How do I know if a PSU is good?

[Reem1k]

I am trying to choose a PSU for my build, that requires just a bit less than 400 watts, but I'm going to leave some room for upgrades so at least 450 watts. While looking for a power supply, I noticed that there is a 500w PSU for 13.50€ and another 500w one was 460.69€. Why is that? Also, what is the first non-sketchy PSU that you see here? https://www.1a.ee/arvutikomponendid_vorgutooted/korpused_jahutid/toiteplokid/filter/433-8352,8340,8344,8359 (Budget is around 50€)

[YuriNator557]

Prices are usually reflective of their quality. The basic rule is to never cheap out on your PSU. €50 should be more than enough for a decent one.

 

That CX450M is quite good for the price.

 

Can I see a list of what parts you're going to use?

[GeorgeDouj88]

1 minute ago, Reem1k said:

I am trying to choose a PSU for my build, that requires just a bit less than 400 watts, but I'm going to leave some room for upgrades so at least 450 watts. While looking for a power supply, I noticed that there is a 500w PSU for 13.50€ and another 500w one was 460.69€. Why is that? Also, what is the first non-sketchy PSU that you see here? https://www.1a.ee/arvutikomponendid_vorgutooted/korpused_jahutid/toiteplokid/filter/433-8352,8340,8344,8359 (Budget is around 50€)

 There are a little more than a few (like 5 or 6) companies that make good PSUs, so as long as you get ones from them then you know they are good (definitely not sketchy). There are two PSU companies I like the most so I will probably suggest from them the most, #1 Choice (for me) EVGA and #2 Choice (Also for me) Corsair. Give me a sec to look.

[Streetguru]

4 minutes ago, Reem1k said:

I am trying to choose a PSU for my build, that requires just a bit less than 400 watts, but I'm going to leave some room for upgrades so at least 450 watts. While looking for a power supply, I noticed that there is a 500w PSU for 13.50€ and another 500w one was 460.69€. Why is that? Also, what is the first non-sketchy PSU that you see here? https://www.1a.ee/arvutikomponendid_vorgutooted/korpused_jahutid/toiteplokid/filter/433-8352,8340,8344,8359 (Budget is around 50€)

Mostly look for a review from Jonnyguru

But outside of that anything Broze/Gold Rated from EVGA or Seasonic should be alright.

[Armakar]

Brand

Efficiency rating

Amount of rails

Build quality

Capacitors

 

 

just read reviews online, for the most part anything from Corsair, EVGA, or Be Quiet!  is excellent, and a few things from seasonic and superflower are pretty good.

[Himommies]

Just now, G3ORG3Douj88 said:

#1 Choice (for me) EVGA and #2 Choice (Also for me) Corsair. Give me a sec to look.

In terms of reliability those 2 don't have a perfect track record at all

Take a look at Seasonic or any other OEM brand

[seon123]

1 minute ago, G3ORG3Douj88 said:

 There are a little more than a few (like 5 or 6) companies that make good PSUs, so as long as you get ones from them then you know they are good (definitely not sketchy). There are two PSU companies I like the most so I will probably suggest from them the most, #1 Choice (for me) EVGA and #2 Choice (Also for me) Corsair. Give me a sec to look.

That's so wrong.... EVGA "makes" a whole lot of crappy units. The non-80-plus 400W, the N1, W1, B3, BV, BT etc. They don't even really make them. Most of them are Super Flower.

Corsair also "makes" a few pretty bad units. Most units are made by CWT. 

 

Every brand is equally capable of selling crap

[GeorgeDouj88]

8 minutes ago, Reem1k said:

I am trying to choose a PSU for my build, that requires just a bit less than 400 watts, but I'm going to leave some room for upgrades so at least 450 watts. While looking for a power supply, I noticed that there is a 500w PSU for 13.50€ and another 500w one was 460.69€. Why is that? Also, what is the first non-sketchy PSU that you see here? https://www.1a.ee/arvutikomponendid_vorgutooted/korpused_jahutid/toiteplokid/filter/433-8352,8340,8344,8359 (Budget is around 50€)

I recommend this one, EVGA BQ 80 Plus

[Oshino Shinobu]

CX450 and CX450M are good. M version is modular, but quality is the same. 

