Overclock.net › Forums › Components › Power Supplies › Two PSU's in one rig... Will it work?
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:

Two PSU's in one rig... Will it work?

Poll Results: Will it work for a short term replacement?

 
  • 72% (8)
    Yes
  • 27% (3)
    No
11 Total Votes  
post #1 of 25
Thread Starter 
Ok, I've done lots of research on this. I've gotten yes and no answers everytime. I Recently got a new pc, and I didn't have enough money left over to by the PSU I wanted. I was wondering if I could put two PSU's in one rig. I have a huge case so I'm not worried about that,

I only have $18.15 to spend. I WOULD buy a new PSU if I COULD. So please don't say "Get a PSU!" I will get more money in around 4 months. All I am hoping to do is hook a 430w up to my mobo ( specs below ) and hook a separate 250w-300w up to my gtx 480 1.5gb gpu. I was thinking of using Something like this: ( http://www.frozencpu.com/products/5637/cpa-167/Lian_Li_Dual_Power_Supply_Adapter_Cable.html ) . Please post if you think it would work or if you know of a better solution UNDER $18.15.

SPECS

Phenom II x4 970 B.E.
ASUS m4a79xd EVO
[=http://usa.asus.com/Motherboards/AMD_AM3/M4A79XTD_EVO/#specifications]Link to mobo[/]
2x4 GeForce DDR3 1600mhz
500gb HDD, 40gb HDD
GTX 480 1.5GB


Anyone else with this question look in the comments below. Thank you for your time.
Edited by SuicideJihaad - 9/28/12 at 4:42pm
post #2 of 25

I think it depends on the PSUs and whether or not it's safe to use them.  Some PSUs are so bad that I wouldn't even recommend them to my worst enemy.

 

So, can you provide the make and model of both PSUs?

 

I have 2 more questions:

 

  1. Do you have a video card in this system?
  2. Is anything overclocked?

Edited by TwoCables - 9/28/12 at 4:02pm
    
CPUMotherboardGraphicsRAM
i5-2500K @ 4.7GHz (1.368V using +0.005 offset) ASUS P8P67 EVO B3 (UEFI ver. 1850) GTX 580 (ASUS DirectCU II) G.SKILL Ripjaws X 8GB (2 x 4GB) 1866MHz, CL9 
Hard DriveHard DriveOptical DriveOptical Drive
60 GB Callisto Deluxe (C:) 64 GB G.SKILL Falcon (D:) Samsung SH-S243N 24x DVD Burner Samsung SH-S203N 20X DVD Burner 
CoolingOSMonitorKeyboard
Thermaltake Frio Win 7 Home Premium x64 SP1 Samsung 2253BW (1680 x 1050) Filco Majestouch 104-key Cherry MX Blues w/NKRO 
PowerCaseMouseMouse Pad
Corsair HX650 (major overkill, but it was cheap) CM 690 Microsoft Intellimouse Optical Basic, but premium round 
AudioOther
XtremeGamer (low-profile PCB) Altec Lansing VS4121 (2.1 speaker system) 
  hide details  
Reply
    
CPUMotherboardGraphicsRAM
i5-2500K @ 4.7GHz (1.368V using +0.005 offset) ASUS P8P67 EVO B3 (UEFI ver. 1850) GTX 580 (ASUS DirectCU II) G.SKILL Ripjaws X 8GB (2 x 4GB) 1866MHz, CL9 
Hard DriveHard DriveOptical DriveOptical Drive
60 GB Callisto Deluxe (C:) 64 GB G.SKILL Falcon (D:) Samsung SH-S243N 24x DVD Burner Samsung SH-S203N 20X DVD Burner 
CoolingOSMonitorKeyboard
Thermaltake Frio Win 7 Home Premium x64 SP1 Samsung 2253BW (1680 x 1050) Filco Majestouch 104-key Cherry MX Blues w/NKRO 
PowerCaseMouseMouse Pad
Corsair HX650 (major overkill, but it was cheap) CM 690 Microsoft Intellimouse Optical Basic, but premium round 
AudioOther
XtremeGamer (low-profile PCB) Altec Lansing VS4121 (2.1 speaker system) 
  hide details  
Reply
post #3 of 25
Why not just use the 430w by itself until you can buy a new one?

