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Today we take a look at a relatively new power supply from SilverStone, the Extreme 1200R. This PSU is SFX-L form factor, fully modular, single rail and Platinum rated. SilverStone say the design incorporates all Japanese capacitors and a fluid dynamic bearing fan for long life.
The main talking point with this power supply is the SFX-L form factor. We don't often get this form factor to review.
While larger than traditional SFX units, the 1200R measures only 130mm x 125mm x 63.5 mm. This unit will be able to fit into smaller cases such as micro ATX SFF.
Features:
- SFX-L form factor for Small Form Factor (SFF) ecosystem usage
- Supports 12V-2×6 PCIe connector with SFX12V 4.1 and PCIe Gen 5 standard
- 1200W continuous power output rated for 24/7 operation
- Class-leading single +12V rail with 100A
- High efficiency with Cybenetics Platinum certification
- Silent running 120mm FDB fan with advanced semi-fanless operation
- 24/7 continuous power output with 50℃ operating temperature
- High quality construction with all Japanese capacitors
- The modular cables features a newly crafted embossed wire design, streamlining the assembly process for users and enhancing overall system convenience
The SilverStone Extreme 1200R Platinum arrives in a colourful box. A picture of the power supply is on the left side, while the right side highlights some key features such as Platinum efficiency certification by Cybenetics and PCIe 5 compliance.
The rear of the box shows more detail on the unit, with diagrams of the connectors on the right side and technical data on the use of Japanese capacitors, regulation and single rail design.
The accessories box contains the backplate for installation, a user manual, literature on the product, cable ties (felt and standard), along with mounting screws – all you need for the installation.
SilverStone are using high quality individual braided cables which will look good in a finalised system build. The PCIe cables are 16-24AWG and most of the others are 16-18AWG gauge.
This is a very compact 1200 Watt power supply as mentioned earlier in the review. This unit measures 130mm x 125mm x 63.5 mm, even smaller than the Enermax PlatiGemini 1200W we reviewed back in April (HERE). It weighs 2.09kg.
Enermax are using a 120mm Fluid Dynamic Bearing (FDB) Fan – we will look at this closer when we open the unit shortly.
One side of the power supply is home to the modular bay, across two rows. The individual ports are not labelled, but there is a sticker underneath explaining what they are for.
The other side is home to the power connector, switch and semi-fanless switch button, which you can enable or disable. The fan is said to activate between 20-30% load at 25C.
The Extreme 1200R is able to deliver 100A across the single +12 rail, and 20A to each of the secondary +3.3V and +5v rails.
This unit is cooled by a Globe S1201512HBP-4M FDB fan, running at 12V 0.45A. This fan is rated to a maximum of 36dBa and claimed MTBF of 100,000 hours.
This looks to be an Enhance OEM design to my eye and the overall design is very clean, with some silver heatsinks separating sections of the board. The fan above the PCB does not have any partial plastic cover to direct air flow to a specific area as well. The unit is equipped with OCP, OPP, OVP, SCP and OTP protections.
The unit adopts Japanese capacitors and the primary stage is populated with two high grade Rubycon capacitors rated 400v 470uF each for a total of 940uF. I was quite surprised to see they were the lesser 85C rated capacitors however. In theory this should not be a big deal, even in hotter climates, but it was surprising to note in such an expensive high end Platinum power supply. When we asked Silverstone about this, they said that due to height restrictions, they opted for 85C caps in the primary stage. 105C capacitors are used throughout the secondary stage.
Soldering quality is very good on the PCB and other daughter-cards attached to the main unit.
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.
We test ambient temperatures at 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 | |
|
120W
|
0.90
|
3.34
|
0.93
|
5.02
|
8.95
|
12.05
|
0.50
|
5.01
|
0.20
|
-12.01
|
|
240W
|
1.62
|
3.34
|
1.63
|
5.02
|
18.45
|
12.05
|
1.00
|
5.01
|
0.20
|
-12.01
|
| 600W |
3.00
|
3.34
|
3.11
|
5.02
|
46.78
|
12.03
|
1.50
|
5.01
|
0.30
|
-12.02
|
| 900W |
4.01
|
3.34
|
4.05
|
5.02
|
70.86
|
12.00
|
2.00
|
5.01
|
0.30
|
-12.01
|
|
1200W
|
5.02
|
3.33
|
5.20
|
5.01
|
94.57
|
11.97
|
2.50
|
5.01
|
0.30
|
-12.02
|
Load regulations is pretty good, with minor fluctuation under full load conditions.
