New System - 980ti + i7 6700k : Is A 520W Platinum PSU Dangerous?

[Kyndros]

As stated in the title I'm currently looking into buying a new build as my current one was a severely budgeted build 2 and a half years ago and I'm starting to see framerate drops even in non-intensive games. The build I'm currently looking at is as follows :

CPU: Intel Core i7-6700K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor (£289.14 @ Aria PC) 
CPU Cooler: be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 3 67.8 CFM Fluid Dynamic Bearing CPU Cooler (£59.28 @ Aria PC) 
Motherboard: Asus ROG MAXIMUS VIII HERO ALPHA ATX LGA1151 Motherboard (£247.63 @ More Computers) 
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws 4 series 16GB (4 x 4GB) DDR4-3200 Memory (£159.44 @ Amazon UK) 
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive (£119.50 @ Amazon UK) 
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Green 3TB 3.5" 5400RPM Internal Hard Drive (£81.99 @ Amazon UK) 
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB STRIX Video Card (£599.94 @ Aria PC) 
Case: Fractal Design Define R5 (Titanium) ATX Mid Tower Case (£77.99 @ Amazon UK) 
Power Supply: SeaSonic 520W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully-Modular Fanless ATX Power Supply (£133.99 @ Amazon UK) 

My main concern with the build is that I want it to be a quiet monster, performance with as little noise as possible. This led me to looking into silent PSUs and more specifically the Seasonic 520FL 520W Fanless PSU. I've read a lot of varying reviews on how much a system using a 980ti would consume including Nvidia's recommended 600W PSU.

Am I crazy for trying to run this system off of a 520W PSU solely based on how quiet it is? Will the system ever exceed 500W? Is it even efficient to let it get so close to the threshold? If not, are there any suggestions on a reliable PSU which is almost silent?

Appreciate any feedback!  

 

Note : I will probably OC the CPU to at least 4.4GHz if not higher if this makes any difference.

[Amazingasian]

As stated in the title I'm currently looking into buying a new build as my current one was a severely budgeted build 2 and a half years ago and I'm starting to see framerate drops even in non-intensive games. The build I'm currently looking at is as follows :

CPU: Intel Core i7-6700K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor (£289.14 @ Aria PC) 

CPU Cooler: be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 3 67.8 CFM Fluid Dynamic Bearing CPU Cooler (£59.28 @ Aria PC) 

Motherboard: Asus ROG MAXIMUS VIII HERO ALPHA ATX LGA1151 Motherboard (£247.63 @ More Computers) 

Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws 4 series 16GB (4 x 4GB) DDR4-3200 Memory (£159.44 @ Amazon UK) 

Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive (£119.50 @ Amazon UK) 

Storage: Western Digital Caviar Green 3TB 3.5" 5400RPM Internal Hard Drive (£81.99 @ Amazon UK) 

Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB STRIX Video Card (£599.94 @ Aria PC) 

Case: Fractal Design Define R5 (Titanium) ATX Mid Tower Case (£77.99 @ Amazon UK) 

Power Supply: SeaSonic 520W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully-Modular Fanless ATX Power Supply (£133.99 @ Amazon UK) 

My main concern with the build is that I want it to be a quiet monster, performance with as little noise as possible. This led me to looking into silent PSUs and more specifically the Seasonic 520FL 520W Fanless PSU. I've read a lot of varying reviews on how much a system using a 980ti would consume including Nvidia's recommended 600W PSU.

Am I crazy for trying to run this system off of a 520W PSU solely based on how quiet it is? Will the system ever exceed 500W? Is it even efficient to let it get so close to the threshold? If not, are there any suggestions on a reliable PSU which is almost silent?

Appreciate any feedback!  

 

Note : I will probably OC the CPU to at least 4.4GHz if not higher if this makes any difference.

You would be better off with a Corsair RMi or RMx.  They both have zero fan modes and aren't too expensive.  650W is good enough but I would get 850W if you want to SLI later.

[vanished]

500 W should be enough for a 980ti and that CPU, especially from a great brand like SeaSonic.  If it was some no name I would say no but in this case, she'll take it!

[Curufinwe_wins]

It should be fine. You should be warned that EVGA G2/P2 (Superflower) power supplies only start spinning at relatively high load, an 850W won't even spin at all under a single 980ti load (I know since I did it a while back).

 

If that is cheaper.

[paprikman]

Ofc it would be enough, also this is a seasonic btw.

But... If I had to choose, I'd get like 650w psu (but seasonic anyways).

[Aniallation]

Yes it's definitely enough. Make sure there's decent airflow over it though, being a passive PSU.

 

 

You would be better off with a Corsair RMi or RMx.  They both have zero fan modes and aren't too expensive.  650W is good enough but I would get 850W if you want to SLI later.

RMi/RMx aren't worth a purchase if OP already has the Seasonic (X) fanless.

[Amazingasian]

Yes it's definitely enough. Make sure there's decent airflow over it though, being a passive PSU.

 

 

RMi/RMx aren't worth a purchase if OP already has the Seasonic (X) fanless.

He doesn't already have it and the RMx is cheaper.

