Just how long is a PSU expected to last?

[dom99]

How long is a piece of string?

Had my Antec Truepower TP750 for what must be about 8 years now. Still going strong so I don't see any reason to spend another ~£100 on a replacement. Changing your PSU after 3 years is a waste of money IMO unless there is a problem with it, better to spend the £ on replacing the GPU or other parts.

 

[trparky]

It's never been under full load, that I know. Long gaming sessions for years? Not really. Crunching? Nope.

 

[teamkoolbox]

Probably an average time of 5 years. If it has good quality parts maybe even 10 years. I've had this Enermaxx 620W running across 2-3 PC builds now for nearly 8 years so far.

 

[Kanan]

It's never been under full load, that I know. Long gaming sessions for years? Not really. Crunching? Nope.

So then you can use it for another few years, it really comes down to the details. But I'd say because that psu is of high quality you can still use it a while.

 

[Jetster]

I have a TX650 and a HX850 both over 6 years old I still use for testing. Rock solid
A good power supply should lost a long time. Its the efficiency that come into question

 

[Slizzo]

I have a Corsair TX750 Watt power supply and it's been through a couple of builds. I've had it for the last five years (I think). Just how long are these things expected to last?

Mine is 7 years old now. I believe it's starting to cause some instability (found it when trying to get my new 1080Ti to be stable. 2 8-pins suck a lot of juice.)

Looking at getting an EVGA 850W P2.

 

[basco]

i have this since 2008:
https://geizhals.at/corsair-professional-series-hx1000-1000w-atx-2-2-cmpsu-1000hx-a317944.html

still running great

 

[m1dg3t]

A good place to check for reviews on PSUs is JonnyGURU.

TPUs crmaris does excellent PSU reviews as well, although there wont be as many as JohnnyGuru, his work is just as thorough.

 

[Vayra86]

Just stick with the PSU.

You can use OCCT and stress test while monitoring the +12V voltage stability. If it stays within ATX spec, you're fine. If it falls out or is on the low side, replacing it can be a good move.

It's not like a quality PSU failing will take down other components. PC just won't boot, and that's when you replace.

 

[Bill_Bright]

A quality PSU that is run well within spec and kept clean can last indefinately. Efficiency will suffer over time. Just my opinion...

That's just a technical fact, not opinion.

Other influencing factors are environment (not just dust, but ambient temps) and the quality and reliability of the power being fed to the power supply. If the computer is stuffed into an unventilated, hot computer closet, that likely will shorted the life of the supply and other components too. And if the power off the grid is unstable and/or has many extreme surges and spikes, or extreme sags or frequent outages, that can affect longevity too.

It's not like a quality PSU failing will take down other components.

That's not necessarily true. While very rare these days with quality supplies, a catastrophic power supply failure can indeed take out connected devices.

The fact is, by far, the majority of supplies are replaced because more power is needed, different connectors are needed, or just because the user wants a new supply with other upgrades.

I "expect" my supplies to last until I decide I want to replace my computer. And they typically do.

 

[Derek12]

I have a Corsair TX750 Watt power supply and it's been through a couple of builds. I've had it for the last five years (I think). Just how long are these things expected to last?

Many years if:

• Quality PSU
• Quality mains supply or UPS
• Run below its maximum load.
• Kept clean.
• Avoiding unnecessary power cycles
• Kept it cool.

Just keep in mind that efficiency will drop, voltages will have more ripple and power delivery will drop as well. Also voltage output can vary and even go out of range

 

[Ithanul]

I also have a corsair (CX 600 tho), from 2011 ,and I don't like to depend on it but it still works beautifully . so what I do is keep it ,and use it to prime water cooling ,test PCs ,or in a pinch I have a back up. But I never depend on it for a day-to-day basis

Same thing I do with my Corsair TX750.

Always nice to keep backups on hand.

 

[yogurt_21]

5-10 years for quality brands 10+ if you paid for ultra platinum

3 years for normal brands under normal use

less than one day, the kind that come with the case you just bought.

 

[Bill_Bright]

3 years? Nah. Not if properly sized from the start. It should be noted there are countless factory made computers with generic, off-brand budget computers that have been running for 7, 8, 10 years or longer. And worse(?), many of these computers have never, not once, been opened up for cleaning. Yet they still chug along every day without problems.

A PSU being cheap does not suggest early failure. It just means it will likely have a bell shaped efficiency curve, not flat, and a peak efficiency of around 70%, not 80 - 95%. It likely will have higher ripple, and perhaps a noisy fan. But it still must meet ATX and the necessary UL and other fire and safety standards.

Electronics in general, either fail within the first few "hours" of use, or they last many many years - if not abused.

