# PSU Review Database



## shinji2k

*The Goal*
Have you ever seen a PSU that looked interesting, so you fruitlessly tried to find a review? Or do you remember reading a review for a PSU and you can't seem to remember where exactly you saw it (something that happens to me often)? Look no further since I will be cataloging every properly done PSU review I can find. Some of you might think this is a waste of time, but I am hoping this will be the go to guide for finding a PSU review. It will save time for people since they do not have to search all over the place and it should provide easy access to any hard to find reviews. Also, if a review is on this list it means it is from a reputable website with proper testing procedures.

First off, I would like to specify what makes a good PSU review:

Load testing using a special purpose ATE or a custom built resistor or MOSFET load tester.
Ripple and noise measurements.
Testing above room temperature, preferably 40-50C.
Commentary on build quality and detailed analysis of components used.
A bad PSU review will include:

Testing at room temperature.
Loading with a computer in lieu of a load tester.
Voltage measurements using a multimeter or worse, software (without the use of a load tester).
Anything missing from the list of what makes a good review.
For more explanation on why those specific details make a good review, read this article.

For now the database is completely updated with all the properly done reviews I can find. I say completely, but I am always adding new reviews as I find them. After I am sure there are no more good reviews to add, the next tentative step for this project is to find reviews that are only slightly flawed for units that are not currently represented by a good review. For simplicity I abbreviated the reviewers sites, but here is a legend with a quick summary.

*Legend*
JG or jonnyGURU.com
One of the original review sites offering proper reviews and arguably the most reputable. The current reviewer, Oklahoma Wolf, is very knowledgeable and offers a complete array of tests including cold tests, hot tests, 10% load tests, overshoot transient testing, ripple/noise measurements and a complete tear down.

[H] or HardOCP.com
Paul Johnson is very good at what he does. Their review setup is also ideal, if not slightly different, with an incubator controlled hot box, 8 hour torture tests, transient testing, ripple/noise measurements and a general overview of build quality.

HS or HardwareSecrets.com
Hardware Secrets is slightly lesser known than the first two review sites, but no less thorough in their reviews. Gabriel Torres mans the show running a gauntlet including a detailed tear down, 45C ambient testing, max ripple/noise measurements (but not for each individual load), overload tests (testing for OCP and max wattage able to provide) but does not provide detailed voltage regulation values. He is also quite generous handing out awards, but their reviews are still very valuable.

OC or Overclock3D.net
OC3D has been doing reviews for quite a while now, but it wasn't until mid/late 2009 until their test setup and methodology was updated to provide complete reviews. That said, James Napier offers valuable input with a general build quality over-view, cold and hot load tests, an overload test to push a PSU to it's limits and ripple/noise testing.

PC or PC Perspective
PC Perspective has pretty much always had a respectable test setup, but it wasn't until a couple years ago they acquired a load tester capable of fully loading high end PSUs. Shortly after that they started using a hotbox to test PSUs at up to 40C. Because they have a full test setup including ripple/noise testing and acoustics, they deserve to be included.

IT or www.itocp.com
ITOCP is a Chinese website but occasionally offers up PSU reviews in English. There are a variety of cold and hot load tests, as well as a 3 hour, full load torture test, ripple/noise measurements and a few other tests. There is also a detailed analysis of the components and designs.

M or Makalu
Makalu is a member over at guru3d that built his own resistor based load tester, and from time to time puts a PSU to the test. He does a fine job for a do-it-yourselfer and I feel I should include his handful of reviews since his testing fits all of my requirements.

I have included the source thread within the spreadsheet itself for those wanting to link to just the document. I want this to be available to as many as possible, but I also do not want others taking credit and would prefer links to this thread instead of directly to Google Documents.

http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=0AvMI3TyDv9JSdFE0MGJqMFdVLUZhaWtLQ25CUDVQcHc&w=100&h=600 Google Spreadsheet


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## DuckieHo

How about Google spreadsheet instead?

I would like a quick reference to OEM, UL number, and design....

You could work with Tator Tat: http://www.overclock.net/power-suppl...-supplies.html


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## Enigma8750

Corsair HX 1000

http://www.hardwarecanucks.com/forum...ly-review.html


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## shinji2k

Quote:


Originally Posted by *DuckieHo* 
How about Google spreadsheet instead?

I would like a quick reference to OEM, UL number, and design....

You could work with Tator Tat: http://www.overclock.net/power-suppl...-supplies.html

I am certainly considering alternatives like Google spreadsheet. I've also thought about including some basic info as you suggested, but that would probably have to come after I get a reasonable list going. This is a lot of work as it is.

For now I want to keep it simple. Tator's thread already has a lot of info in it, if we start adding hundreds of links to reviews it would be difficult for people to easily find the current recommended models.


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## Z Naught

Nice thread. I remember seeing a website with "Tiers" of PSU mfgs. That was quite a while before. Maybe you could organize them something like that?


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## shinji2k

Thanks for the suggestions so far. Any and all are welcome since I'm sure this thread will be constantly evolving, hopefully organizing and consolidating a large amount of data.


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## shinji2k

And this has already evolved. I have to work tomorrow so I should probably go to bed


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## shinji2k

I'm pretty sure I've finished with jonnyGURU. I'm probably only a quarter of the way done gathering reviews. It's clear this is going to be a massive list. Google Docs was a good choice, thanks Duckie! There was at least one really old jonnyGURU review that didn't quite stack up to my standards as a good review (Aspire Beast). But what he did test was enough to show it was junk so it's enough for me.


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## Phaedrus2129

Good job, man. This will help a ton.









Only thing is, can you make the column wider? It's hard to see all the info at once.


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## shinji2k

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Phaedrus2129* 
Good job, man. This will help a ton.









