News Redditor finds heavy block of iron shavings inside cheap PSU, also appears to lack safety protections

[atomicWAR]

Yeah as many stated you NEVER skimp on a PSU as it is the very heart of your system. It is the one component that can fry everything attached to it (has happened to me twice in 27 years on personal rigs even with 'quality units'...typically Seasonic for me and many more times I repaired a client rig from cheap PSU unit failure).

I was unfortunate enough to have a unit actually solder my socket 939 cpu to the board. I was lucky with that one as it only took the CPU and motherboard....and amazingly Fry's replaced the affected parts even though some were from other stores and past the 14 day return dates mind you as I had been hospitalized in the middle of my build. After that I always bought from Fry's...until they died and went under, RIP I miss you. I miss that level of dedication to consumers. Fry's always made sure I left happy, something Newegg/Amazon have a hard time living up to Fry's example in the 'modern' era of custom built/DIY. Though Amazon has come close(ish) on a few occasions to be fair.

 

[King_V]

And there are people who Do Not Know.

Just concerned about the wattage number, and do not realize that there can be a significant quality difference.

I was among the Do Not Know not too long ago.

I still find myself knowing less than I'd like about PSUs, but I now have SOME knowledge, and know who to ask when I don't know.

 

[atomicWAR]

From 2012 to today all power supply need to be inspected. All brands are a joke.

Here this site can help for future builds

PSU Tier List rev. 17.0g - Cultists Network

PSU Tier List will help you to choose the best PSU out of hundreds of models on the market. From budget to the highest end Power Supplies.

cultists.network

While I agree and will use a site like this as guidance...do your own research too. I purchased atx 3.0 FSP Hydro Pro and Hydro Pro X units for my wife and I for example when I tend to go Seasonic. But we wanted native 12 pins for 4090's plus we moved to a very humid area (literally live in a rain forest in the Pacific north west) and I wanted protection from said moisture as we have more than I would like growing up in the mountains and high desert of western Nevada/Tahoe area. Those units are only listed as listed as speculative. I read reviews, dug through there specs, etc. I learned they are high quality units that use Japanese caps, proper over current protections, good soldering etc etc. But as stated early they don't truly meet the 3.0 spec as some voltages while safe by ATX 2.0 standards, do step outside expected variance 'limits' very lightly for said ATX 3.0 spec in a some instances.

While the FSP units we got were not 100% 3.0 complaint. They were close enough, when we bought them vs other units availble, for their not to be any worry on our part. Plus they had that protection from the moist humid air we wanted. You have to learn/know where you can have small sacrifices in a PSU (over powered compared to system vs meeting specs...personal favorite is to over power a twinge I get more cap wear 'room' over its lifetime..., modular vs not, sleeved wires vs not, etc) and do your best to not even make those sacrafices if you can. Make a mistake with your PSU and your whole system is potentially toast.

 

[atomicWAR]

I was among the Do Not Know not too long ago.

I still find myself knowing less than I'd like about PSUs, but I now have SOME knowledge, and know who to ask when I don't know.

No harm in admitting you didn't/don't know something. Better to learn then have a house fire! Well done!!! (pun intended)

This is exactly why we have sites like Tom's to help you learn what you don't know or refine the knowledge you already have (bit_user regularly refines mine lol as I do for others when I can).

 

[atomicWAR]

And "Corsair" is not a universal good.

A few years ago, a Corsair CX600 (green label) died, taking the motherboard with it.

Oh I remember those. I'd warn folks not to get the green label CX600 units before they were notorious but after the failures started coming onto the tech radar and white labels had been released to fix the issues. The push back some folks gave me was ludicrous. Some stating I didn't know what I was talking about as EVGA units were 'ALWAYS' good quality according to some posters. Then I would post sources to why I was saying as much. And of course other users and even you a few times if memory serves, defended my stance and sourced materials of your own as well.

End of the day you can never trust a brand fully, even Seasonic which is my favorite. So I completely agree with you. Their are always poor->bad units out there even from the most dependable brand names. Doing your home work on a PSU is essential, that cannot be empathized enough as you know. That said if I am forced into taking 'chances' or cutting an edge on a PSU, Seasonic is the manufacturer I would feel most comfortable in doing so.

 

[USAFRet]

Oh I remember those. I'd warn folks not to get the green label CX600 units before they were notorious but after the failures started coming onto the tech radar and white labels had been released to fix the issues. The push back some folks gave me was ludicrous. Some stating I didn't know what I was talking about as EVGA units were 'ALWAYS' good quality according to some posters. Then I would post sources to why I was saying as much. And of course other users and even you a few times if memory serves, defended my stance and sourced materials of your own as well.

End of the day you can never trust a brand fully, even Seasonic which is my favorite. So I completely agree with you. Their are always poor->bad units out there even from the most dependable brand names. Doing your home work on a PSU is essential, that cannot be empathized enough as you know. That said if I am forced into taking 'chances' or cutting an edge on a PSU, Seasonic is the manufacturer I would feel most comfortable in doing so.

