Page 2 - Physical Look - Outside
The Antec Signature Platinum 1000W is built off the renowned Seasonic PRIME platform, and it should come as no surprise when you find quite a bit of visual similarities as the Seasonic PRIME Ultra Titanium 850W I reviewed a few years back. The enclosure has a clean matte black finish along with some simple but defining branding elements. As you can see in our photo above, this Antec power supply makes it known it is part of the Signature Platinum series with the silver badge on the side and prominent PLATINUM branding in all caps all around. At 17cm deep, it is very reasonably sized for the performance grade and wattage it is designed for. Most modular power supplies are longer than non-modular units by a centimeter or two, as the extra length is needed to accommodate its connector board at the back. We will take a look inside the PSU on the next page. For most ATX or E-ATX chassis, length should not be much of a problem, if at all. However, if you have an mATX or mITX case that takes standard power supplies, the shorter length will definitely serve as an advantage, especially considering the fact the Signature Platinum is fully modular.
From our view above, the Antec Signature Platinum 1000W features a unique fan grille with a trilobal mesh pattern. The fan grille has a silver frame and is attached to the enclosure using hex screws. On the edges, you will find the PLATINUM and SIGNATURE SERIES branding in all caps once again, which I find quite classy. The full branding is implemented on both sides, where you can spot Antec's logo and the shiny Signature Platinum branding. To make sure you will see the branding right side up at all times, the orientation of it is different on both sides, so whatever side facing the user after installation will always be correct. Behind the unique fan grille is a 135mm fan that generates airflow by drawing air from the bottom of the power supply over its internal components to keep the temperatures in check. Exhaust heat is allowed to leave at the back of the power supply through the large secondary honeycomb mesh opening. Meanwhile, four screws secure the power supply case together, where one screw has a warranty seal over it, so you cannot open the Signature Platinum 1000W without voiding its long 10-year warranty.
Starting from the back part of the power supply, we have the same familiar honeycomb mesh design as most PSUs with a bottom mounted fan; what you will find here is a horizontally aligned male connector for power input on the western edge along with an on/off switch and a button to toggle Hybrid Mode. You will also find Antec's logo here. I find having the Hybrid Mode button here to be convenient, since older power supplies have it on the inside rather than the outside. However, I do not see a reason why you will not leave Hybrid Mode on. Hybrid Mode keeps the fan off until it exceeds about 40% of the load threshold. Disabling Hybrid Mode ensures the fan stays on at all times, but the Antec Signature Platinum is intelligently designed to keep it from overheating regardless of what the active setting is.
The low resistance honeycomb mesh design is implemented to maximize airflow and minimize air resistance. This is done as heat needs to leave the power supply as easily and efficiently as possible, because the Signature Platinum 1000W incorporates only one 135mm fan at the bottom. It is also implemented in a relatively efficient manner, as the power input block takes up a minimal amount of room here. As with all active PFC power supplies, the Antec Signature Platinum 1000W has an automatic full range 100V to 240V AC line voltage selection, so the user does not have to worry about manually selecting input voltage.
Like many power supplies we cover here at APH Networks, the Signature Platinum 1000W is a fully modular power supply. This means all cables are completely detachable from the main unit. While it is somewhat questionable with regards to why this is necessary, since cables such as the ATX 24-pin and ATX 4-pin/EPS 8-pin have practically an 100% chance of being connected at all times unless you are using two Antec power supplies in tandem via OC Link, it may prove to be beneficial to an extent when building your computer initially.