Only thing is, can you make the column wider? It's hard to see all the info at once.

I have it set to take up 60% of the width of your screen. What res are you using so I can judge how much more I need. It's fine for me, but not everyone is running at 1080P or higher.

Well, at 1280x1024 I need to set it to 100% to see all the current columns. I'll just leave it at that. I don't know exactly what info I will be including anyways.


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## Phaedrus2129

I can see it now, I'm at 1680x1050. I can see Make, Model, OEM, Performance, and part of Build quality.It's really the first three I care about though.


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## DuckieHo

If you want help.... you could give a few of us edit permissions.

I would also recommend creating a separate column for wattage rating for easier sorting.


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## shinji2k

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Phaedrus2129* 
I can see it now, I'm at 1680x1050. I can see Make, Model, OEM, Performance, and part of Build quality.It's really the first three I care about though.

Are you viewing the forums in fixed view?

Quote:


Originally Posted by *DuckieHo* 
If you want help.... you could give a few of us edit permissions.

I would also recommend creating a separate column for wattage rating for easier sorting.

Hmm... For now I need to get the layout figured out so having help add to the list may be counter productive. I think within the next few days I'll be able to get a majority of the reviews listed. After that I will work on formatting and work on additional info. Once I get everything caught up it shouldn't be much to keep up with new reviews.

The second column for wattage does sound promising. Lemme see how it looks.


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## shinji2k

So how does it look if I put the name and model # in one column and wattage in the next? I've only added model numbers up to Cooler Master.


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## shinji2k

I couldn't sleep so I went ahead and cataloged all [H]ardOCP reviews. As you can see I am running into duplicate reviews for the more popular stuff. Since you can only have one hyperlink per cell I had to add another column. Since I will be doing hardwaresecrets next I'm sure I will have three reviews for each of the most popular units. I guess I will have to add another column unless I or one of you guys can figure out a better way.


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## Zap

This is a great idea!


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## Eagle1337

i'll help out if you want, your missing some units


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## shinji2k

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Eagle1337* 
i'll help out if you want, your missing some units









I have a ways to go still, but I think I'll mangae







. JG and [H] are done and I am about 1/4 of the way through HS. After that I'll probably grab the recent OC3D stuff and maybe some SPCR. That'll be about it for the best reviews. I'll have to start going through places like XBit and a couple others for units that don't already have reviews at the better sites.


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## Eagle1337

Hardwareheaven's power supply reviews don't look too bad.


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## shinji2k

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Zap* 
This is a great idea!

Thanks. I started to get tired of searching for reviews to link so I figured this would be a good idea.

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Eagle1337* 
Hardwareheaven's power supply reviews don't look too bad.

Yeah they are probably going to be on the non-preferred list that I'll get to eventually. If they were to add some ripple measurements and get it a little warmer I would be much more satisfied with their reviews.


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## DuckieHo

Quote:


Originally Posted by *shinji2k* 
I have a ways to go still, but I think I'll mangae







. JG and [H] are done and I am about 1/4 of the way through HS. After that I'll probably grab the recent OC3D stuff and maybe some SPCR. That'll be about it for the best reviews. I'll have to start going through places like XBit and a couple others for units that don't already have reviews at the better sites.

Don't forget about HardwareSecrets.com!


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## shinji2k

Oh wow, thank you so much for making this a sticky, whoever it was!

edit:
What if I change it to look like this?

 <!-- AME Google Spreadsheet --> http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=0AvMI3TyDv9JSdFNRWmZRdWlXTEhlM1dsNl83RTN1alE&w=100&h=250 Google Spreadsheet

Does that look a little better for multiple reviews?


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## Tator Tot

Wow, I think that looks much better Shinji. More organized and clean.

Also, this thread will be a great resource so good work man


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## shinji2k

Hardwaresecrets has been completely updated and I did a little reorganizing. I'll probably add the most recent OC3D reviews (the ones since they updated their test platform) here in a little bit. After that I'll be left with the substandard reviews, we'll see what I do with those.


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## shinji2k

The database is complete for now and I've updated the OP with some more info. There were a few OC3D reviews I didn't add since I already had three reviews for those particular PSUs. I see no reason for a fourth review that doesn't offer anything more. The next step is to figure out which subpar reviews I will include. I'll probably start with SPCR, X-bit and hardwareheaven, but I need to finalize my criteria. Thanks for everyone's help, bookmark it if you haven't yet!


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## Tator Tot

Looks brilliant Shinji. Good job man









This will definitely be a valuable resource.


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## shinji2k

I've been looking over PC Perspective's reviews, and I think I will add them under the good review category. For some reason I never really paid much attention to them but after looking over reviews from around the past three years (after the update to the current setup), they seem to be pretty reliable. I was unsure at what temperature they do their testing at, but I'm pretty sure that they regularly hit 40C at full load. They do something like OW for a hot box so temps aren't constant, but as long as you hit 40-50C at full load I can't complain. Anyone see a reason why they aren't reliable? I haven't gone through all of their reviews yet to make sure results are consistent with the others so maybe I'm missing a major flaw.


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## Phaedrus2129

Are you putting ITOCP reviews on there? What do you do if they're in Chinese?


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## shinji2k

Quote:



Originally Posted by *Phaedrus2129*


Are you putting ITOCP reviews on there? What do you do if they're in Chinese?


So far the only one I know Travis has translated to English is the TPQ-1200 review. I don't really plan on listing reviews not in English, so I'll only be posting future reviews of his if he also provides an English version for us. The various web translators are crap for Chinese so there is just too much info lost for me to link to any of his Chinese reviews. I just hope he has time to translate any future reviews for us.


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## Phaedrus2129

Yeah, and the Huntkey x7 900W I just noticed. Ah well, let's hope.


