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Kolink may be a new name to KitGuru labs – however their products are created by Hungarian ‘Caseking Kellytech', a sister company of European Caseking … who unsurprisingly have exclusive distribution rights. As such they are sold in the United Kingdom by Overclockers UK. The primary focus of Kolink is to offer quality products while keeping the price point as low as possible.
Kolink currently produce power supplies, cases, cables and case accessories with plans to expand into further areas in 2017 – you can see a list of their products over HERE. Today we look at one of their high end, flagship products – a 1200 watt Platinum rated power supply. The Continuum 1200 watt power supply is made by High Power. High Power (Sirtec/Sirfa) are an OEM who are certainly capable of making fantastic power supplies, but based on past experiences many of their designs can also be rather mediocre.
In regards to power supplies, Kolink currently sell wired and modular Bronze units, alongside some SFX supplies. I was told that they will be adding a 1050 watt platinum power supply and a range of Gold rated PSU's to their product portfolio in 2017.
Kolink Continuum 1200w Specification:
- Dimensions: 150 x 86 x 180 mm (W x H x D)
- Fan: 140 mm (automatic control, semi-passive)
- Colour: Black (power supply, fan)
- Efficiency: at least 92/90/89 percent 50/20/100 percent utilization. Meets the requirements of 80 Plus Platinum. Efficiency in the European 230-volt power is up to two percentage points higher
- Active PFC
- Form Factor: ATX12V 2.4 / EPS12V 2.92
- Power: 1200 W
- Protections OVP / UVP (protection against overvoltage and undervoltage), SCP (Short Circuit) OPP (overload) OCP (overcurrent on the rails +12, +3.3 and +5 volts)
The box artwork is actually rather nice, and I like the green accenting.
The rear of the box shows some key points, including the 5 year warranty – in multiple languages.
Inside the main box is a ‘Cables and Accessories box'.
– 1 x 20+4-Pin ATX12V/EPS12V
– 1 x 8-Pin EPS12V
– 1 x 4+4-Pin ATX12V/EPS12V
– 12 x 6+2-Pin-PCIe
– 8 x SATA
– 8 x 4-Pin-Molex
The cables are high quality and sleeved – to assist with cable routing. The twelve 6+2 pin PCIe connectors are available across six cables – staggering support for multiple GPU systems. There are also a 4+4 pin and an 8 pin 12V EPS connector to deliver power to two high end processors.
The Kolink Continuum 1200 supply is nicely finished, although I am not sure an enthusiast would be very keen to showcase the ‘unrivalled performance for an unbeatable price' sticker on the side. I also feel that Green coloured modular cable connectors would look better rather than red as it clashes with the green side strips.
Small points in the grand scheme of things, but first impressions matter.
One side of the chassis is dominated by a large 140mm fan which is semi passive in operation. We will take a closer look at this, when we crack open the unit soon.
One side of the power supply is vented to aid with air flow. A power connector and switch are offset to the side.
This is a pure modular power supply, so no cables are hardwired into the chassis, as shown above. As noted earlier in the review there are no less than twelve PCIe power connectors and they can be plugged into any of the indicators coloured red. The 4+4 pin and an 8 pin 12V EPS cables also connect to the red coloured ports. Peripheral ports are labelled and coloured black on the second row. The motherboard connectors run down the right side of the panel and are clearly labelled.
| Kolink Continuum 1200w PSU | |||||
|
DC Output
|
+3.3V
|
+5V
|
+12V1 |
-12V
|
+5Vsb
|
|
Max Output
|
25A
|
25A
|
100A |
0.3A
|
3A
|
| Total Power | 130W | 1200W | 3.6W | 15W | |
| 1200W | |||||
The single +12V rail is able to deliver 100 amps which is more than enough for high end multi card SLI or Crossfire system configurations.
Kolink are using a 140mm Globe Fan. When it comes to cooling, the bigger the fan is, generally, the better. Especially if you value low noise. The fan is rated 12V, 0.33A.
This fan is a custom design, with a ‘golf ball' style treated surface. We have seen this kind of design before, some of the Sharkoon fans we have tested use a similar surface finish – said to reduce noise related to air turbulence. This fan in this power supply is a double ball bearing design.
This High Power design is quite nicely put together, and most of the soldering work is good. There are several rows of small heatsinks to aid with cooling and with such a high efficiency unit it looks more than adequate.
Primary capacitors are supplied by Japanese Nippon Chemi Con, and are rated 105c @ 400V 470uF each (940uF combined).
