Replacing power supply - what type?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Terry Pinnell
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Terry Pinnell

Could I get some help to make sure I order exactly the right model of
PC power supply please? My existing 4 year old unit in my AMD Athlon
XP1800, 512MB has been unreliable of late, (almost certainly due to
being underpowered since I added a couple of extra HDs, and a VDD
writer). It has now died altogether. The model is HPC-300-20 and it's
an 'ATX 12V', 'with PFC'. Its outputs are +5V, +3.3V, +12V, -5V, -12V
and '+5VSB'. Its peak load is 300W, so I want to replace it with a
400W type, but otherwise of same size, screw-hole positions and
wiring.

Any specific recommendations from a UK supplier would be much
appreciated please.
 
Terry Pinnell said:
Could I get some help to make sure I order exactly the right model of
PC power supply please? My existing 4 year old unit in my AMD Athlon
XP1800, 512MB has been unreliable of late, (almost certainly due to
being underpowered since I added a couple of extra HDs, and a VDD
writer). It has now died altogether. The model is HPC-300-20 and it's
an 'ATX 12V', 'with PFC'. Its outputs are +5V, +3.3V, +12V, -5V, -12V
and '+5VSB'. Its peak load is 300W, so I want to replace it with a
400W type, but otherwise of same size, screw-hole positions and
wiring.

Any specific recommendations from a UK supplier would be much
appreciated please.
Click to expand...
Hi Terry. I use Eclipse Computers of Coventry for all my stuff.
I`m lucky, I live close by.
I`ve pick a page of choice for you..
http://www.eclipsecomputers.com/productlist.aspx?type=2&id=9
 
beenthere said:
Hi Terry. I use Eclipse Computers of Coventry for all my stuff.
I`m lucky, I live close by.
I`ve pick a page of choice for you..
http://www.eclipsecomputers.com/productlist.aspx?type=2&id=9
Click to expand...

Thanks OJ. My problem is that I'm not really clear about the
specifications for the cables. For example, here are extracts for the
first few models on that page:

Vantec 350W Ultra Quiet Power Supply
------------------------------------
5.25" Device Power Connectors : 8 + 2x SATA
3.5" Device Power Connectors :

Thermaltake W0051 430W PurePower PSU
------------------------------------
5.25" Device Power Connectors : 2
3.5" Device Power Connectors : 9+2xSATA

Akasa PaxPower 400W ATX12 v2.0 Ultra Silent PSU with EPS
--------------------------------------------------------
"20-pin adapter for ATX version 1."
5.25" Device Power Connectors : 4 + 2 SATA
3.5" Device Power Connectors : 2

Antec SmartPower 2.0 SP-450P 450W Active PFC PSU
------------------------------------------------
"24-pin power connector with detachable 4-pin section for backwards
compatibility with ATX 20-pin motherboards."
5.25" Device Power Connectors : 4 SATA
3.5" Device Power Connectors :

One thing seems clear enough. These all seem 'Version 2' (like other
PSUs I've been viewing). I guess I must have Version 1. So presumably
I need to be careful that the motherboard connector has an adapter so
that it will fit my 20-pin m/b connection.

But I'm confused about the DC connectors. My dead unit has 5
connectors each containing 4 round sockets about 2.5mm in diameter.
They were powering my 3 hard drives, my CD drive, and my DVD drive. I
assume therefore that they are 3.5" connectors? If so, the Vantec and
the Antec appear to have *none*, and the Akasa only 2 of them. Only
the Thermaltake seems to have enough. Am I right? Can't see how they
would be much use on most PCs...?

My unit also has several other connectors, of which the only one I
think being used was a small 4-hole one, a bit like a phone socket
connector, used for the floppy. Is that what is described above as a
5.25" connector? If so, why would anyone ever want 8 of them? I'm
pretty sure that must be a typo on the page?

I suppose I could take a gamble, or try PC World so I can see what I'm
actually getting.
 
Terry Pinnell said:
snipped a lot
Click to expand...
Your right Terry, it can be confusing nowadays, `cos they`ve
brought out Sata drives etc.
And your probably right in getting something locally.
That way you can at least do a quick return\swap over if you have to.
Go for 400\450 watt, and not cheap.
If you can go about £40, they are normally better quality.
Yours will be ATX 1.
 
