Corsair HX 520W heat problems

[Maxxarcade]

I am having issues with the Corsair HX-520W PSU in my computer.

The first one overheated and died in 2 months. Newegg promptly replaced it, and so far so good, but man does this thing run hot.

Why is everyone obsessed with absolute silence at the expense of reliability? Seems all the PSU's I have to fix these days have the stupid thermal fan speed control, which in itself is not a bad idea, but why let the internal temp get so high before speeding the fan up a bit?

I'm not running any over the top hardware, just an Athlon X2 5600+, Geforce 9600GT, 4 WD SATA drives and 2 DVD drives. I'm not a gamer, so the Geforce is mainly in 2D mode. My case is a Lian Li Lancool K7, which is nice and quiet, but still cools well.

The only power supplies I've NEVER had issues with are my two Zippy/Emacs PSU's in my servers. The single 80mm fans are too loud for constant desktop use, but even the little 400W Zippy ran my desktop for a couple months with no issues at all.

So how hard is it to speed the fan up a bit in the Corsair? I've totally bypassed the thermal control in a few Sparkle PSU's that I didn't care about noise with, but I don't want to go to full 12 volts with my desktop.

[Wizard]

Re: Corsair HX 520W heat problems

How is your case fans flow? Pulling out of case in all directions? (preferred is blowing all into case except PSU blowing out.)

Or:

3:2 ratio of fans blowing in vs blowing out in other words pressurizes the case.

Cheers, Wizard

[Maxxarcade]

Re: Corsair HX 520W heat problems

Fans are stock, 2 blowing in, 1 blowing out.

[KeriJane]

Re: Corsair HX 520W heat problems

Hello.

I've noticed this too.

Maybe if one were to use a higher-speed fan?

I tried this on an Antec TruePower 2.... it seems to have raised the minimum speed slightly.

Still, there ought to be some way of adjusting the minimum fan voltage coming out of the controller. Of course there is, I just lack the talent to figure it out.

Maybe some else has?

Have Fun,
Keri

[Toasty]

Re: Corsair HX 520W heat problems

Knowing which type of thermistor, in terms of temperature coefficient, you have in the control circuit will guide you on what method to use. That info along with knowing how resistors act in series and parallel and the answer should be easy.

I see a fixed resistor, a variable resistor (trim pot), a VOM, an ice cube, some microwaved hot water (careful...), and some easy math here...

Resistors formulas here:

In series they simply add together: 100 ohm + 100 ohm = 200 ohm

In parallel they follow this formula:

Rtotal = 1/ 1/R1 + 1/R2 + 1/R3 + .....

3 - 100 ohm resistors in parallel:

1/100 = .01
.01 + .01 + .01 = .03
1/.03 = 33.33 ohms -or- since they're all the same value: 100/3

---------

3 resistors, different values - 100 : 1,000 : 10,000

.01 +.001 + .0001 = .0111
1/.0111 = 90.09

Note that paralleled resistors always total less than the lowest value. The lowest resistance will take the majority of the circuit current/watts/power. Determining the circuit power dissipation is necessary to select the correct wattage resistors. The lowest value needs to be at or above (preferably) the total wattage dissipated.

Now, go build it!

Toast

[ss627]

Re: Corsair HX 520W heat problems

My vx550w and 650tx both developed severe buzzing after a year. Corsairs RMA is great but when I received my replacement, I promptly sold them and bought a cheap antec earthwatts and replaced the fan and capacitors. I realize my incident is probably not the norm but fees for shipping and finding suitable boxes for the RMA simply ate up any premium that was worth it to me. 2 bad units left a bad taste in my mouth since it occured on both units after a year or less.

I find most psu reviews to be pointless without longterm reliability tests.

[Toasty]

Re: Corsair HX 520W heat problems

>>I find most psu reviews to be pointless without longterm reliability tests.<<
I concur, and am also skeptical about most of the "torture" testing. If you're loading your PSU that high, it's time to take a step up in ratings.

IMO the problem is deceptive labeling. The public perceives that these supplies can run at those ratings continuously, when in fact those numbers should be treated as a peak (and momentary) load.

In my dealings with linear power supplies, such as those advertised as 20A, they are rated to handle that 20A current for a specified on/off duty cycle of perhaps 10-20%. They are marked with a continuous load rating of perhaps only 40-60% (8-12A). If you are using the continuous load specified, then the peak duty cycle is further reduced. That type of rating/marking system should be provided for the computer PSU's. It's a more "honest" rating.

Toast

[Silentbob]

Re: Corsair HX 520W heat problems

Hm... Dunno, my Corsair HX620 and TX650 run fairly cool, even with little airflow through my case. (A mid tower with not too much space in it). The HX620 is two years old fwiw.

[Maxxarcade]

Re: Corsair HX 520W heat problems

Thought I would dig up this thread for an update.

I had to pull my power supply tonight and mod the fan because it was cooking again. I went to measure the default operating voltage of the fan and slipped with my test leads, shorting the fan connector for a fraction of a second. That was all it took to blow the transistor that drives it.

I tried bypassing the transistor to give straight 12v to the fan, but it was way too loud. Hooked the fan to 5v, and so far it has been running cool. They must have been running the fan at 4v or something, because it wasn't doing its job.

Also a friend of mine had the 600-something watt Seasonic, and it burned up after a few months too. He sent it in for warranty repair, and the replacement they sent back after a month or so was DOA. He gave up and bought a Silverstone, and said it runs much cooler, despite being less watts. I have a Silverstone ST400 that I beat the crap out of for years, and it is still going. I bought a second one for a new system build that is coming up.

Is Seasonic starting to slip? The Corsair branded ones are still getting top ratings on Newegg.

One good point about the Corsair though, is it does have all United Chemi-con caps. Mainly KY series, which I like a lot.