snip
http://tinyurl.com/9rhfl
So you're saying that 99% of the PSUs sold are mislabled generic pieces
of trash?
No, I'm saying, "your Aspire is not actually a 500W PSU".
There are, however, a very large number of other generics
that are similarly if not even more overrated. You would
not be so defensive if you had not bought it. Blame Aspire,
when they put that label on, it was their fault you didn't
get what it said you were getting. Below you ask why no
lawsuits, which I address in a bit more detail below, but
briefly- You have this psu- if you dont' sue them, you are
an example of why. If it fails a couple years from now will
you then see you did not get a decent PSU or will you make
some kind of false rationalization that you got your money's
worth and therefore it's OK in it's value regardless of
whether it was accurately rated, regardless of whether
another PSU might've lasted over twice as long.
Gee, it's a wonder any of us can build anything that boots/posts at all.
snip
The fact is, very very few systems need anywhere near 500W.
Regardless, itt doesn't change the fact that a PSU should be
rated accurately.
snip
Guess I missed that memo on the change in definition for Generic.
Was under the foolish impression genric items lack a brand or
manufacturer's name. Silly me.
You simply lack an understanding of the PSU market.
Same designs produced are labeled under multiple generic
names and other lower-end PC parts names too. Same PSU
inside, different colored case, maybe a clear window and/or
a cable sheath and some neon, LEDs, etc.
Power supply manufacturers are major brands. PC parts
relabelers sell a far lower # of units in the aftermarket.
Hope my pc with the 500 watt Aspire doesn't explode or meltdown.
It's been running almost non stop for a year.
Hope you understand that is is what usually happens. They
do want the PSU to at least last past the warranty, and to
at least be able to power an average system in the
upper-tiered price-points (per generic pricing that is).
You would get similar capacity in a good manufacturer's
name-brand for same price as you linked. However, there are
certain parts more suject to short lifespan like fans. You
have no idea how long your fans will last at the one year
mark, as the typical fans that die do run for a year or two
before their failure causes whole PSU to bake. I'd pulled
plenty of PSU to observe this. Then you buy another one.
There may easily be higher cost and you still dont' have a
PSU (combination of 2 psu lifespans) expected to run for 10
years as many decent name brands will.
Take a hint from the OEMs. They don't guess, they qualify
parts and go with fairly accurately rated units. If the
generics were such a bargain the OEMs would jump at the
chance to shave a few more $ off a system price by using
them instead... but what do they know, they only sell the
majority of systems.
snip
According to this site I need 138 watts to power up just the mobo:
http://www.jscustompcs.com/power_supply/
Wait, let me guess! They don't know what they're talking about either?
I can see you have no bearing on reality at this point.
I have not written anything to suggest that your motherboard
uses any particular wattage, nothing that either agrees nor
disagrees with their 138W estimate.
However, in fact, their calculator does estimate system
needs higher than actual. The motherboard estimate is a
little closer to reality than some, and the total figure is
off by the most as it's impossible for a system to put all
parts under full load. For example a year or two ago I
recall putting one system into that calc and it determined
the system needed about 440W. Same system still runs today
off of a good name-brand 300W PSU. However, it didn't
require as much 12V amperage as this P4 box does, making the
power requirements different.
I think 200 watts sounds good for the task at hand.
It is possible your combination of parts is using around
200W as a ballpark, maybe a little less than that. What we
have not established yet is still the same issue mentioned
previously, whether an unknown make/model of so-called
300-350W PSU is actually capable of this.
I have here a 400W generic PSU, some might call it a brand,
simply because this particular generic label has not made
like a gypsy and abandoned this name to move on to others
yet (exclusively, though there are other names they're sold
under), and this so-called 400W is not capable same output
as a 240W that's been running a server for several years. I
bought the 240W supplies by the case and direct comparison,
they can power boxes the so-called 400W can't.
Point is, so far the basic fact remains that no matter what
you want to accept about generic ratings, the basic issue
remains the same. You have a need to determine if the power
supplies you've tried are actually capable of outputting
(Not just the wattage, but the amperage per rail) the power
this particular parts-combination needs.
We've drifted around this topic but never really resolved
it. You cannot just assume a labeled wattage means
anything. This is a well-established fact across the entire
internet, and you can repeatedly and reproductibly test this
yourself if you have the equpiment to do so.
Gee, intel got sued years ago over a math error in the P2 or P3 cpu.
Seem to recall the error would occur once every billion calculations or
so. Intel gets sued for that, yet no one has taken these PSUs
manufacturers to task for selling us junk 99% of the time.
Tsk tsk tsk.
Know who starts lawsuits? Those out a lot of money or those
who already have a fair amount. Typically not those buying
generic PSU, having it fall as a used PSU since it's then
not worth much. A used generic PSU is worth very, very
little. A Pentium CPU had cost multiple times as much and
would've had more value still, as well as the results of
calculations having greater impact. It's worse to have a
computer that runs and produces wrong result than one that
doesn't run until you fix it, if you have any kind of
serious use.
Know how many of those buying generic actually test for the
labeled output? Even fewer. Know how many of those
recognize that a static resistive load test alone is not
sufficient? Even fewer. Know how many recognize the
importance of safety shutdown circuitry? (can you guess
which two words belong here? : _____________ ).
The fact is, people DO have generic PSU failures. If you
deny this then you're wearing blinders. It is evident they
fail and the user does not sue. There you have it... why no
lawsuits? Who says there aren't any? Why not more
lawsuits? Because when someone has a failure they don't
use. It was a cheap PSU and a lot of people knew they took
a gamble I suppose.
I'm a bit apathetic about your problems at this point.
Perhaps you would benefit from just reconsidering the whole
situation. The situation is that companies are not starving
to give you 50% more capacity for free. You got what you
paid for and nothing more. Ink on a label is free.
Sustainable power supply wattage is not.
And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the Universe is going to
pieces in a most laudable manner.
Note that I don't have a problem figuring out of my PSU is
adequate. I can try ONE and know if it was the PSU, not two
or three. I KNOW what brand of fan is in mine and I know
the brand in yours too. I have a few hear- they seized up.
With all due respect, you need to learn a few things before
jumping to conclusions then second-guessing those who
actually do the hands-on work and testing. You'll get
nowhere until you do these things. Same goes for
presumptions about ESD damage. You presumed this is the
probable cause without any event to suggest it.
Sorry if this rubs you the wrong way but you've drifted down
a tangent and it's for your own good that you realize where
you've gone wrong. Maybe it won't happen today, but you'll
keep facing similar issues if you dont realize this
eventually. Generic PSU certainly can be used, BUT they
have to be de-rated to their actual output capablity. That
was the central issue all along, that you have to know what
that actual capability is to judge it's fitness for any
given parts.
Did you even take voltage readings? It would be a bit
ridiculous to make any presumption about the power if you
haven't done that yet, but I suspect you will have none of
my ideas anymore so I guess I'll just exit the thread.