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## DuckieHo

BTW... you mentioned SPCR earlier... did you forget about them?


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## shinji2k

Oops, it was the Huntkey that was translated. The Antec was only in Chinese.

Quote:



Originally Posted by *DuckieHo*


BTW... you mentioned SPCR earlier... did you forget about them?


I recently noticed they only tested at room temp, so they would have to go with the flawed reviews when I get to them.
edit* I guess they do use a hotbox, I could have sworn the review I looked at didn't have that.


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## TheDreadedGMan

Quote:



Originally Posted by *DuckieHo*


Don't forget about HardwareSecrets.com!


my personal favourite:
How Much Power Can a Generic 500 W Power Supply Really Deliver?

~ 250W!! LOL


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## shinji2k

Man, SPCR, why can't you learn how to measure ripple/noise accurately? The review of the DA700 is the oldest review of theirs that has ripple measurements that make sense. Everything after that seems to be ok, but I haven't checked them all yet. Anything older than that and it's clear they don't know how to measure ripple. I just don't get it. I still think I am going to put them in the alternative category since you have to check their ripple results with other reviews. For example, SPCR found the Enermax Galaxy to have a max of 6.7mV of ripple on the 12V, while jonnyGURU measured 50mV. Seriously?

Quote:



Originally Posted by *TheDreadedGMan*


my personal favourite:
How Much Power Can a Generic 500 W Power Supply Really Deliver?

~ 250W!! LOL


Heh, I was going to include that in the db, but there's no brand to list under. I hate to just call it 'Generic'.


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## anonemus

@shinji2k -- i must say, this is a very useful google document! excellent source! is it okay if i share the link in other fora?


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## shinji2k

Quote:


Originally Posted by *anonemus* 
@shinji2k -- i must say, this is a very useful google document! excellent source! is it okay if i share the link in other fora?

A link to just the spreadsheet or to the whole thread? Of course share the thread with anyone you think would be interested, but I'd rather the spreadsheet itself not be linked to. It's the internet so it's not like I can stop anyone from doing that, but I feel there is important info in the thread that is not included in the spreadsheet. I just don't want anyone to start up their own review database in some obscure forum and link to the spreadsheet as if they did the work.


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## anonemus

That's why I wish you put the thread link in the database somewhere, shin. As it would be easier to link back to you. It's a bit clumsy to link this thread as lazy readers would have to dig through the discussion. What do you think?


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## shinji2k

Quote:



Originally Posted by *anonemus*


That's why I wish you put the thread link in the database somewhere, shin. As it would be easier to link back to you. It's a bit clumsy to link this thread as lazy readers would have to dig through the discussion. What do you think?


I'll go along with you for now







. The OP has been updated. It's inevitable that this will be copied if people like it enough, much like Makalu's OEM/12V database. Hopefully this is a good compromise.


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## anonemus

Okay. I'm also looking forward to the Corsair AX series reviews being included in the database soon!


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## Bane99

It may just be me, but it seems like Johnny Guru's site is down


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## Kaninja

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Bane99* 
It may just be me, but it seems like Johnny Guru's site is down









Yeah, it's been down for over a day now. They are having a server issue that they hope to get fixed ASAP.


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## shinji2k

I've added all qualified PC Perspective reviews. The first review of theirs that uses a hot box is the Toughpower 1200W, so I've added all the ones that came after that. Most of them were duplicates, but there were some blanks that were filled like the Zalman 1000W, TPQ-1000 and the Toughpower 1500W. I don't know why I've ignored their reviews this whole time, I guess I wrote them off some time back. But they all seem to be consistent with the others so it wouldn't be fair to exclude them. I've also added the OC3D reviews I didn't earlier. I've shortened the abbreviations to fit five columns in to include all reviews.


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## Tator Tot

I'm lovin the look, and while I didn't double check everything the Corsair TX750 has two links for PCPerspective, and one is actually meant to be for the Corsair TX950 instead.


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## shinji2k

Thanks, I've already corrected a couple mistakes but I'm sure there are more. When a Google spreadsheet gets this large it gets hard to work with because it is slow to respond. I have found it to run a little better in IE.


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## Tator Tot

Quote:



Originally Posted by *shinji2k*


Thanks, I've already corrected a couple mistakes but I'm sure there are more. When a Google spreadsheet gets this large it gets hard to work with because it is slow to respond. I have found it to run a little better in IE.


I have found the fastest to actually be the fastest build of Chrome. (v6.x)

But yeah, these things get hard to work with. Try playing with the Red Tide's roster. It takes a good minute to get into place and setup.


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## DuckieHo

Quote:


Originally Posted by *shinji2k* 
Thanks, I've already corrected a couple mistakes but I'm sure there are more. When a Google spreadsheet gets this large it gets hard to work with because it is slow to respond. I have found it to run a little better in IE.

Can you work on it in Excel/OO Calc and copy/paste it into Google Spreadsheets?


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## Tator Tot

Quote:


Originally Posted by *DuckieHo* 
Can you work on it in Excel/OO Calc and copy/paste it into Google Spreadsheets?

Google Spreadsheet doesn't work well with that.

I"ve already tried.

The only way to do that would be to edit the file, and upload after every update which becomes more of a pain when doing 1 or 2 additions to a list.


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## shinji2k

I have also tried going from Excel to Google but it was more of a hassle than what it was worth. I'm satisfied with using IE8 to make the edits. Firefox + a large spreadsheet is just terrible. I'm pretty much fed up with FF as it is.


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## shadman

Wow this list is great, thank you!


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## Swiftes

Awesome list, good to re-read my PSU's review, smartest buy I have had in ages


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## shinji2k

Yeah that NorthQ is an interesting one. Performance is actually pretty good, the only thing bringing it down is cap quality. I don't like seeing Chhsi.


