How to choose power supply for PC

Hello to all readers. In this article we will talk about how to choose the right power supply for PC. The article will be small, since there is almost nothing to talk about here, everything is already very clear.

1. How to build a computer for beginners (overall)
2. How to choose a PC case.
3. How to choose power supply for PC [you are here now]
4. How to choose a motherboard
5. How to choose a CPU
6. What is RAM?
7. How to choose a graphics card for PC

How to choose the right power supply for your PC? My recommendations

I want to note that the computer power supply is an important detail and it is not worth judging it only by power. Pay attention to the brand. In no case do not buy an unnamed PSU or a PSU from a little-known company. The performance of your entire system and the safety of data depend on this. Because sometimes it happens that when the power supply fails, the motherboard and hard drives burn along with it. Think about it.

Computer PSU power

This power supply looks great!

It seems that quite recently (or I am so old) a 500W power supply was considered quite sufficient even for gaming computers. Now the situation has changed radically. On sale you can even find blocks with a power of 1500W.

It will not be difficult to calculate the power of the power supply you need, because there are a lot of various online calculators on the Internet for this. Just enter information about your planned or existing PC configuration into them, and they calculate the approximate power of the required PSU for you. There really is one nuance here – add another 15-20% to the calculated power, so as not to miscalculate.

If we average, then 350-400W will be enough for an office computer. For a home computer on which you will watch movies, surf the Internet and possibly play some games, about 500-650W will be enough. With what you can play in all modern games, if you put a gaming graphics card. And for true fans to spend time in games with good graphics quality, you will have to spend money out for a power supply unit of about 700-800W and above. You could even install two graphics cards at once in SLI mode and enjoy extraordinary graphics.

Manufacturers of power Supplies for computers

Quite a few companies produce power supplies for a computer, but, of course, not all of them are of high quality and not all are worth the money. In this article, we will present only those firms that can really be trusted.

If we consider power supplies in the price/quality ratio, then we can distinguish 2 manufacturers: AeroCool and DeepCool. They fully justify their price. I recommend.

SeaSonic power supply unit

If price is not important to you, then take a closer look at SeaSonic. SeaSonic is both one of the most expensive and one of the best power supplies for top-end computers.

There are also quite good manufacturers Zalman and Corsair. But I do not advise buying their budget models, frankly speaking, they are not very good. But their models, those that are more expensive, are very high quality.

Here are some other “guys” who have been on the market for a long time and consistently show good product quality – Cooler Master, Thermaltake and Chieftec. They always have an extremely low percentage of defective products.

Computer power supply: conclusion

Now, I think you know how to choose a power supply for your PC. I will list the main principles theses:

1. Do not take unnamed PSU. Look at the firm. The performance of the entire PC depends on the quality of the power supply unit.
2. For a office PC, it is acceptable to take a PSU built into the computer case, but not for a personal or gaming one.
3. After calculating the required power of PSU, add another 20% for peak loads.

And another very important detail, which I did not mention in the article. Consider yourself lucky if you’ve read to the end. PSU fan size. It should not be small. A good power supply unit for a computer has a fan with a diameter of 120 – 140 mm, no less.