psu upgrade(s)

Tarock · January 18, 2015

Hello i have in mind a new pc i for gaming i want but i won't be able to buy everything at once, i was planning a slow upgrade, starting by the most common things like case and psu, then get mobo and cpu, and then gpu and ram (maybe ram is ok i don't know yet) and then maybe sometime get another gpu and have an sli

The problem is i don't know if it is ok to buy a psu that could give power to the final slow upgrades or get a psu for the most urgent and then upgrade the psu once or twice more, since i have read that having more or less energy being delivered to the system is just not good.

I don't know i would like to have a general idea of how this upgrade or purchase is more commonly done.

thanks

slightlyjaded · January 18, 2015

Hello i have in mind a new pc i for gaming i want but i won't be able to buy everything at once, i was planning a slow upgrade, starting by the most common things like case and psu, then get mobo and cpu, and then gpu and ram (maybe ram is ok i don't know yet) and then maybe sometime get another gpu and have an sli

The problem is i don't know if it is ok to buy a psu that could give power to the final slow upgrades or get a psu for the most urgent and then upgrade the psu once or twice more, since i have read that having more or less energy being delivered to the system is just not good.

I don't know i would like to have a general idea of how this upgrade or purchase is more commonly done.

thanks

Only problem with a power supply that can supply significantly more power than you currently need is the fact that it probably won't be optimised for the power delivery you currently need, and hence won't be as efficient as one better optimised.

Case in point, when my computer is at idle it's 70% efficient. (70W from the wall 53% out of the power supply) When under load with a heavy overclock it's about 92% efficient (500W from the wall, 460W from the power supply).

Would be worth looking at your proposed upgrade path. Figure out your power needs at each stage, then check how efficient your final choice for power supply would be as you upgrade.

Also worth considering is how easy you'd find to get rid of an interem power supply. If you've got a family member, or friend upgrading soon, you might be able to recoup some of your outlay, or score brownie points by offloading your "old" power supply on them.