Safe to use my *potentially* faulty PSU?

[pedrom90]

My computer died recently - BSOD after BSOD, I replaced every component of the build, one by one, to discover the CPU was acting up (i5 6600).
I'm concerned the PSU (Corsair CX500M) might be faulty and has caused a surge - damaging the CPU. All other components are fine.

Is it likely the PSU caused the CPU to become faulty? Can a CPU just become faulty like that on its own?
It's not completely dead. It just causes various BSOD errors extremely frequently.
Should I risk plugging it in again, or just send it to Corsair under warranty?

Thanks.

 

[scout_03]

did you had any error code and try to use another psu before asking the rma .

 

[bjornl]

CPUs can (and like every other electrical part do) go bad on their own. If your PSU was causing it your other parts would likely have been cooked too. I would be surprised of Corsair thought there was a reason to RMA this unit.

 

[thx1138v2]

You don't say what your entire build is but you shouldn't be using that PSU with a gaming system. Some say that the Corsair CX series has improved but they used to be a real problem. They don't have any internal fault protection. That's one of the reasons they are so cheap. If you send it back to Corsair they are just going to send you a new one. I would get a different PSU.

Everything in the system depends on clean, stable power. Don't skimp on the PSU.

 

[TJ Hooker]

Eh, CX500Ms aren't great but they're not terrible. They do very much have built in protection features (assuming that's what you meant by internal fault protection): over current, over voltage, short circuit, and undervoltage protection. Off the top of my head the only thing that it's missing compared to some PSUs would be over temperature protection. Hard to say if it's suitable for the OPs build without knowing the rest of the system specs though.

 

[pedrom90]

Thanks for all your answers.
Everything works fine with the new CPU and PSU. I just wasn't sure if I should risk trying the old PSU - but I think you're right; the other components would likely show faults as well. I'll give it a go and blame you if it all goes wrong 😉

Sorry for not stating all system specs - didn't think they were relevant as they work fine. But here they are anyway:
1.5 years old
Intel Core i5-6600 3.3GHz Quad-Core
MSI H110I Pro Mini ITX LGA1151
Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2133
Samsung PM951 M.2 256GB SSD
Zotac GeForce GTX 970 4GB
Corsair CX 500W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX
Microsoft Windows 10 Pro OEM 64-bit

 

[geofelt]

It is not likely that the psu damaged the cpu.
What were all of the original parts, and what are all of the parts now?

The most likely problem, I might guess is that some of the motherboard socket pins were damaged.

If you suspect the psu, test with a known good psu.
If that resolves your problem, Corsair is very good about replacing the psu under warranty.

If the cpu actually failed, it should still be under warranty and intel will replace it.

 

[Kasper Jorgensen]

Eh, CX500Ms aren't great but they're not terrible. They do very much have built in protection features (assuming that's what you meant by internal fault protection): over current, over voltage, short circuit, and undervoltage protection. Off the top of my head the only thing that it's missing compared to some PSUs would be over temperature protection. Hard to say if it's suitable for the OPs build without knowing the rest of the system specs though.

The CX500 is the old Green unit. They are not safe and are basically crap, only the newer CX Grey units are decent and safe. The newer CX models do not come in 500W variant, but in 450W, 550W and so on.

So to OP, NO it's not safe to use that, you will just end up frying components again.

 

[pedrom90]

The CX500 is the old Green unit. They are not safe and are basically crap, only the newer CX Grey units are decent and safe. The newer CX models do not come in 500W variant, but in 450W, 550W and so on.

So to OP, NO it's not safe to use that, you will just end up frying components again.

D: I've got an EVGA 500BQ plugged in at the moment - all running smoothly. It was fairly cheap as I just wanted to test it. Worth keeping? Or should I get something else? This PC isn't used all that often - so I'm not keen on spending too much to get the best of the best...

 

[Kasper Jorgensen]

The CX500 is the old Green unit. They are not safe and are basically crap, only the newer CX Grey units are decent and safe. The newer CX models do not come in 500W variant, but in 450W, 550W and so on.

So to OP, NO it's not safe to use that, you will just end up frying components again.

D: I've got an EVGA 500BQ plugged in at the moment - all running smoothly. It was fairly cheap as I just wanted to test it. Worth keeping? Or should I get something else? This PC isn't used all that often - so I'm not keen on spending too much to get the best of the best...

While not being the best quality, it's still decent. And more importantly, it is safe and has all the protections installed. So if it's working, just keep it.

