be quiet! Pure Power 10 700W CM PSU Review

1. Introduction2. Bundle & Cables3. External4. Internal5. Testing Methodology and Results6. Closing Thoughts7. View All Pages

Today we analyse a brand new power supply from the be quiet! Pure Power 10 range. This 80 Plus Silver certified 700 watt model is due for release this week and will be priced around the £100 point in the UK. You may have noticed that the model we are reviewing today is tagged with a ‘CM' – this stands for ‘cable management' or translated into real world terms – its actually semi modular. be quiet! will be releasing another range of Pure Power 10 supplies with all hard wired cables (no ‘CM' in name), at a slightly lower cost.

Pure Power 10 CM power supplies with cable management will be offered in 400W, 500W, 600W and 700W capacities and are priced between €72-€115 MSRP. Pure Power 10 power supplies with fixed cables are offered in 300W, 350W, 400W, 500W, 600W and 700W capacities and will be priced between €50-€105 MSRP.

I was hoping be quiet! might have improved the efficiency to 80 Plus Gold Certified levels, from the Silver of the Pure Power 9 series, but sadly not. The certification remains the same.

ABOUT PURE POWER 9 CM

• 80PLUS® Silver certification and up to 91% power conversion efficiency.
• Exceptionally quiet operation achieved through an array of careful optimizations, including use of a silence-optimized 120mm be quiet! fan.
• Dual 12V design.
• Implemented DC/DC technology.
• CM versions have solid caps implemented on the CM daughter board.
• Modular cable management with high-quality flat cables for PCI Express connectors and drives.
• All black DC wires for a clean and modern look.
• Improved 3.3V and -12V regulation.
• Separate output coil for 5V (result of DC/DC implementation).
• NVIDIA SLI Ready and AMD CrossFireX certifications allow you to build powerful multi-GPU systems.
• Extensive compatibility with latest specifications, including energy-saving requirements of Intel C6/C7, ErP 2014 and Energy Star 6.0 guidelines.
• Product conception, design and quality control in Germany.

All photography today is done in-house in KitGuru with a Leica S medium format lens and S series prime lens.

be quiet! box artwork is very distinctive. The black backgrounds with orange accenting always work well. They include a high resolution photograph of the supply in the center of the box. Ideal for browsing in a retail store.

The back of the box highlights some of the key buying points, including a diagram of the cabling and power system.

Inside the box is a regional specific power cable, cable ties, mounting screws and a user manual. The modular cables are tied into three groups.

Above – all the modular cables (above left) and the hardwired cables (above right). All the modular cables are high quality and flat, for ease of routing during a system build. The hardwired cable is sleeved. Its not a big deal, but why not make the cables all the same?

Above, a diagram of all the cables available with the 700 watt unit, including lengths. This power supply can handle a dual card SLi or Crossfire system configuration.

The be quiet! Pure Power 10 follows what we would consider a traditional be quiet! design ethic. High quality paint, thick metal bars to protect the fan mount and orange accents in various parts of the design. Very tasty indeed.

The unit measures 160 (L) x 150 (W) x 86 (H).

We love the vibrant orange circular surround behind the grill, in front of the fan. We noticed with their Straight Power 10 CM that be quiet! opted for no trim (HERE). Personal opinion, but I love the little touches and the orange trim is very appealing – it always reminds me of KTM motorbikes.

One side of the power supply is vented to help improve ambient airflow. Beside the large vent is a power button and connector.

The other side of the unit is home to the modular connector bay and the hardwired cables. The modular connectors are cleanly laid out vertically with the names above them in white – for high contrast clarity during the build phase. The PCI connectors are dual width so you won't accidentally plug them into the wrong connector.

One side of the chassis has the ‘be quiet!' company name embossed into the metal. A nice touch – although this image will also show how easy it is to get fingerprints on the chassis as I forgot to wipe it before taking the picture. This smooth surface is somewhat of a fingerprint magnet.

be quiet! Pure Power 10 700W CM
DC Output	+3.3V	+5V	+12V1	+12V2	-12V	+5Vsb
Max Output	25A	20A	36A	30A	0.3A	3A
Total Power	150W		56A – 672W		3.6W	15W
	700W

The be quiet! Pure Power 10 700W CM can deliver 56A across the two +12V rails which translates into 672w of the 700w available. The 12V1 rail handles the 24 pin, drives, and PCIe 1 and 2 connectors. The +12V2 rail handles the P4+4 and the PCI e 3+4 connectors.

be quiet! are using a 120mm fan made in China. The model number is BQ QF1-12025-HS. This fan is rated 12V, 0.3A at a maximum of 2,000 rpm. These fans are classed by the company as ‘silence optimised' with ‘airflow optimised' fan blades – all to reduce turbulence and noise.

The overall build quality is good and we can see that the OEM partner is FSP again. Soldering quality is high.