My thought is yes, it will work especially if both PSUs share a power strip.
post #4 of 25
I'd honestly wait, or keep an eye out in the marketplace for something used so you can have an idea what you can get with a budget you set.

A cheap-o PSU is like the doctor in the ally willing to hook you up to the black market for your spare organs.

What are the specific name and models of your psu's? Cheap ones tend to be under rated rely more on marketing than actual output ranges. Are they continuous or is that just their peak levels?
    
CPUMotherboardGraphicsRAM
i7 930 @ 4.02Ghz Asus Rampage III Extreme GTS 450 | 8800GT 6GB Corsair Triple Channel 
Hard DriveHard DriveHard DriveHard Drive
OCZ Agility 120gb 2TB Green   3TB Deskstar  3TB Barracuda  
Hard DriveHard DriveOptical DriveOS
2.5 7200rpm 500gb OCZ Vertex 128gb Asus External 7 Home x64 
MonitorMonitorKeyboardPower
Vizio 47" LCD Samsung 1600x900 Corsair K90 Corsair AX1200 
CaseMouseAudio
Switch 810 White R.A.T. 5 X-140 
  hide details  
Reply
    
CPUMotherboardGraphicsRAM
i7 930 @ 4.02Ghz Asus Rampage III Extreme GTS 450 | 8800GT 6GB Corsair Triple Channel 
Hard DriveHard DriveHard DriveHard Drive
OCZ Agility 120gb 2TB Green   3TB Deskstar  3TB Barracuda  
Hard DriveHard DriveOptical DriveOS
2.5 7200rpm 500gb OCZ Vertex 128gb Asus External 7 Home x64 
MonitorMonitorKeyboardPower
Vizio 47" LCD Samsung 1600x900 Corsair K90 Corsair AX1200 
CaseMouseAudio
Switch 810 White R.A.T. 5 X-140 
  hide details  
Reply
post #5 of 25
One technicality that should be met (and should not be so hard) is that the DC side of the power supplies (the outputs) share a common ground).You also want to wire one so it turns the other on. Other than the common ground configuration I cannot see an issue.
WC Rig
(13 items)
 
  
CPUMotherboardGraphicsRAM
i7-930@4.05GHz ASUS P6X58D-Preminum XFX GeForce 275 896mb 6GB Corsair TR3X6G1600C8D 
Hard DriveOptical DriveOSMonitor
WD 150gb Raptor LightScan Win 7 64-bit Acer 22" 
KeyboardPowerCaseMouse
G15 Corsair HX620W Antec 1200 several various 
Mouse Pad
none 
  hide details  
Reply
WC Rig
(13 items)
 
  
CPUMotherboardGraphicsRAM
i7-930@4.05GHz ASUS P6X58D-Preminum XFX GeForce 275 896mb 6GB Corsair TR3X6G1600C8D 
Hard DriveOptical DriveOSMonitor
WD 150gb Raptor LightScan Win 7 64-bit Acer 22" 
KeyboardPowerCaseMouse
G15 Corsair HX620W Antec 1200 several various 
Mouse Pad
none 
  hide details  
Reply
post #6 of 25
Due to the crossload that you are going to be putting the PSU that is powering that GPU through, you may see a large voltage drop on the +12v rail due to very little loads on the +5v.