The rear cable connection panel is done nicely. Antec has also made the labels right side up in standard orientation, which is opposite of how Seasonic did it with their PRIME series labels. Similar connectors are grouped together and are laid out in a very logical manner. To ensure you know what is going on, they are all grouped and clearly labeled for minimal ambiguity. From the left, we have a group of eight connectors for four PCI Express 6+2 pin and two ATX/EPS 4+4 pin cables. In the Peripherals section, six outputs support fourteen Serial ATA and five Molex connectors by five cables. The Motherboard section supports an ATX 24-pin connector by two separate blocks next to each other. Lastly, there is an OC Link port for those who want to connect two compatible Antec PSUs in tandem. Incompatible outputs will not physically fit into each other, so I think Antec has done a great job in this regard. This generous array of available connectors should be more than sufficient for casual users and power enthusiasts alike.
The external build quality of Antec's Signature Platinum 1000W power supply is excellent as always; a good indication the company is serious about the product they are selling. We will take it apart in just a moment. Fit is done well with minimal panel gaps and all edges are nicely finished off. The level of refinement with regards to the external build quality is right up there with all the other high-quality PSUs I have used in the past. As aforementioned, we will crack open the power supply to see what components are inside in the following section.
The voltage specification label on the top panel of the Antec Signature Platinum 1000W. There are two main virtual rails. Up to 25A can be delivered via the +3.3V rail for a total of 82.5W; while the 25A on the +5V rail brings the output to 125W in this area. The total combined output for the +3.3V and +5V rail is 125W. In other words, your power allocation combination must fall within the limits of the listed specifications. Meanwhile, a single powerful +12V rail delivers up to 83A -- 996W -- to reduce operating overhead compared to multiple +12V rails. Overall, the combined power output for the whole Signature Platinum 1000W is... well, 1000W haha. Again, your power distribution in your system must fall within the limits provided -- it must not exceed 82.5W on the +3.3V rail, 125W on the +5V rail and 125W combined for both, 996W on the +12V rail, and 1000W combined between the +12V and +3.3/+5V rails. It does sound a bit confusing to understand how this works at first, but generally speaking, this configuration allows fairly flexible power demands and should be sufficient to accommodate most users. I have seen lower power outputs in the +3.3V and 5V rails for higher output rated units. The overall distribution is very reasonable for an 1000W power supply.
The Antec Signature Platinum 1000W is 80 Plus Platinum certified, which means that it is certified to be at least 90%, 92%, 89% efficient at 20%, 50%, and 100% load, respectively. Higher certifications available for power supplies of this type include 80 Plus Titanium at press time.
A total of twelve modular cables are included out of the box. All modular cables other than the ATX 20+4-pin cable are flat and easy to bend, making them extremely easy to work with. The ATX 20+4-pin cable is sleeved rather than flat. All wires are 18 AWG, including high current PCI Express and ATX/EPS connectors. Usually, manufacturers will fatten them up to 16 AWG, but Antec opted out on that.
The following modular cables are included out of the box:
- 1x ATX 20+4 pin, 61.0cm
- 2x ATX/EPS 4+4 pin, 65.0cm
- 4x PCIe 6+2 pin, 2 connectors each, 67.0cm to first connector, 8.0cm spacing thereafter
- 2x SATA, 4 connectors each, 40.0cm to first connector, 11.5cm spacing thereafter
- 1x SATA, 2 connectors, 30.0cm to first connector, 15.0cm spacing thereafter
- 1x Molex, 3 connectors, 45.0cm to first connector, 11.5cm spacing thereafter
- 1x Molex, 2 connectors, 35.0cm to first connector, 12.0cm spacing thereafter
A Molex to dual SATA 3.3 adapter, measured 15.0cm to first connector with 15.0cm spacing thereafter, is included with the Signature Platinum 1000W for those with newer, high capacity hard drives with Power Disable support. Other included adapters are a Molex to Floppy and OC Link cable. These are measurements I have conducted. Most users should have no problems with Antec's Signature Platinum 1000W in modern cases. 50cm is the general standard, but the shorter peripheral cables may actually be advantageous in routing management with modern cases.
Page Index
1. Introduction, Packaging, Specifications
2. Physical Look - Outside
3. Physical Look - Inside
4. Minor Tests and Conclusion
