PSU tier list 2.0

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I've just finished the primary huge 25 pages section on Edison. Primarily, when Europe starting using AC as a standard while the U.S. started using DC as a standard for lighting, when Edison heard about AC and learned what it was, he basically went, "huh, that's weird. I have no idea how they can make an alternating current" and pretty much past that point forgot about it. Edison was a person who didn't like to study a topic if it didn't affect himself, and in this case Europe using AC at this time was not affecting his growing monopoly of DC and lights.

Edison also discovered the foundation of vacuum tubes, but basically put it aside. He said, "heh, this is interesting." If something was not of immediate use to Edison, he looked no further at it.
 
The only AC/DC story I'm interested in right now is the one where Axl Rose is front man for them, replacing Brian Johnson, whose voice is probably pretty much permanently done for. While Axl does a decent enough job, in what world does Axl Rose belong up front for AC/DC? Sigh.

Sorry, had to go off topic for that. Back to your regularly scheduled program, already in progress.
 
I've got an old i5-960 with a gtx-460, which im currently sorting out for my nephew, all it needs is a PSU.

I don't want to spend much £30-£40. I found two on amazon, that aren't on the list

EVGA 500W - https://www.amazon.co.uk/EVGA-100-W1-0500-KR-500W-Power-Supply/dp/B00H33SFJU/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1463051467&sr=8-2&keywords=evga+500b

Corsair CP 550W - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Corsair-CP-9020097-UK-VS550-Power-Supply/dp/B00TE4XSMA/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1463051467&sr=8-4&keywords=evga+500b

Both same price. Which one is the better of the two, or can you recommend a better unit.


Thanks
 
I too just bought a RM750x along with a rosewill 750 photon on newegg. Is the photon really two tiers (or more?) below the corsair? It was advertising Japanese capacitors and gold ratings and such with the same msrp as the corsair but it was also a bit cheaper when using a promo code. Around 110 vs 80ish.
 


The Photon 750 is a very good PSU.
 


There is nothing wrong with that voltage regulation. Also, the broken corner on the PCB isn't doing any harm, and it's not like it's going to be present on every single unit. Soldering is poor - okay, that's human error. It could be greatly improved compared to that December 2014 review.

The voltage regulation is good. Have you seen the EVGA 550 GS? http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story4&reid=438

A bit worse, and so is the ripple compared to the Photon.
 
It could be fixed? Human error? You mean to say the soldering is done by hand not robotics? Or they actually hired talented solderers and not the cheap labor that is prevalent in Taiwan? I'm sorry turkey, but that's a huge leap of faith that I just can't see happening..
 


All companies have off days. You'll see Seasonic units with bad soldering at times. Jonnyguru's EVGA 550 GS is actually one of them.

BTW I was wondering what soldering really affects anyway.

Not all soldering is robotics.
 
Bad soldering can have huge affects on life, reliability, function of any electronic device. If the solder is too hot, it doesn't set right or runs through the pc leaving little for actual connection. If it's too cold,you end up with cold joints which have very little actual bond. Leave tails too long and you infringe on other things like the mobo mounting plate of the case. Too much solder and you make it too easy to contact surrounding other joints. Not enough solder, you get junk connections. Too much Flux and you get no reliable bond, same with not enough Flux.

Soldering right takes talent and patience, and it takes a real artist to do it consistently on different applications.
 
Wow almost a perfect score for the rm750x. That thing definitely felt and looked premium when I got it compared to the rosewill. Just checked my invoice and I paid 120 for the corsair and 75 for the rosewill so maybe the pricing reflected upon the score a bit. Anyway thanks for the reply.
 
I'm sure it's the second one. In the ideal world, the chips make contact with the contacts, and then the solder holds it down. But, humans are imperfect, and it probably never happens in the actual assembly line. Solder is metal, right? It should still transfer electricity through, no problems.
 
Solder is absolutely conductive. Bad soldering is probably an even bigger consideration than lower quality components. Even a Chinese capacitor has some expected lifespan, long or short, but a poor solder job often can and does result in premature or even catastrophic failure. This is exactly why there is so much mystique related to reflowing hardware. Poor soldering can cause numerous problems like a broken connection on an otherwise perfectly fine component, which then simply stops working. Or a shorted circuit that kills the component. Intermittent connections resulting in problems that are difficult or impossible to accurately pinpoint. List goes on.
 
Poor solder joints can generate heat (and voltage drop), or even crack completely - this can seriously affect circuits. Current definitely flows through the solder itself.

Solder not staying within the pads can also cause shorts, or make it easier for an arc to jump across the gap.

Almost all SMD lines are fully automated; they lay solder paste through a stencil onto the board, pick-and-place machine drops components on, then it goes through a reflow oven to melt it all up.

Through-hole is hand placed, then either hand-soldered or it goes through a wave soldering machine.
 


Yes, solder conducts the power, its purpose is to join electrical connections (or thermal connections in some cases).
 
Never heard of Voltron, except the super robot, so I'd seriously assume it's a cheap chinese off brand with a catchy name and not much else. Never heard of leapfroglobal either. Probably an entire company of similar products.
 
Well, it got 5 years warranty, but died about 1 year of standard non-continous use, lol

I'd be really tempted to send it to some professional for review...
 
I'd be a lil nervous about that review lol, wonderin just how long before you go 'omg! I had THAT in my pc!'
You know the outcome won't be respectable when the only ppl who stock that are amazon and a couple European vendors.
 
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