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It seems that many companies have ‘jumped upon the PSU wagon' in recent years with Corsair, Sapphire and XFX all having dipped their toes into the market with various levels of success. Recently Tul Corporation, or ‘Powercolor' as they are more commonly known announced their intentions to enter this sector with a new range of Extreme 1000W, 750W and Gaming 600W and 500W units, targeting both mid range and high end sectors.
While the Gaming 600W and 500W units are 80 Plus certified today we are going to be taking a look at the highest end model they have released, The Extreme 1000W PSU which is 80 Plus Bronze certified, offering over 85% power efficiency.
The Extreme Series 1000W PSU is a modular design and is cooled by a single 140MM double bearing fan to keep noise to a minimum. These PSU's have 12V quad rails and four 8 pin PEG connectors to allow users to power high end SLI and Crossfire configurations.
| Powercolor Extreme 1000W Power Supply | |
| Type | ATX 12V V2.2/EPS12V V2.91 |
| Max Output Capacity | 1000W |
| Dimensions | 180 x 150 x 86 (L/W/H) |
| PFC | Active PFC (0.99) |
| Efficiency | 85% efficiency |
| Protection | OVP/UVP/OCP/OPP/SCP |
| Certification | 80 Plus Bronze |
| Multi GPU Support | Crossfire and SLI ready |
| Cable Type | Cable Management |
The Powercolor Extreme 1000W PSU arrives in a substantial, attractively designed red and black box with details of the main features on the front and specification listings on the sides and rear.
Inside the supply is kept seperate from the cables and accessories with a dual box structure. There is a little credit card shaped note which highlights the fact that Powercolor have taken every possible step to ensure the highest quality standards.
There is a detailed manual supplied and the smaller box contains the modular cabling, a storage pouch, screws, power cable and several cable felt based cable tidies.
The branded pouch is a nice touch as it holds all the cables within four individual sleeves.
As expected for a high end 1000W power supply we are presented with a full array of cabling to cover all eventualities. These cables however deserve a little discussion as they are all sleeved and ‘extra length' – 60cm long, with the HDD Cabling extending to 90cm for the biggest cases and multiple drive configurations.
The rear is very nicely laid out with foolproof listings under each port to explain exactly what to connect.
The power supply is one of the most striking looking units we have seen in recent years, primarily black with high tech lettering and a bright red 140mm fan taking centerstage.
If they made power supplies with a sports car flavour then the Powercolor Extreme 1000W is without a doubt, the american muscle car. This is a mean looking design and we love it. The front is vented to allow for good airflow outside the chassis.
The 140mm fan is thermally controlled by internal component temperature, speeding up as the load and temperature increases. This 9 blade fan is manufactured by Globe Fan (Model No: RL4Z B1382012H) and incorporates dual ball bearings and is rated for 0.40A at 12V. It can run at 3V (683 rpm) and is almost silent. Powercolor are rating this fan to under 30 dBa at up to 85% load, but we will analyse this later.
The first thing you can notice is the array of heatsinks across the complete surface of the design. This fin design is well placed for maximum, quick acting heat dissipation. The internal design is clean and well structured with all physical space utilised.
The capacitors are industrial grade Japanese design, certified to 105c and are 450v 270uf rated. They are set in a parallel configuration. The overall design is beneficial to long term reliability and high performance.
The Powercolor Extreme Series 1000W PSU is a double forward design to offer enhanced stability and a high level of transform efficiency. It is a Quad Rail 12V design which is actually a proven design, even though enthusiast circles seem to favour a single 12V rail.
The unit supplies multiple protection – OVP/UVP/OCP/OPP/SCP which meets all current demands. We also appreciate the impressive quality of the cable sleeving, not only inside the unit, but with a dual layer protection support to eliminate any possibility for fraying over long term use.
Additional technical assistance: Peter McFarland and Jeremy Price.
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
• SkyTronic DSL 2 Digital Sound Level Meter (6-130dBa)
• Digital oscilloscope (20M S/s with 12 Bit ADC)
• Variable Autotransformer, 1.4 KVA
We are running all four 12V rails into one final test result (12v)
|
DC Output Load Regulation
|
||||||||||
|
Combined DC Load |
+3.3V
|
+5V
|
+12V
|
+5VSB
|
-12V | |||||
|
A
|
V
|
A
|
V
|
A
|
V
|
A
|
V
|
A | V | |
|
100W
|
1.58
|
3.34
|
1.79
|
5.05
|
6.63
|
12.12
|
0.50
|
5.05
|
0.20
|
-12.02
|
|
250W
|
3.43
|
3.34
|
4.38
|
5.04
|
17.15
|
12.11
|
1.00
|
5.05
|
0.30
|
-12.04
|
|
500W
|
7.01
|
3.32
|
9.06
|
5.03
|
34.65
|
12.08
|
2.00
|
5.03
|
0.50
|
-12.06
|
| 750W |
11.00
|
3.32
|
13.69
|
5.03
|
52.77
|
12.06
|
2.50
|
5.01
|
0.60
|
-12.07
|
|
1000W
|
16.88
|
3.31
|
18.93
|
5.02
|
70.47
|
12.03
|
3.00
|
5.00
|
0.80
|
-12.07
|
This power supply produced fantastic load regulation across all outputs, even when delivering the full 1000W. All rails held within 1.5% of the reference voltage, well in excess of the +/-5% threshold.
