which one??????

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

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elandra
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which one??????

Post by elandra » Sun Nov 10, 2002 10:12 am

hi,

I can get the zalman 300W for £80, the verax 300W for £78 (£70 if u include savings on other products bought at same time) or the seasonic for £60 all including postage. which one would you advise that I puchase. I will not be modding them at all as I would most likely kill myself (not because I am a girl, just because I am incredibly clumsy).

thanx

Addition: What about the (((Noiseblocker))) CWT 250-12 ATX, 250 Watts rated at 12db and costing me £50. would it be any quiter, if i could get my system running of a 250W psu

GamingGod
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Post by GamingGod » Sun Nov 10, 2002 1:21 pm

forget the verax but watch out cause the zalman 300a is the one u want the other one was loud

GamingGod
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Post by GamingGod » Sun Nov 10, 2002 1:22 pm

zm300a-pfc i mean sorry

MikeC
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Post by MikeC » Sun Nov 10, 2002 1:41 pm

seasonic is obviously the best buy; its fan is slightly "tickier" than the Zalman's but actually quieter by a tiny bit (if I recall right), speeds up less and runs a bit hotter as a result. Really have no opin on the Verax/fortron.

PS -- are you really a.. a.. gurl!?! :wink: Just kidding around. So few women in hardware forums it's always notable. Glad to have you with us. :)

SungHyun7
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Post by SungHyun7 » Sun Nov 10, 2002 1:43 pm

is ZM300A-APF and zm300a-pfc same thing?

ChiefWeasel
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Post by ChiefWeasel » Sun Nov 10, 2002 1:44 pm

You can also get the Q-Tech PSU here for about £65, worth considering...

elandra
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Post by elandra » Sun Nov 10, 2002 2:57 pm

I saw the q-tech at quiet pc but I didn't think MikeC had a great opinion of it, with the coil whine and all. What do u rekon MikeC is it worth considering, or still stick with the seasonic.

thanx

MikeC
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Post by MikeC » Sun Nov 10, 2002 3:24 pm

coil whine was an issue on my sample, but Ithat does not mean they all exhibit this. i had only one sample. I have heard others mention coil whine with this model, though. I think the biggest drawback is that yeah, it is very quiet and it stays that way, but there is a price. When you push the system hard for any length of time, the PSU does get pretty hot unless the hot air from the CPU is blown out of the case and not allowed to get into the PSU. The heat does not bode well for longevity.

Still, without long term use testing with a dozen of them and comparing to others under the same conditions, this is all conjecture. One of the frustrations of doing reviews is that you know you're only getting a snapshot. I like to think my PSU snapshots are pretty sharp & detailed, much better than most, BUT it's only one photo of one subject in one moment. I guess this is the basic limitation of any product review. If you want to do more, you have to go work for UL or CSA or some other testing agency where you'll get buried by the rules & the bureacracy... Besides, by the time you finish this kind of testing, the product's probably off the market and a new model is there!

Ok, I love doing SPCR reviews! :lol:

elandra
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Post by elandra » Sun Nov 10, 2002 3:35 pm

:D k, i'll probably get the seasonic, but will consider the q-tech. Although I have no other ventalation, which will probably be bad if the q-tech runs hot.

I know I should probably use another forum to start this question up but do u know anthing about the zalman 80-HP, As my elsa gladiac geforce 3 is soooooo noisy and I need it to shut up. (oh and I play computer games slightly, not hardcore or anything :roll: , but enough to maybe make it fry if I used this). Or any other ideas?

Thanks for all your help btw

SungHyun7
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Post by SungHyun7 » Sun Nov 10, 2002 8:05 pm

to use zm-80, you need to have two holes around the GPU on the PCB board of your gf3 card.

i'm getting one soon (as soon as sharka has them back on the shelves as of the 11th as they said), and i'll post its review as soon as I get it. (if you can wait).

you may also look into zm-17u. it may be a cheaper solution if you want to go that route, and it seems the majority of people are happy with the zm-17u from what I've read (but some do complain). nevertheless, if you have some fan blowing on the zm-17u (any quiet fan at 5v), more or less 100% of people are saying it works fine with their cards (ranging upto gf4, which should be hotter than your card).

GamingGod
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Post by GamingGod » Mon Nov 11, 2002 12:07 am

zalman has a board with someone that actually replies!!!! they answered my question the same day i posted it

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