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## grahamcrackuh

didn't use it, but this is a great resource, well done sir.


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## shinji2k

Quote:


Originally Posted by *grahamcrackuh* 
didn't use it, but this is a great resource, well done sir.

Thanks. I know I use it all the time. It's so convenient having it all in one place. I was going to do something not so elaborate just for myself in like a word doc or something but I figured if I was going to do the work, might as well make it available to everyone.


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## Phaedrus2129

You know, I hate OCZ.

Quote:



StealthXStream OCZ400SXSHS400W*CWT*
StealthXStream OCZ500SXSHS500W*FSP*
ModXstream Pro OCZ500MXSPHS500W*Sirfa*
StealthXStream OCZ600SXSHS600W*FSP*
EvoStream OCZ600EVOSLJG600W*3Y*
ModXStream Pro OCZ600MXSPHSPC600W*Sirfa*
ModXStream Pro OCZ700MXSP[H]700W*Sirfa*
ModXStream Pro OCZ700MXSP 40C Update[H]700W*Sirfa*
GameXstream OCZ700GXSSLIJG700W*FSP*
Fatal1ty OCZ700FTYHSOCPC700W*Impervio*
Fatal1ty OCZ750FTYHS750W*Sirfa*
Z Series OCZZ850JG[H]HS850W*Sirfa*
Z Series OCZZ1000HSOC1000W*Sirfa*
EliteXStream OCZ1000EXS[H]HSPC1000W*Impervio
*
ProXStream OCZ1000PXS[H]HS1000W*3Y*
GameXStream OCZGXS1010[H]1010W*FSP*



CONSISTENCY, much?


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## shinji2k

Quote:



Originally Posted by *Phaedrus2129*


You know, I hate OCZ.

CONSISTENCY, much?










Don't forget Topower from their earliest PSUs.

What I never understood was why they even used 3Y and Impervio in the first place. It's not like they are cheap OEMs like FSP and Sirfa. In fact, I bet they are some of the more expensive ones (well 3Y was gobbled up by FSP/Sparkle long ago). It's also clear they prefer cheap OEMs since they made PC Power ditch Seasonic and Win-tact.


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## Phaedrus2129

Speaking of, wasn't Win-tact sort of half-married (metaphorically) to PC Power? What are they going to do without that business? Are they the OEM for anyone?


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## shinji2k

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Phaedrus2129* 
Speaking of, wasn't Win-tact sort of half-married (metaphorically) to PC Power? What are they going to do without that business? Are they the OEM for anyone?

PC Power was just their only consumer retail customer in NA, maybe even globally. They do much, much more than make (well, used to make) PSUs for PC Power. Just a quick look at their website shows they probably weren't even phased losing PC Power.


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## Tator Tot

Quote:


Originally Posted by *shinji2k* 







Don't forget Topower from their earliest PSUs.

What I never understood was why they even used 3Y and Impervio in the first place. It's not like they are cheap OEMs like FSP and Sirfa. In fact, I bet they are some of the more expensive ones (well 3Y was gobbled up by FSP/Sparkle long ago). It's also clear they prefer cheap OEMs since *they made PC Power ditch Seasonic and Win-tact*.

Last I heard; there was bad blood between PCP&C & Seasonic because OCZ stopped pulling orders for Silencer 750, Silencer 910, & Silencer 610 units.
And Seasonic ditched PCP&C; not the other way around.


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## shinji2k

Same thing really







. OCZ didn't want to do business with Seasonic anymore so Seasonic moved on.

Oh, and there were a couple 'Generic' PSUs reviewed that I never bothered to identify, but I learned recently they were both sold and built by Linkworld. Those are now added.

You know, OW did a 'bargain basement' roundup that was never added. I'll add those shortly.


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## DuckieHo

Shin, did you ever check this list for additional sources?
http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/522/7


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## Tator Tot

Quote:



Originally Posted by *DuckieHo*


Shin, did you ever check this list for additional sources?
http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/522/7


Some of those places do not do a good Job.

Tom's Hardware Guide (last I saw) was using Cooler Master facilities to test their units. And didn't do ripple/noise tests.

X-Bit's got some hard to read graphs. And doesn't really tell the whole story

Anand's got no ripple/noise testing

Techreport's got some stupid graphs as well and forgets to tell the whole story.

EDIT: Alot of EU &/or German sites you see doing reviews also do them at the Cooler Master Labs, with the same problem of no ripple or noise tests. Along with the fact that THEY (the site) only report what CM tests. They don't do the testing first hand.

Some sites have also used FSP Labs.


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## shinji2k

Quote:



Originally Posted by *DuckieHo*


Shin, did you ever check this list for additional sources?
http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/522/7


I wish there were more English reviews to list, but I think I've found all the good ones. Tator covered pretty much all the issues with the remaining English reviews.

Anand- useless ripple results
HardwareHeaven- no ripple, no hotbox
Extreme OC- ripple results not released (pass/fail only) and ripple is only measured on handful of most recent reviews
HardwareLogic- no ripple
SPCR- inconsistent/incorrect ripple measurements 
Tech Report- incorrect ripple results
Tom's- old stuff missing ripple and hot box, new stuff is biased and also missing ripple
X-bit- no hot box

Those reviews are also, generally, much less thorough with testing and the amount of data presented.


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## shinji2k

Nothing interesting really to report. I don't have any changes planned, I've just been keeping an eye out for new reviews and adding them when they come out.


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## PhilWrir

Im too tired to read this entire thread. so im sorry if this is pretty much a re-post of something.
Could you make a "How to choose a PSU" guide or something like that?
I know they are lots of work, but the only reason i have my Corsair 950 is because im a moron. :/
Or some links for reading material. I need to learn more about PSU theory and how they work.
I MUST LEARN MORE!!!


