Power Supplies for HTPC
#1
I'd like to start a thread focused on Power Supplies choosen for different HTPC builds, what to look for, and resulting experiences.

I would start by separation into three form factors (below), make the assumption that a well ventilated case is being used, and have the general criteria be quite operation, good performance, and quality.

As a side note, eskro had references a Seasonic SS-400ET w/ 120mm fan and dual 12V rails. Good starting point and good value!

The three sizes of HTPC for PS selection:

1) Regular size ATX case.

2) Medium size Micro ATX case.

3) Small size Mini ITX case.
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#2
In case anyone looks at this thread, I'm posting what I ended up selecting for a PSU in my micro ATX case and noting a good alternative if you can accomodate a fanless PSU:

SeaSonic M12II 520 Bronze 520W (120mm fan) 80 Plus Bronze certified

Seasonic SS-460FL or SS-400FL (fanless) 80 Plus Gold Certified
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#3
ATX case:
Be Quiet! Straight Power 400W GBP £56
135mm fan, 3 12V rails, 91% eff, 80+ gold, 3yr warranty
http://www.ebuyer.com/291724-be-quiet-e9...-psu-bn190

Put this in my dad's G530 machine. It's good. They do a modular version for about £20 more which is ideal for smaller cases. Fan runs virtually silent (16dB) up to 60% capacity which in a HTPC you'll never hit.

Be Quiet's 350W Efficient Power, £47, 92% eff, 120mm fan is also a good alternative.
baldmosher™
Trying to save his marriage with a HTPC
Current system: TV unit, 37PFL5405H, Microserver N40L (as HTPC), Xbox360, BDP-S370, FoxsatHD, Azur 540Rv2, Keysonic 540RF, Harmony 300
Planned W7x64 AMD mATX (HT)PC build: Case, PSU, RAM, Mobo, CPU Total £240 + IR + HSF? + SSD?
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#4
any size chassis:
picoPSU 90W (CPU TDP up to 65W, 1HDD, no discrete GPU)
picoPSU 120W (CPU TDP up to 65W, 1HDD, low power discrete GPU e.g. GT530, HD6570)
+ power brick rated 90W will be fine for HTPC use, power draw should only be about 60W max, but add more for HDDs, unpowered USB devices, etc. PSU is 100% efficient, no conversion. AC/DC power bricks will differ in quality and efficiency, so don't scrimp to get a cheap one. Be mindful of fake picos on eBay, but they're usually easy to spot. Few places in UK distribute them. One genuine UK seller on eBay at the time of writing. There's not a particularly big market for them I guess.
baldmosher™
Trying to save his marriage with a HTPC
Current system: TV unit, 37PFL5405H, Microserver N40L (as HTPC), Xbox360, BDP-S370, FoxsatHD, Azur 540Rv2, Keysonic 540RF, Harmony 300
Planned W7x64 AMD mATX (HT)PC build: Case, PSU, RAM, Mobo, CPU Total £240 + IR + HSF? + SSD?
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#5
Thanks for creating a worthwhile topic for discussion!!!

I'm a student, who is looking to build a customer HTPC, on a budget. I previously built one with my old computer, which ran off a full sized Foxconn motherboard, 1.6 AMD2 Sempron 64+, with 4GB DDR2 RAM (1x2GB, 2x1GB). The live version ran great, even with full HD movies.

I am currently using an Xtreamer Pro as a NAS server/media player, using 1x2TB WD Hard Drive, + 1TB Samsung.

I'm looking into an ITX motherboard, ideally making use of the AM2+ CPU and DDR2 RAM I have from my last build. My ideal system would include a DVD/Blu-Ray player and removal 2.5" sata hard drive, through a bay I have. I plan to run XBMC Live from a 16GB USB Drive.

I have just purchased the Gigabyte MIB T5140 as my case, which is equipped with a 65w power supply, with motherboard attachments, with a 5.5mm/2.1mm ac adapter/plug:

*AC Input 100-240v
1.5A
*DC Output
50-60Hz
12.0v ==5.0A MAX (60W MAX)

It has space for one 5cm fan, plus a vent for a fan above the CPU if required. I think this PSU will be insufficient and would hope to replace the AC Adapter with a high wattage version.

Can anyone advise me on what my power requirements would be and any suggested models? I am in the UK so eBay or Amazon is ideal.

On a side note, particularly because I think there is a lot of arrogance on the subject, what should I consider if I wish to move my hard drives from the Xtreamer to the HTPC, to run media directly from the same unit? The dual boot of the new Eden should make this worthwhile.
XBMC 13.02 'Gotham'
Windows 8.1

Zotac Ionitx F-E
Sandisk 32GB SSD
500GB Samsung 2.5" SATA Drive
4GB 800 mHz 240 pin DDR2 DIMM
Compucase 8K01 Mini ITX Case With 120w
HP RC6 IR MCE Remote

NAS DNS-320 Sharecentre
Netgear WN2000RPT Range Extender
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#6
Jace_mindu Wrote:Thanks for creating a worthwhile topic for discussion!!!

