Silver Power Blue Lightning 600W
by Christoph Katzer on August 27, 2007 6:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Cases/Cooling/PSUs
Packaging and Appearance
In order to keep costs down, MaxPoint has cut a lot of goodies and extras from the package relative to high-end power supplies. Everything is packed in a colorful box, which provides basic information about the power supply within. The PSU itself has almost no protection within the box and could potentially be damaged during transport - like most users, we've encountered our fair share of DOA power supplies that were very likely damaged during shipping. A small user manual is included that contains very little information, but then again there's not a lot to say.
In terms of the power supply itself, the casing is quite unusual. Small rectangles have been punched out of the back of the unit to serve as an exhaust for the airflow. This type of perforation used to be more common in the past, but most manufacturers these days use hexagonal punch outs. The theory is that the hexagon shapes improve airflow without creating turbulence, compromising structural integrity, or creating unacceptable EMI. The approach that Silver Power has taken might be adequate, but we can see that the top portion of the perforations appear to be of little use as the 120mm fan blocks most of these holes. In fact, much of the space on the rear of the power supply seems like it could be used for ventilation. Of course, whether this is actually necessary is something we'll uncover in the course of this review.
MaxPoint doesn't state the input voltage range on the power supply itself, but this information is indicated on the packaging. The range is listed as 110-240VAC. We tested at our usual 100/115/230VAC however and encountered no problems with a 100VAC input.
In order to keep costs down, MaxPoint has cut a lot of goodies and extras from the package relative to high-end power supplies. Everything is packed in a colorful box, which provides basic information about the power supply within. The PSU itself has almost no protection within the box and could potentially be damaged during transport - like most users, we've encountered our fair share of DOA power supplies that were very likely damaged during shipping. A small user manual is included that contains very little information, but then again there's not a lot to say.
In terms of the power supply itself, the casing is quite unusual. Small rectangles have been punched out of the back of the unit to serve as an exhaust for the airflow. This type of perforation used to be more common in the past, but most manufacturers these days use hexagonal punch outs. The theory is that the hexagon shapes improve airflow without creating turbulence, compromising structural integrity, or creating unacceptable EMI. The approach that Silver Power has taken might be adequate, but we can see that the top portion of the perforations appear to be of little use as the 120mm fan blocks most of these holes. In fact, much of the space on the rear of the power supply seems like it could be used for ventilation. Of course, whether this is actually necessary is something we'll uncover in the course of this review.
MaxPoint doesn't state the input voltage range on the power supply itself, but this information is indicated on the packaging. The range is listed as 110-240VAC. We tested at our usual 100/115/230VAC however and encountered no problems with a 100VAC input.
Facebook
Twitter
RSS
33 Comments
View All Comments
meyergru - Tuesday, August 28, 2007 - link
...how do those two statements add up?"In fact, the efficiency is above 80% over almost the entire range which can not only save money on electrical costs but is also generally a good indicator of power supply quality. "
"This isn't an ideal result, but at the same time PFC isn't necessarily one of the most critical factors in determining power supply quality."
As far as I know, a PFC of ~0.92 means 8% more will actually be billed to me by the provider. Thus, the good efficiency of over 80% does not help at all.
13Gigatons - Tuesday, September 4, 2007 - link
PFC intended purpose is to turn a complex load into a simple one.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Power_factor_correcti...">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Power_factor_correcti...
mindless1 - Thursday, August 30, 2007 - link
Meeting the 80% efficiency does still help, but you are pointing out one of the interesting developments these days, how PSU manufacturers are tweaking to arrive at higher efficiency and that within the context of expectations of how the industry (reviewers et al) will review, particularly when it's a retail product. Robbing Peter to pay Paul is ideally bad, but at any given moment and price, can be subjectively more or less important depending on your needs.The important part is that this information was revealed so you can decide for youself if this unit meets those needs or if you'd rather some other compromise. No PSU is perfect in every way including price.
Christoph Katzer - Tuesday, August 28, 2007 - link
What was the relation of the both again?Your provider charges reactive power?
swtethan - Tuesday, August 28, 2007 - link
I'd like to see where the x-pro stands to see if I should upgrade or not :) got an ETA on that? All over the forums for the past 5 months that PSU has been on banners :PMissPriss - Monday, August 27, 2007 - link
Great review, though perhaps Anandtech should consider gearing a small percentage of articles to those who aren't technomaniacs. BTW - how do you pronouce "Anandtech"?JarredWalton - Monday, August 27, 2007 - link
I'll take the second part - I think there might be some less-techy articles on occasion, but the PSU stuff definitely doesn't qualify.Anyway, for those interested, it's pronounced Ahn-Ahnd-Tech. Or "On Ond Tech". So if you pronounce it with a nice southern twang and an "A as in apple" sound, Anand might make weird faces at you. That, or I need to check my hearing and make sure Anand isn't saying, "Hi guys, it's '&n - &n(d)" as opposed to "Hi guys, it's 'än - änd." (When did http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Phoneti...">phonetic symbols get so stinking complex?)
SemiCharmed - Monday, August 27, 2007 - link
I agree with MissPriss. It could be called "NotsoAnandtech"DividedweFall - Monday, August 27, 2007 - link
Hoorah for MissPriss! I don't send comments in fear of being rejected by the eleet technomanic crowd.Samus - Monday, August 27, 2007 - link
We readers at Anandtech are loyal to this place BECAUSE the reviews are for technomaniacs. They're among the most thorough reviews of hardware around.Go look at any other site's PSU reviews and you'll see what I mean.