Many users, in pursuit of high-performance personal computers, forget about the main element of the system unit, which is responsible for the high-quality and timely supply of power to all components inside the case. This is a power supply, which buyers do not pay attention to at all. But in vain! After all, all the elements in the computer have certain requirements for power supply, non-observance of which will lead to the failure of components.
From this article, the reader will learn how to choose a power supply for the computer, and at the same time will get acquainted with the products of famous brands that are recognized by all test laboratories in the world. Tips for regular users and beginners, provided by experts in the field of IT technologies, will help to determine the choice in the store for all potential customers.
Definition of need
Before proceeding with the search for a decent power supply, all users need to decide on the power consumption of the computer. That is, first, the buyer must choose the elements of the system unit (motherboard, processor, video card, memory, hard drives and other controllers). Each component of the system in its specification has power requirements (voltage and current, in rare cases, power consumption). Naturally, the buyer will have to find these parameters, add them and save the result, which will come in handy in the future.
It doesn’t matter what actions are performed by the user: replacing the computer’s power supply or purchasing an item with a new PC - calculations must be carried out in any case. On some elements of the system unit, such as a processor and a video card, there are two requirements for power supply: active voltage and peak load. You need to navigate the calculations to the maximum parameter.
Finger to the sky
There is a strong opinion that for a resource-intensive system, you need to choose the most powerful power supply that is on the storefront. Such a solution has logic, but it does not fit with rationality and saving money, because the higher the power of the device, the more expensive it costs. You can buy a power supply for a computer, the price of which exceeds the cost of all elements of the system (30 000 rubles and above), but such a decision will cost a lot to the consumer in the future.
For some reason, many users forget about the monthly electricity consumption, which is necessary for the operation of a personal computer. Naturally, the more powerful the power supply, the more it consumes electricity. Economical buyers can not do without calculations.
Standards and Power Losses
A good computer power supply always has a sticker on the case that informs the user about the efficiency of the built-in transformer. On average, the efficiency of a conventional unit is about 75-80%. There are products that have an efficiency of up to 95%, but their cost rises in direct proportion to efficiency.
Power losses occur for several reasons. For example, heating (a normal physical process) is able to select 1-5% efficiency - depending on the material of the wire and its thickness. And low-quality capacitors in the power supply can “dip” the voltage, causing a power drop of up to 20%.
There are several standards on the global computer market that serious manufacturers adhere to: Gold, Platinum, Silver, Bronze, Plus. All of them demonstrate to the buyer their efficiency under different loads.
Identify by eye
Many advanced users who are knowledgeable in electronics know the approximate device of the computer’s power supply, and, accordingly, can say with confidence that the more capacitors, rectifiers and controllers it contains, the more efficient it will cope with energy supply. It remains only to add that the transformer coil should be rather big and have an additional power control unit.
In aggregate, all of the listed elements have a fairly significant weight, which makes the power supply heavy. Accordingly, any buyer can determine the quality of the purchased product directly in the store - just pick it up. The proprietary power supply is heavy (1-3 kg), while a cheap and ineffective fake is light (up to 1 kg).
Usability
It may seem strange to many customers one of the parameters of the power supply. It's about ease of connection. In most cases, the number of volatile components in the system unit is significantly less than the wires from the transformer. Accordingly, some connectors of the computer power supply will not be in demand. Naturally, excess cables in the case not only interfere, but also interfere with the operation of the cooling system.
In fact, having the computer tower of the Big Tower ATX form factor, unconnected cables can be twisted together with a cable tie and hidden in additional bays for optical drives. But the owners of small buildings such an operation is unlikely to succeed. Accordingly, when choosing, you need to pay attention to this functionality - the wires of the computer's power supply should be disconnected.
Features of the cooling system
Users who plan to place the system unit in an unventilated room should pay attention to ventilation. The fact is that the board of the power supply unit of the computer, like any other component in the system, can fail due to overheating. Chasing a large number of fans is not worth it, you must first decide on the computer case, or rather, with a niche for installing a power supply in it. There are upper and lower locations of the power supply in the system unit.
If the placement of the battery is planned at the bottom, then the device only needs one fan, which will pump air from below onto the elements of the power supply. Heat will be removed by the general cooling system of the computer. But when installing the PSU from above, a fan must be present to remove heat beyond the limits of not only the device case, but also the system unit. Before connecting the power supply to the computer, you need to make sure that the cooling system of the device is not blocked by anything (there may be stickers on new cases).
Additional functionality
Most well-known manufacturers who offer decent power supplies on the market equip their products with additional power buttons. This is done no longer for the convenience of the user, but for security purposes. The fact is that a computer that is turned off by software (if you do not disconnect the cord from the power outlet) is in standby mode. A small surge of energy that can occur in the electrical network (raising the voltage from 220 to 235 volts, for example) will create a pulse to the power supply and turn on the computer.
Tips for ordinary users are simple: you need to bypass the power supply for a computer, the price of which is below 2000 rubles, or if the device case does not have a power off button. When purchasing components for the system unit, it is generally not recommended to look at their appearance, since it is often misleading. For convenience and beauty, customers can only choose a computer case.
The bigger, the better
Many experts in their advice on how to choose a power supply for a computer recommend that all beginners pay attention to the number of connectors and cables - the more there are in the device, the more efficient and reliable the power supply system. This is the logic, because manufacturers before testing products on the market test. If the power of the unit is low, then it makes no sense to provide it with a large number of cables, because they will still be idle.
However, recently many negligent manufacturers go to the trick and provide the buyer with a large cable tie in a low-quality device. Here you already need to focus on other indicators of the effectiveness of the battery (weight, wall thickness, cooling system, the presence of buttons, manufacturing quality of the connectors). By the way, before connecting the power supply to the computer, it is recommended to visually inspect all the contacts coming from the head unit and make sure that they do not intersect anywhere (we are talking about cheap market representatives).
Hot sale
Seasonic, a company specializing in the production of batteries, is known worldwide. This is one of the few brands on the market that sells products of its own production under its logo. For comparison: the well-known manufacturer of computer elements - the company Corsair - does not have its own factories for the manufacture of power supplies and purchases finished products from Seasonic, equipping it with its own logos. Therefore, before choosing a power supply for a computer, the user will have to get to know brands better.
Seasonic, Chieftec, Thermaltake and Zalman have their own battery manufacturing plants. Products under the well-known brand FSP are assembled from spare parts manufactured at the Fractal Design factory (by the way, they have also appeared on the market recently).
Who should I prefer?
The gold-plated connectors of the computer's power supply are good, but is there any point in overpaying for such functionality, because it is known from the laws of physics that the current is transmitted better between homogeneous metals? But it is Thermaltake that offers users such a solution. As for the rest of the products of the famous American brand, they are impeccable. In the media there is not a single serious negative response from users about this manufacturer.
The brands Corsair, Aercool, FSP, Zalman, Seasonic, Be quiet, Chieftec (Gold series) and Fractal Design were on the shelf for trusted products. By the way, in test laboratories, professionals and enthusiasts check the power and overclock the system with the power supplies mentioned above.
Finally
As practice shows, choosing a decent power supply for a personal computer is not easy. The fact is that many manufacturers, in order to attract customers, go to all kinds of tricks: reduce the cost of production, decorate the device to the detriment of efficiency, present a description that is not true. There are many mechanisms of deception; they cannot all be listed. Therefore, before choosing a power supply for the computer, the user must study the market, get acquainted with all the characteristics of the device and be sure to find positive reviews about the product from the real owners.