The hardwired cable is sleeved into the unit and the chassis has a rubber grommet to protect against fraying, which is good to see. Sadly be quiet! are still using Chinese ‘TEAPO' capacitors in this unit which gives me slight cause for concern, especially as they are the lower grade 85c capacitors. I know in some circles I have been hearing that Chinese capacitors are getting better, but I do base my concerns on failures I have experienced with TEAPO capacitors over the years. It would cost bequiet! perhaps 1-2 euros more for Japanese caps.

I do raise this point every year with be quiet! because while they may class these as their budget power supplies – £100 is still a fair bit of cash for a 700 watt supply.

On a more positive note this unit has solid caps implemented on the modular daughter card. This should help reduce ripple and noise and stabilise voltage regulation. The adoption of solid caps is a positive move.

be quiet have adopted separate temperature sensors for Over Temperature Protection and the fan controller. This allows them to adjust the fan curve to a finer level. The unit offers UVP, OVP, SCP, OPP, OCP and OTP. The design adopts a Mitsubishi surge absorber rather than a metal oxide varistor. This will help protect against voltage spikes. The surge absorber can handle up to 10kV and can survive 200 activations.

This unit is based around an Active Clamp + SR (Synchronous Rectifier) topology. The design uses additional active components such as a set of MOSFET’s, capacitors and an IC on the primary and secondary side. These are adopted instead of passive diodes, allowing control over individual parts. A second IC controls rectification on the DC side.

The IC’s on primary and secondary sides can communicate and are able to monitor components to improve efficiency. This is called Zero Voltage and Zero Current Switching technology (ZCS, ZVS).

This is the first ‘entry level' power supply from be quiet! which implements DC/DC technology. The reason for doing this is to help improve regulation, voltage stability and to improve efficiency levels. They have also adopted a separate output coil for 5V.

Correctly testing power supplies is a complex procedure and KitGuru have configured a test bench which can deliver up to a 2,000 watt DC load. Due to public requests we have changed our temperature settings recently – previously we rated with ambient temperatures at 25C, we have increased ambient temperatures by 10c (to 35c) in our environment to greater reflect warmer internal chassis conditions.

We use combinations of the following hardware:

• SunMoon SM-268
• CSI3710A Programmable DC load (+3.3V and +5V outputs)
• CSI3711A Programmable DC load (+12V1, +12V2, +12V3, and +12V4)
• Extech Power Analyzer
• Extech MultiMaster MM570 digital multimeter
• Extech digital sound level meter
• Digital oscilloscope (20M S/s with 12 Bit ADC)
• Variable Autotransformer, 1.4 KVA

DC Output Load Regulation
Combined DC Load	+3.3V		+5V		+12V		+5VSB		-12V
	A	V	A	V	A	V	A	V	A	V
70W	0.90	3.34	0.85	5.03	4.80	12.04	0.50	5.01	0.20	-12.02
140W	1.60	3.34	1.60	5.03	9.90	12.03	1.00	5.01	0.20	-12.02
350W	2.90	3.33	2.98	5.01	26.60	12.00	1.50	5.01	0.30	-12.03
525W	4.00	3.33	4.00	5.01	41.15	12.00	2.00	5.01	0.30	-12.03
700W	5.10	3.33	5.11	5.01	54.00	11.97	2.50	5.00	0.30	-12.04

Load regulation rates as excellent. A good start.

be quiet! Pure Power 10 700W CM	Maximum Load
	777W

We managed to squeeze 777W from the power supply before it would shut down safely.

Next we want to try Cross Loading. This basically means loads which are not balanced. If a PC for instance needs 500W on the +12V outputs but something like 30W via the combined 3.3V and +5V outputs then the voltage regulation can fluctuate badly.

Combined DC Load	+3.3V		+5V		+12V		-12V		+5VSB
	A	V	A	V	A	V	A	V	A	V
590W	1.0	3.36	1.0	5.02	48.0	11.95	0.2	-12.01	0.5	5.01
190W	18.2	3.31	20.1	4.97	2.0	12.03	0.2	-12.01	0.5	5.01

Cross load results rate as good, with the +12V rail dropping from 12.03V to 11.95V when hit with 48A.

We then used an oscilloscope to measure AC ripple and noise present on the DC outputs. We set the oscilloscope time base to check for AC ripple at both high and low ends of the spectrum.

ATX12V V2.2 specification for DC output ripple and noise is defined in the ATX 12V power supply design guide.

ATX12V Ver 2.2 Noise/Ripple Tolerance
Output	Ripple (mV p-p)
+3.3V	50
+5V	50
+12V1	120
+12V2	120
-12V	120
+5VSB	50

Obviously when measuring AC noise and ripple on the DC outputs the cleaner (less recorded) means we have a better end result. We measured this AC signal amplitude to see how closely the unit complied with the ATX standard.

AC Ripple (mV p-p)
DC Load	+3.3V	+5V	+12V	5VSB
174W	5	10	10	5
352W	5	10	15	10
525W	10	10	20	10
700W	10	15	30	10

The be quiet! Pure Power 10 700W CM has superior noise suppression than the previous Pure Power 9 600 watt unit we tested last year. The +12V max at 30mV under full load and the +3.3V and +5V rail peak at 10mV and 15mV respectively. These are all within industry rated parameters.