| SilverStone Extreme 1200R | Maximum Load |
| 1426 Watts |
We managed to push this PSU to 1426 Watts before it 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.
| 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 | 5.02 | 88.0 | 11.98 | 0.2 | -12.01 | 0.50 | 5.00 |
| 240W | 19.0 | 3.32 | 22.0 | 5.00 | 2.5 | 12.06 | 0.2 | -12.01 | 0.50 | 5.01 |
The SilverStone Extreme 1200R handled our cross load tests without any issues. When hit with 88A, the +12V rail held at 11.98.
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 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 |
| 200W | 13 | 12 | 15 | 12 |
| 400W | 18 | 15 | 20 | 15 |
| 600W | 25 | 15 | 25 | 17 |
| 800W | 26 | 15 | 30 | 20 |
| 1000W | 28 | 20 | 35 | 22 |
| 1200W | 30 | 24 | 42 | 25 |
Ripple suppression falls well within industry rated parameters at full load, although they are higher than we have seen from other units we have tested recently. Not a class leading result but pretty good overall. I would like to see the secondary rails a little lower at higher loads.
|
Efficiency (%)
|
|
|
100W
|
90.3
|
|
200W
|
92.8
|
|
400W
|
93.7
|
|
600W
|
94.3
|
|
800W
|
93.8
|
| 1000W | 93.0 |
| 1200W | 92.0 |
Efficiency is superb, hitting over 94% between 40%-60% load. At full load, efficiency drops to around 92%. This unit is extremely efficient.
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
|
32.6
|
| 800W | 34.1 |
| 1000W | 35.1 |
| 1200W | 35.8 |
This fan doesn't really spin up much at all until later in the power delivery, and at over 800 Watts load it is audible. This all would depend how loud your actual PC is of course, but over 1000 Watt load fan noise levels were actually very well controlled. The fan buzz is not intrusive, and we didn't experience any coil whine either during testing which was good. This could be considered a fairly quiet power supply even when delivering around 1000 Watts of sustained power.
|
Temperature (c)
|
||
|
Intake
|
Exhaust
|
|
|
100W
|
35
|
37
|
|
200W
|
36
|
40
|
|
400W
|
38
|
44
|
|
650W
|
43
|
49
|
|
800W
|
45
|
51
|
| 1000W | 47 | 53 |
| 1200W | 50 | 56 |
Temperatures are well maintained throughout the load range thanks to the high levels of efficiency of the design.
The SilverStone Extreme 1200R has proven to be a capable, high efficiency power supply in our testing over the last week. It firmly targets a niche audience building into a small SFX-L form factor chassis – the small physical footprint of 125 mm x 130mm x 63.5mm ensures maximum compatibility with a wide array of chassis designs.
Technically, load regulation is tight, and it passed the cross load test without any issues at all across the full load gamut. While ripple suppression isn't the best we have seen, it still held firmly within industry rated parameters.
Under load, the Extreme 1200R is quiet, and it is only at higher load demands that the fan starts to spin up to compensate for rising temperatures. It could be classed as a fairly quiet unit, which is extremely impressive considering the small physical dimensions.
Internally, the Enhance OEM design is clean and well thought out, although I was very surprised to see 85C-rated capacitors in the primary stage, especially as SilverStone show images of 105C caps on their product page over HERE. While the design incorporates high grade Japanese capacitors by Rubycon (2x 470uF USK) we would expect to see high end Platinum units like this 1200R equipped with 105C-rated caps. As mentioned previously in this review, we did speak to Silverstone about this and they said due to height restrictions they had to use 85C capacitors in the primary stage.
Right now you can buy the SilverStone Extreme 1200R Platinum power supply for £299.99 direct from Amazon UK HERE.
Discuss on our Facebook page HERE.
Pros:
- One of the most powerful SFX-L power supplies on the market.
- Quiet under load.
- Well built.
- Fully modular.
- Rubycon Japanese caps.
Cons:
- Silverstone claim height restrictions forced the use of 85C caps in primary stage.
KitGuru says: This is one of the most powerful and capable SFX-L power supplies on the market. Build quality is high and the Extreme 1200R delivered stable power at the rated levels, achieving Platinum efficiency.