Terry Pinnell said:
Thanks OJ. My problem is that I'm not really clear about the
specifications for the cables. For example, here are extracts for the
first few models on that page:

Vantec 350W Ultra Quiet Power Supply
------------------------------------
5.25" Device Power Connectors : 8 + 2x SATA
3.5" Device Power Connectors :

Thermaltake W0051 430W PurePower PSU
------------------------------------
5.25" Device Power Connectors : 2
3.5" Device Power Connectors : 9+2xSATA

Akasa PaxPower 400W ATX12 v2.0 Ultra Silent PSU with EPS
--------------------------------------------------------
"20-pin adapter for ATX version 1."
5.25" Device Power Connectors : 4 + 2 SATA
3.5" Device Power Connectors : 2

Antec SmartPower 2.0 SP-450P 450W Active PFC PSU
------------------------------------------------
"24-pin power connector with detachable 4-pin section for backwards
compatibility with ATX 20-pin motherboards."
5.25" Device Power Connectors : 4 SATA
3.5" Device Power Connectors :

One thing seems clear enough. These all seem 'Version 2' (like other
PSUs I've been viewing). I guess I must have Version 1. So presumably
I need to be careful that the motherboard connector has an adapter so
that it will fit my 20-pin m/b connection.

But I'm confused about the DC connectors. My dead unit has 5
connectors each containing 4 round sockets about 2.5mm in diameter.
They were powering my 3 hard drives, my CD drive, and my DVD drive. I
assume therefore that they are 3.5" connectors? If so, the Vantec and
the Antec appear to have *none*, and the Akasa only 2 of them. Only
the Thermaltake seems to have enough. Am I right? Can't see how they
would be much use on most PCs...?

My unit also has several other connectors, of which the only one I
think being used was a small 4-hole one, a bit like a phone socket
connector, used for the floppy. Is that what is described above as a
5.25" connector? If so, why would anyone ever want 8 of them? I'm
pretty sure that must be a typo on the page?

I suppose I could take a gamble, or try PC World so I can see what I'm
actually getting.
Click to expand...
You have it backwards. The 5.25 are the hard drives/CDs while the 3.5
are for a floppy.
 
Terry Pinnell said:
Thanks OJ. My problem is that I'm not really clear about the
specifications for the cables. For example, here are extracts for the
first few models on that page:

Vantec 350W Ultra Quiet Power Supply
------------------------------------
5.25" Device Power Connectors : 8 + 2x SATA
3.5" Device Power Connectors :

Thermaltake W0051 430W PurePower PSU
------------------------------------
5.25" Device Power Connectors : 2
3.5" Device Power Connectors : 9+2xSATA

Akasa PaxPower 400W ATX12 v2.0 Ultra Silent PSU with EPS
--------------------------------------------------------
"20-pin adapter for ATX version 1."
5.25" Device Power Connectors : 4 + 2 SATA
3.5" Device Power Connectors : 2

Antec SmartPower 2.0 SP-450P 450W Active PFC PSU
------------------------------------------------
"24-pin power connector with detachable 4-pin section for backwards
compatibility with ATX 20-pin motherboards."
5.25" Device Power Connectors : 4 SATA
3.5" Device Power Connectors :

One thing seems clear enough. These all seem 'Version 2' (like other
PSUs I've been viewing). I guess I must have Version 1. So presumably
I need to be careful that the motherboard connector has an adapter so
that it will fit my 20-pin m/b connection.

But I'm confused about the DC connectors. My dead unit has 5
connectors each containing 4 round sockets about 2.5mm in diameter.
They were powering my 3 hard drives, my CD drive, and my DVD drive. I
assume therefore that they are 3.5" connectors? If so, the Vantec and
the Antec appear to have *none*, and the Akasa only 2 of them. Only
the Thermaltake seems to have enough. Am I right? Can't see how they
would be much use on most PCs...?

My unit also has several other connectors, of which the only one I
think being used was a small 4-hole one, a bit like a phone socket
connector, used for the floppy. Is that what is described above as a
5.25" connector? If so, why would anyone ever want 8 of them? I'm
pretty sure that must be a typo on the page?

I suppose I could take a gamble, or try PC World so I can see what I'm
actually getting.
Click to expand...

Ive got a Jeantech 450w from PCWorld powering an Athlon XP2400, 9700, 2 HDDs
and DVD + CDRW. It has extra wires that my 'older' system doesnt need but
thats not a problem. The brands you mentioned all good but you'll pay more
than you really need to just get a decent PSU. Ebuyer is good and cheap to
buy online from - dont touch Eclipse. I had problems with a £100 motherboard
I bought from them and the bastards messed me around something rotten. I
ended up driving from Cheltenham up to Coventry just to get it sorted out.
 