 

[pedrom90]

Eh, CX500Ms aren't great but they're not terrible. They do very much have built in protection features (assuming that's what you meant by internal fault protection): over current, over voltage, short circuit, and undervoltage protection. Off the top of my head the only thing that it's missing compared to some PSUs would be over temperature protection. Hard to say if it's suitable for the OPs build without knowing the rest of the system specs though.

The CX500 is the old Green unit. They are not safe and are basically crap, only the newer CX Grey units are decent and safe. The newer CX models do not come in 500W variant, but in 450W, 550W and so on.

So to OP, NO it's not safe to use that, you will just end up frying components again.

I'm curious; what's not safe about that model?
From product page of CX500M:
"Over-voltage and over-power protection, under-voltage protection, and short circuit protection provide maximum safety to your critical system components"

Isn't that all the good stuff I need?

 

[bjornl]

Eh, CX500Ms aren't great but they're not terrible. They do very much have built in protection features (assuming that's what you meant by internal fault protection): over current, over voltage, short circuit, and undervoltage protection. Off the top of my head the only thing that it's missing compared to some PSUs would be over temperature protection. Hard to say if it's suitable for the OPs build without knowing the rest of the system specs though.

The CX500 is the old Green unit. They are not safe and are basically crap, only the newer CX Grey units are decent and safe. The newer CX models do not come in 500W variant, but in 450W, 550W and so on.

So to OP, NO it's not safe to use that, you will just end up frying components again.

I'm curious; what's not safe about that model?
From product page of CX500M:
"Over-voltage and over-power protection, under-voltage protection, and short circuit protection provide maximum safety to your critical system components"

Isn't that all the good stuff I need?

Read through a detailed PSU review and you will both see and come to understand some of the other factors.

Or read this primer
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/power-supplies-101,4193.html

 

[Kasper Jorgensen]

Eh, CX500Ms aren't great but they're not terrible. They do very much have built in protection features (assuming that's what you meant by internal fault protection): over current, over voltage, short circuit, and undervoltage protection. Off the top of my head the only thing that it's missing compared to some PSUs would be over temperature protection. Hard to say if it's suitable for the OPs build without knowing the rest of the system specs though.

The CX500 is the old Green unit. They are not safe and are basically crap, only the newer CX Grey units are decent and safe. The newer CX models do not come in 500W variant, but in 450W, 550W and so on.

So to OP, NO it's not safe to use that, you will just end up frying components again.

I'm curious; what's not safe about that model?
From product page of CX500M:
"Over-voltage and over-power protection, under-voltage protection, and short circuit protection provide maximum safety to your critical system components"

Isn't that all the good stuff I need?

1. No OCP (Over Current Protection)
2. No OTP (Over Temperature Protection)
3. No NLO (No load Operation)
4. Read the link posted by bjornl in the post above as well, pretty much explains all you need to know.

 

[TJ Hooker]

Spoiler

Eh, CX500Ms aren't great but they're not terrible. They do very much have built in protection features (assuming that's what you meant by internal fault protection): over current, over voltage, short circuit, and undervoltage protection. Off the top of my head the only thing that it's missing compared to some PSUs would be over temperature protection. Hard to say if it's suitable for the OPs build without knowing the rest of the system specs though.

The CX500 is the old Green unit. They are not safe and are basically crap, only the newer CX Grey units are decent and safe. The newer CX models do not come in 500W variant, but in 450W, 550W and so on.

So to OP, NO it's not safe to use that, you will just end up frying components again.

Like I said, it's not the best but it's not a fire hazard like you make out. Here's a review of it that finds it pretty decent:
https://www.eteknix.com/corsair-cx500m-semi-modular-power-supply/10/
Here's a quote from Oklahoma Wolf, one of the reviewers for JonnyGuru I believe, from the jonnyguru forums:

It's not risky. The CX500 will not blow up, set one's curtains on fire, or start a riot through the downtown business core. It will not call down Cthulu to rain death and destruction throughout the land, or cause Donald Trump to actually get elected

It's a somewhat mediocre power supply performance wise, but it's not junk.

1. No OCP (Over Current Protection)
2. No OTP (Over Temperature Protection)
3. No NLO (No load Operation)

1. It may not have overcurrent protection (my mistake for saying it did earlier), but that's somewhat mitigated by the over power protection and short circuit protection it does have.
2. Plenty of decent PSUs don't have OTP, such as EVGA's venerable G2 series.
3. I don't even know what NLO is, are you referring to lack of support for for the Haswell low power sleep states?
I'd say one of its biggest flaws on the surface is that it's only rated to provide its maximum listed power up to 30C. But the OP's build shouldn't be anywhere close to that anyway.