Interestingly enuff, I bought that CX600 on recommendation from a well respected tech site.

 

[atomicWAR]

Interestingly enuff, I bought that CX600 on recommendation from a well respected tech site.

You do the best you can with the information available when doing your research for a build. I wasn't thrilled going with FSP Hydro PTM Pro (and a pro X for the wife) this build as I would have preferred quality Seasonic units in my rigs but at the time of my build at least, Seasonic didn't have any native 3.0 units out and we needed (wanted?) to have good humidity protection living in a rain forest which is something Seasonic didn't (still doesn't?) have as far I was (am) aware.

So like you I read reviews, did my own research as well and hoped for the best. But sometimes even the best planned out builds will have a short comings you could not of foreseen at the time. And we as builders need to set our ego's and or pride aside when that information comes out contradicting your current beliefs in a system component(s). I'd rather spend what I should now to be safe than a lot more later because I didn't. End of day I'd rather not pay the 'ego/pride' tax if I don't have to.

 

[Phaaze88]

Where the heck do you even find something like this?

Romania, Egypt, India... there's a pattern; regions that do have the good units and well known brands available are overpriced for potential customers. Some aren't willing to step down in their gpu choice to get a decent psu - that's their own fault though.
They'd probably be better off just going prebuilt every few years or so...

Yeah as many stated you NEVER skimp on a PSU as it is the very heart of your system.

Attention spans are taken by other components, that once all the personal preferences are taken care of, there's about 50 bucks left in the budget for a psu.
Some also only look at wattage - brand loyalty is also a mistake.

 

[atomicWAR]

Attention spans are taken by other components, that once all the personal preferences are taken care of, there's about 50 bucks left in the budget for a psu.
Some also only look at wattage - brand loyalty is also a mistake.

Very well said and as you could probably tell from my posts, I couldn't agree more.

 

[USAFRet]

Attention spans are taken by other components, that once all the personal preferences are taken care of, there's about 50 bucks left in the budget for a psu.

Thats how the cheesy prebuilt systems work.

RGB!!!
Liquid cooling!!
4070!
32GB RAM!!
700w Powersupply

 

[Eximo]

Thats how the cheesy prebuilt systems work.

RGB!!!
Liquid cooling!!
4070!
32GB RAM!!
700w Powersupply

"Intel core CPU"
"Micro ATX Motherboard"
"WiFi"

Pretty much anything to simplify the listing out of laziness or to outright obfuscate what the customer will end up with.

 

[Phaaze88]

Thats how the cheesy prebuilt systems work.

RGB!!!
Liquid cooling!!
4070!
32GB RAM!!
700w Powersupply

Those be adequate for the initial build - at least to carry the customer through to warranty. [It should be...]
At the end of warranty, or if the customer wants to upgrade the current setup, nah, that thing should go.

 

[USAFRet]

Those be adequate for the initial build - at least to carry the customer through to warranty. [It should be...]
At the end of warranty, or if the customer wants to upgrade the current setup, nah, that thing should go.

Especially when the warranty is 1 year.

 

[sauve.richard]

In 2023 there are few, if any, reasons not to use a PSU from anyone but Seasonic, Enermax, or Superflower (in descending order). The PSU is one area you want to spend money, and these days even a 1000w 80 Plus Titanum PSU from those three brands regularly drops near or under $300 on sale, with 750w Platinum under $200.

Been using a Seasonic for 8 years now in current build. Nothing fancy, but never ever a problem. Next build will require MOAR POWER! But I know which company I'll be buying from.

 

[Amdlova]

Been using a Seasonic for 8 years now in current build. Nothing fancy, but never ever a problem. Next build will require MOAR POWER! But I know which company I'll be buying from.

My dog says seasonic for no reason...

 

[blacktip]

In 2023 there are few, if any, reasons not to use a PSU from anyone but Seasonic, Enermax, or Superflower (in descending order). The PSU is one area you want to spend money, and these days even a 1000w 80 Plus Titanum PSU from those three brands regularly drops near or under $300 on sale, with 750w Platinum under $200.

My last build was 2018, did BeQuiet drop out of grace? They were on my shortlist based on 2018 and not diving into PSU’s for ages (guess I may need to check each component again)

 

[TheOtherOne]

I bought a "Corsair AX860 Platinum 860W Power Supply" 10 years ago. After THREE major upgrades to my PC, including adding more HDDs and going from 1440p to 2160p, I am still using the same PSU and it's working great!

https://www.corsair.com/ww/en/p/psu...ified-fully-modular-psu-au-plug-cp-9020044-au

Bought it for $295 AUD back in the day when you could get one of those cheap PSU for like $50 but I decided to make sure spend some money on a good one and haven't regretted it for one second.