[wsume99]

Idling - 10min:
Peak: 68.6w
Average: 54.4w

54w @ idle? Methinks you either got a bad processor or bad meter.

Everything I have seen shows this processor at 25w during idle.

Actually I'd say that the cause is most likely his 600w PSU. It's probably ~50% efficient at the loads that he's seeing. Without a doubt he is going to see lower power use if he swaps to a picoPSU. I saw ~15w reduction in my system when switching from a 430 Antec Green PSU to my picoPSU. If I had a 600w PSU the difference would probably have been even larger.

[Dougie Fresh]

Idling - 10min:
Peak: 68.6w
Average: 54.4w

54w @ idle? Methinks you either got a bad processor or bad meter.

Everything I have seen shows this processor at 25w during idle.

Actually I'd say that the cause is most likely his 600w PSU. It's probably ~50% efficient at the loads that he's seeing. Without a doubt he is going to see lower power use if he swaps to a picoPSU. I saw ~15w reduction in my system when switching from a 430 Antec Green PSU to my picoPSU. If I had a 600w PSU the difference would probably have been even larger.

Confusing thread, isn't it? He's actually the one with the 150W PSU in the CFI case. I think.

AFAICT, the peak wattage during idle is some kind of intermittent process. All the graphs have periodic spike in CPU activity. When it's actually idle the graph dips down below 20W but the spikes are skewing the avg.

[wsume99]

Confusing thread, isn't it? He's actually the one with the 150W PSU in the CFI case. I think.

Oops, my bad. However the PSU may still be a problem if it is just a cheap one that was included with the case.

AFAICT, the peak wattage during idle is some kind of intermittent process. All the graphs have periodic spike in CPU activity. When it's actually idle the graph dips down below 20W but the spikes are skewing the avg.

Where are you seeing watts on the graph? All I see is CPU utilization (%) and temps.

[Dougie Fresh]

Confusing thread, isn't it? He's actually the one with the 150W PSU in the CFI case. I think.

Oops, my bad. However the PSU may still be a problem if it is just a cheap one that was included with the case.

AFAICT, the peak wattage during idle is some kind of intermittent process. All the graphs have periodic spike in CPU activity. When it's actually idle the graph dips down below 20W but the spikes are skewing the avg.

Where are you seeing watts on the graph? All I see is CPU utilization (%) and temps.

Yeah, duh on my part. I was seeing the left as wattage. Don't ask me why. Forum fatigue?

It still holds that something is causing spikes in the CPU usage which likely cause spikes in the wattage but it's hard to say.

I've used that PSU in a couple of builds (CFI makes the Rosewill RC-CIX-01 with the same PSU) and while it's not the best it's not that bad of a PSU. I have two customers still running them after a couple years now with Atom D525 systems.

[vinesh]

I have a CFI case and stock PSU.

When my machine is idling, it is showing around the 55w mark.

When running XMBC and Iplayer or Netflix - it peaks at 64w.

The stock PSU is not very efficient.

[Icerat]

Hi guys thanks for the replies

It's hard to say with that PSU in the mix and the CPU spikes if the 90W will work for you where it has for others. If you can get the picoPSU 120-WI-25 and a 18.5V or 19V adapter that's the next best choice. You could drill a 5/16" hole in the PCI slot cover to mount it. If that's not available the 12V 120W picoPSU and a 102W adapter will work too. If you want the full 120W then you need to get the mini-fit JR adapter and a 12V 10A AC adapter with the 4-pin mini-DIN plug though IMHO the 120-WI-25 and 18.5V or 19V AC adapter is a better choice.

Ill have a chat with the guy who sells them on ebay and see what he can do, I've seen he sells PicoPSU 120w WI Power Supply Mini ITX EPIA VIA Pico PSU is that the one you were on about?

54w @ idle? Methinks you either got a bad processor or bad meter.
Everything I have seen shows this processor at 25w during idle.

How would i test if its a bad CPU as it seems to run fine, the meter was only a £10 cheap one off ebay, link.

I have a CFI case and stock PSU.
When my machine is idling, it is showing around the 55w mark.
When running XMBC and Iplayer or Netflix - it peaks at 64w.
The stock PSU is not very efficient.

