Anandtech gearing up for serious PSU testing

[Skrying]

I did not calling those brands crap, I called them over rated. Over rated meaning people instantly think that because its said brand they're buying into quality, this is not true for anyone. Frankly for the most part I do believe however that Enermax really only has one great PSU (the Galaxy DDX or whatever) and then PC Power and Cooling has nothing on any body these days, and there has been a lot of concern with Antec PSUs as of late. You can certainly find quality products from these companies and its not "auto crap" look at them, simply over rated.

Umm, where did his reply go? Directed towards Swaaye.

 

[swaaye]

Very few Enermax PSUs I consider "high quality" again its a brand that rides on its past, PC Power and Cooling, and in a lot of cases Antec are doing that right now. The real problem with the PC Power and Cooling PSUs is that they're over rated to be honest, their past as being the only really high end (they had a 1 kilowatt unit way before it was popular) has allowed them to obtain legendary status in this rush of PSU bullshit as of late.

Your reverse logic also makes no sense. Even if a larger PSU is very efficient there is most likely a smaller PSU just as efficient. So... again why buy the larger PSU you won't need.

Well, my Enermax was rated rather well by a fairly thorough test over at silentpcreview.

There is a problem with trying to pick out the proper PSU power output. If you don't buy something that is adequate, it may not be obvious that it's not. And random, sporadic reboots are not something any sort of majority of computer users or even gamers can figure out. It's also hard to know for sure if the PSU you're looking at is even capable of the numbers it presents. So, by buying something that is more powerful, you can save yourself some grief potentially. And only lose a few $$ in the process.

I am rather certain that the large number of "uberWatt PSUs with gold trim and LEDs" out there now is just a sign of how the PC crowd is building up its numbers of ignorant and "cool" people. One side thrives on ignorance, the other bling, and both like big numbers. I'd blame the ease of computing these days for that as well as the massive increase in socialization in games and other areas. There are more gamers out there than ever who don't really care about computer hardware.

Most of my friends (wild age range) and siblings who game don't know much at all about the hardware. They wouldn't have a clue what PSU they need. I wouldn't suggest short changing these people with what might be adequate. They don't know how to troubleshoot anything. I personally go with 400-450W PSUs these days (~$50-60) for just about everything that isn't going to be overclocked wildly and doesn't have something like a HD 2900 or 8800 in it.

 

[swaaye]

I did not calling those brands crap, I called them over rated. Over rated meaning people instantly think that because its said brand they're buying into quality, this is not true for anyone. Frankly for the most part I do believe however that Enermax really only has one great PSU (the Galaxy DDX or whatever) and then PC Power and Cooling has nothing on any body these days, and there has been a lot of concern with Antec PSUs as of late. You can certainly find quality products from these companies and its not "auto crap" look at them, simply over rated.

Umm, where did his reply go? Directed towards Swaaye.

I deleted it cuz I wanted to rewrite it. You keep catching my efforts too quickly lol.

I'm not really sure what to think about the various brands, to be honest. I know for certain that I haven't read enough info to judge any of them. The only PSUs I've seen fail though were a friend's Antec 400W and one "400W" that came with a case. Those PSUs included with cases are always such wonderful quality, lol.

Hell, I bought a $40 420W Thermaltake Purepower like 4 years ago. I was sure it was going to be junk, but it actually has proven to be totally reliable. I guess the question is, who really makes which PSUs? I bet Thermaltake has used several suppliers over the years for that same model (it's still around). My OCZ is, I think, made by Fortron Source (it looks very similar to some of those, but has some added dumb bling and a much better warranty than OEM).

 

[swaaye]

I just hope we get to see some large PSU roundups over at Anandtech. And that they keep them coming at a decent pace to keep things up to date (more than one roundup per year, say). The PSU is just as important as any other component in the PC, but it certainly gets ignored by a large number of review sites.

 

[Davros]

Actually L233 my favourite is when people put every single bit of pc kit they own in their system specs including brand + model number of mousemat

 

[swaaye]

Actually L233 my favourite is when people put every single bit of pc kit they own in their system specs including brand + model number of mousemat

The "best" of those are the banners w/ some random woman or street racer car backgrounding the thrilling powerhouse PC they own.

 

[BRiT]

Actually L233 my favourite is when people put every single bit of pc kit they own in their system specs including brand + model number of mousemat

I knew I was forgetting something...