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Motherboards, Processors and Recommended Power Supplies?
powerlord asks: "I am in the process of putting together an Athlon based system. While opening up the Motherboard (FIC-SD11) and processor boxes, I was shocked to find a list of 'Recomended Power Suplies ... void of warranty...'. I always assumed that if it was an ATX power supply it should be fine. Is there something special about an FIC and Athlon that make them more 'touchy' than other motherboards and processors? Is this just a legal disclaimer to limit themselves from being sued if the product is used in a way they didn't intend (running from a car adapter)? Is this the start of a new disturbing trend... buy what we've tested with or we won't honor our warranties? "
Somewhat offtopic, but..
:\ )
Does anyone know of a DC power supplyfor PCs? I mean the type that would take 12v DC as input instead of 115v/240v AC. (I know they all output DC for those would would troll at that
Such a thing would be more ideal than an inverter that tends to draw a lot more power than it can put out.
I haven't been able to find any, but I'm sure such a thing must exist, there's too many possibly applications for it not to. (or so I hope)
......"help help, I'm being REpressed"
it's the taking apart that counts
Power supplies are supposed to be beefy. This avoids a whole host of problems. I have seen going to a better power supply get rid of "gremlins" with disks, RAM, CPUs, and any kind of writing media (CD-Rs, tape). Any power supply that costs less than $150 for 300 watts is suspect. For a cheap low power (i.e., WinChip 200) IDE box, 225 watts from a small box is OK, if not loaded, and on a big UPS. For anything else, you need a decent supply. Trust me -- your components will run cooler, last longer, and you will have far fewer errors, let alone lock-ups.
These don't have to be new, either -- try scavenging the auctions or places where they break up unsold boxes and get a used power supply -- the good ones are built to last and do so.
The Athlon and it's motherboard are picky about the voltage going to them. The Athlon is a power hungry beast, and when it's load is dropped on most power supplies, the voltage tends to sag. So to save space, money, and everything else, they offloaded alot of the voltage regulation off the motherboard and put that responsibility onto the powersupply. Hold a Athlon-approved powersupply in one hand and a regular in the other. You can feel the difference in the weight. The Athlon approved has got beefier capacitors, and it's pretty rock solid on holding the 5 and 3.3 volt lines within a tight spec while heavily loaded. The power supplies aren't the cheapest things either; they're running around $45 here in San Diego, CA.
Jeremy
Jeremy
"Opinions are like assholes; everyone's got one..."
I've used a fair number of FIC motherboards in the past with several different power supplies and it should not matter. I think their reasoning on recommending power supplies is either because of special interest (paid to do so) or just out of courtesy. I would use a 250-300 watt power supply for an Athlon board, simply because the Athlon (along with the PIII) draws a lot of power, and chances are you'll add lots of drives, etc.
"In individuals, insanity is rare, but in groups, parties, nations, and epochs it is the rule." -Nietzsche
I have yet to build an ATX supply so I am unaware of how critical sequencing is (someone please mail me on that!) but the standby and power-up down should not be hard. Personally I think the standby is just a waste of power (esp. in a car), just optimise your startup scripts and keep most of the FS read-only and the rest mounted sync.
cya, Andrew...
This is my sig, exciting huh!
Ars went though this a while back at http://arstechnica.com/reviews/4q99/athlonmobo/sho otem-2.html
I will concur with most of their findings. We sell alot of the GVC boards around here and even they are picky about the power supply sometimes. IMO, I don't think that it's payola or anything like that, I just think that the newer, faster mother boards require a cleaner, more powerful P/S.
John.
(Snarfed the appropo. bits from the article below.)
>When I first got this board and plugged her in I was using a "PowerMan"
>FSP300-60GI to deliver the juice. I was able to get the board to boot up,
>but ye olde Win98 install would either BSOD or not boot! After working all
>the mojo I know on the 'board, I decided that I just got a flukey mobo
>that didn't work. When I got the second 'board in and had the same
>problems, I knew something was fruity.
>
>Looking through my materials once again, I noticed a slip of paper
>advertising the "recommended power supplies" for this board. Well, I
>mean, what does "recommended" mean? For me, it meant it was a no-go
>with my current setup. I called up and ordered a Sparkle Power
>FSP300-60GT from The Chip Merchant, and after dropping that supply into
>the box, lo and behold, the machine booted up with no further problems.
>This tells us to double-check the power supply in our machine before
>buying this board, or at least expect to purchase another supply with the
>motherboard. BTW, the PowerMan supply did work with the BCMGVC
>QS-750, so I know that it's a FIC-centric issue. And before you go dissin'
>the PowerMan power supply, chew on this: it's an OEM from Sparkle, one
>of the most well-respected suppliers in the industry, who made the other
>power supply that worked with this mobo. Can you say FICkle? Not to
>worry, though: you can check to see if your power supply is on the list.
>Here's something odd: the list is maintained by AMD!
fnord