Page 4 - Minor Tests and Conclusion
Power supplies are interesting products -- because often, reviews of products in this category are conducted and tested in methods that make it difficult to distinguish one power supply from another. Many aspects have to be taken into consideration -- of which certain criteria consists of efficiency, noise, power ripples, and of course the ability to pull out the rated specifications. Because many cannot afford such equipment to obtain results regarding those aspects, articles covering power supplies often come out with less than adequate and acceptable information. As this is a product report -- not a review -- what we are doing is a close examination of the power supply, and the internal hardware and build. But what we can do for you is do some minor testing with the results we can present to you with, and let other review sites with professional equipment show you the actual test results. We're not going to try to BS you by installing the power supply into the latest gaming rig and try to take readings from that, as this is not even remotely the correct way to test power supply units. We understand that many websites do that as a means of load testing, but the results, even if you use an oscilloscope and multimeter at each output location, it is not sufficient, nor does it accurately reflect the performance of the power supply.
Using our power supply tester which exerts minimum load on the power supply, the initial power consumption was fluctuating between 15W and 16W. This is quite a high number, considering how some PSUs such as the FSP AURUM S 600W runs at 7W using our power supply tester. Even the Thermaltake SMART M750W had a relatively high rating of 13W, but it wasn't quite up here on this level. Obviously, this does not have a whole lot to do with its efficiency in real life, but keep in mind this is an 80 Plus Bronze certified power supply, so we are guaranteed to have something that performs well in this regard.
The voltages with minimal load are bang on. A basic requirement of all good PSUs is to deliver the right voltages through the rails at minimal load. All of the values are consistent with the rated ones; everything is just as advertised. Independent reviews from websites with professional load testing equipment showed the Antec High Current Gamer M 750W delivered excellent efficiency across the board -- right up to its rated wattage. This includes its 80 Plus Bronze certification.
Active power correction is important to correct AC load line loss. In AC power, there are three components to it; as there is a phase difference between current and voltage. This makes up the power triangle, which consists of the following: Average usable power (P, measured in watts), reactive power (Q, denoted as VA-R), and total power (S, written as VA). While they all have the same physical units, it is not the same thing as aforementioned. What we want is the average usable power -- with as little wasted reactive power as possible. The total power provided over the AC line is the magnitude of the two combined (sqrt(P^2+Q^2)). Power factor can then be easily calculated by P/S. The ideal value is 1.00, and this is where active PFC comes in. A nominal load of 195W on the Antec High Current Gamer M 750W had the power factor alternate between 0.98 and 0.99. As the load increases to around 200W, the power factor stabilizes to 0.99, as shown in our photo above. It should get closer to 1.00 as the load continues to increase.
In terms of noise, the Antec High Current Gamer M 750W is relatively quiet. The included ADDA ADN512UB-A90LD was barely audible from the start. Even when the computer is under load, it was reasonably quiet. Considering this uses a 135mm fan, the noise level is fairly low and only increases as the load does. I would say this will probably not be the loudest component in all but the quietest of builds; aside from some silent case fans, not much else in a system will be quieter. On a scale from 0 to 10, where 0 is silent and 10 is the loudest, I would rate the Antec High Current Gamer M 750W to be at 3.5/10 under nominal loads. As the fan spins up, the fan gets increasingly louder, as expected. However, when it gets up to higher loads, the fan gets progressively louder, and is one of the louder fans we have seen in a PSU. As we stated before, the LED include in the fan is a nice touch for those that enjoys having a more illuminated build. The option for being able to turn the LED off is great, and satisfies those who would rather have a less flashy design.
Antec provided this product to APH Networks to facilitate this report.
The Antec High Current Gamer M 750W is a great choice for those looking for a well designed and efficient mainstream power supply. With an 80 Plus Bronze rating, Seasonic design, and a full set of Japanese capacitors, the Antec High Current Gamer M 750W is a good pick in the market today. The fan can get a bit loud on heavy loads due to the included ADDA fan, but since it is a 135mm fan, you are not likely to hit super high speeds that quickly or that often. The option to turn the LED on and off is certainly a great feature to boot.
Do you have any comments or questions about the Antec High Current Gamer M 750W? Drop by our Forums. Registration is free, and it only takes a minute!
Page Index
1. Introduction, Packaging, Specifications
2. Physical Look - Outside
3. Physical Look - Inside
4. Minor Tests and Conclusion
