Hi everyone.

I have the following box:
Noname μATX case, 18x36x32cm (WxHxD)
Tacens Radix V 450W PSU
Phenom 1090t
GTX 560Ti (not installed yet)
Soundcard with Molex power input (no significant power draw, but needs to be connected)
2 SATA HDDs
Zalman CNPS10X Performa CPU cooler
14cm 700RPM front intake fan
10cm 1000RPM rear exhaust fan

There are two problems with the current PSU:
1. I want to add a GPU (GTX 560Ti, maybe better) but currently it would need to be powered from one 12V wire of a single Molex cable, I don't think it's a good idea.
2. It becomes loud under CPU loads.

The temperature at PSU intake reaches 37-39°C under CPU load. Is it reasonable to expect a PSU to stay quiet in such conditions or do I need to improve cooling in this area? I think it is reasonable, few PSUs reviewed at SPCR seemed to maintain low RPM at 200W loads and similar intake air temperature.

So is it possible to find a PSU which stays silent at 200W/40°C, has two PCIe plugs and satisfies following size constraints:
- at most 15cm long
- modular or has as few unnecessary cables as possible?

Unfortunately, it seems that 15cm and two PCIe plugs are pretty much mutually exclusive. The stuff I've found so far:
1. Chieftec CTG-550C. 14cm, modular. Does anybody know if it's quiet up to ~200W?
2. Enermax Modu82+. 14cm, tight fit due to position of modular sockets. It was very quiet in SPCR tests, but only at lower temperatures.
3. Seasonic S12 Energy+ 550. This one has been reviewed at SPCR and ran at low RPM at 200W/40°C, but wasn't it quiet only by 2006 standards?
4. Used Antec NeoPower HE550. Modular. Has rear air intake, so it wouldn't suck hot air from CPU. But it's quite old. How loud were these?

Which one seems to be the best fit? Any other suggestions?

The most compact PSU I have used is the Nexus 430 W value: http://www.nexustek.nl/NXS-Nexus-VALUE-430-silent-power-supply-80plus-430watt.htm, only 125 mm long! Was extremely easy to install in my Sonata, even with the bolted-on crossbar and CPU cooler in place, very quiet and problem-free.

It's not modular, but it is an SPCR Editor's Choice and very affordable. Comes with two PCI-E cables, one is 6+2.

I don't know why you would want or consider a 560 Ti these days, when there's affordable 7850s and 7870s all over the place - or the 660/660 Ti, if you are so inclined.

There's also the Seasonic G360 to consider, though I don't know if it has two PCIe plugs.

This Nexus looks really cute, but I can't find it anywhere in Poland. G360 has only one PCIe plug and bigger Gs are 16cm long.

It seems that I'm stuck with Chieftec A-80 CTG-550C, Enermax Modu82+ or few non-modular Be Quiets with lots of long cables. I'd prefer one of the former, but:
1. I know for sure that older Chieftecs were quite loud at load. Does anybody have some experience with their modern units (particularly A-80 series)?
2. I found many reports of fan problems in Modu82+. Are there known cases of Modu82+ fans running for long time without getting noisy or do they always break?


As for 560Ti, I had an opportunity to get it quite cheaply. But I'll probably upgrade sooner or later.

try the new Enermax TRIATHLOR FC range.

http://www.enermax.com/home.php?fn=eng/ ... 0=1&lv1=62

dimensions are

L140 x W150 x H86 mm

they are modular, 14cm and apparently silent (?)

would be great if SPCR would a review. maybe i'll buy one and send it to them before doing my next build.

For a dedicated GPU, i would go around 500w. Im building a friend a PC, in Micro Atx factor, and chose

SeaSonic G Series 550-Watt ATX12V/EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS GOLD Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply SSR-550RM $89.99 Free shipping
SeaSonic G Series SSR-550RM 550W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS GOLD Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply $89.99 Free shipping
Dimension 6.3" x 5.9" x 3.39"

Some reviews,
JonnyGuru Seasonic G Series 550W
HardwareSecrets Seasonic SSR-550RM (G-550)

Still on the way to me, but the 360W version had very good comments and review on SPCR (got editor choice), seems the customer reviews also seems great for the 550W version, semi modular and cheap.... i think its a great option for 1 GPU setup.

Edit: Sry didnt read the 15cm lenght restriction, the seasonic is 16cm so it might not fit.....

How about an SFX sized PSU with an adaptor for a standard sized PS2 cutout? Silverstone do this 450W model:
http://www.silverstonetek.com/product.p ... 42&area=en

It's small (100mm depth), FULLY modular (unlike Enermax PSUs that have the ATX connector hardwired), Gold rated and has 6+8 pin PCI-E connectors. Looks worth considering for your case.

Reconsider the Seasonic G360. While it only has one PCIe 6/8 connector(correction, 6pin only) (by PSU standards it's not allowed to sport two 6's even if one 8 can deliver enough power for any dual-6 card), it's a perfect size for smaller builds, have excellent quality and runs quietly for an always-on fan. With an adapter for a second 6pin PCIe the G360 can power more powerful systems like if you upgrade to a GTX 670 card without issues. I wonder if anyone is putting out an 8pin PCIe to dual 6pin adapter. Someone should, even if I suspect it's not ATX-standard kosher.
Edit: Oh I didn't realise the G360 only has a 6-pin and not a 6+2-pin PCIe connector. Hardly anything uses the 8-pin configuration, but still. Got my own today and am admiring its features before I install it in an ITX build tomorrow.