The power supply unit PSU is often the most overlooked component of the PC. It is also the component that usually first develops a fault. When purchasing a PSU, make sure it has enough capacity to power all the components of your PC and with a little to spare. The PSU should have enough capacity to power the CPU, GPU, HDD, CD drive, motherboard and with a little to spare in case of an upgrade.
To know the PSU capacity you should buy, add up the power requirements of all major components of your PC, will give you a great idea of the power capacity ups you should have.
Modern power supply units for PCs are usually rated between 1000 to 1500 Watts.
Types of PSU
The two types of PSU out there are the wired and the modular PSU. The wired PSU comes with connecting wires attached permanently to the power unit. The modular PSU comes with connecting wires detached from the power unit, you only plug the ones that are needed. The modular PSU is more expensive due to the convenience it provides.
Power connectors
This refers to the connecting wires from the power unit to the PC components. It is your duty to check that the power unit you have purchased has the correct connecting wires and pin mouths to attach to your PC components such as the CPU, GPU CD-ROM , DVD and so on.
20 + 4 pin connector:
this is the connector for the motherboard. Your motherboard may come with a 20 or 24 pin connector.
The 4+4 pin connector:
this is the connector for the CPU, it can either be a 4 pin or 8 pin connector.
PCIE 6 Pin Connector:
this is a dedicated connector for modern GPUs. Older GPUs draw their power from the motherboard.
Molex connector:
this connector is used to provide power to the hard drive and the CD drive. Nowadays this connector has been replaced by SATA connectors.
SATA connectors:
these are the latest connectors for hard disk drives and optical drives.