and it's Tier 1. Also has plenty of room for upgrades.

 

Here is the PSU Tier list I am using:

 

[avrona]

1 minute ago, NunoLava1998 said:

It will work fine, but the PSU in question is a Tier 4 (from Tier 1 (best) to 7 (worst), and 1-2 is generally the recommended power supply for a 2700X and 1080 Ti) power supply (unless you have the 80+ Gold version, in which it's Tier 2 and completely fine). 

 

Basically if you didn't understand the statement above, the power supply you currently have is meant for more basic PCs and it would be better to upgrade to a more suitable one as your system is pretty high end.

 

Your current one is nothing that will fail or make your hardware catch on fire, but in my opinion you should get a RM650i as it's good, has Corsair Link so you can monitor wattage and amperage, and it has 80+ Gold Certification, and it's Tier 1. Also has plenty of room for upgrades.

 

Here is the PSU Tier list I am using:

 

I doesn't surprise me it's for more basic PC's as mine is a pre-built, but still, if there is absolutaly no advantage to buying a new one, and this one will do just fine, then I don't see the point in upgrading.

[NunoLava1998]

2 minutes ago, avrona said:

I doesn't surprise me it's for more basic PC's as mine is a pre-built, but still, if there is absolutaly no advantage to buying a new one, and this one will do just fine, then I don't see the point in upgrading.

The RMi series does have Corsair Link, which is good to see how much your PC actually consumes in wattage so you can plan out upgrades better. Also, it'll probably last better (10 year warranty means that it'll probably last long, considering power supply manufacturers expect it to last a little after the warranty ends)

[avrona]

Just now, NunoLava1998 said:

The RMi series does have Corsair Link, which is good to see how much your PC actually consumes in wattage so you can plan out upgrades better.

Seeing how much my PC consumes isn't really something I need, especially since after upgrading now to a 2700x (if I do end up upgrading in the first place) I'll probably not get anything else for my PC for ages.

[NunoLava1998]

3 minutes ago, avrona said:

 I'll probably not get anything else for my PC for ages.

Would be true, until Zen 2 comes out in May and your 2700X becomes the equivalent of a Ryzen 3 or 5. I still do think the 2700X will be enough for most tasks for many years, however.

[avrona]

3 minutes ago, NunoLava1998 said:

Would be true, until Zen 2 comes out in May and your 2700X becomes the equivalent of a Ryzen 3 or 5. I still do think the 2700X will be enough for most tasks for many years, however.

I doubt I will be upgrading that often though. I mean, I still have a CPU from 2012 after all.

[Stefan Payne]

54 minutes ago, avrona said:

It's a XFX TS 550.

Yes, pls replace...

Its an old, group regulated unit without good protection. Using that is asking to be hurt.

So a good quality PSU like Bitfenix Formula is a good idea.

[avrona]

Just now, Stefan Payne said:

Yes, pls replace...

Its an old, group regulated unit without good protection. Using that is asking to be hurt.

So a good quality PSU like Bitfenix Formula is a good idea.

But does it being old actually make it worse though? Will there actually be any benefit to me upgrading?

[comicsansms]

2 hours ago, avrona said:

It's a XFX TS 550.

Bronze or Gold?

Bronze is shit, gold is fine, but old.

1 hour ago, avrona said:

But does it being old actually make it worse though? Will there actually be any benefit to me upgrading?

If it's a Bronze, it's group regulated and old. It's designed for a 5V heavy system, which PC's these days really only use 12V.

 

The problem with group regulated supplies, it knows how much power the components are using, but doesn't know how it's being used (what rails - 12V, 5V, 3.3V), so tries to use a standard offset to regulate the rails as a group.

So if you have a 12V heavy system, and use an older PSU, the voltage on all the rails will be off, because it is just correcting the way it expects the load to be spread.

 

Also, the bronze unit doesn't have over current protection. So if a component dies so causes a short, the PSU will give the shorted out part a lot of power, so could cause a fire. And if you accidentally overload it, the voltages of the PSU will drop. I think the platform the bronze unit is based on, got the 12V rail down to 9V from being overloaded.

[avrona]

2 hours ago, Comic_Sans_MS said:

Bronze or Gold?

Bronze is shit, gold is fine, but old.

If it's a Bronze, it's group regulated and old. It's designed for a 5V heavy system, which PC's these days really only use 12V.

 

The problem with group regulated supplies, it knows how much power the components are using, but doesn't know how it's being used (what rails - 12V, 5V, 3.3V), so tries to use a standard offset to regulate the rails as a group.

So if you have a 12V heavy system, and use an older PSU, the voltage on all the rails will be off, because it is just correcting the way it expects the load to be spread.

 

Also, the bronze unit doesn't have over current protection. So if a component dies so causes a short, the PSU will give the shorted out part a lot of power, so could cause a fire. And if you accidentally overload it, the voltages of the PSU will drop. I think the platform the bronze unit is based on, got the 12V rail down to 9V from being overloaded.

It's a Bronze. So do I have to upgrade or not then? Since I don't have that much money, I really only want to use it on parts I will need.

[Princess Luna]

2 hours ago, avrona said:

It's a Bronze. So do I have to upgrade or not then? Since I don't have that much money, I really only want to use it on parts I will need.

Yes upgrade to an up-to-date gold label PSU, because it's at the gold rated ones manufactures stops cutting dumb corners on their reliability, 550w is still enough though.

[seon123]

2 hours ago, avrona said:

It's a Bronze. So do I have to upgrade or not then? Since I don't have that much money, I really only want to use it on parts I will need.

You have a 1080 Ti, and you're going to upgrade to a 2700X, but you don't have that much money. Right. 

Yes, you should ideally upgrade. 

[avrona]

2 minutes ago, seon123 said:

You have a 1080 Ti, and you're going to upgrade to a 2700X, but you don't have that much money. Right. 

Yes, you should ideally upgrade. 

Well I'm not certain I'll upgrade then, there is a good chance I'll just stick to my current 8350. So if I don't have that much money for upgrading, I'd rather not spend it on anything other than necessities, such as a new mobo or RAM. So is it necessary or just an ideal thing?

[avrona]

10 minutes ago, Princess Cadence said:

Yes upgrade to an up-to-date gold label PSU, because it's at the gold rated ones manufactures stops cutting dumb corners on their reliability, 550w is still enough though.

If it's enough power than why update? 

[Princess Luna]

10 minutes ago, avrona said:

If it's enough power than why update? 

Because "enough power" is meaningless when the PSU fails because it lacked the right protections and kills your very expensive 1080 Ti.

[avrona]

1 minute ago, Princess Cadence said:

Because "enough power" is meaningless when the PSU fails because it lacked the right protections and kills your very expensive 1080 Ti.

But is it super necessary though, because I barely have any money for this upgrade?

[Princess Luna]

1 minute ago, avrona said:

But is it super necessary though, because I barely have any money for this upgrade?

Then why did you buy a 1080 Ti? this is like buying an expensive car but wanting to cheap up at every thing,  gasoline, oil and such... does it work at first? yes.

 

Will it eventually break for sure? Also yes.

[Stefan Payne]

3 minutes ago, avrona said:

But is it super necessary though, because I barely have any money for this upgrade?

Yes, if you want to keep your stuff for a couple of years and want to use it as long as possible, it is.