I am building my first rig, or at least looking at the parts I will get so when I get the money I can buy them...
Anyways, I have been watching the show on YouTube since around the video "has apple really ever invented anything?" and think it's a great show and website for people like me who are getting into computer building.
Anyway, I have a few questions about power supplies. On several of your shows, you mention to never skimp out on power supply. By that, do you mean just get a good brand, or go for something with a lot of Watts? Also could doing something that uses much more Watts then the parts recomend have the possibility of damaging the parts? Obviously I know that I shouldn't use anything less then what is recommended, the current build I am looking at now is 246W, so I need to know if I should go no higher then 300 or if it would be better to do something with 500W or more. Also what is a good brand of power supplies you would recomend.
when they say don't skimp that means get a quality brand power supply such as seasonic, antec, corsair, or xfx. For a build consuming 245 at full load you will want a 350-450w power supply with a 80plus rating to get the most out of it as they are most efficient at 50 to 75% load.
Power supplies are manufactured by one company (the OEM), and rebranded by another. XFX power supplies are made by Seasonic, probably the best manufacturer. So, it pays to work out the OEM of different product ranges. I believe the HX and AX series from Corsair are made by two different OEMs.
You want a single 12v rail. Good efficiency certifcation (80+ bronze and above). This will prevent voltage ripple and fluctuations that can damage your components.
Sufficient watts, it is always best to give yourself a bit of headroom, but not too much. I always see people buying 1000W supplies for a comparatively small system.
550W is recommended for a gaming system, with a single graphics card. That includes a fully overclocked system (CPU, GPU).
Ok, thanks guys, I ended up choosing this one: SeaSonic G Series SSR-550RM 550W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS GOLD Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply