Power Supply Which PicoPSU to get?

gligorot

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Original poster
Sep 18, 2017
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i3-8100 (65W TDP), NO GPU build. Otherwise it's standard, ITX motherboard, 2x4GB DDR4 RAM, HDD and/or SSD and potentially one case fan.

Is the 80W PicoPSU going to be enough for this build or should I get the 90W (or even higher?) version?

Thanks in advance,
G.
 

Kmpkt

Innovation through Miniaturization
KMPKT
Feb 1, 2016
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Should be fine. The PicoPSU units take 12V which means they produce much less heat than wide input or 19V Pico units. If you want to be safe, just grab the 120W as it's really no bigger and gives you some future proofing.
 

gligorot

Cable Smoosher
Original poster
Sep 18, 2017
9
1
Should be fine. The PicoPSU units take 12V which means they produce much less heat than wide input or 19V Pico units. If you want to be safe, just grab the 120W as it's really no bigger and gives you some future proofing.
Heat is of no concern to me. It's mostly about the budget and reasonable spending. If I get the 120 bundle one it comes out to 75 € which considering how much i pay for the other parts is an enormous percent of the total for a psu.

The 80w bundle is 63€, delta 12€, which is not a high difference when i think about it though.

Alternatively...I can find the AC/DC adapter for cheaper somewhere. Any ideas for this?
 

Thehack

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Mar 6, 2016
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Heat is of no concern to me. It's mostly about the budget and reasonable spending. If I get the 120 bundle one it comes out to 75 € which considering how much i pay for the other parts is an enormous percent of the total for a psu.

The 80w bundle is 63€, delta 12€, which is not a high difference when i think about it though.

Alternatively...I can find the AC/DC adapter for cheaper somewhere. Any ideas for this?

You can go for an Aliexpress Pico. It's about 16 Euro for one then you just source your choice of AC-DC Adapter. I've used a couple without any problems since most of the power regulation is on the AC-DC adapter.

Here's a good quality 12V desktop AC-DC (product page, just look for a local Meanwell source):
http://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/Mean-Well/GST90A24-P1M/
 

gligorot

Cable Smoosher
Original poster
Sep 18, 2017
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You can go for an Aliexpress Pico. It's about 16 Euro for one then you just source your choice of AC-DC Adapter. I've used a couple without any problems since most of the power regulation is on the AC-DC adapter.

Here's a good quality 12V desktop AC-DC (product page, just look for a local Meanwell source):
http://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/Mean-Well/GST90A24-P1M/
I did consider those but a few people here said that they burn out which wouldn't be a fun experience. They of course are a far cheaper option, but I'm not so sure about the risk of destroying 200 EUR + worth of components. On the other hand the PicoPSU's seem overpriced.

Which specific clone PSU do you have?
 

Thehack

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Mar 6, 2016
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I did consider those but a few people here said that they burn out which wouldn't be a fun experience. They of course are a far cheaper option, but I'm not so sure about the risk of destroying 200 EUR + worth of components. On the other hand the PicoPSU's seem overpriced.

Which specific clone PSU do you have?

I had the PicoBox one and a generic one. I also have used the official PicoPSU branded one as well. I have not had a problem with either of them.

That said, like in my Meanwell guide, I power the PCIe and the CPU EPS directly off the AC-DC so most of the current doesn't go through the Pico.
 
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Kmpkt

Innovation through Miniaturization
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Feb 1, 2016
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If heat is not a concern, have you considered getting an HDPlex 19V? It's 58 USD for the Pico with free shipping (49 €) leaving you with a reasonable amount of money left to get a lower wattage brick that meets your needs while retaining the option or using something larger later should you choose (up to 200W)
 

gligorot

Cable Smoosher
Original poster
Sep 18, 2017
9
1
I had the PicoBox one and a generic one. I also have used the official PicoPSU branded one as well. I have not had a problem with either of them.

That said, like in my Meanwell guide, I power the PCIe and the CPU EPS directly off the AC-DC so most of the current doesn't go through the Pico.

If heat is not a concern, have you considered getting an HDPlex 19V? It's 58 USD for the Pico with free shipping (49 €) leaving you with a reasonable amount of money left to get a lower wattage brick that meets your needs while retaining the option or using something larger later should you choose (up to 200W)

Sorry for the late replies, I've been busy.

I'll check out your responses, but this whole thing will have to go on pause as intel messed up coffee lake and its availability, both in processors and low end motherboards.

Thanks again for the timely replies.
 
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Soul_Est

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Feb 12, 2016
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Sorry for the late replies, I've been busy.

I'll check out your responses, but this whole thing will have to go on pause as intel messed up coffee lake and its availability, both in processors and low end motherboards.

Thanks again for the timely replies.
Have you considered going AMD and Ryzen then?
 
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