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The latest Seasonic S12G range of power supplies is the companies first major attempt at bringing a high grade 80 Plus Gold Certified power supply into a very competitive price zone. The retail price of the 750W unit we reviewed today is only $119.99 in America, or €100.83 in Europe.
As we all know, United Kingdom tech prices are always higher, but even after factoring in 20% VAT we should see this S12G 750W unit entering retail to the end user for around £100 inc vat. It might be a little more initially, but we expect prices to stablise around £99.99 inc vat over the coming months.
For many, a 750 watt power supply is the perfect capacity. The majority of enthusiast gaming systems will require around 300-400 watts under load, so this S12G 750W will be running at optimum efficiency, between 50 and 60 percent load.
An added benefit is that there is plenty of future proofing for those people gaming with a single graphics card today. With four 6+2 pin PCIe connectors there is plenty of support for a Crossfire or Sli system. Obviously if you want to game with three or more high end graphics cards you should be looking at a 1000W+ unit.
Technically, this supply is rock solid, and our review sample delivered close to 850watts before shutting down. Obviously its not ideal to be running a system at close to maximum output on a regular basis, but it does offer reassurance that Seasonic are still over specifying their power supplies.
Load regulation is excellent, the unit is quiet under load, and it achieves 80 Plus Gold efficiency without a hitch. Ripple suppression is also noteworthy, falling well within industry rated specifications. Seasonic are using high grade Japanese 105c Nippon Chemi Con and Rubycon capacitors inside the unit, which is again, very reassuring to sustain long term reliability.
The only downside to this unit is the fact that it is not modular, but Seasonic are attempting to keep the cost of the 750W unit as close to £99.99 as possible so we can understand their reasoning. Unfortunately if you have a chassis with poor cable routing capabilities then hiding all these cables may be tricky. It is good to see Seasonic incorporating their flat ribbon style cabling however, as routing these behind a motherboard tray is less difficult.
We are very impressed with this power supply, it is the latest in a long line of success stories for Seasonic. The S12G-750 earns our MUST HAVE award, especially when we factor in the competitive pricing.
Pros:
- very competitive pricing.
- built with 105c high grade Japanese capacitors.
- 80 Plus Gold.
- delivered almost 850W under load.
- ripple suppression is excellent.
- quiet.
Cons:
- Not modular.
Kitguru says: If you can live with a non modular power supply then this is pretty much as good as it gets, especially given the capacity and pricing.
