Top -puter list shows a few running (6) GTX295, 3 cards.
Anyone clarify what power supply your using to feed 3 cards?

Btw, Interesting that "Who?" hasn't commented on these RACs since it's a metric he values so much.
No doubt...he's likely quite busy w/ upcoming 32nm "tick" & probably hasn't looked @ Seti in a while.
I'm sure he'll pop-up in Q4 to pitch Westmere's superiority to GPU for crunching ; > )

At first blush I would say a direct line to the power plant, but the 4x GTX280 machine at GPUGrid is using a Thermaltake Toughpower 1500W, with 4 PCI-E 8-pin and 4 PCI-E 6 pin power cables. I would guess something similar would push the 295s...

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Clk2HlpSetiCty:::PayIt4ward

I have 2 295's. I use a 1000w supply on the Core i7 they are in. My APC UPS says the whole system is drawing 500W currently.

Woah! I made a funny. "Currently".

I know, don't quit my day job.

Rob

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At first blush I would say a direct line to the power plant, but the 4x GTX280 machine at GPUGrid is using a Thermaltake Toughpower 1500W, with 4 PCI-E 8-pin and 4 PCI-E 6 pin power cables. I would guess something similar would push the 295s...

I'm not sure how they got their hands on that PSU if they are in the U.S., since there is a 1300W power draw limit for 120VAC devices here. That PSU is actually dual 750W units inside. Nice.

I'm using a Tagan BZ series 1300W PSU for my 6xGTX295 (3-card) system. I enjoy the modular wiring system and the pretty lights, of course.

With the 6 GPU max loaded and the CPU overclocked but only 50% utilized I'm drawing an average of about 970W at the wall outlet. I don't think a PSU should be loaded past 80% for constant output.

Don't make the mistake of walking into CompUSA and grabbing an Ulta X3 1600W PSU. It sure looked good with black chrome finish and evil black wiring. Then I counted the GPU power cables. It can only power 2 GPU. Grrrr.

Oh, and thank you to Who?, since his comments in that "Musings" thread were my incentive to build this rig. Yeah, I was upset, but in a good, geeky way. ;>

Bob Mahoney

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Opinion stated as fact? Who, me?

I think GPUGrid is run out of Spain...hence they wouldn't be running on 120v...

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Clk2HlpSetiCty:::PayIt4ward

I have 2 295's. I use a 1000w supply on the Core i7 they are in. My APC UPS says the whole system is drawing 500W currently.

Woah! I made a funny. "Currently".

I know, don't quit my day job.

Rob

Rob, that sounds almost too efficient re. power draw. I don't think my CPU is doing more work than yours, and the 470 more watts I use cannot be explained by one more GTX295 card. Do you think there might be that much greater efficiency with your x58 i7 mainboard and processor?

But at 50% draw on your PSU you are in a very efficient range, too.

And if you quit your day job I'll take your desk chair and voltmeter in your photo.

Bob

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Opinion stated as fact? Who, me?

I have 2 295's. I use a 1000w supply on the Core i7 they are in. My APC UPS says the whole system is drawing 500W currently.

Whoa! I made a funny. "Currently".

I know, don't quit my day job.

Rob

Don't worry I got It and It was/is "Currently" funny(zap). Maybe one of these days I can sell off the excess PC parts(3 motherboards, 3 cpus(1 is a dual, 2 are Quads)), Then I could get a GTX 295, My biggest psu is an OCZ 900w unit, It'll have to do for a while.

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The T1 Trust, PRR T1 Class 4-4-4-4 #5550, 1 of America's First HST's

At first blush I would say a direct line to the power plant, but the 4x GTX280 machine at GPUGrid is using a Thermaltake Toughpower 1500W, with 4 PCI-E 8-pin and 4 PCI-E 6 pin power cables. I would guess something similar would push the 295s...

I'm not sure how they got their hands on that PSU if they are in the U.S., since there is a 1300W power draw limit for 120VAC devices here. That PSU is actually dual 750W units inside. Nice.