I'm a student, who is looking to build a customer HTPC, on a budget. I previously built one with my old computer, which ran off a full sized Foxconn motherboard, 1.6 AMD2 Sempron 64+, with 4GB DDR2 RAM (1x2GB, 2x1GB). The live version ran great, even with full HD movies.

I am currently using an Xtreamer Pro as a NAS server/media player, using 1x2TB WD Hard Drive, + 1TB Samsung.

I'm looking into an ITX motherboard, ideally making use of the AM2+ CPU and DDR2 RAM I have from my last build. My ideal system would include a DVD/Blu-Ray player and removal 2.5" sata hard drive, through a bay I have. I plan to run XBMC Live from a 16GB USB Drive.

I have just purchased the Gigabyte MIB T5140 as my case, which is equipped with a 65w power supply, with motherboard attachments, with a 5.5mm/2.1mm ac adapter/plug:

*AC Input 100-240v
1.5A
*DC Output
50-60Hz
12.0v ==5.0A MAX (60W MAX)

It has space for one 5cm fan, plus a vent for a fan above the CPU if required. I think this PSU will be insufficient and would hope to replace the AC Adapter with a high wattage version.

Can anyone advise me on what my power requirements would be and any suggested models? I am in the UK so eBay or Amazon is ideal.

On a side note, particularly because I think there is a lot of arrogance on the subject, what should I consider if I wish to move my hard drives from the Xtreamer to the HTPC, to run media directly from the same unit? The dual boot of the new Eden should make this worthwhile.

There are three questions I have:
1) What is the venting on you case like (I'm not familier with case you noted)?
2) How quiet do you need the HTPC?
3) Do you plan to ever use a high performance video card (unlikely with ITX mobo)?

For ITX you may be OK with 65W PSU or other low power PSU like a picoPSU (common for ITX) talked about on the forum (bluray and baldmosher have mentioned several). But if your case can accomodate and vent properly, the one I'd recommend for fanless operation that has all the power you'd ever need is the Seasonic SS-400FL (http://www.amazon.com/Seasonic-Fanless-A...634&sr=8-1).
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#7
I've used the Picopsus and they're a great solution as long as you don't have a larger GPU. I recently built a new XBMC client and it has a GT520 GPU - too much of a power hog for the Picopsu.

I ended up using the Seasonic SS-400FL. 400Watts and fanless. It also is a modular PSU. Quality appears to be quite good.
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#8
Hellcat Wrote:There are three questions I have:
1) What is the venting on you case like (I'm not familier with case you noted)?
2) How quiet do you need the HTPC?
3) Do you plan to ever use a high performance video card (unlikely with ITX mobo)?

For ITX you may be OK with 65W PSU or other low power PSU like a picoPSU (common for ITX) talked about on the forum (bluray and baldmosher have mentioned several). But if your case can accomodate and vent properly, the one I'd recommend for fanless operation that has all the power you'd ever need is the Seasonic SS-400FL (http://www.amazon.com/Seasonic-Fanless-A...634&sr=8-1).

Venting wise, there is a 5cm fan vent at the back and a grill at the top, for a CPU fan to blow out of (not holes for fit directly to the case).

Ideally, I want the system as quite as possible, making a passively cooled ITX ideal.

I'm not planning to use a seperate graphics card, only one fitted into the board. I previously used a PCE-E 1GB Gefore GS250 on my last building, but as I'm opting for a low power, quiet and slim build, this is no longer an option.

To support the slimline case I have, I am looking at external PSUs. So far, I have found up to 120w. Would this be sufficient for the ITX, CPU, 4GB RAM, 2 Hard Drives and a USB stick? I've used a few wattage calculators which say I need 300W, but other forums seem to suggest this is an exageration.
XBMC 13.02 'Gotham'
Windows 8.1

Zotac Ionitx F-E
Sandisk 32GB SSD
500GB Samsung 2.5" SATA Drive
4GB 800 mHz 240 pin DDR2 DIMM
Compucase 8K01 Mini ITX Case With 120w
HP RC6 IR MCE Remote

NAS DNS-320 Sharecentre
Netgear WN2000RPT Range Extender
Reply
#9
Jace_mindu Wrote:Venting wise, there is a 5cm fan vent at the back and a grill at the top, for a CPU fan to blow out of (not holes for fit directly to the case).

Ideally, I want the system as quite as possible, making a passively cooled ITX ideal.

I'm not planning to use a seperate graphics card, only one fitted into the board. I previously used a PCE-E 1GB Gefore GS250 on my last building, but as I'm opting for a low power, quiet and slim build, this is no longer an option.

To support the slimline case I have, I am looking at external PSUs. So far, I have found up to 120w. Would this be sufficient for the ITX, CPU, 4GB RAM, 2 Hard Drives and a USB stick? I've used a few wattage calculators which say I need 300W, but other forums seem to suggest this is an exageration.

My sense from discussion on this issue is that you sould be good with that 120w in an ITX slim build. I have not done this, but if you can look up specs on each component and see if they note max power consumption, you could just add it all up. I suspect you'll be well within 120w. Of course you don't want to demand full power from a PSU which would increase heat, risk of damage, etc., so I would not want to push more than 80% of what a PSU is rated at, and really much less under normal operation conditions.
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