Power Supplies

I'm planning to build a computer with an Athlon X2 3800+, 2 gigs of DDR2-667, and a Gigabyte Geforce 7600GS (runs 100% silent, doesn't get much sexier than that.)

My question is twofold:

A) Is a 350W power supply enough, or should I move up to 400W?
B) What power supply manufacturer offers the best bang for the buck? I'm looking for a reliable power supply but also trying to keep costs down.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Depends on your system. How many opticals/hard drives you plan on running? 350W is minimum, but I'd go 450W and up, maybe even starting 500W. Antec's pretty good bang for your buck with PSUs. Good name, good prices:

Antec SmartPower 500W Dual +12v rails, 20+4-pin mobo connector for $75. Overhead just incase you plan on upgrading to a GeForce 79xx anytime soon.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

350W is enough, you will never reach 300+ unless you would start overclocking your CPU to mad speeds or plug in countless of demanding devices which i'm sure you won't. But with the future in mind it would not hurt to get a 400W, but that's only if the DX10 generation gfx-cards will really get as insane in power usage as the rumors talk about.
The most important part of finding a good PSU is by looking at efficiency, I think they are around 80% or 90% now... I haven't upgraded my PC in a while so I can't really recommend you a good brand but most dudes go with Antec. High efficiency means the PSU will have a easier job at preventing power to get lost as heat. Because more power gets saved the actual power capacity is higher and in turn will also result in a cooler unit since there is less heat to be generated.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

Innnnteresting. Where might I find this certain statistic if I was looking up a power supply?

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

it should usually be included in the description. but if that's not the case, your best bet is to google on the name + efficiency. you can also try visiting the website of the manufacturer or reading reviews. for the latter, i recommend this website since they are up to date with most things and review anything PC related.

hope it helps

Most amazing jew boots

google this "eXtreme Power Supply Calculator v2.0" , and under that page go to power supply calculator. I cannot post a direct link due to insufficient posts.

This calculator can give you an estimate about what kind of wattage is needed for your PC. The amps on the 12v rail shouldn't be much concern with a 7600GS

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

Cool, that calculator is really handy! Thanks for the info

FELIPE NO

As for which brand, Sparkle/Fortron (FSP) are usually the best power supplies for the money. They're cheap, and they're very good.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?