Discussion PSU recommendations and power supply discussion thread - Tom's hardware

[turkey3_scratch]

@Goldstone: on the last page I just talked about that article and why it's wrong (or at least why the conditions they lay out do not guarantee the solution that a golden sample was sent).

 

[goldstone77]

@Goldstone: on the last page I just talked about that article and why it's wrong (or at least why the conditions they lay out do not guarantee the solution that a golden sample was sent).

It has subsequently emerged that the sample provided by EVGA to JonnyGuru was manufactured by Super Flower, whose Leadex platform is well known for its performance and high quality. Aris of Tom's Hardware (and TechPowerUp), however, bought their review sample from a retail outlet. The manufacturing of the latter had been outsourced to RSY, with (in this case) a resulting decline in build quality. It remains unclear whether Super Flower outsourced its production, or if EVGA is using multiple suppliers or switched manufacturers all together. Regardless, lesser quality PSUs would appear to be in stores in comparison to what was reviewed at JonnyGuru, arguably the most influential review site for PSUs.

Two different manufacturers?

 

[Darkbreeze]

Of course companies send out golden samples. Not just sometimes. Always. Every single time. Except of course now that Seasonic has made it a point, supposedly, to send review samples via Newegg regular stock. Even that could be questionable.

It makes sense too from a survival standpoint. I mean, why WOULDN'T you send the best samples you have? You don't see automotive manufacturers sending stripped down base package models to car and trade shows.

Home builders don't offer tours of their worst models/elevations or include them in parade of homes/home show events. They put their best, most innovative models forward.

Other tech and electronics companies don't set up booths to show you their non-smart, non-giant, non-ultra contrast products at places like CES etc., so it's pure idiocy to think that PSU manufacturers would be any different. EVERYBODY always puts their best foot forward when it's in their best interest to do so. It's certainly a problem though when the actual common stock is either an entirely different internal platform as we've seen happen in some cases, or is simply nothing like the same quality inside.

Can't blame a company for not wanting to stab its own self in the back, but we CAN blame them for trying to be disingenuous or straight up dishonest about it. I think all companies that want to offer samples for review should simply provide vouchers for reviewers to purchase the sample from whichever vendor seems most appropriate based on local or regional availability. That way they all know they are getting the same product that any normal person would get.

While I have full faith in the fact that Seasonic makes pretty great power supplies, I don't have great faith in corporate decision making and it would not be beyond the realm of believability to think that they could just as easily provide Newegg with golden samples to keep on hand and send out as instructed, when instructed, to do so. Not that they ARE doing that, just that they COULD do that if they wished and nobody would really be the wiser.

It would ALSO be in Newegg, or whomever's, best interest to play along because positive reviews of most products result in higher sales for them. The only way to eliminate any chance of that is giving reviewers vouchers to redeem wherever they wish to do so at. And I'm quite sure that will never happen, because it would not favor most companies products in the long run.

 

[turkey3_scratch]

I'm pretty sure they probably just buy it off Newegg themselves and then Seasonic pays them. I don't think Seasonic is telling Newegg to send them something. Nonetheless I do not believe that Seasonic is sending golden samples through Newegg.

Two different manufacturers?

Jonnyguru doesn't test protections, that's why it didn't blow.

I saw this here at Jonnyguru, the sample sent out to reviewers:

And the sample in the actual retail units:

With a.... happy meal Shrek toy?

 

[Rexper]

[Update, 10/13/2017: EVGA informed us that as of today all B3 units come from Superflower, not RSY]

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/evga-450-b3-psu,5160.html

 

[goldstone77]

as of today all B3 units come from Superflower, not RSY

Meaning there was a change made after the fact.

Edit: I think it's good to note that some brands only supply the stickers for their PSUs.

 

[turkey3_scratch]

Outsourcing is more common than you think.

 

[goldstone77]

EVGA 750 B3 PSU Review
by Aris Mpitziopoulos November 7, 2017 at 6:00 AM
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/evga-750-b3-power-supply,5229-11.html

Final Analysis
Something is clearly wrong with EVGA's B3 family. If we had problems with one or two samples, we might chalk it up to bad luck. But this is the third B3 unit in a row to die during OPP testing. You don't need to be an expert to realize that Super Flower didn't tune the over-power protection point on these PSUs properly, and needs to fix the issue as fast as possible.

