Which brand to go for ?

[Rob Northen]

My ATX supply just went dead today and now I'am running on a spare one.
A 400-500W power will be just fine for my needs.
Which brand should I go for ? I want a quality one and don't mind paying extra for that.
Any input ?

[mockingbird]

Re: Which brand to go for ?

I recommend:
Seasonic S12 II Series
or
Corsair VX Series

There's a myriad of other good PSUs out there, but these two are available almost everywhere.

[digge]

Re: Which brand to go for ?

I second that, if im not misstaken seasonic manufacture some of the corsair PSUs as well.

[Rob Northen]

Re: Which brand to go for ?

I've just seen a pre-build machine, with Corsair CX suppy in it. Is CX ok og should I stick to VX ?

[mariushm]

Re: Which brand to go for ?

CX should actually be better than VX. But is it really worth buying a pre-built machine just for the PSU?

Based on your location, I would recommend the Corsair CX v2: http://www.komplett.dk/k/ki.aspx?sku=635832

Works out at about 57 dollars or 40 euro.

If you want something even cheaper, you might want to try your luck on Amazon.de or other websites but probably the shipping costs would kill you ... should be 4-10 euro to ship. Still, there's some power supplies discounted so who knows.

I'm seeing for example this one at 23 euro which I think should be OK (for the money, otherwise better go with something more efficient) if that computer is nothing fancy:

http://www.amazon.de/Super-Flower-SF...53871&sr=1-114

This is a bit on the low side at 300 watts but still OK power supply :

http://www.amazon.de/quiet-Netzteil-...54138&sr=1-158

[Rob Northen]

Re: Which brand to go for ?

I'll go with the CX v2, which is allready included.
I have decided to to get a whole new machine, therefore the pre-built one
Thanks for the help!

Opps, forgot to ask...
I assume the overall quality will be better than the really cheap ones, but what about the caps ? Still crap stuff inside ?

[mariushm]

Re: Which brand to go for ?

Well, they won't be Japanese caps but nothing really bad.

The 430w one (and probably the others as well) has Samxon and Teapo capacitors which in my opinion are above average. Good for the price.

[Rob Northen]

Re: Which brand to go for ?

Well, they won't be Japanese caps but nothing really bad.

The 430w one (and probably the others as well) has Samxon and Teapo capacitors which in my opinion are above average. Good for the price.

Not the worst of the sorst, but they still have to go. I'll just have to see whats inside and go get some Panasonic/Rubycon/Nichicon.

Thanks again

[jsog]

Re: Which brand to go for ?

The Antec HCG series claim to have "all Japanese capacitors". They're made by Seasonic.

[c_hegge]

Re: Which brand to go for ?

I have a HCG 750. It's actually a delta. I also like XFX power supplies. They are all seasonic made IIRC and all use entirely Japanese capacitors.

[Rob Northen]

Re: Which brand to go for ?

Oki, so I got the new PSU. Its full of Samxon caps. They are all GF series, except the main filter cap whic is LP series.
Panasonic FC series seems to be good repleacement for GF.
The big 400v one, is LP and I can't find any info on this. Anyone know what a good repleacement would be ?

[mockingbird]

Re: Which brand to go for ?

You don't need to change the big one.

[Evil Lurker]

Re: Which brand to go for ?

Actually I wouldn't change anything. Samxon is considered to be one of the "good" brands. Run it as is, blow the dust out every few months, and keep an eye out for bulging caps or other signs of trouble... my guess is it shouldn't give you any for at least several years.

[Rob Northen]

Re: Which brand to go for ?

Samxon SHOULD be a good, but its still a chenise brand and I really don't trust them.
Maybe I'll stick to Mockingbirds plan, and let the big one alone, if none got the specs for Samxon LP series.

[mockingbird]

Re: Which brand to go for ?

Actually I wouldn't change anything. Samxon is considered to be one of the "good" brands.

Rob's instincts are serving him well... "GF" is one of Samxon's dud series. They should be replaced on sight. Yea, the Corsair CX isn't really that great. I didn't say anything because I thought they had Teapos in them, but now that you've mentioned it, yea, I think I can recall the reviews mentioning they had Samxon GF in them.

[Rob Northen]

Re: Which brand to go for ?

Another thing that puzzels me about the cheap brands, are their sizes. They often have smaller can sizes compared to good brands, they must cut corners in some way.

Thanks for the info Mockingbird

[mockingbird]

Re: Which brand to go for ?

No problem

Are you talking about specifically in PSUs? PSU caps are sometimes custom order custom sizes. Why they design them like this? I don't know. Lazy PCB design.

[momaka]

Re: Which brand to go for ?

Another thing that puzzels me about the cheap brands, are their sizes. They often have smaller can sizes compared to good brands, they must cut corners in some way.

Out of curiosity, I just looked up Samxon GF's data sheet and found something interesting: both the 6.3v and the 10v version for the 2200uF capacitance have the same size, ripple current, and ESR specs. Now isn't that strange? Generally the can size increases as the voltage rating is increased. I bet you're right that they are cutting corners somewhere.

Looks like Panasonic FC will work fine. There's also Nichicon PW and PM, as well as United Chemicon LZY, LZX, and KY.

[mockingbird]

Re: Which brand to go for ?

LXZ and LXY are borderline low ESR caps... KY is very often used in PSUs.

[PCBONEZ]

Re: Which brand to go for ?

Yes - KY are the correct grade to replace the GF.

None of FC, PW, PM, LZY or LZX have low enough ESR or high enough Ripple.
[There may be some can sizes that are exceptions but they are far enough apart that isn't very likely.]
.