I'm more inclined to believe the PSU isn't very efficient and a little flakey as i have had a couple of system reboots and its taken more then 2 presses of the power button to get the machine to fire up some times (then again this could be a CPU problem, it's only happened 2 times since its been built). It looks like vinesh confirmed my idling wattage, does this confirm an inefficient PSU?

[vinesh]

Hi guys thanks for the replies

It's hard to say with that PSU in the mix and the CPU spikes if the 90W will work for you where it has for others. If you can get the picoPSU 120-WI-25 and a 18.5V or 19V adapter that's the next best choice. You could drill a 5/16" hole in the PCI slot cover to mount it. If that's not available the 12V 120W picoPSU and a 102W adapter will work too. If you want the full 120W then you need to get the mini-fit JR adapter and a 12V 10A AC adapter with the 4-pin mini-DIN plug though IMHO the 120-WI-25 and 18.5V or 19V AC adapter is a better choice.

Ill have a chat with the guy who sells them on ebay and see what he can do, I've seen he sells PicoPSU 120w WI Power Supply Mini ITX EPIA VIA Pico PSU is that the one you were on about?

54w @ idle? Methinks you either got a bad processor or bad meter.
Everything I have seen shows this processor at 25w during idle.

How would i test if its a bad CPU as it seems to run fine, the meter was only a £10 cheap one off ebay, link.

I have a CFI case and stock PSU.
When my machine is idling, it is showing around the 55w mark.
When running XMBC and Iplayer or Netflix - it peaks at 64w.
The stock PSU is not very efficient.

I'm more inclined to believe the PSU isn't very efficient and a little flakey as i have had a couple of system reboots and its taken more then 2 presses of the power button to get the machine to fire up some times (then again this could be a CPU problem, it's only happened 2 times since its been built). It looks like vinesh confirmed my idling wattage, does this confirm an inefficient PSU?

Spoke to FullSpeed IT (Ebay Pico Seller) and explained my current wattage use.

Checked my spec - 90w unit should be fine with my setup -

ASrock h67m-itx
4gb RAM
G530 CPU
Asus GT430

Also a 120w unit would be a overkill.

[Dougie Fresh]

I can believe that about the G530. I was testing a G530 setup last night with Prime95 and it maxed at 44W. The A6-3500 hit 77W in the same test.

[Icerat]

Hi
Chatting with FullSpeed IT also he going to have a think for me

[assassin]

I can believe that about the G530. I was testing a G530 setup last night with Prime95 and it maxed at 44W. The A6-3500 hit 77W in the same test.

Similar to my tests although I don't run Prime95 as there is no point for HTPC use. Idles around 20w with peak of 30-35w during 1080p playback. Even lower wattages if using a PICO-PSU.

[Dougie Fresh]

I can believe that about the G530. I was testing a G530 setup last night with Prime95 and it maxed at 44W. The A6-3500 hit 77W in the same test.

Similar to my tests although I don't run Prime95 as there is no point for HTPC use. Idles around 20w with peak of 30-35w during 1080p playback. Even lower wattages if using a PICO-PSU.

For "idle" (nothing running just sitting at desktop) and watching 1080p video the G530 and A6-3500 were about the same, ~20W and ~30W respectively. These were done using a 120W DC board and either 84W or 120W AC adapter.

I run Prime95 to make sure the AC adapter (60W, 84W or 120W) is matched appropriately for the worst-case.

[bluray]

Similar to my tests although I don't run Prime95 as there is no point for HTPC use.

I never like to sell myself short with under power PSU. I'm always go for the max spec......I want to make sure when I need it I have enough power to handle it. I tend to transcode blu-ray while watching blu-ray on the same HTPC too. When I buy PSU I'm always shooting for 50%-70% of the max spec.....PSU tend to run most efficient at 50% load too......!

[Icerat]

edit

[vinesh]

Brought a Pico 90w from FullspeedIT.
Ordered yesterday lunch, arrived today!!

Checked the wattage usage - 30-40w with Pico (1080p and XBMC)

[Beer40oz]

Brought a Pico 90w from FullspeedIT.
Ordered yesterday lunch, arrived today!!

Checked the wattage usage - 30-40w with Pico (1080p and XBMC)

Yes the 90w and 90w brick works well with the A6-3500 they are a great match.