Thankfully, our 750 B3 died quietly, just like the 850 B3. However, it did fail before we were able to finish all of our tests. This time around, we didn't even bother to let EVGA know its product expired on the bench. After all, the company still hasn't responded to our concerns about the 450 B3's failure, where the main fuse remained intact, creating a fire hazard.

Note: The date is after the 450 B3 failure.

Edit: added article link

 

[goldstone77]

Newegg has a sale on SeaSonic M12II 620 Bronze 620W ATX12V V2.3 / EPS 12V V2.91 SLI Ready 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Full Modular Active PFC Power Supply $37.99 after $20 rebate.

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151095

https://plugloadsolutions.com/psu_reports/SEA%20SONIC_S12II-620_ECOS%201799_620W_Report.pdf

 

[Darkbreeze]

I have two of those units. I don't care what anybody says about them, they ran for YEARS in the systems they were in and I will likely use them again for something that has much less demand than what they were previously used in. I've also used the S12II and M12II units in MANY builds, no issues at all even though they are group regulated. Highly dependable.

Several, maybe six of those builds, are Haswell and Haswell family Xeons. C7 states off, no issues. That's a great price. I might have to grab one of those for an AMD build I'm getting ready to do that requires a new unit but is a somewhat budget affair. Gonna get back to adding more reviews here soon too. I was terribly sick there for a while. Had a massive upper respiratory infection and I've been working on revamping my buddies website that I did originally back in 2009. It was designed to look right on a 4:3 ratio resolution because that was what was still most common at that time, had to update it to look good on modern resolutions.

I suspect the majority of people will be using 16:9 ratio displays for quite some time to come.

 

[jankerson]

I have two of those units. I don't care what anybody says about them, they ran for YEARS in the systems they were in and I will likely use them again for something that has much less demand than what they were previously used in. I've also used the S12II and M12II units in MANY builds, no issues at all even though they are group regulated. Highly dependable.

Several, maybe six of those builds, are Haswell and Haswell family Xeons. C7 states off, no issues. That's a great price. I might have to grab one of those for an AMD build I'm getting ready to do that requires a new unit but is a somewhat budget affair. Gonna get back to adding more reviews here soon too. I was terribly sick there for a while. Had a massive upper respiratory infection and I've been working on revamping my buddies website that I did originally back in 2009. It was designed to look right on a 4:3 ratio resolution because that was what was still most common at that time, had to update it to look good on modern resolutions.

I suspect the majority of people will be using 16:9 ratio displays for quite some time to come.

The only real issue with the regular Non EVO vers is they only have 1x 8 pin PCIe cable and 1x 6 Pin.

The EVO's have 2x 8 pin.

Just retired mine after almost 8 years running it.

 

[Darkbreeze]

The one he linked to, which is the same as the ones I have, are the EVO edition and have four 6+2 connectors.

 

[jankerson]

The one he linked to, which is the same as the ones I have, are the EVO edition and have four 6+2 connectors.

That's the EVO, yeah 4x 6+2 pin.

Not sure why it has 4 of them however as they are 576w on the 12V.

 

[goldstone77]

Yeah, they are a ridiculously good deal at that price point. Sale ends next Monday. @darkbreeze glad to hear you are finally doing better! I've had walking pneumonia twice in my life where I was sick for month, and felt like I was drowning. I got the pneumonia vaccine and haven't have pneumonia or been real sick in 6 years now.

 

[sachk7]

hello i am new here

 

[Darkbreeze]

Yeah, it sucked. Turned out not to be pneumonia though. It was influenza. At least, that's what started it. It was an actual flu virus, not like, the garden variety stomach bug a lot of people get. It was actually that bad strain that's going around this year and I had a head cold, worst of my life, for about two solid weeks, then it moved down into my chest but developed into a bronchial infection.

I had to do a full course of Amoxicillin, didn't do squat. Next they gave me a full course of Doxicillin and Prednisone steroid. I was literally coughing continuously, non-stop, practically the entire day and night, for a while there until it finally knocked itself out and slowly faded away.

It was the first time in my life I actually thought I might die from just being sick. Worst cold/flu, ever. Hope to never go through that again.

I HAVE had pneumonia before though. And pluracy. And plain old bronchitis. But nothing like this was.

 

[Darkbreeze]

hello i am new here

Welcome to Tom's Hardware. Is there something I can help you with?

 

[turkey3_scratch]

hello i am new here

Hi!

