PSU Decision

[Research]

Can you please suggest the best power supply around $100? I have 6 hard drives, two video cards, 3 disk drives and multiple USB devices in my huge PC. Currently Antec 350W is somehow pulling through .. but lately I have expereinced some problems like a DVD drive does not seem to power up etc.

Currently I'm looking at the >=550W PSU for the following brands and have somehow made a mental ranking:

1. Seasonic
2. Antec
3. Enermax
4. PC Power & Cooling Turbo-Cool
5. OCZ

The main critera that I'm basing my purchase on are: Reliability (ability to provide consistent voltage and current), quietness and effeciency (willing to shell out a little extra for more effeciency since it may save on electricity in the long run ..)

Thanks!

 

[eXx08]

Seasonic S-12 600watt

 

[boyRacer]

Originally posted by: thekillerjks
Seasonic S-12 600watt

That's more like $140.

Seasonic S12 500 is $120

 

[JEDIYoda]

actually you will find there is none better or as good as PCP&C......
You can`t touch their quality or their specs or their customer service or their warranty!!
With that said...
If you order directly from the company a 510 Turbo Cool Deluxe will set you back--
T51DX


$215.00
Special: $193.50

If you order through another company you will pay more than ordering direct from them!

Note you said around $100...

With that said they also have there ULTRA-QUIET PSU: SILENCER® 470 ATX
Price $99!!

I have read dozens of reviews on the PCP&C products...they always come out #1....doesn`t matter the review or the site.....

Yet if I had a second choice I would go Seasonic...they also are a no nonesense company that puts out IMO a superior product.

 

[raildogg]

Originally posted by: thekillerjks
Seasonic S-12 600watt

best value and one of the best power supplies.

 

[boyRacer]

Originally posted by: JEDIYoda
actually you will find there is none better or as good as PCP&C......
You can`t touch their quality or their specs or their customer service or their warranty!!
With that said...
If you order directly from the company a 510 Turbo Cool Deluxe will set you back--
T51DX


$215.00
Special: $193.50

If you order through another company you will pay more than ordering direct from them!

Note you said around $100...

With that said they also have there ULTRA-QUIET PSU: SILENCER® 470 ATX
Price $99!!

I have read dozens of reviews on the PCP&C products...they always come out #1....doesn`t matter the review or the site.....

Yet if I had a second choice I would go Seasonic...they also are a no nonesense company that puts out IMO a superior product.

Do you have this stuff saved on a txt file or something? lol :laugh:

Those guys at PC P&C should be paying you.

 

[ribbon13]

If you can extend your budget to get it S12-500

The Seasonic S12 series is untouchable for quietness and efficiency.

 

[Research]

Thank you so much for your responses. So now I'm stuck between the following (in order of preference):

1. Seasonic S-12 600 ($148 at Buy.com)
2. Enermax Noisetaker 600 ($155 at NewEgg)
3. Antec TruePower 2.0 TP2-550 EPS12V 550W (85 at Newegg)
4. Antec TRUE POWER 2.0 POWER SUPPLY 550 - TPII-550 ($81 at Buy.com)
5. Seasonic S-12 500 ($121 at Buy.com)

Seasonic seems to have a known issue, with the PSU not functioning with DFI Lanparty boards. So am a little weary. Antec price looks very attractive especially the EPS version with $15 rebate. By the way do you know the difference between 3 and 4 above?

Now that I have shortlisted 5 models can you please comment on Value to Cost ratio? Thanks!!

 

[ribbon13]

Buy Seasonic from Case-mod.com. The issue was DFI's fault for not meeting spec, not Seasonics. Seasonic has resolved that issue with Revision A2 of the S12 line. It is no longer an issue of concern, unless you buy one from somewhere that is still selling off thier old RevA1 stock. Which is why I repeat: Buy Seasonic from Case-mod.com

 

[raildogg]

Well if you buy a Seasonic from eWiz.com, there is no tax and no shipping charges. If it costs $135, it really does cost $135. At least this was the case last week. Newegg is simply too overpriced for their Seasonics.

 

[ribbon13]

ewiz is showing no results for anything seasonic.

 

[raildogg]

Originally posted by: ribbon13
ewiz is showing no results for anything seasonic.

Oh wow, they must have sold out . I remember the Seasonic 500W and 600W priced at $110 and $135 respectively with no shipping or tax last.

 

[Research]

So seems like Seasonic is the universal choice. However .. the only thing holding me back is some of the bad reviews on new egg for S12-500 and 600s:

... Horrible. Good luck getting one that doesnt have a manufacturing defect.

