Confusion over output of OCZ ModXstream Pro 700W

Akagi

Akagi

Akagi

Caporegime
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My PSU is called the ModXstream Pro 700W so can somebody please explain these power ratings to me, and tell me if my '700W' PSU is actually a 550W PSU in disguise, and if not, please explain to me my misconception.

http://www.ocztechnology.com/images/awards/mxsp_wattage_charts.jpg

I'll be honest, this has got me worried, and wondering how OCZ can get away with this bull****.

Is this PSU capable of running this setup?

i5 2500K @ 4.7GHz (1.36v)
Kuhler 620 (with 2 corsair SP120's in push-pull)
12GB Corsair Vengeance Black (2x 4GB + 2x 2GB)
Asrock Extreme 4 Gen 3 Z68
EVGA GTX660 Superclocked SLI (660 not 660TI)
1TB Spinpoint F3
2TB WDC Green
64GB Samsung 830
Samsung BD123L Blu-Ray drive
Asus Xonar Essence STX
3x 140MM LED fans
NZXT Hue lighting.

The Coolermaster Advanced PSU Calculator rates the above spec at 593W.
 
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It is a 700W PSU just not a particularly good one as far as the output is concerned as it's only 552W on the 12V rails which is where most power is drawn from on a modern PC.
 
the 700w is max draw.

your spec will use about 400-500w at full wack so the psu is fine for your needs and a bit more.
 
Surveyor said:
It is a 700W PSU just not a particularly good one as far as the output is concerned as it's only 552W on the 12V rails which is where most power is drawn from on a modern PC.
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Can you elaborate on that a little for me please Surveyor?
How can it be a 700W PSU if it has those power ratings? Surely it should be called a 550W PSU?

I have seen Corsair 750W PSU's which output 740W on the 12V rails as well as the 170W or so split between the other rails.
 
acme: hey, mate, it's so simple. Power supply gives you power, it doesn't say which one particulary (regarding to voltage). Whole power is splitted up between various voltages, so 550W comes to 12V rail(s) and 150 comes to 3.3 and 5V rails. Did you expect wattage for 12V only in the PSU's name ? :) It'd like having wife for sex only, mate...

BTW, see Corsair's table and sum up power: summing it manualy = 900W and they say 750W, whats' wrong ? ;-)
BTW2, that OCZ can give more that 700W anyways, but its efficiency goes down then.
 
You'll struggle to hit 400 W power usage. Mine doesn't and it should use more power. (Has a Quad HD TV card as well)

As for OCZ getting away with anything, the power spec would have certainly been on the box. These PSUs are based on older designs when most, if not all PSUs had power output split like that.

You'd be hard pressed to find a decent PSU with 680 W on the +12 V at the same price. :)
 
acme15 said:
Can you elaborate on that a little for me please Surveyor?
How can it be a 700W PSU if it has those power ratings? Surely it should be called a 550W PSU?
Click to expand...

It can output 700W so it's a 700W PSU.

Of that 700W only 550W can come from the 12V rails so the other 150W of the 700W can come from the other rails, mainly the 5V.


acme15 said:
I have seen Corsair 750W PSU's which output 740W on the 12V rails as well as the 170W or so split between the other rails.
Click to expand...

That type of PSU won't output 740W on the 12V rails plus 170W from the other rails.

It's 750W in total so it would be 740+10, 700+50, 650+100 etc.

It just has a better distribution of power output across the rails as nearly all of the 750W is available on the 12V rails.
 
The OCZ ZT 750W has 744W on the 12 volt rail, 170W on the 3.3 and 5V rails so on that model the 12 volt is close to the stated wattage.

On my Corsair HX 650W, its got 624W on the 12 volt and 170W on the 3.3 and 5V.

I think they have over rated the power on that PSU ...just a bit, I think most would class it as 580W at the most.
 
Technically they've not over rated the PSU.

It's correctly described as 700W but it only has 550W output on the most important 12V rails, as much as some other 550/600W PSUs.
 
So in essence then, it is a 700W PSU, but probably the most rubbish well branded one you can get?
 
I believe that I got it for £46 in September 2011 though... Which seems fair enough I suppose.
 
My old Seasonic S12 600 W had 432 W +12 V output.

That only output 72% of it's total on the +12 V, (yours is 78.86%) at the time it was one of the best PSUs, and you wouldn't get much change from £100. :)

You get what you pay for, but given you don't need anymore why worry, planning on going SLI?
 
Surveyor said:
Perhaps a bit extreme but you could put it that way.
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Lol thanks haha :L

Back in september last year I did not know as much as I do now about computer hardware. If I went back and did it again, I would never have bought an OCZ PSU, I would have spent a little extra on a RealSSD M4, and I wouldnt have bought my pain in the arse loud GTX480...
 
Sasahara said:
Still you'll be nice and toasty in the freezing winter months, my GTX 670 is only a moderate heater. :/
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I'm sorry to hear that :(

I'll tell you what, since I have a radiator next to me anyway, I'll swap the GTX480 for your GTX670?

Seems fair, that way we will both be warm :D

I see literally no flaws in this plan. :rolleyes:
 
acme15 said:
I'm sorry to hear that :(

I'll tell you what, since I have a radiator next to me anyway, I'll swap the GTX480 for your GTX670?

Seems fair, that way we will both be warm :D

I see literally no flaws in this plan. :rolleyes:
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That's a kind offer, thanks.

Fortunately my spare PC has a HD 4890, so if I have one on each side I should match the GTX 480s heat potential and still keep my fps. :D
 
Sasahara said:
That's a kind offer, thanks.

Fortunately my spare PC has a HD 4890, so if I have one on each side I should match the GTX 480s heat potential and still keep my fps. :D
Click to expand...

Damn :p

But it will be unbalanced :D the GTX480 will solve that problem ;) and it will still provide you with some FPS haha
 
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Just found out that the OCZ ModXstream Pro 700W is actually a Sirtec Absolute Power 650W with the ATX and CPU power cables made non-modular. So even the OEM of the PSU rated it as 50W less than OCZ had the cheek to. Just read an in-depth review of the PSU, they had two units fail on them when trying to load the PSU at its maximum rated power output despite the fact that the documentation provided claims that is is able to function under 100% full load, and when you try to go to the website of the capacitor OEM the browser warns of malware attacks. Lovely. My computer is such a fail :D

My next decent paycheque will be for a new PSU, motherboard and a few fans. That way it wont be a partially burned fire-hazard of death anymore. Oh, and it might beep when I start it up. That is very important. :rolleyes:
 
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