Maximum PC

Does anyone remember which issue had the power supply roundup recently? Seems like it must have been 6 months ago or so, but I can't find it.

Anyway, I've got an Enermax 365W that I thought would be great. But after about 6 months I started having weird problems with my video getting strange corruption. I checked everything I could think of, isolated it on it's own PSU cord, and even replaced the card. Eventually I determined something is whacked with the PSU because the way to fix the problem (temorarily at least) is to pull on the cable cluster right where it comes out of the cpu.

I know this fixes it because I've tried a hundred ways of wiggling the cables and that's what works every time, regardless of what is plugged in where and whether any other part moves.

Anyway, I need a new PSU. I have Athlon 2400+, 2 optical drives, 2 HD, a Radeon 9800 Pro vidcard, Audiogy, and 3 case fans, as well as a couple USB devices requiring power.

is 365W enough? Should I get a 400? And what is quietest? This "Whisper" PoS from Enermax is the loudest thing in my case, so I'm hoping for something a bit quieter. However, I can't afford to spend $90 on a PSU right now. Suggestions?

antec is really good. i have the SL models and they work great. i heard that one of the best power supplies for the antec line is the antec neopower one. it outputs like 480watts i believe.

350watts should be the bare minimum but 400watts is good. i have a SL350watts antec power supply that came with my antec case its enough to power my system i have no stability issues. my config is athlon xp 2500+, asus A7N8x-E, 512megs pc3200, geforce 6800GT, 2hdds, 2 opticals, and i never have a problem.

here is a power supply roundup from xbitlabs:

http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/other/ ... l-psu.html

check it out. other good brands to get are OCZ, pcpowercooling, and even sparkle.

This thread is packed with good links and thoughts: http://www.maximumpc.com/forum/viewtopi ... sc&start=0

The power supply roundup was in the January magazine. The PSU FAQ article was featured in (IIRC) June.

Thanks for the info, guys. I'll check out the links. If anyone else has a suggestion on a "quiet" PSU that won't cost me an arm and a leg, I'd appreciate it.

I'm strongly considering this Coolmax because the reviews have been so effusive about how quiet it is.

good PSU's that won't cost an arm and a leg: http://www.maximumpc.com/forum/viewtopi ... c&start=20

Well I went ahead and ordered this Thermaltake and it's pretty nice so far. Good low noise level, plenty of connectors, speed control bay and lots of juice. My graphics problems are gone too, so I'm happy. Let's hope it holds up better than my Enermax did.[/url]