would a picopsu easily power this quiet i3 setup?

PSUs: The source of DC power for all components in the PC & often a big noise source.

Moderators: NeilBlanchard, Ralf Hutter, sthayashi, Lawrence Lee, Devonavar

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quietdrake
Posts: 5
Joined: Fri Nov 23, 2012 1:45 pm
Location: east canada

would a picopsu easily power this quiet i3 setup?

Post by quietdrake » Fri Nov 23, 2012 3:03 pm

I had been doubting it for a while now till I noticed the two recent threads related to picopsus and exactly the same motherboard in question (some timing that is? heh)

anyway heres the quick list I had in mind for now;
intel i3 3220T cpu with noctua NH-L9i hsf
intel DH77EB motherboard
ssd storage
two 120mm case fans
fullsize dvdrw drive
small pcie firewire card with power connector
..and may like to leave some power space for more drives and/or another pcie card in future

I can pretty much buy any models from the 80 to the 160-XT close to me but whether its in stock or not is something else [that I'll have to check about ofc]

Ralf Hutter
SPCR Reviewer
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Joined: Sat Nov 23, 2002 6:33 am
Location: Sunny SoCal

Re: would a picopsu easily power this quiet i3 setup?

Post by Ralf Hutter » Sat Nov 24, 2012 5:26 am

This is just anecdotal, but I'd say the 80W Pico may not be enough. I recently built almost the exact same setup you have (i3-3225, DH77EB, Samsung 830 SSD, 2x120mm fans, 5.25" DVDr) and had PSU issues while load/stress testing the system. When running Prime95 plus ripping a music CD and simultaneously transferring a 50GB file from one partition to another, I would get consistent reboots. My 80W Picopsu was being powered by a 90W Meanwell AC adapter. When I switched out the Pico for a Seasonic 360G all the reboot under load issues went away.

quietdrake
Posts: 5
Joined: Fri Nov 23, 2012 1:45 pm
Location: east canada

Re: would a picopsu easily power this quiet i3 setup?

Post by quietdrake » Sat Nov 24, 2012 12:45 pm

humm thanks ralf hutter, maybe 120 or 160-xt one would be a good idea but I'll considr it some more before actually ordering anything yet for certain

MannyRik
Posts: 1
Joined: Wed Dec 05, 2012 8:03 am

Re: would a picopsu easily power this quiet i3 setup?

Post by MannyRik » Wed Dec 05, 2012 8:13 am

Hi,

I have a friend of my who uses picopsu 120watts to power on a I3 with one SSD and one mechanical disk.

Also check this guy's article. His picopsu powers an Intel G530 + SSD crucial M4 + 3 other drives and he says it boots and runs smoothly.

He put many pictures of his build/wattmeter.

Cheers

MannyRik

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