The PSU Is the One Part You Don't Cheap Out On

Every build has a component where saving ₹2,000 is a bad idea. This is that component, and it’s the one people cut first because it doesn’t produce frames.

What a bad PSU actually does

The failure modes are worse than “it stops working”:

• Shuts down under load. You crash in the middle of a match, every time the GPU spikes. Easy to misdiagnose as a driver or thermal problem.
• Delivers dirty power. Voltage outside spec stresses everything downstream. Slow, invisible damage.
• Fails and takes parts with it. Rare with reputable units, considerably less rare with no-name ones bundled into cheap cabinets.

The cabinet-bundled PSU is the specific thing to avoid. A ₹3,000 case that “includes a 500W supply” is a ₹2,800 case with a hazard in it.

Sizing it properly

You need to cover transient spikes, not average draw. Modern CPUs and GPUs pull far above their rated TDP for very short bursts, and a supply sized to the average will trip on those.

A workable estimate:

Peak ≈ (CPU TDP × 1.35) + (GPU TDP × 1.12) + 60W for everything else

Then add headroom. Not because you’ll use it, but because supplies run most efficiently around 50–70% load and heat less when they’re not near the ceiling.

The PSU calculator does this, and the PC builder does it for a complete parts list, including checking your chosen supply against the build.

Don’t massively oversize either

Buying a 1000W unit for a 350W build is not “future-proofing”, it’s paying for capacity you’ll never touch and running the supply in a less efficient part of its curve.

Size for the build plus a sensible margin, plus one GPU tier if you genuinely plan to upgrade the card and nothing else.

What 80 Plus ratings mean

The rating measures efficiency — how much wall power becomes usable DC rather than heat — at various loads.

Rating	Efficiency at 50% load
80+ (white)	82%
80+ Bronze	85%
80+ Gold	90%
80+ Platinum	92%
80+ Titanium	94%

Two things to understand about this:

It is not a quality rating. It measures efficiency and nothing else. A poorly-built unit can be certified. In practice higher-tier units tend to be built better because manufacturers don’t put good components in bad chassis, but the badge itself doesn’t promise that.

The efficiency difference barely matters to your bill. Going Bronze to Gold on a 400W-average machine saves a trivial amount of electricity. Buy Gold for the better internals and quieter operation, not to save money on power.

For most builds, 80+ Bronze from a known brand is the floor, Gold is the sweet spot.

Modularity

• Non-modular — all cables attached. Cheapest, messiest.
• Semi-modular — essential cables fixed, the rest detachable. Good value.
• Fully modular — everything detachable. Best for cable management and small cases.

Purely a convenience and airflow feature. It has no effect on power quality.

ATX 3.x and the 12V-2x6 connector

Newer high-end cards use the 12VHPWR / 12V-2x6 connector, and newer supplies provide it natively. Adapters exist and work, but a native cable is one fewer connection to seat badly — and seating problems are the documented failure mode with that connector.

If you’re buying a card that uses it, buy a supply with the native cable.

Brands worth trusting in India

Without turning this into a shopping list: Seasonic, Corsair, Cooler Master, MSI, Deepcool, Antec, Thermaltake and Gigabyte all have units at various tiers with real service networks here. Ant Esports sits lower but is a legitimate budget option in its Bronze range.

Whatever you buy, check that the warranty is Indian and not a grey import. PSU warranties run 5–10 years on good units, which is only useful if it can be claimed.

The one-line test

If you can’t name the manufacturer, don’t put your graphics card behind it.

---

Bottom line: size it for transient spikes with headroom, buy Bronze minimum and Gold ideally, get the native cable if your card needs it, and never use the supply that came free in a cheap cabinet.