Why are there still 100s of millions of XP, Vista, and Windows 7 machines still in use? Because they won't die!!!

10+ if you paid for ultra platinum

"Ultra" platinum? No such category that I have heard of. Got an example?

80 PLUS Certification Categories.

 

[dirtyferret]

I see cheap 250-300w PSU in office desktops go 8-10+ years. They run for 40-60 hours a week 52 times a year in cases that have no fans and filled with enough dust to fill a liter soda bottle.

I have an antec earth watt 400w unit that is heading into its tenth year even though it only came with a three year warranty.

There are so many factors to take into account but length of time since you bought the unit really isn't as important especially if you don't use the unit that often. My gaming PC gets used around five maybe eight hours per week and has been powered by a corsair TX-M 650w since 2011.

 

[dirtyferret]

"Ultra" platinum? No such category that I have heard of. Got an example?

80 PLUS Certification Categories.

Hercules makes Ultra Platinum Plus PSU, Jonnyguru reviewed one a while back
http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story6&reid=324

 

[Kanan]

Hercules makes Ultra Platinum Plus PSU, Jonnyguru reviewed one a while back
http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story6&reid=324

Haha I laughed my ass off while reading this, thanks. "Wonder of wonders".

 

[64K]

Hercules makes Ultra Platinum Plus PSU, Jonnyguru reviewed one a while back
http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story6&reid=324

What a piece of shit fire hazard that PSU is in the review. a 0.4 out of 10 lol

I forget which PSU it was now but one sad PSU actually exploded while he was testing it.

I honestly don't know how some PSU manufacturers get away with the garbage they sell without being sued.

 

[Frag_Maniac]

Proof that Gold or Platinum rating does not automatically mean a good PSU. That is by far the worst rating I've ever seen on a PSU. One that most would expect would come from a generic OEM non rated unit.

 

[Tomgang]

Lifespan of an PSU depends on many things. Such as heat, workload (there is a difference between a PSU work at 50 % load most of the time vs. one at its peak most of the time), the quality of components among things to consider.

with that said my Thermaltake toughpower 1500 watt runs at its 8 year now, but this PSU has not been at hard work at all, its hardest time where back then i ran GTX 285 triple SLI, but since GPU has become more and more power efficiant and has also since only run 2 way sli so that does not give the PSU a hard time. I think when my pc runs at it peak it consumes about 700-800 watt with overclock as it is configered right now and so this PSU even at peak only has about 50 % load and most of the time more like 5 % to 25 % load. Thats to be considered also.

 

[Solaris17]

Dont forget that the capacitance of the caps also degrades over time (which affect max output and ripple). Though I dont remember the equation for the avg % per year.

 

[Bill_Bright]

Hercules makes Ultra Platinum Plus PSU, Jonnyguru reviewed one a while back

What drugs are you taking? It must be extremely hallucinogenic! No where in that review does it say anything about "Ultra" or "Platinum" - not even on the images of the PSU or the box it came in. In fact, it says in the review it has no 80 PLUS certs.

And regardless, I say again, there is no such category of "Ultra Platinum". If any PSU states that, it is just marketing hype - like "The Quicker Picker Upper" or "The Ultimate Driving Machine" - only in that case, BMW at least tries to back it up.

Dont forget that the capacitance of the caps also degrades over time (which affect max output and ripple). Though I dont remember the equation for the avg % per year.

I don't believe there is a formula. There are several types of capacitors with different compositions. And such aging is affected by different environmental conditions. They don't all suffer from the same affect at the same rate.

But "capacitor aging" of the type you describe does not relate to failure of the device. The efficiency and output power may degrade, but the device still works. Capacitor aging comes into play when initially sizing your PSU at purchase to make sure you always have sufficient power for the expected lifespan of the computer.

 

[Dippyskoodlez]

My PC Power and cooling (Pre OCZ) is going on 11 years old this year, and still not a single complaint.

My EVGA 1600W T2 also has a 10 year warranty.

A solid PSU will last a very, very, very, very long time.

 

[ahujet]

My PC Power and cooling (Pre OCZ) is going on 11 years old this year, and still not a single complaint.

My EVGA 1600W T2 also has a 10 year warranty.

A solid PSU will last a very, very, very, very long time.

I hope mine lasts that long, paid like 150 euros for it

 

[dirtyferret]

What drugs are you taking? It must be extremely hallucinogenic! No where in that review does it say anything about "Ultra" or "Platinum" - not even on the images of the PSU or the box it came in. In fact, it says in the review it has no 80 PLUS certs.

It's not Ultra Platinum but Ultra Platinum Plus. Think of the 80+ ranking more like a circle then a chart, Ultra Platinum Plus is such a higher level then any other PSU (80 plus titanium) it starts at the bottom.