| Powercolor Extreme Series 1000W | Maximum Load |
| 1102W |
We managed to get another 102W from the power supply before the protection circuitry kicked in. We are happy to report a safe shut down verifying that the overcircuit protection is doing its job.
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 | |
| 885W | 2.0 | 3.32 | 2.0 | 5.05 | 72.0 | 11.98 | 0.2 | -12.00 | 0.50 | 5.01 |
| 240W | 20.0 | 3.30 | 24.0 | 4.99 | 2.0 | 12.08 | 0.2 | -12.01 | 0.50 | 4.98 |
The Powercolor PSU handled the Cross loading tests very well and we didn’t experience any issues at all. All the voltages remained well within specification.
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 Power Color unit complied with the ATX standard.
| AC Ripple (mV p-p) | ||||
| DC Load | +3.3V | +5V | +12V | 5VSB |
| 100W | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| 250W | 10 | 5 | 10 | 5 |
| 500W | 10 | 5 | 20 | 10 |
| 750W | 15 | 10 | 30 | 10 |
| 1000W | 20 | 15 | 45 | 20 |
The Powercolor Extreme Series 1000W PSU delivered an excellent set of results and while it is not a flat line result, the figures are well within rated tolerance specifications.
|
Efficiency (%)
|
|
|
100W
|
85.02
|
|
250W
|
86.12
|
|
500W
|
87.02
|
|
750W
|
84.57
|
|
1000W
|
82.13
|
The efficiency results were very good indeed for a 80 Plus Bronze rated unit with a high point just over 87% at 50% load. The lowest was just over 82% efficiency at 100% load.
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 Refridgerator
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
|
17.3
|
|
250W
|
18.2
|
|
500W
|
19.4
|
|
750W
|
28.8
|
| 1000W | 34.3 |
The Powercolor Extreme Series 1000W PSU remains silent under 50% load and slowly starts becoming audible at just under 700W, under 250W we noticed the fan wasn't spinning at all. Once it is pushed to 800W then the fan comes into full force, peaking at just over 34 dBA at 100% load. These are excellent results which show that the fan selection and configuration is very good.
|
Temperature (c)
|
||
|
Intake
|
Exhaust
|
|
|
100W
|
35
|
37
|
|
250W
|
35
|
38
|
|
500W
|
37
|
41
|
|
750W
|
40
|
47
|
|
1000W
|
43
|
52
|
The large fan handles air flow very well and under 50% load the exhaust temperature doesn’t rise that much compared to the intake air. Only around 700W does the fan spin up more to help compensate for rising ambient temperatures. A very good balance of low noise levels with strong air flow.
|
Maximum load
|
Efficiency
|
|
1102W
|
81.21
|
Pushing the PSU above its rated limits generates an efficiency level of around 81.21%. This is not a viable ‘real world’ situation, but its interesting nonetheless.
The Powercolor Extreme Series 1000W is an impressive first foray into a new market and for those who love a sexy looking power supply, then we feel that you can't really get a better looking unit than this right now. It is the ‘American Muscle Car' of the PSU world.
They say beauty is only skin deep, however not in the case of the Powercolor Extreme Series 1000W which delivers efficiency above the required levels for 80 Plus Bronze Certification. It incorporates a very capable fan design, combining low noise levels with good airflow. It is only audible into the top 25% of its rated power output which can't fail to impress.
The build quality is stellar with some of the highest quality cabling we have seen to date, everything is sleeved, and the main cable entering into the PSU is double sleeved with rubber for improved long term safety. The fact they have labelled each modular connector makes sure that even newbies don't end up scratching their heads in confusion. Internally, Powercolor have used industrial grade 105c japanese capacitors which are sure to deliver stable, reliable power for many years.
Unfortunately right now, we don't have any confirmed pricing information but we will keep you posted once it breaks. We would like to see this being released at around the £150-£170 inc vat price point to be truly competitive.
KitGuru says: A quality product from Powercolor and a good first indication that they can make this work … if they can maintain a similar high standard throughout their whole range.
UPDATE: 27th September: The first price to hit the net – $179.99 CAD