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 | |
|
100W
|
1.55
|
3.33
|
1.75
|
5.01
|
6.65
|
12.02
|
0.50
|
5.01
|
0.20
|
-12.04
|
|
200W
|
3.13
|
3.33
|
3.50
|
5.00
|
13.50
|
12.01
|
1.00
|
5.01
|
0.20
|
-12.04
|
| 400W |
6.40
|
3.33
|
7.05
|
5.00
|
27.50
|
12.00
|
1.50
|
5.01
|
0.30
|
-12.05
|
| 600W |
9.80
|
3.33
|
10.77
|
5.00
|
41.70
|
12.00
|
2.00
|
5.00
|
0.30
|
-12.05
|
|
800W
|
13.25
|
3.32
|
14.55
|
5.00
|
56.40
|
11.98
|
2.50
|
5.00
|
0.50
|
-12.05
|
| 1000W | 16.55 | 3.32 | 15.75 | 4.99 | 71.40 | 11.97 | 3.00 | 5.00 | 0.60 | -12.06 |
| 1200W | 22.01 | 3.31 | 22.01 | 4.98 | 85.00 | 11.95 | 3.60 | 5.00 | 0.80 | -12.06 |
Load regulation is very good indeed, holding within 1.5%.
| Kolink Continuum 1200W PSU | Maximum Load |
| 1302 Watts |
We managed to get another 102 watts from the power supply before the protection circuitry kicked in. The supply was undamaged and it was ready to fire up again when we dropped the load to a more realistic level.
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.
| Cross Load Testing | +3.3V | +5V | +12V | -12V | +5VSB | |||||
| A | V | A | V | A | V | A | V | A | V | |
| 1190W | 4.0 | 3.33 | 3.0 | 5.01 | 88.0 | 11.94 | 0.2 | -12.03 | 0.50 | 5.01 |
| 240W | 19.0 | 3.32 | 22.0 | 4.98 | 2.5 | 12.02 | 0.2 | -12.03 | 0.50 | 5.01 |
The Kolink Continuum 1200w PSU delivered great results across the range of input, falling well within expected parameters.
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 |
| 100W | 5 | 10 | 10 | 5 |
| 200W | 10 | 10 | 10 | 5 |
| 400W | 10 | 10 | 15 | 5 |
| 600W | 15 | 15 | 20 | 5 |
| 800W | 15 | 15 | 25 | 10 |
| 1000W | 20 | 15 | 30 | 10 |
| 1200W | 20 | 15 | 35 | 15 |
Great results – all rails hold well within the industry rated tolerance levels.
|
Efficiency (%)
|
|
|
100W
|
86.0
|
|
200W
|
89.1
|
|
400W
|
94.1
|
|
600W
|
94.2
|
|
800W
|
94.0
|
| 1000W | 93.3 |
| 1200W | 92.1 |
The overall efficiency results are excellent, peaking at 94.2% at 600W. This drops to 92.1% efficiency at full load, a very impressive result overall.
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 SkyTronic DSL 2 Digital Sound Level Meter (6-130dBa) 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)
|
|
|
100W
|
<28.0
|
|
200W
|
<28.0
|
|
400W
|
<28.0
|
|
600W
|
30.8
|
| 800W | 31.8 |
| 1000W | 33.4 |
| 1200W | 35.9 |
The Kolink Continuum 1200w PSU is a quiet power supply and the fan only really becomes active around 800-900 watt load. A situation which really requires two or more high end graphics cards under full load.
|
Temperature (c)
|
||
|
Intake
|
Exhaust
|
|
|
100W
|
35
|
37
|
|
200W
|
36
|
39
|
|
400W
|
38
|
44
|
|
650W
|
43
|
47
|
|
800W
|
45
|
53
|
| 1000W | 47 | 58 |
| 1200W | 50 | 63 |
The fan is basically inactive for a large portion of load demand, actively spinning within the last 30% of load demand. Internal temperatures are maintained well throughout.
|
Maximum load
|
Efficiency
|
|
1302W
|
91.6
|
Pushing the power supply above its rated limits generates an efficiency level of around 91.6%. This is not a viable ‘real world’ situation, but its interesting nonetheless.
I was not quite sure what to expect when the sample of the Kolink Continuum 1200 watt power supply turned up at our offices for review. It is a brand we have never focused on, and a lot of their products are targeted towards the budget audience.
First impressions were mixed. It was clear that the unit exhibited good build quality, but the ugly big ‘ ‘unrivalled performance for an unbeatable price' stickers and the mixed red and green colours made me wonder if the designer was in fact Stevie Wonder. It couldn't be classed as a looker by any stretch of the imagination.
In actuality the paint quality is superior than many other samples we review however.
Technically, the unit has impressed me. High Power as an OEM can be a little hit and miss … that said, when they put their mind to creating a quality power supply, they can be surprisingly good. The Kolink Continuum 1200W is certainly one of their better units that I have tested over the years.
Ripple suppression falls within industry rated safe parameters, load regulation is excellent and the efficiency results are stellar. The internal design proved very stable during all our tests and it handled the strenuous cross load test without an issue.
Kolink place a focus on pricing, and the Continuum 1200W supply is very competitively priced at £184.99 inc vat. Of course, this is still a lot of money to pay for a power supply, but competitor offerings from the likes of Corsair (HX1200i £239.99 HERE AX1200i £329.99 HERE) or Seasonic (P series 1200W £239.99 HERE) are notably more expensive.
Pros:
- Competitively priced.
- well built.
- pure modular design.
- quiet under most load situations.
- load regulation.
- ripple suppression
Cons:
- not the most attractive looking supply.
Kitguru says: The Kolink Continuum 1200w may not be the nicest looking power supply, but technically it is solid and performs very well indeed. At the current price point it is the least expensive 1200 watt Platinum supply in the UK.