Efficiency (%)
174W	85.34
352W	90.05
525W	88.54
700W	87.07

Efficiency is very good, peaking at around 90 percent at 50 percent load. At full load this drops to around 87 percent efficiency.

We take the issue of noise very seriously at KitGuru and this is why we have built a special home brew system as a reference point when we test noise levels of various components. Why do this? Well this means we can eliminate secondary noise pollution in the test room and concentrate on components we are testing. It also brings us slightly closer to industry standards, such as DIN 45635.

Today to test the power supply we have taken it into our acoustics room environment and have set our Digital Sound Level Noise Decibel Meter Style 2 one meter away from the unit. We have no other fans running so we can effectively measure just the noise from the unit itself.

As this can be a little confusing for people, here are various dBa ratings in with real world situations to help describe the various levels.

KitGuru noise guide
10dBA – Normal Breathing/Rustling Leaves
20-25dBA – Whisper
30dBA – High Quality Computer fan
40dBA – A Bubbling Brook, or a Refrigerator
50dBA – Normal Conversation
60dBA – Laughter
70dBA – Vacuum Cleaner or Hairdryer
80dBA – City Traffic or a Garbage Disposal
90dBA – Motorcycle or Lawnmower
100dBA – MP3 Player at maximum output
110dBA – Orchestra
120dBA – Front row rock concert/Jet Engine
130dBA – Threshold of Pain
140dBA – Military Jet takeoff/Gunshot (close range)
160dBA – Instant Perforation of eardrum

Noise (dBA)
174W	<28.0
352W	29.2
525W	30.9
700W	33.8

This is a very quiet power supply and even at full load fan noise will likely be masked by one or two case fans. We measured fan speeds around 1,800 rpm at 700 watt load.

Temperature (c)
	Intake	Exhaust
174W	36	39
352W	38	48
525W	42	54
700W	47	60

The internal temperatures are maintained well, rising to a maximum 13c above ambient at full load in our test environment.

Maximum load	Efficiency
777W	86.2

We measured the efficiency beyond the rated limits of the supply and recorded 86.2% at 777W. Its not a real world everyday rating, but interesting regardless.

The be quiet! Pure Power 10 700W CM is another capable power supply release from the highly regarded German company. It was able to deliver high quality power closer to 800 watts, before safely shutting down. As we would expect from be quiet! the build quality is excellent, and the paint work and dramatic orange accenting is very appealing. The only negative point we could make on the appearance is that the surface of the chassis is a fingerprint magnet.

As before, cosmetically we love the appearance of the Pure Power 10 unit – we like the orange trim around the fan housing which has sometimes been omitted on be quiet! supplies (such as the be quiet! Pure Power L8 series). The modular cables are all very high quality and this unit is capable of handling a powerful dual card SLI or Crossfire build.

Load regulation is stellar and the rails hold close to reference levels, which is impressive. Ripple suppression has been improved over the previous version we tested last year and technically it didn't show any potential for concerns across several days of heavy stress testing.

So, I have handed out a lot of praise for the cosmetic appearance and the technical proficiency of the unit, however I do need to raise a concern.

I have raised this with bequiet! consecutively for three years after reviewing the Pure Power 8 and Pure Power 9. be quiet! are cutting costs by using low grade 85c rated Chinese capacitors by TEAPO. I appreciate that many sources say Chinese capacitors are getting better, but I can only base my decisions on my own findings. I have seen TEAPO capacitors leak and explode in our labs over the last 5 years.

It really is far from reassuring to see be quiet! using them in any of their products, especially as the company place a focus on ‘quality German engineering' and the standards of German build quality. Sure, some people might never have a problem with the unit, but my experiences in our own labs would always raise a point of concern over this.

This unit is priced around £100 in the United Kingdom, so I don't think there is any room for 85c TEAPO capacitors in this Pure Power 10 product. be quiet! should spend the extra 1-2 euros and adopt Nippon Chemi Con or Rubycon capacitors – to remove all doubt of potential longer term failures.

We have no store links as we go live today, but you can expect to see stock on leading etailers such as Overclockers UK. They currently are stocking the Pure Power 9 700w HERE at £99.95 inc vat, and it is likely stock will arrive with them this week. We have been told there will be no changes in pricing over the Pure Power 9 range.

Buy direct from Overclockers UK for £101.99 inc vat HERE.

Discuss on our Facebook page, over HERE.

Pros:

• quality paint work and exterior build.
• very low noise fan.
• high grade modular cables.
• can deliver 777 watts before shutting down.
• technically a very solid design.

Cons:

• 85C Chinese capacitors used which is disappointing to see in ANY be quiet! product.
• 80 Plus Gold Certification would have been better.
• shipping box could be better, the power supply can move around a little during transit.

Kitguru says: Another very competent power supply from be quiet!. Technically the be quiet! Pure Power 10 700W CM proved a very good performer in our tests.

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