Burning smell in electronics is NEVER good. The smell might go away but trust me ... something happened and will continue to happen in the future. You need to investigate the smell. I would take the PSU out and smell it. Look for melted wiring on the 24 pin connector and the 8 pin CPU connector. Look at the PCIe cables. Something pulled too much current and heated up/melted. The damage is done. Identify the culprit and replace it. The 650W PSU might not have a stiff enough and/or adequate 12V current rail for the GPU. Even though the Maxwell cards are more energy efficient than the old Keplers, they still need a good 12V rail. My old 670s needed 42 amps each on the 12V rail. Since I was running two cards, I needed at least 85A on the 12V rail. And I was also crunching 6 CPU tasks at the same time. I knew I needed plenty of overhead current capability. I run the Corsair AX-1200W PSU in both machines with a 100A 12V rail. It has been very dependable. I ran Corsair 750W and 850W PSUs with prior GPU generations. I like the Corsair brand. I would recommend moving on up to at least a 750W Gold class PSU. You should never scrimp on the power supply since everything runs from it. My $0.02 opinion from a decades long electronics technician.

Cheers, Keith

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Seti@Home classic workunits:20,676 CPU time:74,226 hours

A proud member of the OFA (Old Farts Association)

Burning smell in electronics is NEVER good. The smell might go away but trust me ... something happened and will continue to happen in the future. You need to investigate the smell. I would take the PSU out and smell it. Look for melted wiring on the 24 pin connector and the 8 pin CPU connector. Look at the PCIe cables. Something pulled too much current and heated up/melted. The damage is done. Identify the culprit and replace it. The 650W PSU might not have a stiff enough and/or adequate 12V current rail for the GPU. Even though the Maxwell cards are more energy efficient than the old Keplers, they still need a good 12V rail. My old 670s needed 42 amps each on the 12V rail. Since I was running two cards, I needed at least 85A on the 12V rail. And I was also crunching 6 CPU tasks at the same time. I knew I needed plenty of overhead current capability. I run the Corsair AX-1200W PSU in both machines with a 100A 12V rail. It has been very dependable. I ran Corsair 750W and 850W PSUs with prior GPU generations. I like the Corsair brand. I would recommend moving on up to at least a 750W Gold class PSU. You should never scrimp on the power supply since everything runs from it. My $0.02 opinion from a decades long electronics technician.

Cheers, Keith

1200w is good, I've always believed in overkill, better too much than too little. My next psu is the max for the USA, 1600w and then I might need a 2nd psu another reason for a case like the Azza GT1(think Azza 9000B, just less frills), it can house 2 psus and a 480 type radiator and a 120 radiator too.

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The T1 Trust, PRR T1 Class 4-4-4-4 #5550, 1 of America's First HST's

Guess I'll get a Corsair RM750, 750W PSU then...

1200w is good, I've always believed in overkill, better too much than too little. My next psu is the max for the USA, 1600w and then I might need a 2nd psu another reason for a case like the Azza GT1(think Azza 9000B, just less frills), it can house 2 psus and a 480 type radiator and a 120 radiator too.

Well, actually too much capacity can be an issue. Power supplies run the best at their most efficient loading which changes among the rating classes. Supplies are typically most efficient at between half and three quarters load, much less efficient at low load, and somewhat less efficient at maximum load. So you can buy too much capacity and waste electrical power and pay more at the plug. Best is to size capacity to match the system power requirements and maybe buy a little more than what is immediately needed to future proof the system for upgrades.

Keith

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Seti@Home classic workunits:20,676 CPU time:74,226 hours

A proud member of the OFA (Old Farts Association)

1200w is good, I've always believed in overkill, better too much than too little. My next psu is the max for the USA, 1600w and then I might need a 2nd psu another reason for a case like the Azza GT1(think Azza 9000B, just less frills), it can house 2 psus and a 480 type radiator and a 120 radiator too.

I like the case you mentioned. Lots of different choices for CPU and GPU cooling. I definitely have become enamored of water cooling now with my AIO Corsair H-105s providing the cooling for the overclocked FX-8350s. Not sure if I will eventually move on to custom cooling loops. Lots of different configurations to consider in that case.