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## Tator Tot

Quote:



Originally Posted by *PhilWrir*


Im too tired to read this entire thread. so im sorry if this is pretty much a re-post of something.
Could you make a "How to choose a PSU" guide or something like that?
I know they are lots of work, but the only reason i have my Corsair 950 is because im a moron. :/
Or some links for reading material. I need to learn more about PSU theory and how they work.
I MUST LEARN MORE!!!


Your Corsair TX950 is actually a SUPERB unit for the price. It's only con that I can really note is "Non-Modular" but honestly.. it's a beast. And cheap.


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## shinji2k

I got lazy there for a couple weeks. Should be up to date now.

There seems to be another review database floating around now with their own fancy website. Good luck getting that from me







. They also aren't as discerning when gathering reviews, about half of them belong on my flawed list and there is a column for useless "reviews". At least the colors don't make my eyes bleed anymore. I still like mine better







.


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## Tator Tot

Quote:



Originally Posted by *shinji2k*


I got lazy there for a couple weeks. Should be up to date now.

There seems to be another review database floating around now with their own fancy website. Good luck getting that from me







. They also aren't as discerning when gathering reviews, about half of them belong on my flawed list and there is a column for useless "reviews". At least the colors don't make my eyes bleed anymore. I still like mine better







.


I still go to yours first no matter what.

Though the other one has been around longer; it's harder to use.


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## Tator Tot

Also, OCN doesn't filter Overclock3d.net anymore.


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## shinji2k

Quote:



Originally Posted by *Tator Tot*


I still go to yours first no matter what.

Though the other one has been around longer; it's harder to use.


I didn't even know it existed until after I finished mine







. I might not have bothered if I knew someone else beat me to it.


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## Tator Tot

Quote:



Originally Posted by *shinji2k*


I didn't even know it existed until after I finished mine







. I might not have bothered if I knew someone else beat me to it.


Yours is nicer; and the information is exportable if needed. And his colors are still ugly and hard to read.


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## shinji2k

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Tator Tot* 
Also, OCN doesn't filter Overclock3d.net anymore.

Sweet. That's was filtered for the longest time.

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Tator Tot* 
Yours is nicer; and the information is exportable if needed. And his colors are still ugly and hard to read.

I could probably make mine a little better by adding more info like 12V amperage, but I prefer to just look that up at Makalu's thread. I could also start adding flawed reviews, but.... nah. I'm too busy watching One Piece for the first time. I've been watching anime for 6 years now and never got around to it until now







. I'm only like 100 episodes in. It'll take me a while.


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## Tator Tot

Quote:


Originally Posted by *shinji2k* 
I could probably make mine a little better by adding more info like 12V amperage, but I prefer to just look that up at Makalu's thread. I could also start adding flawed reviews, but.... nah. I'm too busy watching One Piece for the first time. I've been watching anime for 6 years now and never got around to it until now







. I'm only like 100 episodes in. It'll take me a while.

Then obviously you need a new Avatar









Though I miss your Palm Top Tiaga









And nah; I don't think you should list 12v amperage, teach a man to fish kinda thing. Gotta throw him in the water with a net & spear. Let him figure the rest out.


----------



## shinji2k

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Tator Tot* 
Though I miss your Palm Top Tiaga









I do too, I should find where I stashed that one. And I finally caught up with One Piece. That was an endeavor.

As usual I got a little behind, but everything is up to date now.


----------



## Tator Tot

Quote:


Originally Posted by *shinji2k* 
I do too, I should find where I stashed that one. And I finally caught up with One Piece. That was an endeavor.

As usual I got a little behind, but everything is up to date now.











Toradora <3

Go watch Ookami-san to Shichinin no Nakama Tachi
(The Wolf and her 7 Friend)

Either way; are you going to consider adding Hardware Heaven or Kit Guru to the reviews list?

According to their Editor & Reviewer (which I spoke to via email and can forward to you if you want) they fit the criteria.

I sent an email to Kit-Guru but no response yet back on if they use a Hotbox or atleast above 30*C for testing.


----------



## shinji2k

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Tator Tot* 









Toradora <3

Go watch Ookami-san to Shichinin no Nakama Tachi
(The Wolf and her 7 Friend)

Either way; are you going to consider adding Hardware Heaven or Kit Guru to the reviews list?

According to their Editor & Reviewer (which I spoke to via email and can forward to you if you want) they fit the criteria.

I sent an email to Kit-Guru but no response yet back on if they use a Hotbox or atleast above 30*C for testing.

I saw the first four eps of that but then I was busy with OP. It was somewhat interesting, maybe I'll get back into it.

I noticed that HardwareHeaven started doing hotbox testing a couple reviews back, so I'll consider them. 35C is better than 25C, but it's still a little low. The same goes for KitGuru. The absolute lowest I like to see is 40C. 35C is a realistic temp inside a case so it's fine to test at that, but I still prefer to see worst case scenarios tested. I'll think about it.


----------



## Tator Tot

While I agree, I'd love to see 40*C; 35 is definitely more realistic to what you'd see in a case.

I'm still waiting on an email back from Kit-Guru to see what their testing temperature is at.
It would seem as though they just started to seriously test PSU's, so they might be in the process of getting things worked out.


----------



## Tator Tot

Shinji, you need to edit your post so the Doc shows up again.

Google screwed up Doc's when they did their last update.


----------



## shinji2k

And everything is up to date. Sorry it's been so long, I haven't been paying much attention to PSUs lately.


----------



## Tator Tot

Quote:


Originally Posted by *shinji2k* 
And everything is up to date. Sorry it's been so long, I haven't been paying much attention to PSUs lately.

Bad Shinji, for shame.









Good work man









You might want to throw HWS Review of the HCG-750 in there as well.