Bob, actually, 1875W is the limit here in the US, that is why all hair dryers stop at that wattage, that's the limit out of a 15 amp circuit. I did see a PS that was rated at 1300/1700, 120/220v, so if you happen to have a 220v window A/C unit outlet sitting there unused...? ;)

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You know Bob, funny thing about that desk chair...

The other day at work, I was sitting down, RDP into a few boxes getting the low-down on my net when POP, THUNK! A wheel popped of my chair and whent flying off the side and hit the wall.

So there I sit at a 15 degree angle thinking, nothing says "FAT" like poping a wheel off and office chair. It would be one thing if the chair had 4 wheels, but this thing had 5.

Then I get home, same day. I sit down in the very chair you mentioned. I'm messing around on my machine, my wife was standing behind me. I started telling her about my day and about how I popped the wheel off the chair at work. So then I leaned back, like I always do, put my arms behind my head and POP! Another wheel, on THIS chair pops off. Dog runs over and picks it up and takes off.

Okay. I thought breaking one chair said "FAT". But two chairs said "PUT DOWN THE FORK".

And I thought my computers we're the super crunchers. Yeah, it's my a$$.

As far as the wattage reading goes Bob, it could be way off. Next time I see a kil-a-watt I will but it and bring it home. I shouldn't rely on what the APC is telling me. When I do get one, I will let you know what it says.

Rob

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You know Bob, funny thing about that desk chair...

The other day at work, I was sitting down, RDP into a few boxes getting the low-down on my net when POP, THUNK! A wheel popped of my chair and whent flying off the side and hit the wall.

So there I sit at a 15 degree angle thinking, nothing says "FAT" like poping a wheel off and office chair. It would be one thing if the chair had 4 wheels, but this thing had 5.

Then I get home, same day. I sit down in the very chair you mentioned. I'm messing around on my machine, my wife was standing behind me. I started telling her about my day and about how I popped the wheel off the chair at work. So then I leaned back, like I always do, put my arms behind my head and POP! Another wheel, on THIS chair pops off. Dog runs over and picks it up and takes off.

Okay. I thought breaking one chair said "FAT". But two chairs said "PUT DOWN THE FORK".

And I thought my computers we're the super crunchers. Yeah, it's my a$$.

As far as the wattage reading goes Bob, it could be way off. Next time I see a kill-a-watt I will but it and bring it home. I shouldn't rely on what the APC is telling me. When I do get one, I will let you know what it says.

Rob

I can do better than that Rob, I have a chair in the closet that's rated up to 350lbs, After a while It started to bend at the joint where the seat and the stand for the swivel chair meets, Needless to say I'm still trying to get below 350 for the last few months as I sit in an old 4 legged desk chair with a metal frame, Not too comfortable after a while and It doesn't swivel or roll around, But It is sturdy.

And one of these days I need to get a Kill-a-watt too. sigh, but then My shopping list at amazon.com is slowly growing shorter.

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The T1 Trust, PRR T1 Class 4-4-4-4 #5550, 1 of America's First HST's

I'm using a Tagan BZ series 1300W PSU for my 6xGTX295 (3-card) system. I enjoy the modular wiring system and the pretty lights, of course.

With the 6 GPU max loaded and the CPU overclocked but only 50% utilized I'm drawing an average of about 970W at the wall outlet. I don't think a PSU should be loaded past 80% for constant output.

Bob Mahoney

Thanks for the reply Bob. I wondered if a 1300W could do the job w/ Corei7.
There are some highly efficient PSs @ 1300W, BUT...the trick is the 3x 6-pin & 3x 8-pin connectors. Not many that offer this.

BTW, congrats on 40K RAC. That's a "first" here.
"Who?'s" Da MAN now??? Lol!

Update:

Using a Reliance Controls Applicance Load Tester, this PC is drawing 605 Watts.

The APC still says 400 Watts.

The Reliance Controls device was $29 at Lowes. Rated to 1875 Watts.

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Bob, actually, 1875W is the limit here in the US, that is why all hair dryers stop at that wattage, that's the limit out of a 15 amp circuit. I did see a PS that was rated at 1300/1700, 120/220v, so if you happen to have a 220v window A/C unit outlet sitting there unused...? ;)

Yeah, I saw a mention of that 1300/1700W PSU, I can't find my note about it. Sounded like a solution to this situation if you could wire a 220v outlet near your computer.