5 minutes ago, G3ORG3Douj88 said:

 There are a little more than a few (like 5 or 6) companies that make good PSUs, so as long as you get ones from them then you know they are good (definitely not sketchy). There are two PSU companies I like the most so I will probably suggest from them the most, #1 Choice (for me) EVGA and #2 Choice (Also for me) Corsair. Give me a sec to look.

 Neither EVGA or Corsair make PSUs, they just brand them. Of the PSUs they brand, both EVGA and Corsair have some terrible units in there such as EVGA's N1 and W1 series and Corsair's VS series. Corsair actually has a lot of mediocre PSUs in their lineup and EVGA has quite a lot of bad ones.

 

There's only 3 or so OEMs that are pretty much always safe to go with. Seasonic, SuperFlower and Delta. XFX uses Seasonic exclusively as their OEM so they're generally safe and bequiet! also doesn't really have anything bad, they're mainly FSP, though they have some HEC and Seasonic units as well

[GeorgeDouj88]

1 minute ago, seon123 said:

That's so wrong.... EVGA "makes" a whole lot of crappy units. The non-80-plus 400W, the N1, W1, B3, BV, BT etc. They don't even really make them. Most of them are Super Flower.

Corsair also "makes" a few pretty bad units. Most units are made by CWT. 

 

Every brand is equally capable of selling crap

I know, but as long as he gets at least bronze then it should be good.

[seon123]

The best way is to look at actual reviews of the PSU in question. 

Same way to know if a phone is good; you don't look at a brand and say, "that's a good phone" (exceptions being fanboys). You look at actual reviews

[seon123]

1 minute ago, G3ORG3Douj88 said:

I know, but as long as he gets at least bronze then it should be good.

The VS Series, the old CX/M, the B1, B3, BV, BT are all crap. They are also all bronze rated

[iRileyx]

2 minutes ago, G3ORG3Douj88 said:

I know, but as long as he gets at least bronze then it should be good.

Even the cheap-ass Chinese units that cost as little as $20 can have bronze ratings.

 

An efficiency rating is by no means an indication of whether a PSU is good or not.

[Oshino Shinobu]

1 minute ago, G3ORG3Douj88 said:

I know, but as long as he gets at least bronze then it should be good.

Bronze is just the efficiency, no indication of quality. The old CX units are bronze and aren't good and EVGA's NEX - B units are bad. 

[GeorgeDouj88]

1 minute ago, seon123 said:

The best way is to look at actual reviews of the PSU in question. 

Same way to know if a phone is good; you don't look at a brand and say, "that's a good phone" (exceptions being fanboys). You look at actual reviews

honestly I don't know much about PSUs but I know that if you get an 80+ plus Gold (I think also bronze) or better than you will be good

[seon123]

3 minutes ago, G3ORG3Douj88 said:

I recommend this one, EVGA BQ 80 Plus

The BQ isn't very good, certainly not as good as the cheaper and better CX/M 450W

[seon123]

Just now, G3ORG3Douj88 said:

honestly I don't know much about PSUs but I know that if you get an 80+ plus Gold (I think also bronze) or better than you will be good

That's not how it works. Those metal efficiency ratings mean jack shit. The G1 is a pretty bad unit, and that's gold rated. 

[STRMfrmXMN]

I see many of my PSU minions are here fighting the people that know nothing!