 

[Kasper Jorgensen]

Over temperature can be mitigate by having over current and over power which the G2 have, over current cannot be mitigated by over power protection. Over power only monitors total power and not monitoring that every power rail are not overloaded.
Anyway 30 C only, that is the ambient temp in many countries during summer, and even with a more sane 21 C ambient temp, you will easily reach 30+ inside a computer case.

 

[TJ Hooker]

Over temperature can be mitigate by having over current and over power which the G2 have, over current cannot be mitigated by over power protection. Over power only monitors total power and not monitoring that every power rail are not overloaded

From the Tom's Hardware PSU 101 posted earlier:
In single +12V rail PSUs, where OCP is meaningless in most cases, OPP takes over its role and shuts down the PSU in case the +12V rail is overloaded.

Anyway 30 C only, that is the ambient temp in many countries during summer, and even with a more sane 21 C ambient temp, you will easily reach 30+ inside a computer case.

Yes, I realize what I said could be misinterpreted. I meant that the OP's build shouldn't be close to the max rated power output of the CX500m, not that it wouldn't be close (or over) 30C. My point being that even if the power output is derated due to being over the specified temperature, it should still be sufficient for the OP's build.

 

[Kasper Jorgensen]

Over temperature can be mitigate by having over current and over power which the G2 have, over current cannot be mitigated by over power protection. Over power only monitors total power and not monitoring that every power rail are not overloaded

From the Tom's Hardware PSU 101 posted earlier:
In single +12V rail PSUs, where OCP is meaningless in most cases, OPP takes over its role and shuts down the PSU in case the +12V rail is overloaded.

Anyway 30 C only, that is the ambient temp in many countries during summer, and even with a more sane 21 C ambient temp, you will easily reach 30+ inside a computer case.

Yes, I realize what I said could be misinterpreted. I meant that the OP's build shouldn't be close to the max rated power output of the CX500m, not that it wouldn't be close (or over) 30C. My point being that even if the power output is derated due to being over the specified temperature, it should still be sufficient for the OP's build.

We could keep arguing about this and it gets a bit off topic. In the end, the old Corsair CX Green unit series is known to be a crap unit, that's a fact.

 

[TJ Hooker]

We could keep arguing about this and it gets a bit off topic. In the end, the old Corsair CX Green unit series is known to be a crap unit, that's a fact.

Lol, you can't say "we shouldn't argue about this" and then proceed to reiterate that your position is correct on the very subject we're arguing about. At that point you're just avoiding addressing the points I've made. If you're done talking about it that's fine, but don't end it by basically saying that we should just assume you're right.

 

[Kasper Jorgensen]

We could keep arguing about this and it gets a bit off topic. In the end, the old Corsair CX Green unit series is known to be a crap unit, that's a fact.

Lol, you can't say "we shouldn't argue about this" and then proceed to reiterate that your position is correct on the very subject we're arguing about. At that point you're just avoiding addressing the points I've made. If you're done talking about it that's fine, but don't end it by basically saying that we should just assume you're right.

Go to Jonnyguru and search for reviews. I can tell you that while they rate the old CX PSU high in value and performance, the culprit is the built quality which is rated low. Jonnyguru is one of the most reputed PSU expert sites.

 

[madmatt30]

Just wow!!

The cx500 is trash but the bq is OK to use??

Its a budget hec unit , honestly I'd trust the old CX platform more personally.

I've for CX 430s & cx500's here that have been running for around 5 years.

For what they are they're OK , I'm not saying the op's hasn't dropped the ball , it may well be faulty .
I'd put no more trust in that bq than I would in a CX though , its spectacularly mediocre in every possible way.

 

[pedrom90]

For my own piece of mind, I contacted Corsair themselves for their take on it. They pretty much echoed bjornl - if it was faulty, it would have likely fried other components, not just CPU. So I went ahead and plugged it in and checked the voltages in the BIOS - all seemed ok, so booted and tested properly with a few hours of use. No problems! So I guess it was just the CPU going out on it's own.

Thank you all for your inputs and advice! For now I think I will stick with the CX500M, but will take good care in picking a more solid option for future builds.

Cheers!