Problem PSU?

oddsprite · 03-25-2008, 05:55 PM

Hello,
I've owned a Shuttle SN45G for several years and in order to give it a new lease of life I decided to upgrade the RAM, CPU and Graphics card.
The upgraded spec is as follows:

CPU: Athlon XP 3200+
RAM: 2GB (2x1GB DIMM) PC3200 Samsung
Graphics Card: ATI Radeon 9800XT
HDD: 320GB Seagate (IDE)
Optical Drive: Sony DVDRW

I don't have any other special components installed (I'm using the onboard sound).
However, after installing the new components I have been getting errors with Prime95 and other benchmark tests. Also I have been experiencing graphical glitches and generally poor performance in games. I have updated BIOS's, drivers, even reinstalled windows and the problems still persist.
Since the SN45G ships with a 200W PSU I have come to the conclusion that this is the problem. However I wanted to get a second opinion, as the next available power supply (Shuttle PC50) is an appreciable amount of money to be spending on a whim. Any ideas?

Kind Regards,
oddsprite

Tumbleweed36 · 03-25-2008, 06:20 PM

Actually, 200 watts in a power supply is almost unheard of in today's world. Even the ATI 9800XT would push a 200 watt power supply IMHO, because I have that same video card in one of my spare computers.

However, you need to see what your case takes, because if you can get a standard (I don't know your computer) ATX power supply of another brand instead of one sold by Shuttle, then you might save some money. Is the power supply a standard ATX?

oddsprite · 03-25-2008, 06:27 PM

Unfortunately not. Due to the shuttle formfactor the PSU is a small, special built unit as far as I'm aware. I bought the system as barebones including PSU and Motherboard several years ago (2004 ish).
I used to run an ATI Radeon 9800 SE in the machine with an AMD Athlon XP 2800+ and 1gb of PC2100 RAM. I never had any problems with it using the 200W PSU. This is why I'm suddenly thinking the extra components are causing too much demands for power. The replacement PSU is 350W and is the maximum a shuttle unit of that size can take.

Tumbleweed36 · 03-25-2008, 06:31 PM

Have you checked Ebay for a used one. Some times one can find supplies over there for a song. Just be sure the seller has a 98% or so rating and you should be safe.

oddsprite · 03-25-2008, 06:44 PM

Ebay was my first port of call.
Several searches turned up nothing, ebuyer is a rounded £65.
Thanks for the 2nd opinion!
For reference, the PSU wattage calculator listed by several members thinks my system needs approx 278 watts.
I'm surprised I can even get into windows on that 200W PSU!

oddsprite

03-25-2008, 05:55 PM	#1 (permalink)
oddsprite Registered User Join Date: Mar 2008 Posts: 11 OS: Windows XP	Problem PSU? Hello, I've owned a Shuttle SN45G for several years and in order to give it a new lease of life I decided to upgrade the RAM, CPU and Graphics card. The upgraded spec is as follows: CPU: Athlon XP 3200+ RAM: 2GB (2x1GB DIMM) PC3200 Samsung Graphics Card: ATI Radeon 9800XT HDD: 320GB Seagate (IDE) Optical Drive: Sony DVDRW I don't have any other special components installed (I'm using the onboard sound). However, after installing the new components I have been getting errors with Prime95 and other benchmark tests. Also I have been experiencing graphical glitches and generally poor performance in games. I have updated BIOS's, drivers, even reinstalled windows and the problems still persist. Since the SN45G ships with a 200W PSU I have come to the conclusion that this is the problem. However I wanted to get a second opinion, as the next available power supply (Shuttle PC50) is an appreciable amount of money to be spending on a whim. Any ideas? Kind Regards, oddsprite

03-25-2008, 06:20 PM	#2 (permalink)
Tumbleweed36 Asst Manager Hardware Join Date: May 2005 Location: USA Posts: 19,652 OS: XP Professional	Re: Problem PSU? Actually, 200 watts in a power supply is almost unheard of in today's world. Even the ATI 9800XT would push a 200 watt power supply IMHO, because I have that same video card in one of my spare computers. However, you need to see what your case takes, because if you can get a standard (I don't know your computer) ATX power supply of another brand instead of one sold by Shuttle, then you might save some money. Is the power supply a standard ATX? __________________ ---------- I don't receive email notifications of replies to subscribed threads. (Internet provider policy) Therefore, if I don't respond to your post within 24 hours, please send me a reminder PM and include the link to your thread. Last edited by Tumbleweed36; 03-25-2008 at 06:22 PM.

03-25-2008, 06:27 PM	#3 (permalink)
oddsprite Registered User Join Date: Mar 2008 Posts: 11 OS: Windows XP	Re: Problem PSU? Unfortunately not. Due to the shuttle formfactor the PSU is a small, special built unit as far as I'm aware. I bought the system as barebones including PSU and Motherboard several years ago (2004 ish). I used to run an ATI Radeon 9800 SE in the machine with an AMD Athlon XP 2800+ and 1gb of PC2100 RAM. I never had any problems with it using the 200W PSU. This is why I'm suddenly thinking the extra components are causing too much demands for power. The replacement PSU is 350W and is the maximum a shuttle unit of that size can take.

03-25-2008, 06:31 PM	#4 (permalink)
Tumbleweed36 Asst Manager Hardware Join Date: May 2005 Location: USA Posts: 19,652 OS: XP Professional	Re: Problem PSU? Have you checked Ebay for a used one. Some times one can find supplies over there for a song. Just be sure the seller has a 98% or so rating and you should be safe. __________________ ---------- I don't receive email notifications of replies to subscribed threads. (Internet provider policy) Therefore, if I don't respond to your post within 24 hours, please send me a reminder PM and include the link to your thread.

03-25-2008, 06:44 PM	#5 (permalink)
oddsprite Registered User Join Date: Mar 2008 Posts: 11 OS: Windows XP	Re: Problem PSU? Ebay was my first port of call. Several searches turned up nothing, ebuyer is a rounded £65. Thanks for the 2nd opinion! For reference, the PSU wattage calculator listed by several members thinks my system needs approx 278 watts. I'm surprised I can even get into windows on that 200W PSU! oddsprite