 

[goldstone77]

EVGA Introduces The G1+ PSU Line
by Aris Mpitziopoulos February 9, 2018 at 3:00 PM
http://www.tomshardware.com/news/evga-releases-g1-psus,36488.html

At a glance, the main differences between the G1 and the new G1+ units are the following:

• 
  Smaller dimensions (180mm length for the 1000/850 G1+ vs. 200mm of the 1000 G1 and 170mm length for the 750/650 G1+ vs. 180mm length of the 750/650 G1)
  
  Fluid Dynamic Bearing (FDB) fan for the G1+ units vs. a Double-Ball Bearing (DBB) for the G1 models
  
  Different platform (but there is no information on the OEM of the new G1+ units)
  
  Notably higher performance and lower noise output in the G1+ units, according to EVGA's claims

Our comments on the above differences have to do mostly with the fan selection. Surely an FDB fan makes less noise compared to a similar spec DBB fan, but it isn't more reliable, especially under tough operating conditions where DBB fans can be matched in reliability only by fans that use magnetic bearings. FDB fans are currently so popular because users need more silent system components, and double-ball bearings can indeed be quite noisy, especially under very low speeds.

Efficiency 80 PLUS Gold
Warranty 10 years
Price
1000 G1+: $189.99
850 G1+: $149.99
750 G1+: $119.99
650 G1+: $109.99

 

[Darkbreeze]

Every G1 NEX unit I've used has had issues in the past. Unless these show some terrific reviews, once there ARE reviews, and some good pricing, which currently doesn't seem to be the case, these will not be on my "nice" list. Naughty is more like it.

 

[goldstone77]

Yeah, they are expensive for gold efficiency!

 

[Rexper]

Every G1 NEX unit I've used has had issues in the past.

Different platform than the NEX. Can't use that as a reference.

I agree pricing seems rather high for a Gold rated unit. Perhaps they are focusing more on electrical performance of the PSU rather than efficiency.

 

[Darkbreeze]

The older G1 series WERE NEX units though.

Just because they dropped the NEX from the G1+ naming scheme doesn't mean they aren't still units where things have been skimped on. Doesn't matter if a unit does Titanium, if things like poor or mediocre ripple suppression, voltage regulation or capacitor selection are still a thing. Not that they ARE, but those NEX units had a variety of shortcomings and hopefully these will not, but again, there are still likely better options in those price ranges like we've all said anyhow.

Just doesn't make sense to saturate the market in an area where traditionally your existing units have ruled in recent memory.

 

[Onus]

Those prices are definitely a little high. A Seasonic Focus appears to be a much more reasonable choice.

 

[goldstone77]

Antec Earthwatts Gold Pro 750W PSU Review
by Aris Mpitziopoulos February 16, 2018 at 6:00 AM
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/antec-earthwatts-gold-pro-750w-psu,5429.html#xtor=RSS-100

Its revamped Earthwatts Gold Pro line is based on the highly successful Seasonic Focus platform, which combines high performance and an affordable price tag. There are three Earthwatts Gold Pro units with capacities ranging from 550W to 750W. They all feature 80 PLUS Gold efficiency, and the flagship was tested by Cybenetics, where it achieved ETA-A (88-91%) efficiency and LAMBDA-A- (25-30 dB[A]) noise certifications.

Final Analysis
Antec made the right call to partner up with Seasonic; we expect this cooperation to continue. The EA750G Pro is a decent PSU overall. But it doesn't have anything that makes it stand out from the crowd, and the competition in this category is very tough. Besides Seasonic's excellent Focus PSUs, the EA750G Pro also has to face Corsair's TXM and RMx families, Bitfenix's Whisper and Formula units, Thermaltake's offerings at similar capacities, and others. Some of the competition costs more. For example, at the time of this review, Corsair's RM750x was selling for $110. But we don't think a $10 or $20 premium is high enough to be a deal-breaker for enthusiasts trying to decide between fully modular and semi-modular designs. If Antec wants this product to stand up against the competition more effectively, it needs a price lower than $80. Of course, this might not be as easy as is sounds. When you come out with something new, though, and need to re-establish a connection with the market, compromises inevitably have to be made.

https://plugloadsolutions.com/psu_reports/Antec%20Inc._OEM_EA750G%20PRO_750W_ECOS%205058.1_Report.pdf

https://www.amazon.com/ANTEC-EARTHWATTS-PRO-Supply-EA6750G/dp/B077GFQVR4 $94