If you were to use two PSUs in a single rig, you would them to be independent regulated or have a DC-DC converter on it's secondary (even then it would still be better to get a proper single PSU). The two PSUs that you have is most likely a group regulated design, so I would just suggest you save your $18 and put into the money that you are going to save for a proper PSU.
post #7 of 25
qwan,So one power supply will see the other as a load and it will affect the voltage on the 12V and 5V rails of the power supply that is not connected to a gpu?
WC Rig
(13 items)
 
  
CPUMotherboardGraphicsRAM
i7-930@4.05GHz ASUS P6X58D-Preminum XFX GeForce 275 896mb 6GB Corsair TR3X6G1600C8D 
Hard DriveOptical DriveOSMonitor
WD 150gb Raptor LightScan Win 7 64-bit Acer 22" 
KeyboardPowerCaseMouse
G15 Corsair HX620W Antec 1200 several various 
Mouse Pad
none 
  hide details  
Reply
WC Rig
(13 items)
 
  
CPUMotherboardGraphicsRAM
i7-930@4.05GHz ASUS P6X58D-Preminum XFX GeForce 275 896mb 6GB Corsair TR3X6G1600C8D 
Hard DriveOptical DriveOSMonitor
WD 150gb Raptor LightScan Win 7 64-bit Acer 22" 
KeyboardPowerCaseMouse
G15 Corsair HX620W Antec 1200 several various 
Mouse Pad
none 
  hide details  
Reply
post #8 of 25
The primary PSU that is powering the rest of the system should behaved like it normally would. What I was saying was that if the secondary PSU is a group regulated design and drawing up to ~200w or so on the +12v with very little +5v, this causes the voltages on the +12v rail to drop while the +5v to increase.

For example, the XFX Core Edition in Jonnyguru's review has shown the voltage on the +12v drop to 11.47v and the +5v increase to 5.24v when it draw all of it power from +12v. Both of which almost went out of 5% allow by ATX spec (out of the preferred 3%), while others group-regulated PSUs may even go out of specs.
post #9 of 25

I was using the same motherboard exact same motherboard AMD Phenom II 960T, ASUS M4A79XTD EVO, and a GTX 480.

 

It worked for me. I hooked up a Corsair 400w and an extra Corsair 430w. I needed the extra power supply to power the GTX 480 because my computer would shut off everytime I ran Furmark. I didn't use the adapter you linked but it looks like it would work. I did the paperclip trick to jump start the 2nd power supply.


Edited by listen to remix - 9/28/12 at 5:35pm
    
CPUMotherboardGraphicsRAM
Intel 2600k (Stock) Asus Maximus Gene V  Powercolor AX6850 Passive Cooler Gskill Ripjaws DDR3 1600MHz 
Hard DriveOptical DriveCoolingOS
OCZ Vertex II 90GB External Noctua NH-D14 Windows 7 Pro 64bit 
MonitorKeyboardPowerCase
Gone Microsoft Ergonomic 4000 Keyboard Corsair AX850 Silverstone FT03B 
MouseMouse Pad
Logitech G500 Black Normal 
  hide details  
Reply
    
CPUMotherboardGraphicsRAM
Intel 2600k (Stock) Asus Maximus Gene V  Powercolor AX6850 Passive Cooler Gskill Ripjaws DDR3 1600MHz 
Hard DriveOptical DriveCoolingOS
OCZ Vertex II 90GB External Noctua NH-D14 Windows 7 Pro 64bit 
MonitorKeyboardPowerCase
Gone Microsoft Ergonomic 4000 Keyboard Corsair AX850 Silverstone FT03B 
MouseMouse Pad
Logitech G500 Black Normal 
  hide details  
Reply
post #10 of 25
Correct me if I'm wrong... but I'm pretty sure a 430 can handle your rig solo. Most people overkill their systems with PSUs to be safe and give plenty of room for OC... but as long as you don't OC, you shouldn't have to worry about anything.

Rig builder suggests 550 for your rig, but I'm pretty sure that is a generous number.
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:
  Return Home
  Back to Forum: Power Supplies
Overclock.net › Forums › Components › Power Supplies › Two PSU's in one rig... Will it work?