Modular or not...????

K

kazgirl

Geek Trainee
Hi all,

I'd really like to know what to do with this dilemma...??

I'm builidng a new PC and can't decide whether to get a modular PSU or non-modular.....!!!!!!

I know that having a modular PSU increases the amunt of resistance due to the added connections between the rail and components, but then having a modular means less cables cluttering the case and reducing airflow etc...

Whereas with the non-modular then you get the lower resistance with the direct connection from the rails to the components, but then you've got the all the surplus cables cluttering up the case affecting the thermals in the case...????

I'm trying to decide between a Thermaltake 750W W0117 (non-modular) Seen Here -
Welcome to Thermaltake

or Thermaltake 750W W0116 (modular) Seen here - Welcome to Thermaltake,

Both of these are available for the exact same price of £82.00 inc. delivery...!!!

The W0116 (modular) has a direct connecting main 24 pin and 4 pin power cables, with the SATA, Molex, and PCI-E connections being available as add-on cables via the plugs on the PSU.

My PC is going to have 2 SATA HDD's and one SATA DVD-RW drive, so a total of 3 SATA power connections

The W0116, comes with 2 supplied add-on SATA cables each with 3 SATA connections, so I could just use one cable connected to power all 3 SATA devices, and leave the other one out until a time when it may be needed.

Similarly there are 2 molex connection cables each with 4 molex connections per cable, and my PC will be using a Thermaltake Big Water cooling system so will need, 2 molex connectors to power each of the 2 fan/radiator units (my mistake these will probably connect to fan connectors on the mobo), and 1 molex connector to power the pump, and I'll also have a card reader installed so this will I think need another molex, and a cold cathode lighting kit needing 1 molex for the inverter, so if I use all these components on a single cable, I'll be saving another cable being in the case. So just the 1 molex to power the pump, and 1 for the card reader, and 1 for the cold cathode inverter.

I'm going to have 2 8800GTS 320Mb cards running in SLI, eventually, so will be using both the PCI-E connectors.

All other devices will be powered from the mobo connectors, i.e the case fans...

So with all the tubing for the Water cooling I'm thinking about the modular PSU being the best option to reduce clutter in the case.....

Another thought which may affect the
power useage, I have a powered USB hub into which my keyboard, PDA docking cradle, and an unpowered 4 port hub are plugged, and into the USB ports on the PC I have plugged - my printer, my speakers, and the previously mentioned powered hub, all powered by the mains, and a webcam which is powered by the USB port, my LAN connection (1 of 2) is also in use, connected to my wireless router which is powered by the mains, not sure if any of this has any affect on the matter....

But I really need to know if the extra resistance involved is going to have a significant impact on stability etc....

My set up can be seen in my siggy below....

Any help welcomed.....

Thanks

Kaz
 
The more and more we see out of modular power supplies, at least the good brands--not turds like Q-Tec, the more the arguement on resistance seems to fade as a major issue. It's still there, but I'm starting to doubt it being quite the apocalyptic issue that's been claimed. (and yes, I know I made the arguement against modular PSUs in the PSU sticky)

Personally, I'd go with whatever of those two Toughpower units are cheaper. The modular version is the same guts from what I can tell with, obviously, modular wiring. The Toughpower line is an excellent choice from the good reviews I've read (jonnyguru, [H]ard|OCP, etc.), and the 750W units will be more than enough for your box.
 
Hi Big B, many thanks for your advice, I had spent some time doing some checking onlinew, reviews and the like, and as you say the reviews seemed to be good. As it happens the choice was takenb out of my hands as the supplier ran out of stock of the modular version, and so I ended up getting the W0117 (non-modular) version instead, guess I'll just have to try and stash the extra cables in the 5.25" bay....I could have got the modular version from another supplier but it was £20.00 more expensive, so decided against it.....so now I'm just waiting for all my goodies to arrive, everything ordered, paid for and just waiting to be put together, so watch this space, I may well be running into problems later..and need some further help/advice.....this is my first time at building a PC from scratch, and I think I may have been a bit ambitious in going for the added complexity of the water cooling, but we'll see, it all looks straight forward enough....and I've done quite a bit of planning in advance, where this is going to go and where that is going to go etc....

Anyway really appreciate your advice good to know that the PSU will be ok...I tried using the AMD PSU calculator, but only found it after I had ordered the PSU, and the AMD calc threw up a minimum PSU requirement of 750W, so was beginning to wonder if I needed even more.....but I'm guessing that they are being overly cautious in their calcs, to make allowances for novices like myself......

Thanks Again
 
Zip-ties are your friend when it comes to wire management. Plus, if you've got a windowed case, it looks good too.
 
Yeah, I'm trying to get my hands on some UV reactive ties, but if I can't get them in the next week, then I'll just use some clear ties, can always replace them at a later date when/if I manage toget the UV ties, guess then it'll be a matter of whichever looks better...thanks for the tip.

Kaz
 
Black is also safe. Outside of tying up extra wires, it can also help streamline the remaining wires in use. Now, depending on how picky you are, it can take awhile. I know I'll spend several hours wiring things up just right, but I'm quite particular about it.
 
Yes, I'm hoping to get it looking as clean as possible inside, so want to try and organise the cables as best as possible, so probably will spend quite a lot of time on it myself.....the PSU cables are sleeved with a balck braid sleeving, so probably will go with the black ties for them and try and use UV ones for the water cooling tubes, and clear ones for securing cables to case, trial and error, I think to see what works.....I checked out the desktop mod you posted in the mods forum, and that looks really good, and I'd like to aim for something like that for mine, I know that the water tubes wil present a bit of a problem for me, as I don't want to bend them too much, though I've seen somewhere a flexi hose that can go over the tubes which make them easier to bend into shape without putting any kinks in the tube, once it's all done to my liking I'll post a piccy....thanks....I love this forum...
 
Also, stop over at [H]ard|Forums and check out their Cases and Modding section. They've got a Gallery area with a clean wiring job thread. There's some good ideas of how to utilize the space.
 
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