Terry said:
Could I get some help to make sure I order exactly the right model of
PC power supply please? My existing 4 year old unit in my AMD Athlon
XP1800, 512MB has been unreliable of late, (almost certainly due to
being underpowered since I added a couple of extra HDs, and a VDD
writer). It has now died altogether. The model is HPC-300-20 and it's
an 'ATX 12V', 'with PFC'. Its outputs are +5V, +3.3V, +12V, -5V, -12V
and '+5VSB'. Its peak load is 300W, so I want to replace it with a
400W type, but otherwise of same size, screw-hole positions and
wiring.

Any specific recommendations from a UK supplier would be much
appreciated please.
Click to expand...

UM, what i'd do is bring the thing in to your local computer shop, say
I need THIS kind of power supply with more juice. Go to several and
compare prices and brands.

The kind you describe is a very sandard model. not a propreitary brand.

There is one more caveat, that since you have so many drives, that the
total overall wattage is misleading. You want more wattage on the
lines that power your disk drives (+5, +12). The power supply you buy
should break down watts by line. And may give the total watts for +5
and +12.


..
 
beenthere said:
Your right Terry, it can be confusing nowadays, `cos they`ve
brought out Sata drives etc.
And your probably right in getting something locally.
That way you can at least do a quick return\swap over if you have to.
Go for 400\450 watt, and not cheap.
If you can go about £40, they are normally better quality.
Yours will be ATX 1.
Click to expand...

Thanks OJ, it's finally all becoming clear. Reckon I can't go far
wrong now.

BTW, currently sending this from the PC in question. I installed an
old 250W PSU I had spare, without connecting 3 devices (CD, DVD, extra
HD).
 
[email protected] said:
UM, what i'd do is bring the thing in to your local computer shop, say
I need THIS kind of power supply with more juice. Go to several and
compare prices and brands.
Click to expand...

That was my first reaction - but it was Easter Friday yesterday, a
public holiday. Always seems to be the case when I need something in a
hurry! Turned out after phoning around that PC World (10 miles away)
were open, and had a 400W product code 529740 in stock at £40 UKP ($68
USD). But by then I was running in 'crippled' mode with this 250W
temporary replacement.
The kind you describe is a very sandard model. not a propreitary brand.
Click to expand...

Thanks, understood. What's confused me a bit is this 'Version 2'
distinction. AFAICT I now conclude the only issue that matters there
is the m/b connector. Ideally I should get one with a detachable 4
pins, making it 20-pin like my old one. But having checked the space,
I would probably be OK with the full 24-pin, as there appears to be no
obstruction.
There is one more caveat, that since you have so many drives, that the
total overall wattage is misleading. You want more wattage on the
lines that power your disk drives (+5, +12). The power supply you buy
should break down watts by line. And may give the total watts for +5
and +12.
Click to expand...

Hadn't though of that, thanks. But unless the spec says something like
'especially biased towards the +5V and +12V supplies', or 'extra power
for HDs', I'm probably going to have to just get a 400W.

BTW, is there much increase in noise if I go for say a 450W or 500W?
 
Terry said:
That was my first reaction - but it was Easter Friday yesterday, a
public holiday. Always seems to be the case when I need something in a
hurry! Turned out after phoning around that PC World (10 miles away)
were open, and had a 400W product code 529740 in stock at £40 UKP ($68
USD). But by then I was running in 'crippled' mode with this 250W
temporary replacement.


Thanks, understood. What's confused me a bit is this 'Version 2'
distinction. AFAICT I now conclude the only issue that matters there
is the m/b connector. Ideally I should get one with a detachable 4
pins, making it 20-pin like my old one. But having checked the space,
I would probably be OK with the full 24-pin, as there appears to be no
obstruction.


Hadn't though of that, thanks. But unless the spec says something like
'especially biased towards the +5V and +12V supplies', or 'extra power
for HDs', I'm probably going to have to just get a 400W.

BTW, is there much increase in noise if I go for say a 450W or 500W?
Click to expand...
 
Pesky send button.....

