Home installation Lounge: worried about power requirements
worried about power requirements
by tonenyc - 11/21/07 12:33 PMwell i am thinking of building a new computer but i am a bit concerned about the power some of the power supplies require. I see some of them go up as high as 1200 watts.. 1.2kW is a lot. of course, i am a man and i want the power in the vein of tim allen from home improvement.... ARR ARR ARR ARR. LOL. alas, i don't have his character's health insurance nor home insurance nor a good friend to help me avoid actual death.
so my question is, can a typical power outlet (NYC, USA) handle such a hungry power supply? exactly, how much can a typical outlet handle? i'd like to know my limits so i can stay within a comfortable range at least.
power requirements explained
by firedancingleopards - 11/22/07 5:59 PM In reply to: worried about power requirements by tonenycHi,
First of all, 1200W refers to DC output. It is the maximum amount of power the Power Supply would be able to 'supply' to your PC's internal components. It doesn't refer to what it pulls from the wall, or the power supply's AC Input requirements.
A Thermaltake Toughpower W0133RU ATX12V/EPS12V 1200W power supply, for example, has a ~maximum~ power draw of 15AMPS at 110V AC. But this power draw will likely be less, depending on how many hard drives, video cards, CD-ROM drives, cooler fans, PCI cards, USB devices, etc. are pulling DC power from the PS.
For reference, a typical 350W power supply can handle most basic PC's today, with a single hard drive, a single CD/DVD drive, one or two cooling fans, a single video card, and a standard AMD or Intel CPU and its original cooling fan. This power supply would typically draw 5 or 6 amperes from your 110V outlet.
The question of whether your typical NYC power outlet can handle a 1200 watt power supply is also going to depend on your circuit breaker's amperage rating and its existing load. A typical 110V circuit breaker would have a maximum rating of 15A. Each electrical device you plug into the circuit will draw a certain amount of amps. The combined amperage of all devices should not exceed the breakers rating or it will trip.
So, in choosing a power supply, you should first worry about how much power are your PC's internal components going to draw. (you might not even need such a large PS). Then, based on the PS you choose, it will have a specific maximum AC Input requirements (in terms of AMPS - amperes),
Then, depending on your particular circuit's breaker rating, its actual load (i.e. how many other appliances or devices are connected on the same circuit), and just how much power your PC's components are consuming you 'may' have enough power to run your new PC on that old NYC power outlet.
Good luck!
-elCharlie
sorry
by firedancingleopards - 11/22/07 6:14 PM In reply to: power requirements explained by firedancingleopardsI was watching a movie while typing the above post, and after reading it, I realize it may have been a little more confusing than it needed to be. Still, I hope I gave you enough information to help answer your question.
Happy Computing!
-elCharlie
lol thanks
by tonenyc - 11/22/07 10:50 PM In reply to: sorry by firedancingleopardsi got it.
| Forum legend: | |
 |
Locked thread |
 |
Moderator |
 |
CNET staff |
 |
Samsung staff |
 |
Norton Authorized Support team |
 |
AVG staff |
 |
Windows Outreach team |
 |
Dell staff |
 |
Intel staff |