Keith

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Seti@Home classic workunits:20,676 CPU time:74,226 hours

A proud member of the OFA (Old Farts Association)

1200w is good, I've always believed in overkill, better too much than too little. My next psu is the max for the USA, 1600w and then I might need a 2nd psu another reason for a case like the Azza GT1(think Azza 9000B, just less frills), it can house 2 psus and a 480 type radiator and a 120 radiator too.

I like the case you mentioned. Lots of different choices for CPU and GPU cooling. I definitely have become enamored of water cooling now with my AIO Corsair H-105s providing the cooling for the overclocked FX-8350s. Not sure if I will eventually move on to custom cooling loops. Lots of different configurations to consider in that case.

Keith

I have a Cooler Master Glacer 240L cpu cooler for an Intel i7 3820 cpu, the Azza GT1 will hold that and at least 2 aio(closed loop) gpu radiators(a Zotac GTX580 Infinity and an EVGA GTX570 w/a Antec 620 and an NZXT Kraken G10 gpu adapter for the 620 & the 570), I plan on buying two more EVGA/Zotac 580 or 570 cards for this PC, the motherboard is an EVGA X79 Classified, just to replace a dying Asus P7P55D Pro motherboard(i5 750 powered, the motherboards power regulators are shot, fans inside are all wired to the psu) inexpensively, but that will have to wait until Dec 31st, I hope I don't have any complications in My rent and/or My cable bill by then.

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The T1 Trust, PRR T1 Class 4-4-4-4 #5550, 1 of America's First HST's

1200w is good, I've always believed in overkill, better too much than too little. My next psu is the max for the USA, 1600w and then I might need a 2nd psu another reason for a case like the Azza GT1(think Azza 9000B, just less frills), it can house 2 psus and a 480 type radiator and a 120 radiator too.

Well, actually too much capacity can be an issue. Power supplies run the best at their most efficient loading which changes among the rating classes. Supplies are typically most efficient at between half and three quarters load, much less efficient at low load, and somewhat less efficient at maximum load. So you can buy too much capacity and waste electrical power and pay more at the plug. Best is to size capacity to match the system power requirements and maybe buy a little more than what is immediately needed to future proof the system for upgrades.

Keith

That might be but for the moment My next motherboard, the EVGA X79 will be powered by a Silverstone ST1500(1500w), it's what I have on hand and it will be good enough for 4-570/580 cards...

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The T1 Trust, PRR T1 Class 4-4-4-4 #5550, 1 of America's First HST's

That might be but for the moment My next motherboard, the EVGA X79 will be powered by a Silverstone ST1500(1500w), it's what I have on hand and it will be good enough for 4-570/580 cards...

Well .... yeahh with four GPUs, and older generation to boot, going into that motherboad, then the 1500W is prudent.

Keith

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Seti@Home classic workunits:20,676 CPU time:74,226 hours

A proud member of the OFA (Old Farts Association)

That might be but for the moment My next motherboard, the EVGA X79 will be powered by a Silverstone ST1500(1500w), it's what I have on hand and it will be good enough for 4-570/580 cards...

Well .... yeahh with four GPUs, and older generation to boot, going into that motherboad, then the 1500W is prudent.

Keith

I have plans for 4 ROG GTX780 Poseidons in an Asus Rampage IV Extreme motherboard, w/another 3820 cpu, I'd thought an EVGA G2 1600w psu might work, plus I have a killer Project, an Asus Rampage III Extreme(x58) w/a 940 cpu for 4 GTX590 cards, custom water cooled, I think that might require 2 psus... It's something to do, a bit at a time. I have the 3 cpus, 3 motherboards, 2 GTX590 cards, 1 Zotac Infinity GTX580 and 1 EVGA GTX570 card.

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The T1 Trust, PRR T1 Class 4-4-4-4 #5550, 1 of America's First HST's

I have plans for 4 ROG GTX780 Poseidons ...

That's 4 * 250W, or 4 * GTX980s = 4*165W.

1kW v 660W for similar performance.
Once Jason sorts out the software, the GTX980s will outperform the 780s by a considerable margin.