Terry said:
That was my first reaction - but it was Easter Friday yesterday, a
public holiday. Always seems to be the case when I need something in a
hurry! Turned out after phoning around that PC World (10 miles away)
were open, and had a 400W product code 529740 in stock at £40 UKP ($68
USD). But by then I was running in 'crippled' mode with this 250W
temporary replacement.


Thanks, understood. What's confused me a bit is this 'Version 2'
distinction. AFAICT I now conclude the only issue that matters there
is the m/b connector. Ideally I should get one with a detachable 4
pins, making it 20-pin like my old one. But having checked the space,
I would probably be OK with the full 24-pin, as there appears to be no
obstruction.
Click to expand...

HM.... I'd go with a 20 pin, then.
Hadn't though of that, thanks. But unless the spec says something like
'especially biased towards the +5V and +12V supplies', or 'extra power
for HDs', I'm probably going to have to just get a 400W.
Click to expand...

It won't say THAT. It will give you either Amps or Watts on those
lines. Usually theres a table on it. It gives you a complete breakdown.
Just make sure you have signifigantly more juice on those lines then
your old one had.

BTW, is there much increase in noise if I go for say a 450W or 500W?
Click to expand...

Electrical, or Audible (fans)?

In either case, it just depends on the design. Better circuit design
for electrical noise, and whatnot. 'Fraid there isn't much to go on in
that dept. Though hopefully someone will jump in and correct me.
 
[email protected] said:
Pesky send button.....



HM.... I'd go with a 20 pin, then.

It won't say THAT. It will give you either Amps or Watts on those
lines. Usually theres a table on it. It gives you a complete breakdown.
Just make sure you have signifigantly more juice on those lines then
your old one had.



Electrical, or Audible (fans)?

In either case, it just depends on the design. Better circuit design
for electrical noise, and whatnot. 'Fraid there isn't much to go on in
that dept. Though hopefully someone will jump in and correct me.
Click to expand...

Thanks. It was fan noise I was thinking about. Some specs quote dB
level. Not sure what 'Quiet' would equate to!
 
BTW, is there much increase in noise if I go for say a 450W or 500W?
Click to expand...

Electrical, or Audible (fans)?

In either case, it just depends on the design. Better circuit design
for electrical noise, and whatnot. 'Fraid there isn't much to go on in
that dept. Though hopefully someone will jump in and correct me.[/QUOTE]

There isn't a lot of info on power supply acoustic noise levels,
but one guiding principle you could go on, is stated efficiency.
Seasonic has some "80+" percent efficient supplies, and
with the more efficient supplies, there is less need to spin
the fan fast. I think Fortron may have a model at the 80%
level now as well.

There are some brands that are geared for heavy loading and
high temps, and they spin the fan fast no matter what you do.
Some of the high quality PCPowerandCooling supplies are like
that.

Many power supply designs try to achieve good noise levels,
by not really cooling the supply that well. I'd rather
see more supplies come with an adjustment knob on the
PSU, so a user has more control over it. I'd rather turn
the fan on my power supply up a bit.

And if you like the absurd, there are some fanless power
supplies. Reviews of some of these devices, show they
are only suitable for lower power demands.

http://www.overclockercafe.com/Reviews/other_misc/Tt_Fanless_PSU/1003.html

Paul
 
Paul said:
There isn't a lot of info on power supply acoustic noise levels,
but one guiding principle you could go on, is stated efficiency.
Seasonic has some "80+" percent efficient supplies, and
with the more efficient supplies, there is less need to spin
the fan fast. I think Fortron may have a model at the 80%
level now as well.

There are some brands that are geared for heavy loading and
high temps, and they spin the fan fast no matter what you do.
Some of the high quality PCPowerandCooling supplies are like
that.
Click to expand...

PCP&C has supplies that are up to 83% efficient, and have
variable speed fan circuits. PCP&C also specifies the total
power supply noise level, not just the fan noise.
 
Terry said:
Could I get some help to make sure I order exactly the right model of
PC power supply please? My existing 4 year old unit in my AMD Athlon
XP1800, 512MB has been unreliable of late, (almost certainly due to
being underpowered since I added a couple of extra HDs, and a VDD
writer). It has now died altogether. The model is HPC-300-20 and it's
an 'ATX 12V', 'with PFC'. Its outputs are +5V, +3.3V, +12V, -5V, -12V
and '+5VSB'.
Click to expand...

