What size PSU for a 3970X CPU and an NVidia 3080/3090

[LED_Guy]

I am building a new system for work and light gaming.  Components are listed below.  The PSU calculators I see on line come back at anywhere from 850W to 1300W.  Since there seems to be a premium above 1000W, I am looking to the LTT community for some better input.

 

CPU:      Threadripper 3970X

GPU:      NVidia 3080 (maybe 3090)

RAM:      256GB DDR4 3600MHz

MOBO:   Asus sTRX40-E

Boot:      Samsung 980 Pro 512 GB

Data:      Samsung 980 Pro 1TB

Cooling: Custom loop 360mm radiator (w/3x120mm fans + 3x120 fans in case)

Case:     InWin S-Box Titanium

Lighting: TBD, but since I have been working in the LED industry for 25+ years . . .

 

With 32 cores I don't have a need to push OC on the CPU and everything I have read about the NVidia 3080/3090 cards tells me I don't really need to push those hard either, so assume stock to moderate OC on the CPU and GPU.

 

I'm open to suggestions on a PSU as well.  For efficiency I am looking at platinum rated PSUs.  Given the build, something with a few extra bells/whistles isn't out of the question . . .

Edited December 12, 2020 by LED_Guy
added additional information

[Shimejii]

I dont think you are going to be able to get 256GB DDR4 Running at 3600 mhz. Goodluck with that  

 

I would say you should get a 1000W PSU with all the hardware in the system you are using. Although i dont know if its a great time to buy a 3970x with the potential for 5000 series Threadripper.

[Guest]

16 minutes ago, Shimejii said:

I dont think you are going to be able to get 256GB DDR4 Running at 3600 mhz. Goodluck with that  

 

I would say you should get a 1000W PSU with all the hardware in the system you are using. Although i dont know if its a great time to buy a 3970x with the potential for 5000 series Threadripper.

It's doable if the stars align.

Though I have my doubts with the STRIX board.

[Grabhanem]

I'd guess you'll be fine with an A tier 850W unit -- RMx, Seasonic Focus GX/PX, etc and above are all in this category.

 

For comparison, a 3970X is pretty comparable to an overclocked 10900K in power consumption, so you don't need anything super-crazy by modern standards, even though it's a HEDT platform.

[LED_Guy]

1 hour ago, Shimejii said:

I dont think you are going to be able to get 256GB DDR4 Running at 3600 mhz. Goodluck with that  

 

I would say you should get a 1000W PSU with all the hardware in the system you are using. Although i dont know if its a great time to buy a 3970x with the potential for 5000 series Threadripper.

Just ordered 8x32GB set of 3600 MHz DDR4! 

 

Understand about 3970X vs potential 5000 series Threadripper.  The issue though is that I can do (billable) work now vs waiting a few months for a better CPU that might be announced.

 

A benefit of being a consultant who NEEDS a 32 core system for work means that I can upgrade in a few months if a better part becomes available.  My current system is an i7-5960X with a mere 64GB DDR4 at 3200 MHz.  That amount of RAM is honestly a bottleneck and I max out my CPU for hours/day.

[LED_Guy]

1 hour ago, Den-Fi said:

It's doable if the stars align.

Though I have my doubts with the STRIX board.

My last two builds used ASUS X99 (Prime) boards, and I never had a problem.  I’m still running one 4 years later.

 

If the MOBO becomes a problem, I can swap it out.  The benefit of an HEDT work system - upgrades are business deductions.

[Guest]

4 minutes ago, LED_Guy said:

My last two builds used ASUS X99 (Prime) boards, and I never had a problem.  I’m still running one 4 years later.

 

If the MOBO becomes a problem, I can swap it out.  The benefit of an HEDT work system - upgrades are business deductions.

Apple and oranges.

 

I'm strictly speaking to memory support and you cannot compare two different platforms from two different makers. Esp when TR is especially memory sensitive. Even going from the Zenith II Extreme to the Zenith II Extreme Alpha could be the difference between running 256GB at a decent speed and not.

 

I am speaking from experience.

