PC Power & Cooling....are they really worth it?

[Dr. Possum]

I mean, I know they are incredible PSU's, but they are also priced as such. I don't want to skimp on a PSU, but is the jump from a Antec TrueControl 550 watt to a PC Power and Cooling 510 watt worth the $70?



~DP

[WxChaser]

Yes, without a doubt. You pay for what you get, but with PC Power & Cooling you get reliability, total rock stable rails, plus the ability for custom modifications and great customer service.

[Dr. Possum]

Do they come with warranty's? It'd suck if it died on me and I was out of $200



~DP

[Major]

Dr Possum, PC Power & Cooling rule !!! I have a 510w ATX (really over 600w by other manufatures guidelines) and have never regreated the purchase ! Very Very important piece of your system, just as important as the cpu or mb !

The rails are not just stable, but very "clean" as well.

I think the Antec is a great psu too, the TrueControl is defiently above "average" but its still not the same class of psu as the PC P & C.

I had my PC P & C get killed by a thunder storm just last month, They replaced it at no charge ! rma process took less than 2 weeks from the time I called them to I had it back.

[DarKcyde]

I took one look at the spec sheets, and that decided it for me.

Besides that, I've seen at least 3 different ppl here state they got better overclocks (by like 40mhz) just by switching from antec/vantec/other name-brand PSU's to PC Power.

[Wolf]

After having 2 Antecs blow out all the 5v lines on a 400w and a 430w true power, I decided to give the best a try. To Antecs defense one blew on a 8k7a+ and was tweaked using the pots but the second one toasted my 8k3a+ with no mods. I've only had the pcp@C for a few months but it keeps my lines rock solid at volts greater than 2.1v.

[starck]

Its worth it, I also have a PCPP 510W, its a solid PSU, but its hot and the fan on it is probably the loudest fan in my computer.

[CSOFT]

has anyone used a lower wattage PCPowerAndCooling then the 510?? I was wondering how thay did.

[Jen]

I have both the 425 and 450 watt pcpower and cooling. Both hold the line voltage very well. I have tried many other powersupplys and none could hold the line voltage as good as these do

Also at time of purchase the powersupplys came with a 5 yr warrantty.





Jen

[Ewok]

well i didnt gain 1mhz overclock on gpu or cpu when i switched from my 400w sparkle to my 510w pcp&c. so dont go expecting extra overclocks if you already have a decent psu cos you might be dissapointed. some people seem to gain a bit and some dont but its a very high price for at most a tiny gain.

im safe in the knowledge i have the best psu money can buy and im perfectly happy with it, but they arent for everyone.

[Jeff]

That's what I wanted to hear Ewok. Thanks for saving me the trouble/expense.

[Barracuda]

is there any store in europe that can i buy this psu (PC Power & Cooling 510W)?
better in U.K?

[Emericana]

i have personally used 3 PSU's in my personal machine.... a Antec 400w, a TTGI 520W, and right now a Antec True480w

I havnt noticed a SINGLE difference between these psu's whatsoever except for fan noise....

get whatever is the quietest PSU you can find

[Ewok]

Originally posted by Barracuda
is there any store in europe that can i buy this psu (PC Power & Cooling 510W)?
better in U.K?

no america only

[saaya]

i heard those true control psus are not really that good...

[FishaOfMen]

A high quality PSU may not make that much difference in an overclock, but you can also count on keeping the PSU for years. I'd rather have the best and most reliable PSU for 5 years than have the best motherboard for 6 months. Furthermore, the PSU may not make much of a difference on your overclock with your current setup. But with all the different hardware configs you will have in the future, it's bound to play a major role at some time. TheDude had his overclock increase by 150Mhz by going from a TTGI-520SS to an Antec TrueControl550.

[Dr. Possum]

I'm still having trouble deciding. If the PC Power & Cooling was quieter, I wouldn't hesitate for a moment to get it. But hearing that it is fairly loud is kind of disheartening. Of course, you never want to skimp on a PSU, but isn't the TrueControl just about the best before you get into PCPC?

I can deal with the noise fine, but I've never experienced a quiet computer, and with the watercooling setup I'm getting, it'll be almost silent save the HDD and the PSU...the TrueControl is also much cheaper.

Dunno...I'm torn.




~DP

[saaya]

then get it and replace the loud fan with a bigger silent fan or put 2 silent fans in there if you worry about cooling.

just make sure the capacitors are decharged when you open it!

[Dr. Possum]

How would I 'decharge' the capacitators?


Hmmm...I could replace the fan, but I'm sure they put a powerful fan in there for a reason; if I downgrade it, I could be doing damage, couldn't I? And if I add another fan, I would be voiding any warranty I had.




~DP

[starck]

another good thing about PCPC, you can ask them to add pots or change to a different fan before they ship the unit to you, that way you could have a customized PSU feeding all your needs, but...you have to pay additional $$.....and they have good customer service too.

[Dr. Possum]

Hmmm...

Well, I don't think I'd be stressing the PSU that much. One optical drive, one hard drive, a couple low RPM case fans, and the MCW50-T T.E.C. which draws 7.5A. I could probably get away with a weak fan, right?



~DP

[saaya]

well you would void your warranty i you open the psu...

but replacing the fan is pretty easy. best way to decharfe the psu is to plug it on your mobo , DONT plug the psu in, so it has no power and then start your pc. if there was still some eectricity in it most of it got out by doing that, then leave the psu rest for one or two days, so the rest of the electrons slowly dissipate.

then open the psu, unplug the fan (most psus have case fans in them) and replace it with a different fan. did that with the psu of a guy from my school. i replaced the noisy 80mm fan with a 92mm silent fan, that had about the same cfm.

[Major]

I don't think it voids your warranty with PC P & C if you open you psu up !hehe They faxed my instructions on how to adjust the overvolt protection and set the rails per spec, all of which involved going into the psu enclosure. They rma'ed mine without any problems with the QC sticker removed.

[Major]

Dr. Possum see what you started !

Trust me on this one, I have built alot of systems. mb's, cpu's, and ram are the flavor of the month. But there are several things that remain constant through every build that you should NOT skimp on, the most important being the PSU.

[XtremepH]

Well it looks like I will be replacing my current PSU and will be getting a PC Power Cooling PSU.