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How to Build a Computer from Scratch for Beginners - 5 Minute Guide - Power Supply

Updated: Jul 28



Hi,

Welcome back to “how to build a computer from scratch for beginners” the five-minute guide. Is it me or is the title getting longer and longer… just me… ok…

If you haven't seen any of the other videos in this series, please head over to the playlist.


Alright, in this video we will discuss Power SUPPLIES!!!! Because this is actually a big topic and you guys have been asking me about this… A LOT. So let’s talk about what they do and we’ll get to the breakdown of recommendations later in the video.


So I’m sure you’ve gathered that power supplies give power to the computer. I knew you guys were smart. But the question is Why all the numbers and does it really matter what I get? THAT indeed is the big question. So I’m going to drop a little electric knowledge on you guys. Power supplies run on DC… AHHH I PLUGGED MINE INTO THE WALL IT’S GOING TO BLOW UP!!!! Wait, but it hasn’t. Well, that’s because the power supply's main function is to invert the power, that’s right. It takes AC from the house and converts it to DC. This is also why we see all the numbers 600 watts, 1300 watts, 3million watts… ok maybe not that last one but you get my point.


Side note, if you guys are also curious what this “80plus” junk is I’m going to tell you. It’s a voluntary certification for products that have more than 80% energy efficiency at 20%, 50%, and 100% rated load, and a power factor of 0.9 or greater at 100% load. The bronze to titanium is based on how much over 80% it is. Bronze is around 82% and Titanium is as much as 94%. *** I do want to also mention degrading. Power supplies degrade over time, it’s natural. The more the power supply has to work to maintain a certain wattage the lower the life span. This doesn’t mean to go out and buy a 1k watt for your 300-watt system, but I would say for that system a 600watt will last you longer than a 450 or 500 watt. ***


Breakdown:

Sadly power supplies are not going to have tiers. There are really just wattages you are going to look for and some other certifications to keep an eye out for. I am going to say, that in most cases, you are looking at 750 to 800 watts depending on the video card. Power supplies that are in the thousands are generally for systems that have more than one video card and or lots of hard drives.


Recommended PSU's

- 750 Watt (Seasonic has 10year warranties as well)

- 1200 Watt (for multi Video Card Applications)


Hit me up with any questions in the comments. Thanks for watching “how to build a computer from scratch for beginners” the five-minute guide and we’ll see you in the next video.

Thank you again to all who have used our affiliate links! Please continue to keep using them! Every little bit helps the channel! Thank you again, everyone!


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