... Quality Problems Still. After only a day of setting up a new system, the PS starting making intermitent clicking noises...

... Quality Control Issues. The 500W version I ordered from Newegg, croaked almost immediately upon booting up the system.

... failed after one day. I bought one of these and it died after one day of use. Looks like Seasonic has some quality control issues.

Also the Antec price is really good + it has served me really well in the past. So really confused!

 

[ribbon13]

If you base your final choice on newegg reviewers, than no offense, you're as stupid as they are. Newegg reviewers often post negative reviews multiple times, and you can bet that given how popular newegg has gotten, there are quite a few people on there that should have nothing to do with the inside of a PC.

I've used many many PSUs including Antec, Enermax, PC Power and Cooling, Zippy, Fortron, XClio, OCZ, and Tagan. Seasonic is still my favorite. I trust my current workstation on a S12-600, and that's $18k of hardware on the line.

Also, those people that run into problems never post again to say how thier RMA went. No company can guarantee everything that ends up in the end user's hands will work perfectly. Things like being dropped during shipping (which is the cause of the clicking problem. the fan mounts would cause the fan to move a bit and the blades would hit the heat sink, also fixed in RevA2), and parts they didn't manufacture being defective (like a shipment of electrolytic caps being stored at improper temperature en route to thier factory, causing about 150 S12-500s to blow up, all of which they replaced when RMAed)

 

[Research]

Thanks for your convincng opinion! So I'm thinking of ordering the Seasonic S-12 500 (for $109.75 + 10 shipping) from Case-mod. These guys are claiming that it is the NEW VERSION with quieter fan. I haven't bought from these people previously .. Are they good?

Originally posted by: ribbon13
If you base your final choice on newegg reviewers, than no offense, you're as stupid as they are.

 

[boyRacer]

They're good. They had the S12 600W on sale for $134 IIRC. Back to $149 now.

Anyway, if you read a lot of the reviews at newegg, some of those people are putting comments up for things they don't even have yet.

 

[Research]

Probably Final Question before I place the order! The specs for SILENCER® 470 ATX state 470W @ 50C (520W peak). Can anybody comment on comparison between this and Seasonic S-12 500?

Originally posted by: JEDIYoda
actually you will find there is none better or as good as PCP&C......

Note you said around $100...

With that said they also have there ULTRA-QUIET PSU: SILENCER® 470 ATX
Price $99!!

 

[ribbon13]

The S12-600 I currently have, and about 15 more PSUs for my friends, family, and customers all came from them. Never ordered anything else from them though.

 

[ribbon13]

The PCP&C Silencer 470 is also a very good choice. But it definately won't be as quiet as the S12, isn't quite as efficient, and can't handle quite as much of a fully loaded PC. It's voltage regulation is slightly better, but there a very few overclocking situations where this will have any effect.

 

[Research]

ewiz is selling these PSUs on ebay for 100+25 Shipping. I ordered the 3rd last one. These guys seem to be doing a lot sale for seasonic.. so hopefully will have latest version (if not then I guess, I'll RMA with Seasonic). They are claming t to be brand new in retail box, and that it complies With the Latest Intel ATX 12V v2.0 Spec. By the way, is there a way to tell whether the PSU is new version or not?

Anyway, thanks everybody for your help!

Originally posted by: ribbon13
ewiz is showing no results for anything seasonic.

 

[ribbon13]

ebay link? The revision is on the label. I only get 2 results on ebay for S12-600, and all the S12-500 results are metra speaker wire

Both results on ebay show RevA1

http://www.ship-free.com/images/it/17-151-025-03.jpg

 

[boyRacer]

Text

Does their warranty still apply for eBay purchases?

 

[ribbon13]

warranty applies 3 yrs from manufacturing date, regardless of where it was bought, who owned it before.

 

[Research]

Search for just Seasonic:

Two Left

Originally posted by: ribbon13
ebay link? The revision is on the label. I only get 2 results on ebay for S12-600, and all the S12-500 results are metra speaker wire

Both results on ebay show RevA1

http://www.ship-free.com/images/it/17-151-025-03.jpg

 

[JEDIYoda]

sites with Seasonic PSU`s...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.asp?Submit=Browse&Manufactory=1697

http://www.performance-pcs.com/catalog/...zenid=ecca419ffbed431371499b2dddf59510

http://www.directron.com/ses150coposu.html

http://www.directron.com/s12600.html

http://www.xoxide.com/seasonic.html --reasonable prices

There you go...just a brief over view...the lowest prices I found on the seasonis PSU`s were from http://www.xoxide.com

Good Luck