What are its outputs' maximum ratings, 25A, 20A, 13A, .3A, .8A, and 2A?
The 13A capacity of the +12V output could be a problem if your
motherboard uses that output to run the CPU, and it does if it has a
square 4-pin ATX12V connector.
Its peak load is 300W, so I want to replace it with a 400W type
Click to expand...

HPC is High Power, a Sirtec brand, and while Sirtec isn't anywhere
close to the best, it's not junk like Powmax or Q-tec, and 300W is the
continuous power rating, not the peak rating.

I don't know what's available in your area, but look for products with
model numbers starting with "FSP", indicating they're made by
"Fortron-Source Power," They're sold under several brands in addition
to Fortron, including Sparkle, Hi-Q, and Trend. FSP may be the
greatest bargain in power supplies, and unlike many brands, their power
ratings are accurate.
 
What are its outputs' maximum ratings, 25A, 20A, 13A, .3A, .8A, and 2A?
The 13A capacity of the +12V output could be a problem if your
motherboard uses that output to run the CPU, and it does if it has a
square 4-pin ATX12V connector.


HPC is High Power, a Sirtec brand, and while Sirtec isn't anywhere
close to the best, it's not junk like Powmax or Q-tec, and 300W is the
continuous power rating, not the peak rating.

I don't know what's available in your area, but look for products with
model numbers starting with "FSP", indicating they're made by
"Fortron-Source Power," They're sold under several brands in addition
to Fortron, including Sparkle, Hi-Q, and Trend. FSP may be the
greatest bargain in power supplies, and unlike many brands, their power
ratings are accurate.
Click to expand...

Impatience got the better of me. Went to town Saturday afternoon and
bought a 500W replacement from my local computer shop. Seems to be
working OK. Although it's a Q-Tec, a brand apparently frowned upon by
some experts, I know the store and it will definitely go back if I
encounter any trouble. I could obviously have done far better
pricewise by buying online. I saw what seemed bargains at under 10UKP
Buy Now on ebay UK, but for 35UKP (20USD) this has got me back up and
running over the holiday weekend. Its spec *seems* reasonable too:
500W, Extra large 120 mm fan, temperature-controlled fan speed, Noise
< 26 dB(A). As for reliability, time will tell <g>.

Many thanks to all those who kindly helped to educate me on this
subject.
 
Terry said:
Impatience got the better of me. Went to town Saturday afternoon and
bought a 500W replacement from my local computer shop. Seems to be
working OK. Although it's a Q-Tec, a brand apparently frowned upon by
some experts, I know the store and it will definitely go back if I
encounter any trouble. I could obviously have done far better
pricewise by buying online. I saw what seemed bargains at under 10UKP
Buy Now on ebay UK, but for 35UKP (20USD) this has got me back up and
running over the holiday weekend. Its spec *seems* reasonable too:
500W, Extra large 120 mm fan, temperature-controlled fan speed, Noise
< 26 dB(A). As for reliability, time will tell <g>.
Click to expand...

Look at what an older model 550W Q-tec looks like inside:

http://static.flickr.com/41/79709280_e68a4d0001_o.jpg

Compare it to this high quality PSU:

http://static.flickr.com/38/75117436_1de7a3142d.jpg

The latter's heatsinks are bigger, its high voltage filter capacitors
are almost twice the size, yet it's rated for just 300W (was able to
put out at least 380W). More importantly, it's probably a lot less
likely to damage your hard drive and wipe out your data if it ever
fails.

Here are some good PSU buyer's guides:

www.ocforums.com/showthread.php?t=232592

www.hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=974240 (what to avoid)

http://jonnyguru.com/ratethebrands.html

Many manufacturers sell products under several brands, some cheaper
than others despite being very similar inside. For example,
Fortron-Source Power has budget brands Hi-Q, PowerQ, and Powertech that
differ from their Fortron and Sparkle brands only in having sleeve
bearing fans, but fans are cheap and easy to replace. This company's
model numbers usually start with FSP, but some start with ATX. But be
careful with the latter because some vastly inferior manufacturers also
prefix their model numbers with ATX. Another company that produces
several brands is Channel Well Technology, mostly known for supplying
Antec, but CWT's quality varies greatly by model series, so you want
only those with model numbers of the form CWT-pppsfc, where ppp = power
in watts, s = A for A series (virtually identical to Antec TruePower),
B for B series (SmartPower), f = S for Single fan, f = S for Dual fan,
and c = P for power factor correction. Avoid CWTs with different
suffixes, like ATX or ISO, or no suffix.