Those 1875W hair dryers confuse me.

Here's a quick article I googled up: http://www.enelps.com/partnerstvo/pdf2/wp/27.pdf

As I read it, this is the equation of lossage:

(Manufacturers must assume the circuit is 15 Amp, 120v, with substandard wiring.)

Input power x .80 for safety x .80 for PSU losses x.80 for not overstressing the PSU = a sucky limit on available PSU output in the U.S.

There are PC cases available that handle dual PSU, usually one in the top and one in the bottom of the case. Again, a second source of potential failure.

I tried a Tagan BZ 1100W for a week and found it was too close to the output limit to be happy with a triple x dual SLI setup with an OC'ed CPU. If you are efficiently feeding the GPU's and you run anything extra on the CPU, you need more power. S@H has some incredibly efficient optimized apps, and they push the PSU to the limit.

Bob

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Opinion stated as fact? Who, me?

Wow, 900W power consumption...

I wonder how much heat and noise that machine is generating.

Wow, 900W power consumption...

I wonder how much heat and noise that machine is generating.

Lots of each! That's the bad news.

The good news is, re. watts per credit, it is one of the more efficient computers running on SETI@home, I think.

Bob

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Opinion stated as fact? Who, me?

Wow, 900W power consumption...

I wonder how much heat and noise that machine is generating.

Lots of each! That's the bad news.

The good news is, re. watts per credit, it is one of the more efficient computers running on SETI@home, I think.

Bob

I'm looking at getting a Coolermaster 1250w psu, Yes It can do 3 way SLI as It has 3-6pin pci-e and 3-8pin pci-e connectors among others, plus It should have long enough cables for My Coolermaster HAF 932 case that I have, As I intend to build an X58 computer eventually, But first the GTX 295(1st of 3) and a psu and they ain't cheap either(the 1250w costs about $300 each). That should power a P6T(not the Deluxe), 6GB of ram, 3-GTX 295 cards, a couple hdds(one an ssd), a couple optical drives(really an ODD one;)), plus fans and such.

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The T1 Trust, PRR T1 Class 4-4-4-4 #5550, 1 of America's First HST's

u should be good with a 1200 w psu b/c they really make the capacity requirements higher than they should just in case something in psu or your sys pull extra power and likes to die and other stuff.

I'm looking at getting a Coolermaster 1250w psu, Yes It can do 3 way SLI as It has 3-6pin pci-e and 3-8pin pci-e connectors among others, plus It should have long enough cables for My Coolermaster HAF 932 case that I have, As I intend to build an X58 computer eventually, But first the GTX 295(1st of 3) and a psu and they ain't cheap either(the 1250w costs about $300 each). That should power a P6T(not the Deluxe), 6GB of ram, 3-GTX 295 cards, a couple hdds(one an ssd), a couple optical drives(really an ODD one;)), plus fans and such.

I agree with ZPM. The Cooler Master should handle the load you listed just right.

Bob

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Opinion stated as fact? Who, me?

I'm looking at getting a Coolermaster 1250w psu, Yes It can do 3 way SLI as It has 3-6pin pci-e and 3-8pin pci-e connectors among others, plus It should have long enough cables for My Coolermaster HAF 932 case that I have, As I intend to build an X58 computer eventually, But first the GTX 295(1st of 3) and a psu and they ain't cheap either(the 1250w costs about $300 each). That should power a P6T(not the Deluxe), 6GB of ram, 3-GTX 295 cards, a couple hdds(one an ssd), a couple optical drives(really an ODD one;)), plus fans and such.

I agree with ZPM. The Cooler Master should handle the load you listed just right.

Bob

Yeah that's what I thought.

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The T1 Trust, PRR T1 Class 4-4-4-4 #5550, 1 of America's First HST's

on the one thing about psu load is that 80 is good anything above that its not.

i myself got a 600 and 950 psu for my pc. no issue their. but only issue is the room pc is in thats all that can be plug in...... then another room has my computer farm for boinc. but again. onyl whats in that room is going to be used.