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Grant
Darwin NT

I have plans for 4 ROG GTX780 Poseidons ...

That's 4 * 250W, or 4 * GTX980s = 4*165W.

1kW v 660W for similar performance.
Once Jason sorts out the software, the GTX980s will outperform the 780s by a considerable margin.

Yes, I gather the 980's will, but the 780's don't cost as much, it would take Me longer to get 4 980's(1000w?), than 4 780's(1200w), but then there is one more motherboard to be bought, the 580/570 cards on the EVGA x79 is only temporary, the motherboard is to give a home for the i5 750 cpu of mine, it's an Asus Maximus III Extreme, the most capable 1156 ever made in My opinion. It'll be My last motherboard for a long time. I'd have room for an extra 4 780 Poseidons on the EVGA x79... It'll be a bit before I can move on any Poseidon, so maybe I'll get the 980's instead of the 780's, if the price is right, right now only the 780's are for sale, I looked.

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The T1 Trust, PRR T1 Class 4-4-4-4 #5550, 1 of America's First HST's

I could smell something burning/melting or whatever again last night, 5 mins later the PC shut down. GPU temp was 55/56c. The smell isn't something new btw, it's been there before over time, but it went away and nothing happend.

The PSU is a 3 years old Cooler Master GX 650W. The GTX970 is from Oct 7.

With only a 52A 12V rail with that setup John you would be pushing that PSU near to the limit IMHO and the smell could be coming from parts in that PSU because of it. Get 1 that can supply around 70A on a single 12V rail.

Hi Wiggo,

There is a small problem with AS5, if you get the larger syringe of the stuff it deteriorates over time, if you haven't used it for a year or so its easy to forget its supposed to be a dark greyish colour, after time it turns white and is about as much use as 3in1 oil:-(

Good point about the bedding in times, also good to apply a thin layer to the CPU or its wont ever bed in and just becomes a barrier to good heat conductivity.

Regards,

Cliff, a 12g syringe of AS5 lasts me around 9-10mths here (and is much cheaper than buying 3 of the smaller 3.5g 1's) with what I do so I wouldn't know what it does with extended storage. ;-)

[edit] Vic you maybe saving money up front, but that will soon be eliminated by power costs not to mention the extra heat that you have to deal with. ;-)

Cheers.

JohnDK -

After you install your new PSU, pop the cover off the old one and look for any discolorization on the circuit board. I know this voids the warranty but you probably don't have one any more anyway. Discolorization would indicate there has been a heat issue at sometime. Also look and feel the tops of all of the capacitors. If any are bulging up even slightly, that is a problem.

PSU's have sensors for over/under voltage, over/under current, and temperature. I am not aware of anyway to monitor these sensors (except for voltage) with software. A voltage spike might happen so quickly that the PSU shuts down faster than the software might show it on a display.

If a new PSU doesn't solve your problem you now have a backup. Or you can use it in the next computer you build.

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JohnDK -

After you install your new PSU, pop the cover off the old one and look for any discolorization on the circuit board. I know this voids the warranty but you probably don't have one any more anyway. Discolorization would indicate there has been a heat issue at sometime. Also look and feel the tops of all of the capacitors. If any are bulging up even slightly, that is a problem.

PSU's have sensors for over/under voltage, over/under current, and temperature. I am not aware of anyway to monitor these sensors (except for voltage) with software. A voltage spike might happen so quickly that the PSU shuts down faster than the software might show it on a display.

If a new PSU doesn't solve your problem you now have a backup. Or you can use it in the next computer you build.

Will try to remember doing that.

I could smell something burning/melting or whatever again last night, 5 mins later the PC shut down. GPU temp was 55/56c. The smell isn't something new btw, it's been there before over time, but it went away and nothing happend.

The PSU is a 3 years old Cooler Master GX 650W. The GTX970 is from Oct 7.

With only a 52A 12V rail with that setup John you would be pushing that PSU near to the limit IMHO and the smell could be coming from parts in that PSU because of it. Get 1 that can supply around 70A on a single 12V rail.