 

My job here is done

 

13 minutes ago, Reem1k said:

I am trying to choose a PSU for my build, that requires just a bit less than 400 watts, but I'm going to leave some room for upgrades so at least 450 watts. While looking for a power supply, I noticed that there is a 500w PSU for 13.50€ and another 500w one was 460.69€. Why is that? Also, what is the first non-sketchy PSU that you see here? https://www.1a.ee/arvutikomponendid_vorgutooted/korpused_jahutid/toiteplokid/filter/433-8352,8340,8344,8359 (Budget is around 50€)

Read reviews if you want the very basic "is it good enough." If you want to learn about what makes a PSU good then you'll probably turn PSUs into some sort of hobby.

[Oshino Shinobu]

1 minute ago, seon123 said:

The VS Series, the old CX/M, the B1, B3, BV, BT are all crap. They are also all bronze rated

VS series is just 80+, but yeah, they're all bad. 

[STRMfrmXMN]

1 minute ago, G3ORG3Douj88 said:

honestly I don't know much about PSUs but I know that if you get an 80+ plus Gold (I think also bronze) or better than you will be good

80 PLUS ratings are not indicative of quality.

[Oshino Shinobu]

1 minute ago, G3ORG3Douj88 said:

honestly I don't know much about PSUs but I know that if you get an 80+ plus Gold (I think also bronze) or better than you will be good

If you don't know much, why are you saying what's good? 

 

80+ ratings are just efficiency ratings, they indicate nothing about quality. You can have a good 80+ Bronze PSU with good over current protection and fail safes and you can have an 80+ Gold PSU with no protection or fail safes. 

 

There are many, many bad 80+ Gold units and many, many good 80+ Bronze units and everything in between 

[GeorgeDouj88]

Just now, seon123 said:

The BQ isn't very good, certainly not as good as the cheaper and better CX/M 450W

I'm gonna be quiet, I honestly am not THAT good with helpin building budget under around 1,500$ especially with PSUs, I am good with higher end builds and I know that if I get (like for my first build in december, check signature) EVGA SuperNOVA T2 750W then I will be good because it is titanium and I'm pretty sure a lot of people say that EVGA is Good!?

[Oshino Shinobu]

5 minutes ago, G3ORG3Douj88 said:

I'm gonna be quiet, I honestly am not THAT good with helpin building budget under around 1,500$ especially with PSUs, I am good with higher end builds and I know that if I get (like for my first build in december, check signature) EVGA SuperNOVA T2 750W then I will be good because it is titanium and I'm pretty sure a lot of people say that EVGA is Good!?

EVGA has some good PSUs, doesn't mean all of them are good. Their N1 series is absolute crap, for example. EVGA gets recommended a lot because their G2 series are excellent and typically the best option for the money. From there, people think EVGA must be good, so recommend them as a whole even though there's a massive range of quality in the PSUs they brand. 

 

5 minutes ago, G3ORG3Douj88 said:

will be good because it is titanium

Not at all. It being Titanium rated doesn't make it a good PSU, it just means it's efficient at converting power from AC to DC. It could still be terrible if, for example, it had no surge protection or only provided 50w on a single 12V rail or something. In the case of the EVGA T2, it is an excellent unit, but the Titanium rating has nothing to do with it. 

[Reem1k]

15 minutes ago, idiot42 said:

Prices are usually reflective of their quality. The basic rule is to never cheap out on your PSU. €50 should be more than enough for a decent one.

 

That CX450M is quite good for the price.

 

Can I see a list of what parts you're going to use?

Probably a GTX 1050 or TI and an Intel Pentium G4600. I have like 3 lists (1 budget, 1 performance and 1 best price/performance) and I'll make the choice in a few days.

[Oshino Shinobu]

1 minute ago, Reem1k said:

Probably a GTX 1050 or TI and an Intel Pentium G4600. I have like 3 lists (1 budget, 1 performance and 1 best price/performance) and I'll make the choice in a few days.

A Corsair CX (either M or not, up to you on whether you want to spend a little more for modular cables) 450W would do very well for that system. Just make sure it has a grey label, not a green label.