----------



## shinji2k

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Tator Tot* 
Bad Shinji, for shame.









Good work man









You might want to throw HWS Review of the HCG-750 in there as well.

I could have sworn I added that one, lemme double check.


----------



## Tator Tot

Quote:


Originally Posted by *shinji2k* 
I could have sworn I added that one, lemme double check.

I see it there now, but when I refreshed I didn't see it.
Figured you might have missed it cause they had just posted earlier this night.

Either way, good job man


----------



## Waltibaba

Hey, I was looking into these (850 in particular) for future proofing my upcoming (first







) build:

XFX Pro Core Edition 650, 750, 850

The JG entry is only a forum, but contains a link to a well known German review site:
JG thread
tweakpc.de
tweakpc translated
They did extensive ripple and noise testing, which shows up quite impressive results.

Another JG thread links to a Kit Guru review (dunno how trustworthy that is...







):
JG thread
Kit Guru

And finally a Hardware Heaven review:
Hardware Heaven

Great work bunching all those reviews, but I think the entire operation is overwhelmed by the sheer amount of psus out there.


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## Tator Tot

KitGuru is pretty trustworthy.
They had one oops with a bad upload on ripple results, but they fixed that.
The XFX Core Edition series is all really good.

Though; you may wish to look for a modular unit, as 850w/non-modular means lots of extra cables waiting by, not being used.

For cheap you can get a True Power New 650w which should be fine for just about any build you do.


----------



## Frosty88

Hey Tator,

What do you think of the Cougar 1000CMX?

They're really pricey for what seems to be a mediocre unit (I do love the paint job though). Anyway, I found that unit on sale for $129.99 and decided to pull the trigger. I plan on running tri SLI 470s in the future and had been looking for a kilowatt PSU, this one will hopefully fit the bill.


----------



## Tator Tot

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Frosty88* 
Hey Tator,

What do you think of the Cougar 1000CMX?

They're really pricey for what seems to be a mediocre unit (I do love the paint job though). Anyway, I found that unit on sale for $129.99 and decided to pull the trigger. I plan on running tri SLI 470s in the future and had been looking for a kilowatt PSU, this one will hopefully fit the bill.

5v Ripple can go out of spec at full load.
It's been measured between 47 & 52mv with the max spec being 50mv
3.3v Ripple wasn't fantastic either at only 35-40mv

12v ripple was 60-70mv (half of spec) so that wasn't bad.

All in all, you probably won't stress the system enough on the 5v rail to cause the ripple to go so high. But it's still flirtin with the limits so not a great unit.

You could have done worse though.


----------



## Frosty88

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Tator Tot* 
5v Ripple can go out of spec at full load.
It's been measured between 47 & 52mv with the max spec being 50mv
3.3v Ripple wasn't fantastic either at only 35-40mv

12v ripple was 60-70mv (half of spec) so that wasn't bad.

All in all, you probably won't stress the system enough on the 5v rail to cause the ripple to go so high. But it's still flirtin with the limits so not a great unit.

_You could have done worse though_.

Thanks for the helpful response.









I currently have a much better unit but it will not handle tri-sli 470. Maybe I should cancel my order and wait to get a better 1000w+ PSU....


----------



## Tator Tot

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Frosty88* 
Thanks for the helpful response.









I currently have a much better unit but it will not handle tri-sli 470. Maybe I should cancel my order and wait to get a better 1000w+ PSU....

I would personally, PSU can easily last you 5 years.


----------



## Frosty88

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Tator Tot* 
I would personally, PSU can easily last you 5 years.

Anything you recommend?

- At least 1000w
- Under $200


----------



## Tator Tot

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Frosty88* 
Anything you recommend?

- At least 1000w
- Under $200

Enermax SGalaxy DXX 1000w (review)

A Stupidly good sale right now, same efficiency, same price, much better in all other regards.


----------



## Frosty88

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Tator Tot* 
Enermax SGalaxy DXX 1000w (review)

A Stupidly good sale right now, same efficiency, same price, much better in all other regards.

Ugh, same price for a better unit but it doesn't have enough PCIe connectors for tri-sli. That blows....

On another note: I did look up some reviews of the 1000CMX and found two that were both in German. Maybe something was lost in translation but it actually did pretty well. Maybe it's been improved?

http://www.ncix.com/products/?sku=55...facture=Cougar


----------



## Tator Tot

What reviews were they?

Not all reviews are equal and some reviewers do them in room temps (around 23*C) instead of more accurate case temps (like 35-40*C) and when temps rises, performance falls on most units (though some it doesn't really effect them.)

Also, you can just use a Molex to PCIe adapter.


----------



## Frosty88

Quote:



Originally Posted by *Tator Tot*


What reviews were they?

Not all reviews are equal and some reviewers do them in room temps (around 23*C) instead of more accurate case temps (like 35-40*C) and when temps rises, performance falls on most units (though some it doesn't really effect them.)

Also, you can just use a Molex to PCIe adapter.


I don't know what it is but I hate the idea of a molex to PCIe adapter. If the Enermax is really that much better than I'll deal with it.

Here are the reviews (I'm sure they're no Johny Guru, but it's all I could find on the unit):

1. http://www.gamezoom.net/artikel/Coug...Review-22047-9
2. http://hardware-academy.org/reviews/...0.html?start=6


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## Tator Tot

GameZoom is testing with a PC, so they're not applying a full 1000w load to it. They don't say what the O-scope or DMM is. 
And it's only a 21*C environment.

Aka, don't trust them.

Hardware Academy doesn't use an ATE or Load Tester (so again, not full 1000w load) and doesn't do O-Scope shots or readings.

Again, don't trust them.

I don't think the CMX 1000 is a terrible unit, but the Enermax is much better in regards to Voltage Regulation and Noise/Ripple suppression.