The Corsair RM750 I was thinking about getting have 62.5A, would that be good enough?

I could smell something burning/melting or whatever again last night, 5 mins later the PC shut down. GPU temp was 55/56c. The smell isn't something new btw, it's been there before over time, but it went away and nothing happened.

The PSU is a 3 years old Cooler Master GX 650W. The GTX970 is from Oct 7.

With only a 52A 12V rail with that setup John you would be pushing that PSU near to the limit IMHO and the smell could be coming from parts in that PSU because of it. Get 1 that can supply around 70A on a single 12V rail.

The Corsair RM750 I was thinking about getting have 62.5A, would that be good enough?

I'd go for a Corsair 850w psu, they have 70A on a single 12v rail, they're about $150.00 @ Newegg...

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The T1 Trust, PRR T1 Class 4-4-4-4 #5550, 1 of America's First HST's

[edit] Vic you maybe saving money up front, but that will soon be eliminated by power costs not to mention the extra heat that you have to deal with. ;-)

Cheers.

Yeah, I know Wiggo, but since I'm not buying any 780's right now and the 980 Poseidons are not for sale, no one seems to know the price of the 980's, so I can wait. If the Price of the 980's were $400 or so, then I'd get the 980 cards, $500 or more is a bit more difficult, but not impossible, I just couldn't buy as many in one year as I could with the 780's... My income isn't exactly huge, so I would have to rely on a secured credit card that I have, charge it up, pay it off and repeat for each card...

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The T1 Trust, PRR T1 Class 4-4-4-4 #5550, 1 of America's First HST's

I could smell something burning/melting or whatever again last night, 5 mins later the PC shut down. GPU temp was 55/56c. The smell isn't something new btw, it's been there before over time, but it went away and nothing happend.

The PSU is a 3 years old Cooler Master GX 650W. The GTX970 is from Oct 7.

With only a 52A 12V rail with that setup John you would be pushing that PSU near to the limit IMHO and the smell could be coming from parts in that PSU because of it. Get 1 that can supply around 70A on a single 12V rail.

The Corsair RM750 I was thinking about getting have 62.5A, would that be good enough?

It should be ok, but I'd personally prefer to have a little more in reserve myself. ;-)

Cheers.

I could smell something burning/melting or whatever again last night, 5 mins later the PC shut down. GPU temp was 55/56c. The smell isn't something new btw, it's been there before over time, but it went away and nothing happend.

The PSU is a 3 years old Cooler Master GX 650W. The GTX970 is from Oct 7.

With only a 52A 12V rail with that setup John you would be pushing that PSU near to the limit IMHO and the smell could be coming from parts in that PSU because of it. Get 1 that can supply around 70A on a single 12V rail.

Hi Wiggo,

There is a small problem with AS5, if you get the larger syringe of the stuff it deteriorates over time, if you haven't used it for a year or so its easy to forget its supposed to be a dark greyish colour, after time it turns white and is about as much use as 3in1 oil:-(

Good point about the bedding in times, also good to apply a thin layer to the CPU or its wont ever bed in and just becomes a barrier to good heat conductivity.

Regards,

Cliff, a 12g syringe of AS5 lasts me around 9-10mths here (and is much cheaper than buying 3 of the smaller 3.5g 1's) with what I do so I wouldn't know what it does with extended storage. ;-)

[edit] Vic you maybe saving money up front, but that will soon be eliminated by power costs not to mention the extra heat that you have to deal with. ;-)

Cheers.

After switching search engines, I think I know what the price of an ASUS ROG GTX980 Poseidon might be, $1,008.00 USD, the info comes from a site Here(Overclock3D). That's 3 or 4 months for Me to save up for, just for each one, I could get a 780 Poseidon in about half that time, I'm hoping the 980's price won't be any higher than maybe $600, but We'll see.

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The T1 Trust, PRR T1 Class 4-4-4-4 #5550, 1 of America's First HST's

Buying the premium product will always be financially painful. The 3rd or 4th tier are generally the better options. Even the second level offers better performance/price than the flagship product.
You get the top of line, you pay the early adopter tax.

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Grant
Darwin NT