Decent, quiet PSU?

Northwind · 14 Dec 2006 at 20:06

I'm running an Akasa PaxPower 460W just now, and though it's entirely up to the task of powering my rig it's a little noisy... So I'm looking for a reasonable upgrade, and the less I spend the more I can squander on other things

So, in the 400W+ bracket, and under £100, what should I choose for good quality, and quiet? Modular would be nice but I can live without it, I know how much it adds to the price...

Got a wee shortlist of likely suspects here, if anyone can add a recommendation or remove a bad choice, please let me know. I'm sure I'm missing some.

OCZ's Modstream 450 at £46.99
Corsair HX520W, £72.84
Tagan TG520-U15 530, £74.01
Seasonic S12 430, £51.69 (not modular)

Mp4 · 14 Dec 2006 at 22:06

Enermax > Seasonic
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-025-EN

Paolo · 14 Dec 2006 at 23:51

I`ve just swapped out that exact same PSU and replaced it with the Enermax 500 liberty,it`s quieter and it`s modular

Rab · 15 Dec 2006 at 00:19

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-018-OC

got 2 of these, grt psu & so quiet

Northwind · 15 Dec 2006 at 00:35

Thanks... Just done a bit of a more informed search, and now looking more at:

Modstream, £46.99

Corsair, £72.84

Enermax, £46.99

Seasonic, £51.69

The Corsair seems a great option but they don't do a lower power one... I know 400W will run this system without any issues and I don't expect to be upgrading the card for some time, so I'd be quite happy with that, for now...

I'm sure these 4 are all great- and I can upspec most of them to higher output if my budget allows. So the big question is, which is quietest?

Northwind · 15 Dec 2006 at 00:37

Aargh... While I was writing that, I've been endrun by Rab! Do you reckon that's worth the price increase over the Modstream?

Orison · 15 Dec 2006 at 00:42

Corsair, every time. Either the 520W or 620W model (about £70 and £100 respectively).

Properly temperature-regulated fans that are very quiet, and the unit is absolutely rock solid. 105 capacitors all round, with a 5 year warranty, and more or less every review I've found of them has freaked out at just how stable the rails are.

That said, if absolute silence is your thing, I think all the hardcore silence builders go with Seasonics. Can't say, never used one myself

Northwind · 15 Dec 2006 at 01:01

Absolute silence isn't really on the cards, tbh, though it'd be nice. If the Corsair's better, is it £25 better? Cost aside it'd be my choice but the others are 2/3 the cost...

Raikiri · 15 Dec 2006 at 02:34

The Corsair is a Seasonic basically so it is very quiet, also a bit higher quality with a better cabling system and a 5 year warranty. They are 100% worth the extra £25, if nothing else it should be fine for your next upgrade.

Edit: http://www.silentpcreview.com/article692-page1.html

steve258 · 15 Dec 2006 at 11:05

Yeah go for seasonic or corsair, although I have a Tagan TG530 U15 and I can tell you it's very quiet.

mattbill · 15 Dec 2006 at 11:13

i recommend the Corsair HX520... its nice'n'quiet and extremely good quality

Gaman · 15 Dec 2006 at 14:41

I've just got my brother the seasonic for his media pc and it is sooo quiet. :cool:

Just depends what you want to use as your deciding factor - personally having just gone modular (Seasonic M12-700) I'd plump for the modstream as don't think I could go back to all those cables everywhere :eek:

malccy · 15 Dec 2006 at 15:07

Have an OCZ 520w modstream and think its the loudest PSU I have ever come accross.

Margaret · 15 Dec 2006 at 15:22

AKASA PSU that I'm using 'Ultra Silent' model is pretty ...... Silent!

psumann · 15 Dec 2006 at 15:38

I have been using Corsair HX520W for a few months now and it is VERY quiet even with my setup. Keep in mind that the OCZ Modstream is not a high efficiency unit, so you will save money with a Corsair in a long run

UltimA · 15 Dec 2006 at 19:34

I bought a seasonic for my last build just under a year ago and it died last night, sorry to put you off when many people are saying seasonic/corsair...

Northwind · 15 Dec 2006 at 19:40

Golden, thanks a lot folks. I've got it down to the Enermax vs the Corsair now, I'll make a knee-jerk decision at some point tonight

I know "what PSU" threads are the most boring out there, so it's appreciated...

Raikiri · 15 Dec 2006 at 19:57

UltimA said:
I bought a seasonic for my last build just under a year ago and it died last night, sorry to put you off when many people are saying seasonic/corsair...

Thats one of the first I have heard dying, did it take anything out with it?

If it didn't kill anything else then it is a sign of a quality PSU (strange in dying, but it is

). And the Corsairs have a 5 year warranty.

Joe42 · 15 Dec 2006 at 23:07

UltimA said:
I bought a seasonic for my last build just under a year ago and it died last night, sorry to put you off when many people are saying seasonic/corsair...

PSU's from all makes die prematurely every so often, its impossible to make one that doesn't.
As Raikiri says, the important thing is if it took out components or not, being a decent psu its very unlikely that it did.

Northwind · 16 Dec 2006 at 02:16

My knee's jerked in the direction of the Corsair, in the end. Should come on tuesday so I'll post up the results then.

Joe42's spot on of course... You can find bad news about absolutely anything if you look for long enough. You can also find people that love their Hiper PSUs, because they've not failed yet. Sometimes, even the best stuff fails...