Exclusive: Antec Signature 850W
by Christoph Katzer on May 7, 2008 2:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Cases/Cooling/PSUs
Efficiency
The Signature 850W power supply has great efficiency and it tops most recently tested units, especially with lower input voltages. 87% efficiency with 230VAC is very good and it even stays that high for quite a bit. With 100% and 110% loads, it maintains the same efficiency even though we normally see a significant drop at this point.
There is a reason why this unit has the Bronze 80Plus certification: with 120VAC it still reaches up to 85% efficiency and even stays above 82% most of the time. It can even reach higher grounds with only 90VAC and makes it up to 83% at around 400W. As the graphs show, users of this unit should have at least 150W of continuous power draw; otherwise, it is just not working efficiently enough. With an average power of 300W onwards this unit will have its perfect working environment.
Power Factor Correction
The power factor correction is one of the best we have seen to date. At lower input voltages we see a constant high level that is just not possible, presently, to better. Even Europe can build on a good correction at lower power draw.
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JarredWalton - Wednesday, May 7, 2008 - link
I have used dozens of Antec cases over the years... I have not yet purchased an Antec PSU separate from a case, however. Then again, Earthwatts might make that a reasonable thing to do these days.strikeback03 - Wednesday, May 7, 2008 - link
I've used EarthWatts 380 units in a couple of systems for the lab. Seem to do fine, nice and quiet, and prices around $20-30 after rebate at Newegg, works for me.DDG - Wednesday, May 7, 2008 - link
I recently picked up the Earthwatts 650 unit and I must say I'm impressed so far. It's quiet and has 6 SATA and Molex connectors as well as 2 PCI-Express (1 6-pin and 1 6+2 pin). It replaced a Truepower 550-watt PSU that was 5 years old but still going strong (just too noisy and not energy efficient).