EarthWatt 380W vs 500W efficiency for low consumption NAS

[xyomguix]

Hi all,


I am redesigning my NAS/HTPC and changing my PSU.
It contains the following HW:
- P5N7A-VM (integrated geforce 9300)
- intel E5200
- 4 sata disks
- DVD

I have a good deal for a second hand earth watt 500W : the price is just below the 380W : I know that I do not need the 500W but it has more potential for other future uses.

I am wondering if the 500W will be as efficient as the 380W in iddle (should be <60W) ?

What would be your advice ?

Cheers

[jhhoffma]

It's plenty efficient, but also noisier.

My EA430 started causing issues and I had to RMA it. Antec replaced it with a brand new Delta-built (instead of the original Seasonic built) EA500. The fan is quite a bit louder at idle. You could easily do a fan swap, considering it's second-hand, but is it worth it?

I was running a X2 4850e/780G combo with 6 HDD and a single DVD-ROM off my old SII-330 for over a year without issues. You have more power than you need...

[datapappan]

I'd agree about the 500W probably being noisier, albeit maybe more efficient at that load (haven't checked the exact figures). Noisewise there could be a problem with the fan not being able to ramp down from 500W to 60W, fans usually needs at least 50% of max speed to start reliably. Could be that you could rely on a case fan ventilating the PSU, and disconnecting it's own fan - or modding it with a lower rpm fan. Both alternatives are 'void-your-warranty' though.

/ d

[jhhoffma]

No, it's just the fact that the EA500's fan spins faster at it's minimum than the one inside EA380/EA430.

I created a separate chamber inside my Antec 300 to avoid heat contamination, so that definitely wasn't an issue. The LanBoy Air it's currently occupying has more than enough airflow to provide cool air, but also more HDDs to mask the noise.

Like you said, it's easily solved with a fan swap, but since it's now in a server in my basement, there's really no need.