 

[LED_Guy]

4 minutes ago, Den-Fi said:

Apple and oranges.

 

I'm strictly speaking to memory support and you cannot compare two different platforms from two different makers. Esp when TR is especially memory sensitive. Even going from the Zenith II Extreme to the Zenith II Extreme Alpha could be the difference between running 256GB at a decent speed and not.

 

I am speaking from experience.

 

Appreciated, but I did pay attention to the QVL.

 

puzzled about your comment on different platforms from different vendors.  My last two builds used ASUS monos, so I’ sticking with the same maker (admittedly different platform)

 

Even if I can’t run at 3600 MHz, the amount of RAM is far more important for my application than the speed.  2400 MHz would beat the snot out of virtual RAM, even on a fast SSD

[Elisis]

2 hours ago, LED_Guy said:

For efficiency I am looking at platinum rated PSUs.

Here's some advice: don't. Don't look for efficiency in particular.  Look for good units first of all.

[LED_Guy]

2 minutes ago, Elisis said:

Here's some advice: don't. Don't look for efficiency in particular.  Look for good units first of all.

Currently planning on a Seasonic unit.  They actually build their own PSUs (as well as manufacturing for other labels).

 

I’ve had good experiences with them in the past.  Ive used a few of their Snow Silent units and loved them

[Elisis]

3 minutes ago, LED_Guy said:

They actually build their own PSUs (as well as manufacturing for other labels).

Well, there's two things wrong here: First, Seasonic doesn't actually manufacture all their PSUs. Second, their ODM/OEMing their own shit doesn't mean anything. It is not a guarantee of quality, nor does it mean Seasonic will be the best option for you. 

[LED_Guy]

9 minutes ago, Elisis said:

Well, there's two things wrong here: First, Seasonic doesn't actually manufacture all their PSUs. Second, their ODM/OEMing their own shit doesn't mean anything. It is not a guarantee of quality, nor does it mean Seasonic will be the best option for you. 

So my 4+ years of experience with their PSUs in multiple builds counts for crap?  Seems you have something personal against them.  There’s a hell of a lot of info out their that says Seasonic does make their own PSUs.https://www.orionpsudb.com/ https://www.custompcguide.net/the-differences-between-all-corsair-power-supply-units/ https://tweakreviews.com/psu/seasonic-psu-guide 

 

I’m looking for help from community members, trolls can skip the thread

[Grabhanem]

26 minutes ago, LED_Guy said:

So my 4+ years of experience with their PSUs in multiple builds counts for crap?  Seems you have something personal against them.  There’s a hell of a lot of info out their that says Seasonic does make their own PSUs.https://www.orionpsudb.com/ https://www.custompcguide.net/the-differences-between-all-corsair-power-supply-units/ https://tweakreviews.com/psu/seasonic-psu-guide 

 

I’m looking for help from community members, trolls can skip the thread

Seasonic S12III is a RSY platform. Seasonic M12II is a Seasonic platform, and it's still bad. Being a Seasonic PSU or a Seasonic platform doesn't make it good.

 

Seasonic's high-end platforms are excellent, but so are the high-end CWT platforms Corsair uses in RMx, and the FSP Group custom architectures BeQuiet uses in the Dark Power 11. And none of these manufacturers are immune to issues-- early Seasonic Focus units had issues with high-transient GPUs, and certain batches of Corsair SF gold units were prone to failure.

[Elisis]

35 minutes ago, LED_Guy said:

So my 4+ years of experience with their PSUs in multiple builds counts for crap?

How exactly are your "4+ years of experience" relevant to whether Seasonic manufacturers their own products or not? 

 

38 minutes ago, LED_Guy said:

There’s a hell of a lot of info out their that says Seasonic does make their own PSUs

Some they do. Some they don't.

 

38 minutes ago, LED_Guy said:

I’m looking for help from community members, trolls can skip the thread

So I'm somehow a troll because I'm not praising Seasonic at every turn? Definition must have changed from what it was last I checked...

[Elisis]

2 minutes ago, Grabhanem said:

early Seasonic Focus units had issues with high-transient GPUs

And even modern Seasonic high end units are doing so! LTT had their Prime 1000W something-or-other trip in their 6900XT review.

