What one needs to know about...the difference between Quality PSUs as opposed Poor quality units...and the effects of heat on your computer.
Poor quality units...are tested at a set temperature...from this their rating is determined... for most this No. is 25 degrees Celsius...which falls short of the temperature that most computers are capable of achieving.
Given that a PSU will actually lose 2-5 watts per one degree of heat above the 25 Degree Celsius testing temperature...coupled with the fact that computers tend to run at 10 degrees higher than room temperature... In the summer time when the room temperature can easily reach 80 degrees F... your computer will be running at 33 Degrees C. or 90 Degrees F.
So the...math can make...your 500 watt power supply into a 460 watt unit.
In addition to this...what needs to be taken into account is that each degree that your computer components are operating at...under powered...adds more heat to the equation.
Consider also...the possibility...that ratings given by the manufacturer of single components...such as graphics cards...need to be treated with skepticism... Manufacturers may minimize support issues and under rate the power required...in order to make a larger profit.
Power supplies convert voltages from wall outlets to lower levels used by the PC... During this conversion, some power is lost as heat... The poorer the quality of the PSU The higher the voltage that is required to produce the preferred results. Resulting in more heat that the PSU has to deal with
Therefore heat is the computers enemy...The hotter the temperature your PSU is forced to run at...the poorer the supply of power the rest of the components will receive...which has been known to lead to such things as crashes, freezing, rebooting, BSOD’s, and video distortion, as well as partial and complete failure of other components.
The fact is very few PSU’s are capable of producing the wattage that the companies advertise.
Quality units...are tested at very high temperatures...The efficiency rating of the PSU determines how much extra power must be put into the power supply to run the PC. A high quality PSU can help reduce the noise and heat generated within a computer system. The higher the efficiency rating the less heat the PSU has to deal with...Also the higher the quality of the PSU the higher the temperature that it can...safely... run your computer at...which reduces the need to run your computer at such low temperatures...that are hard to achieve.
A quality PSU of the right wattage...for your computer...can easily give you two or more more years of service
A quality PSU of wattage... higher than required...for your computer...can give you room for future expansion...
For a very good comprehension of recommended brand names, wattage, and models in listed categories...Plus much more...check out this link.
Power Supply Information and Selection - Tech Support Forum
