PSU Upgrade

GoldenIP · #1 05-09-2007, 04:12 AM

I've currently got a 300W PSU that came with the desktop PC I have. However, I'm concerned this is not providing enough power as my new graphics card alone recommends at least 350W PSU.

I'm competent enough to upgrade RAM and install a graphics card but upgrading a power supply looks like a nightmare. I know this probably sounds naive but is there an easy way of upgrading PSU without having to remove the existing one?

Perhaps an external PSU that I can literally plug in/bolt on to increase the power?

Thanks for the help.

Rhett · #2 05-09-2007, 04:31 AM

Cheap power supplies make your computer crash. 300W is almost certainly enough, but you only need a new power supply if the computer is crashing. A lot of computers have crappy power supplies, so people go way overboard and think they need a 500W power supply or something when they upgrade.

Another reason to upgrade a power supply is if you want a quieter one It sounds like you don't need a power supply.

You have to remove the existing power supply, but it isn't that hard. It's like putting together something from ikea.

kerowo · #3 05-09-2007, 07:57 AM

I'm in the same boat, I have a new vid card for my Vista machine so I can dual monitor but it requires a 350W PSU and the box only has a 300W. I just got finished swapping out the PSU on a different machine and while it isn't rocket science it was a large pain in the butt so I'm going to pay someone to do this one.

buckslayer80 · #4 05-09-2007, 10:48 AM

Disconnect and reconnect. No big deal.

kerowo · #5 05-09-2007, 11:31 AM

On the HP machine it wouldn't come out of the stupid case without removing more crap than I wanted to deal with. On the new case everything is hidden away and I don't even see where the plugs go into HD, DVD, and card readers. I've never been a hardware guy and this is beyond my 'put up with crap' threshold.

buckslayer80 · #6 05-09-2007, 12:51 PM

On small cases they can be a pain. On mid towers and above they're not bad.

CORed · #7 05-11-2007, 04:58 PM

A power supply isn't really that hard to replace. Unplug the all the cables from the power supply to the components, unscrew it, take it out, screw new one in, reconnect cables. If you have a lot of connections, you might want to make some notes about what you disconnect, but when reconnecting, any cable with the right connector will work.