Avoid anything with a model number starting with DR or LC, indicating
it's from Deer, a maker of junk.

Don't overlook brands used mostly to big computer makers because
they're high quality and sometimes great bargains. But they can be
hard to find on the retail market and are usually sold only as surplus
or pulls from major brand computers. Some makers of these PSUs are
Lite-On/SuperMicro, Delta, Etasis, NMB/Mineba, Newton, Astec/Emerson,
and Win-tact. I've never seen a junk PSU in a major brand computer,
except an eMachines with a Powmax.

The actual manufacturer can usually be found by looking up the safety
certification numbers under the RU (backwards R) or CSA symbols at
www.ul.com or www.csa.ca.
 
Larry Moe 'n Curly, I have a system which needs a new PSU. I've been
reading this thread and others and now have a good idea of which brands
are good and which to avoid.

Assuming I get a good, well-made PSU with realistic power ratings, how
much power I should have on tap for a ASUS P4PE w/ P4 2400, 2.0GB RAM,
2 HD, 2 OD, GeForce4 MX440 8xAGP 64MB? The MB has the 4-pin power
connector also.

Also, are any of the brands noticeably quieter or noisier? I'd like to
get one with the big downward pointing fans but many of the PSUs I've
seen have screw configurations that would make that fan point up if it
were in my case! Am I missing something here? And even if I find one
that would mount correctly (pointing down) the way things are arranged
the fan would be right next to the CPU HSF and I'm afraid that it would
interfere with the CPU HSF doing it's job properly. Maybe it would just
help. I don't know.
 
toronado455 said:
Assuming I get a good, well-made PSU with realistic power ratings, how
much power I should have on tap for a ASUS P4PE w/ P4 2400, 2.0GB RAM,
2 HD, 2 OD, GeForce4 MX440 8xAGP 64MB? The MB has the 4-pin power
connector also.
Click to expand...

A good 300W that can put out at least 15-16A on the +12V rail, such as
a Fortron or Antec, will be fine. Be sure to check the amp ratings of
each voltage rail because newer designs emphasize +12V power while
older designs emphasize +3.3V and +5.0V power, and some companies make
similar-looking, similarly priced PSUs that differ in those respects.
There's a thread, "How much will a 300W Power Supply Run?" at
SilentPCReview.com:

http://forums.silentpcreview.com/viewtopic.php?t=3075

Apparently, quite a lot, and this was confirmed formally in one of
their articles, "Power Distribution Within Six PCs", which included one
computer containing an Athlon 64 3500+, 6800GT PCIe VGA card, and 2 x
300 GB Maxtor DiamondMax 10 HDDs (in RAID):

www.silentpcreview.com/article265-page1.html

OTOH power ratings aren't always honest, as Jonny Guru showed in his
review of two " 500W" Powmaxes that konked out at just 200-300W:

www.jonnyguru.com/PSU/Assassin/Powmax_Assassin.html

Notice how lightweight it looks in the photo second from the bottom,
sort of like most 200W PSUs. In comparison, he was able to squeeze
500W out of a 350W Fortron, which is comparabl to the 454W that
TomsHardware.com got from one a few years ago.
Also, are any of the brands noticeably quieter or noisier?
Click to expand...

www.jonnyguru.com, www.xbitlabs.com, and www.silentpcreview.com have
informatoin about this, and it seems that Antec NeoHE and Seasonic are
some of the quietest ones. The NeoHE is actually built by Seasonic for
Antec (be sure to get version A3 or later). Don't buy a fanless PSU
because even the best, most efficient ones run hot.
I'd like to get one with the big downward pointing fans but many of the
PSUs I've seen have screw configurations that would make that fan
point up if it were in my case! Am I missing something here? And even
if I find one that would mount correctly (pointing down) the way things
are arranged the fan would be right next to the CPU HSF and I'm afraid
that it would interfere with the CPU HSF doing it's job properly. Maybe
it would just help. I don't know.
Click to expand...

ATX PSUs have four holes for the mounting screws, and the hole that's
not in one of the corners goes on top and makes any 120mm fan face
downward. I don't know what the suction from this fan does to CPU
cooling, but apparently not much if there's at least 1/2" of space
between the PSU and CPU fans. If space is tight, consider one of those
shorter heatsinks made with either really thin fins that fit closely
together or copper fins.
 
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