External Power Supply and Graphics Cards

[Ripox]

Hey guys. Currently, my desktop (small form factor) uses an external power supply as a power source. The external power supply is 220Watts and I'm currently using a GT545 (Yes, OEM, yes pre-built, please don't complain about that). In the future I might contemplate upgrading to a GTX660. Will the external 220Watt power supply handle the GTX660 or will I need to buy a new external power supply? Can anyone recommend/link a good external power supply that can handle the GTX660? Additionally, can anyone recommend which GTX660 I should get with a link? I saw like 10 different kinds on Amazon (superclocked and all that stuff) which I really don't care about overclocking. Thanks guys

[Cyanotical]

no, you will need to get a new case and an ATX form factor PSU to run the 660

[Deleted]

From googling:

Average system with a gtx660 = 450-500w

So yes, new psu. No idea about how great any external ones are though. You may be better off getting a new case. (will a 660 even fit in a small case? idk)

Most gpus of the same kind will be similar enough. Just the aftermarket coolers, that make the most difference. If it's a reference model, just go with the best price / warrenty.

[Butler to Baby Sloths]

If the case is small enough to need an external PSU, it is most likely too small to fit a 10-12 inch, dual slot graphics card.

[Xuvial]

Need at least 380-400w (quality PSU) to power a 660-based build, preferably a 450w+ if you're going for a middle-grade PSU and want some expansion/OC room.

[Ripox]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130787

^ This will work fine on a 330w external PSU here: http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/p...=baynoteSearch

Should've noted that my PC is an Alienware x51

It doesn't take up much juice and there are many people using the aforementioned graphics card with no problems on the computer. Can provide multiple youtube vids and reviews if anyone doesn't believe but thanks for the help guys, I'll be going with this GTX 670 when I feel I need an upgrade

The epic thing is that it has the blower fan from the GTX680 :3

[noteworthynerd]

From http://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages..._review,7.html:

GeForce GTX 670 - On your average system the card requires you to have a 550 Watt power supply unit.

So no, it will not "work fine" on a 330w PSU. 330w might be enough to power just the card, but that card isn't the only thing in your PC... As someone with first-hand knowledge on what can happen if you try to power a PC with an insufficient PSU, I can tell you definitively that you don't want to cross your fingers and hope it is enough when it comes to power supplies.

If you need more convincing, here's the company's product page: http://www.evga.com/Products/Product...02G-P4-2678-KR

Requirements

Minimum of a 500 Watt power supply.
(Minimum recommended power supply with +12 Volt current rating of 30 Amps.)
Two available 6-pin PCI-E power dongles

[Ripox]

Yes mate, they say 500w so that it can run on any computer, even those big ones that have all those fancy things that take up a lot of juice, so they can't get in any trouble. I am speaking in the specific case of my alienware x51 which really does not take up much power at all. My computer right now with the GT545 takes up less than 180watts.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YhhODhzf9Kw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hOq55...eature=related

"yes, i still have the 330 watt stock standard psu,"
"Well, yes... actually the galaxy gtx 670 can be supported by the alienware x51. Let me explain you why. This videocard, use 175 watts when you play 3 games at the same time or something like that, obviously it needs a lot of power for that.
In my case i have proofs that I edit videos in adobe premiere pro or sony vegas pro and i render my full hd videos when i playing sleeping dogs or hitman absolution sniper challenge and I dont have any kind of problem. Buy the galaxy or the evga, dont worry."

[yurano]

"yes, i still have the 330 watt stock standard psu,"
"Well, yes... actually the galaxy gtx 670 can be supported by the alienware x51. Let me explain you why. This videocard, use 175 watts when you play 3 games at the same time or something like that, obviously it needs a lot of power for that.
In my case i have proofs that I edit videos in adobe premiere pro or sony vegas pro and i render my full hd videos when i playing sleeping dogs or hitman absolution sniper challenge and I dont have any kind of problem. Buy the galaxy or the evga, dont worry."

Did they show that their GPU was actually running at full load? I don't feel like Adobe Premiere Pro or Sony Vegas Pro utilize 100% GPU consistently. There are only a couple of games that can fully stress a 670 and I'm pretty sure Sleeping Dogs and Hitman Absolution are not it.

Anandtech shows the stock 670 system running at about 310W.

I hope your 330W external PSU is quality because 310 is pushing it. I think PSUs are rated as power draw from the wall. After power efficiency and such, you might not actually get all 330W.

[Butler to Baby Sloths]

The rated output is the output. Efficiency is the amount of wall power that is lost as heat (mostly) when being rectified and transformed to 3.3, 5 and 12V DC. I wouldn't run a 310W system on a 330W power brick. Heck, I wouldn't run it on a 330W platinum rated seasonic PSU.

[Ripox]

As a precaution most users who install the GTX670 on the x51 with a 330w PSU use the MSI power controller to threshold power usage of the card to avoid any possible issues. Most tend to go for 80% threshold while not seeing major differences in performance

[yurano]

As a precaution most users who install the GTX670 on the x51 with a 330w PSU use the MSI power controller to threshold power usage of the card to avoid any possible issues. Most tend to go for 80% threshold while not seeing major differences in performance

Then why bother buying such a powerful card?

[Deleted]

Where will the 6 pin gfx connectors come from if the PSU is external?

[inux94]

Power from the wall > External PSU > Cable goes into the computer > it splits into ie. 24 pins, 6pins, sata power etc.


_________________________________________________________________

[Butler to Baby Sloths]

As a precaution most users who install the GTX670 on the x51 with a 330w PSU use the MSI power controller to threshold power usage of the card to avoid any possible issues. Most tend to go for 80% threshold while not seeing major differences in performance

If you are going to downclock the card by 20%, get a 660ti (which is basically a downclocked 670 with a couple of shaders disabled).

[Deleted]

Power from the wall > External PSU > Cable goes into the computer > it splits into ie. 24 pins, 6pins, sata power etc.


_________________________________________________________________

Along where all the drive power comes from lol, fml.

[Dinnerbandit]

The Nvidia GTX 660 series GPU's average power consumption is 97 watts while idling and 271 watts while under a load. This power consumption varies from manufacturer to manufacturer and is dependent on things such as fan size, amount of memory, etc... but those consumption figures are an average of 6 GTX 660 configurations. You can read more about the GTX 660 and its specifications at http://hardocp.com/article/2012/09/1..._card_review/1

[inux94]

Along where all the drive power comes from lol, fml.

In this case (hah, get it? Case!), it's only a 70w PSU connected to an ASRock E-350 motherboard and 8GB of Kingston RAM.

[Butler to Baby Sloths]

Am I being blind again, or why can I not see enough space in those pictures for a 4-5 inch wide and 10 inch long graphics card?

[inux94]

It's a very small case, there isn't any expansion slots for GPU's on the case.

Really just a computer for netflix/youtube.