[Kyndros]

Thank you all for the replies, I've read all of the suggestions and while I think they would all be great PSUs for any build, my main issue would be the noise component. Also, I'm not sure if it's the case, but I had read that getting an overkill wattage (Which I'd presume an 850W would fall into that category) PSU could actually hinder it's efficiency. As for the RMx and RMi PSUs, how well do they perform noise wise under full load? My main goal was to make the build as quiet as I could (Obviously losing out in terms of having to settle for a standard WD HD as opposed to fully SSD) and while I'm not afraid to shell out money for an efficient, silent PSU, I also don't mind changing my PSU in the build if it would mean an almost similar level of performance/noise for a cheaper price point.

 

P.s Thank you again for all the replies, I've been banging my head against the wall in terms of this issue.

 

Note : I don't have expectations of ever running this build in SLI, future upgrades will probably center around a completely new GPU.

[vanished]

getting an overkill wattage (Which I'd presume an 850W would fall into that category) PSU could actually hinder it's efficiency. 

Yes, it can, but going too small will hinder it as well.  Every PSU is a little different, but most perform best around 50% laod

[Kyndros]

Yes, it can, but going too small will hinder it as well.  Every PSU is a little different, but most perform best around 50% laod

 

So would the 520W be hindered at all by the load I'd be putting on it, considering I would be working with 70-100ish headroom (If I'm completely off on that figure I apologize)? Do you think maybe upgrading to a 650W with more headroom would improve the efficiency as a whole? Or would it just be headroom for the sake of it?

[Elfuego]

In the words of @Slick : its probably fine, but Id get an 850W one so it runs at less fan speed and is at a better part of its efficiency curve, plus it will give you some headroom .

[Kyndros]

So, going with the idea of an 850W Platinum/Gold efficiency PSU which will only have the fan running on high loads (Which this system should never really reach), would you have any suggestions other than the aforementioned EVGA SuperNova P2/G2? Reliability is the main thing I'm looking at (No coil whine), as well as maybe a decent warranty, but if it's at a competitive price-point as well it's all the better.

 

Also, do you think I'm being a bit too sound conscious about the PSU? In terms of my build the components were pretty easy to pick out in terms of performance/noise and I found myself being VERY paranoid about how much noise the PSU fan would make and whether it would ruin the near-silent performance I wanted to achieve.

 

P.s Thank you guys again for all the quick feedback, really appreciate it

[vanished]

Also, do you think I'm being a bit too sound conscious about the PSU?

Perhaps.  I think in order of the things you'll hear, I would rank it as:

• GPU (by far the loudest, probably)
• CPU
• Case Fans
• Minor noises (PSU fan, HDDs, etc.)

[Kyndros]

 

Perhaps.  I think in order of the things you'll hear, I would rank it as:

• GPU (by far the loudest, probably)
• CPU
• Case Fans
• Minor noises (PSU fan, HDDs, etc.)

 

 

Thinking it over again, I may just go with a 650W platinum efficiency PSU. Given it's a reputable brand I wouldn't imagine the noise would exceed that of any other component of my build, especially with a 980ti in there (Strix version or no). Should I just aim for a Seasonic or EVGA PSU or maybe even a Corsair RMx/RMi as suggested previously? Again any suggestion in and around that Wattage and efficiency would be appreciated

[WoodenMarker]

You're thinking too much about the psu noise considering you're running a hdd. Unless you're getting one of the quietest HDD's available like a WD Red and suspending it in open cell foam or something similar like I am, just about any decent psu would be quieter already without any fanless mode.

520w is more than enough and you would never get close to pulling that much under normal loads. Unless you're running the system at full load 24/7, a psu that's just big enough will be more efficient than one that is larger than necessary.

[Elfuego]

Google PSU Tier List;

Personally I tend to use Corsairs HXi/AXi because of Corsairs support - (the less faff is worth it to me) but EVGA do some beastly value PSUs - Ive used plenty of EVGAs PSUs (T1/t2) and they are all fine.

 

PPS: I cant heat my HXI over my Noctua Industrials @ 20% (mind you those things are like 38db at 20% lol)

[Kyndros]

You're thinking too much about the psu noise considering you're running a hdd. Unless you're getting one of the quietest HDD's available like a WD Red and suspending it in open cell foam or something similar like I am, just about any decent psu would be quieter already without any fanless mode.

520w is more than enough and you would never get close to pulling that much under normal loads. Unless you're running the system at full load 24/7, a psu that's just big enough will be more efficient than one that is larger than necessary.

 

Thanks for taking the time to respond, I think I have my sights on getting an EVGA SuperNova 650W PSU and I'm not sure whether I should pay the premium of about £20ish to get the P2 over the G2, which would you recommend?

[Purgent]

Get the AX760. 80 Platinum and the fan doesn't even turn on until 70% load, which you likely will not hit with your setup.

It has been shown to put out over 900w before shutting down and is maybe the best you can get for your money.

[WoodenMarker]

Thanks for taking the time to respond, I think I have my sights on getting an EVGA SuperNova 650W PSU and I'm not sure whether I should pay the premium of about £20ish to get the P2 over the G2, which would you recommend?

They're basically the same thing.