Highly reccommended power supply? MUST BE QUIET

Sean · Post by **Sean** » Sun Apr 07, 2002 6:11 pm

I am looking for a very quiet PSU, that is at least 300w. I don't want to spend any more than 80$. But, i guess it depends on what i get for my Antec 400w Smart power Supply. All i have is one HD, 6 fans (12v), CD, and floppy. Nothing at all, so I think a 300w will work fine. I was looking at the Enermax adjustable PSU's. Looks like something that would be pretty cool to have.

However, just how quiet are these?

And, would anyone reccommend the True power series of PSU's? They are new, but seem pretty nice.

Any reccommendations would be greatly appreciated.jeez, i started looking for reviews, and can't find any. I read the one here, but that's it. Anyone know where I can find reviews on the PS I am looking at?

$63 - ENERMAX EG365P-VE(FMA). 350W Power supply for AMD K7 & Pentium4. Meet AMD K7 and Intel ATX +12V 1.1 and ATX 2.03 version (Pentium 4 fully support). Ultra cooling design: one 9 cm fan intake heat and one 8 cm fan exhaust heat. Fan Speed monitored by M/B & Adjustable. 9cm Thermal Control Fan. Retail. Model#: EG365P-VE(FMA) Special FedEx Saver Shipping $6.00 or, the one without mobo monitoring.. Don't know yet.

blade · Post by **blade** » Sun Apr 07, 2002 6:45 pm

Did you see this review from wvjohn? It's under the "reviews" tab. And it's the same enermax you are looking at.

Otherwise the 350w antec I got from kdc is very quiet and works well.

Sean · Post by **Sean** » Sun Apr 07, 2002 6:49 pm

I have an Antec right now, same that you got. it drowns out all my case fans and AX7 fan.

I just found this: http://directron.com/tt400ss.html. The guy said it is really quiet.

What i like about the one I found, is that the fan is adjustable, there's a little nob that lets you make it slower or faster.

BTW: Yes, I saw that review blade.

PreDatoR · Post by **PreDatoR** » Sun Apr 07, 2002 6:55 pm

Stay away from Enermax get the 350W Antec dual fan... They are fairly quiet... I just posted in your other thread so check that.

LoneWolfX1X · Post by **LoneWolfX1X** » Sun Apr 07, 2002 8:29 pm

well despite my previous displeasure with the enermax psus I have to say they did something right with the FMA's...

3rd on my list under PC Power and Cooling and Antec

the new FMA's are very quiet btw (you can dial the knob in the back to minimum and as long as you have ok case ventilation you should be fine...)

Sean · Post by **Sean** » Sun Apr 07, 2002 8:51 pm

Can someone explain why they are looked down upon? That's why i want to get an FMA, because of the speed dial. Very cool.

The reason i don't want to get antec's, is because it relies on heat. This means the fan could be very noisy, I want a quiet fan.

LoneWolfX1X · Post by **LoneWolfX1X** » Sun Apr 07, 2002 8:56 pm

well I've had serious issues with enermax psu's in the past...

basicly the older enermax psus are 100% incompatible with most epox mobos..

not to mention horrible 5v line feeds

BUT...

the new FMA models use a different design and are imho exceptional psus...just slightly overpriced...

another contender you might wanna look at is the ICute aluminums...spec wise theyre a few amps short of the enermaxes but their a lil cheaper and reports are very positive...

Sean · Post by **Sean** » Sun Apr 07, 2002 9:16 pm

Can you explain all these features in the Enermax'es? They have all this mobo monitoring stuff, but how does it work? There's one PS that is $10 more than the other, and the only difference is one is FCA and one if FMA. The FMA says this, "Fan Speed monitored by M/B & Adjustable." Whereas the FCA says this, "FCA function (Fan On/ Off Controlled by M/B & Adjustable), "sleeping mode" ." Can you explain the difference for me?

So, the 92mm fan has a 3 pin connector? Is that what they mean?

LoneWolfX1X · Post by **LoneWolfX1X** » Sun Apr 07, 2002 9:44 pm

the most important distinction is that the FMA uses a newer internal design and provides more stable voltages (ie the 5v rail problems are fixed)

trust me thats 10 bux well spent...

as for monitoring...they both use a 3 prong fan header for the 92mm fan but honestly your better off plugging it into a molex and saving your mobo the stress...

Sean · Post by **Sean** » Sun Apr 07, 2002 9:52 pm

The FMA is the least expensive one.

So, if i don't hook it into the mobo, none of those fancy features will matter, right? I will probably end up hooking the 92mm fan into my baybus, or something. The only thing i will use is the fan adjustable thing right outside the PSU.

LoneWolfX1X · Post by **LoneWolfX1X** » Sun Apr 07, 2002 10:08 pm

yeah youd be better off just plugging the 92 into your baybus

the dial on the back adjusts only the 80mm and at its lowest it should do you fine...

Sean · Post by **Sean** » Sun Apr 07, 2002 10:10 pm

Ok, so you basically reccommend the $63 + $6 shipped Enermax 350 w FMA PSU?

Thanks for all your help. I wouldn't have been able to choose my PSU without your input.

Now I just hope it's quiet enough, otherwise, I guess I'll have to live with it.

LoneWolfX1X · Post by **LoneWolfX1X** » Sun Apr 07, 2002 11:10 pm

yeah thats a good price and with the 80mm dialed to low and the 92 at 7v the blorb on my GF3 was louder than the psu

(gggrrr ... the space bar on my KB is dying

)

Sean · Post by **Sean** » Tue Apr 09, 2002 8:02 am

Check out this review, and tell me what you think.

http://www.icrontic.com/index.php?page= ... wareId=237

It's of the FCA, but the FMA is the same as the FCA, i think. Just a few fancier features.

Is it ok to have a 5v rail as low as 4.85?

LoneWolfX1X · Post by **LoneWolfX1X** » Tue Apr 09, 2002 8:39 am

4.85 is as low as I'm comfortable with...

as for the FCA vs. FMA comparison I cant stress enough how different they are

they made some serious circuitry changes on the m's and it shows in overall reliability and compatability w/mobos

(oh and as much as I like to avoid flamewars I refuse to visit icrontic...if you go there a lot rent a uhaul and load it up with salt...cuz your gonna need a lot of grains...)