My old computer was a Shuttle SN45G XPC that I used from 2004-2006 before I replaced it last year with my current Athlon X2-based system. I outfitted the SN45G with a AMD Athlon 2500+ (Barton), 1 GB of RAM, an ATI Radeon 9500 Pro and a 200 GB HDD. It served me well, but started to show its age, especially in this era of dual-core and multi-core systems. I have since retired it to the green pastures of my parents’ home (where I am for the summer), where it peacefully serves the duties of Internet browsing, e-mail, and video, though it is capable of much more.

Recently though, the 200 W custom-sized PSU powering the rig died after an untimely power outage - contractors working in this new neighbourhood apparently severed a line while doing some construction work. It seemed weird to me that a mere power-outage could cause the power supply to die, so I wondered if it was because of the UPS it was plugged into, which failed to provide battery backup. The UPS was an older Belkin model that has also since failed, leading me to believe that it could have negatively affected the PSU. Though, it’s more likely that the PSU was already in poor condition, and that the power outage was just the straw that broke the camel’s back, so to speak.

Autopsy

Strangely, when I took the failed PSU out to test it, it worked fine - when just powering up a single fan. (I used this well-known “trick” to power up an ATX PSU without the motherboard) It seems as though some components within have failed, limitings its ability to support a larger load like that of a computer system. In any event, I had to order a replacement power supply, so I obtained a 250 W model from Netlink Computers. (The Shuttle PC40) Offering 50 W more of power, it’s substantially larger than the older PSU, as you can see below, and it’s also heavier. Generally, heavier equals better quality when it comes to power supplies.

The 250 W also features SATA power connectors, though I’ll not need them for this system. Overall, it was an uneventful replacement, as the PSU fit just right within the tight confines of the SN45G case.