[Grabhanem]

3 minutes ago, Elisis said:

And even modern Seasonic high end units are doing so! LTT had their Prime 1000W something-or-other trip in their 6900XT review.

I was talking about a specific known issue with older Seasonic Focus Golds:

I'm guessing LTT has been using a standard PSU for their test bench for some time, so it may be old enough to be affected. Also, to the Prime's credit, the 6900XT is *brutal* on transients more so than any past card, so there isn't really any precedent for Seasonic to expect a card to behave like that.

[Ankerson]

42 minutes ago, Grabhanem said:

I was talking about a specific known issue with older Seasonic Focus Golds:

I'm guessing LTT has been using a standard PSU for their test bench for some time, so it may be old enough to be affected. Also, to the Prime's credit, the 6900XT is *brutal* on transients more so than any past card, so there isn't really any precedent for Seasonic to expect a card to behave like that.

 

 

It was an older model Prime Plat, so yeah it likely tripped, no surprise. 

[LED_Guy]

51 minutes ago, Elisis said:

How exactly are your "4+ years of experience" relevant to whether Seasonic manufacturers their own products or not? 

 

Some they do. Some they don't.

 

So I'm somehow a troll because I'm not praising Seasonic at every turn? Definition must have changed from what it was last I checked...

No, my point is that you only slammed Seasonic,  You didn’t back up your criticisms, but worse you didn’t offer an alternative.

 

”I’ve heard there are issues with some Seasonic PSUs, have you looked into xxxx or yyy, I’ve heard good things about them . . .”

That’s useful information.  If you’re not going to offer a suggestion you’re just bitching, so what’s your beef with Seasonic?  You prefer ?????

 

The 4+ years of experience with two HEDT builds (60+ hrs/week) without a problem is a testimony to quality. 

[Elisis]

4 minutes ago, LED_Guy said:

You didn’t back up your criticisms

What criticisms would those be, exactly? I have made no criticisms here.

[Jeppes]

Corsair HX 1000W is usually pretty reasonably priced. It has multi-rail that can be turned off if needed but I think its unlikely to trip even on multirail mode if you use two cables for gpu. I just think its nicer to have a 500-600W trip limit on the unlikely situation where a sata connector is smoking than to have a 1200W tripping point with single rail.

[LED_Guy]

2 minutes ago, Elisis said:

What criticisms would those be, exactly? I have made no criticisms here.

Do you have a recommendation for a PSU or not?

[Elisis]

Just now, LED_Guy said:

Do you have a recommendation for a PSU or not?

Are you going to answer my question as to the nature of your attack on my what I've stated or...?

[LED_Guy]

7 minutes ago, Elisis said:

Are you going to answer my question as to the nature of your attack on my what I've stated or...?

You disagreed with my statement that Seasonic doesn’t make their own PSUs (even though they do manufacture some of the Corsair and ASUS units among others).

 

You said my own personal experience with them (2 builds x 60+ hr/week x 4 years = 24,000 hrs btw) means crap.  You didn’t offer anything tangible and you sure as hell didn’t make a useful suggestion.

 

So your turn to answer

[LED_Guy]

15 minutes ago, Jeppes said:

Corsair HX 1000W is usually pretty reasonably priced. It has multi-rail that can be turned off if needed but I think its unlikely to trip even on multirail mode if you use two cables for gpu. I just think its nicer to have a 500-600W trip limit on the unlikely situation where a sata connector is smoking than to have a 1200W tripping point with single rail.

Any comments on HX1000 v AX1000?  The AX1000 has a second EPS which should be better for an sTRX4 build

[Elisis]

4 minutes ago, LED_Guy said:

You disagreed with my statement that Seasonic doesn’t make their own PSUs

And this is a criticism... how, exactly?

 

5 minutes ago, LED_Guy said:

You said my own personal experience with them (2 builds x 60+ hr/week x 4 years = 24,000 hrs btw) means crap.

No I did not. All I said that your "experience" is irrelevant in matters pertaining to who OEMs whom.