----------



## Frosty88

Quote:



Originally Posted by *Tator Tot*


GameZoom is testing with a PC, so they're not applying a full 1000w load to it. They don't say what the O-scope or DMM is. 
And it's only a 21*C environment.

Aka, don't trust them.

Hardware Academy doesn't use an ATE or Load Tester (so again, not full 1000w load) and doesn't do O-Scope shots or readings.

Again, don't trust them.

I don't think the CMX 1000 is a terrible unit, but the Enermax is much better in regards to Voltage Regulation and Noise/Ripple suppression.


Damn, it looks so good too!

I think I'll do some more research and rethink my purchase. I'm sure there will be other great deals to come.

Thanks Tator, I appreciate all the help. I'd rep you if I could.


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## Tator Tot

No problem man


----------



## UNOE

list here is very helpful is there any place with top PSU for wattage or orginze by highest rated ... like the jonnyguru is perfect with rating at the end of the review but is there a place he list his faviotes


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## PcKiller

Thanks for this info, I found it very helpful.

Mad reps to you.


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## crunkazcanbe

While I was running prime 95 the power supply was making alot of noise the one in my amd rig specs still and my cpu voltage was jumping all around so I swapped it to a Silverstone 1500w I have and my pc worked fine and my cpu voltage was not jumping all around. I put my old one back in my pc and it would not start at all. So im debating whether or not to get This or This 1. Does anyone have a opinion on witch one is better ?


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## Tator Tot

The AX1200 is a better unit (electrically) than the ZX 1250, ZX1250 gives you a bit more power though. The difference is nil at best though.

I'd get whichever is cheaper.

You'll only need a 750w to 850w unit for your Rig though.


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## Spooony

Sentey Golden Steel Power 850w unit review (I know the name sounds eh sorta cheap but its not. Good review)

http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/Sentey-Golden-Steel-Power-850-W-Power-Supply-Review/1289


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## Tator Tot

Don't worry, Shinji will get to updating his spreadsheet when he can.


----------



## xxpenguinxx

Here's a review on the OCZ ZX 1000W. It seems like a very good unit for the price.
http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story&reid=238


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## shinji2k

Sorry about not keeping this up to date, I'm trying to get my entry for the case mod competition completed. Gimme a month and I'll get this all updated.


----------



## Spooony

Here's the Cougar Gx 700w
http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/Cougar-GX-700-W-Power-Supply-Review/1049/10


----------



## MoPs

first of all, thanks for the dfatabase, really helpfull.

ive got two questions,

1) do you think lianli 850 silent force is good ? the best review i could get to was http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/lian_li_750w/7.htm, but i dont think its good enough, i dont understand psu reviews, but it does not even mention ripple, so i dont trust the review.

2) how d you feel about sentey hard blue power series ? (golden and superior series have good reviews but i have not found anything about hdp)

ps1:i live in argentina so some brands are to expensive for what they can offer ( corsair ), but sentey and lili are not that expensive here.
ps2: i currently own a lili850 and i am using it to mine with 2*5850 24/7, it has survived 2 weeks, releasing low heat, and low noise.


----------



## Tator Tot

The Lian-Li Silent Force units are not "bad" per say, but the build quality (particularly the soldering) is rather average.

It's a solid buy _if_ you need need that much power (that's a big if, as you'd want to have 3 GTX 570's to consider a unit of that size.)

For your current system; any decent 400-500w unit would be more than enough.

As for the Senty Hard Blue Power units; they are based on the Super Flower Crystal Plus designs. Solid units; your best examples will be the review of the Kingwin Mach 1 700w, Mach 1 1000w, and Mach 1 1220w


----------



## MoPs

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *Tator Tot;13854460*
> The Lian-Li Silent Force units are not "bad" per say, but the build quality (particularly the soldering) is rather average.
> 
> It's a solid buy _if_ you need need that much power (that's a big if, as you'd want to have 3 GTX 570's to consider a unit of that size.)
> 
> For your current system; any decent 400-500w unit would be more than enough.
> 
> As for the Senty Hard Blue Power units; they are based on the Super Flower Crystal Plus designs. Solid units; your best examples will be the review of the Kingwin Mach 1 700w, Mach 1 1000w, and Mach 1 1220w


thanks for the quick repply.
i am considering on using the lili with 3*5850, as they require less power than 570 i would assume it will be enough.

just to understand your answer, how does the soldering affect a power supply







?


----------



## Tator Tot

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *MoPs;13854520*
> thanks for the quick repply.
> i am considering on using the lili with 3*5850, as they require less power than 570 i would assume it will be enough.
> 
> just to understand your answer, how does the soldering affect a power supply
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ?


Soldering effects the build quality of a PSU in a more subtle way. Bad soldering can crack over time, then a component goes loose and then the PSU goes out.

For a 3 x 5850 option; you'd want to look at a 750w-800w unit (depending on the 12v amperage) and figure out what your best option; PSU wise, is.


----------



## MoPs

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *Tator Tot;13854616*
> Soldering effects the build quality of a PSU in a more subtle way. Bad soldering can crack over time, then a component goes loose and then the PSU goes out.
> 
> For a 3 x 5850 option; you'd want to look at a 750w-800w unit (depending on the 12v amperage) and figure out what your best option; PSU wise, is.


sorry for asking a lot, but i enjey learning about hardware, and smthg is not clear to me.

you first said that the lili850is good enough for 3*570, but then you kinda not recommended me to use lili 850 for 3*5850, i already own the lili, and i wanted to use it on 3*5850, but its not nessesary, i could avoid this rig but it is the way i could mine more bitcoins.


----------



## Tator Tot

The reason I suggest against it, is that it's more than needed.

There's no reason to spend $20 more on an 850w when a solid 750w could do the job just fine.


----------



## MoPs

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *Tator Tot;13863775*
> The reason I suggest against it, is that it's more than needed.
> 
> There's no reason to spend $20 more on an 850w when a solid 750w could do the job just fine.


ok thank you !!!
as i stated above, i live in argentina, for the same price my other options where, Thermaltake XT 775 (horrible), for 29bucks less silent pro m 700 ( did not think that 700w could handle 3*5850 ), and cm GX 750 that olimpically sucs.
3rd world FTW


----------



## Tator Tot

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *MoPs;13865777*
> ok thank you !!!
> as i stated above, i live in argentina, for the same price my other options where, Thermaltake XT 775 (horrible), for 29bucks less silent pro m 700 ( did not think that 700w could handle 3*5850 ), and cm GX 750 that olimpically sucs.
> 3rd world FTW


Oh god, get the Thermaltake Toughpower XT 775w, that's a great unit.


----------



## MoPs

hi , i need a psu for 4870+pII 940.

i was between these psus:

cm silent proM 500w US$115
OCZ GameXstream 600W US$ 119
TOPOWER Nano Series TOP-500PM 500Wu$s 75,00
TOPOWER Nano Series TOP-650PM 650W u$s 120,00
Antec Bp500u u$s 100
sentey hbp500w u$s100
sentey sdp550w u$s110

personally i would choose the cm, but i would like your opinion.


----------



## Tator Tot

Your best options are actually the Senty units. The 550w will be about the same in efficiency as the 500w and other performance factors will be more or less the same.


----------



## MoPs

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *Tator Tot;14116627*
> Your best options are actually the Senty units. The 550w will be about the same in efficiency as the 500w and other performance factors will be more or less the same.


thanks for your quick reply

between the snetey hbp or sdp wich one would you choose ?
i think sdp is better but i dont know.


----------



## Tator Tot

HBP550-SS because it's Modular, cheaper, and like I said before; performance will be just about the same.


----------



## adridu59

There is a clear lack of Be Quiet! review in this thread... but whatever, these PSU aren't available in the US...


----------



## Shub

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *adridu59;15139081*
> There is a clear lack of Be Quiet! review in this thread... but whatever, these PSU aren't available in the US...


www.technic3d.com frequently reviews Be Quiet! units since it's a German site and they are popular over in Germany. Problem is their review methodology is very lacking (no ripple test, no analysis of the innards, no hot box testing, no clue what tools they use for their testing, ...), but I guess it's worth a look for lack of a better option. Si tu comprends pas l'allemand tu peux toujours passer le site au Google Translate









www.kitguru.net also reviews one or the other Be Quiet! unit sometimes, and they do proper reviews at least.

Be Quiet! uses FSP as their OEM most of the time, so the quality will typically range from average to good. I don't get the obsession over Be Quiet! in Europe since they're nothing special.


----------



## Korlus

Here is a review for the OCZ ZS Series 650W Unit. Seems like a good unit:
http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/artic...-Review/1361/1


----------



## MMJA

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *Korlus;15235218*
> Here is a review for the OCZ ZS Series 650W Unit. Seems like a good unit:
> http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/OCZ-ZS-Series-650-W-Power-Supply-Review/1361/1


That PSU actually uses better components than the flagship ZX line. The ZX 850 uses CapXon primary and Teapo (I think) secondary capacitors whereas the ZS uses Matsushida primaries and Nippon Chemi-con secondaries. Not to mention the ZX 850 doesn't have a MOV.


----------



## jwalker150

Did not see this in your spreadsheet so: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817194092
ENERMAX MAXREVO Series EMR1350EWT 1350W ATX12V / EPS12V v2.92, v2.8 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS GOLD Certified Modular Power Supply
Reviews:
http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php...Story&reid=241
http://www.hardocp.com/article/2011/...supply_review/
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Enermax/EMR1350EWT/
http://www.kitguru.net/components/po...supply-review/

Think that covers most of the ones you use.


----------



## MMJA

I would remove that HardwareHeaven review, the internal components page has pretty much no detail at all, pretty much just saying what the box claims. Also the load testing seems to contain far less detail than the likes of HardwareSecrets, HARDOCP, JonnyGURU.


----------



## Tator Tot

Guru3D doesn't actually test PSU's either.

I don't trust Hardware Heaven's reviews anymore, since they changed reviewer they've been getting results that were much better than what other reviewers have gotten.


----------



## jwalker150

I understand. I just know this power supply was not in the list and I was providing you everything that was there so you could add what was relevant to the spreadsheet.


----------



## veritas-truth

Here's a new review for the Huntkey x7 900w: spotted it browsing HS.

http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/Huntkey-X7-900-W-Power-Supply-Review/1446/1


----------



## dartuil

be quiet

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/beQuiet/PurePower_L8_730W/1.html

http://www.kitguru.net/components/power-supplies/zardon/be-quiet-pure-power-l8-630w-power-supply-review/










my next psi us the 730w model which fail on a test i dont understand :
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/beQuiet/PurePower_L8_730W/7.html


----------



## Vuashke

http://www.techpowerup.com/articles//overclocking/psu/161/3 explains transient load tests


----------



## a pet rock

Silverstone's 450W SFX PSU doesn't seem to be on the list.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817256063
http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story&reid=196


----------



## Behemot

I hope nobody would mind if I resurrect this thread. As everything, the review market is changing as well.

Hardware Secrets is not reviewing anymore. JonnyGuru is&#8230;somewhat rushing lately which impacts quality. From what I've seen, KitGuru reviews are too shallow. PC Games Hardware will most likely fall hard very soon as they got rid of their great reviewer. On the other hand TPU reviews are very good, and I am falling just a little bit behind at resurrected Hardware Insights.


----------

