Page 2 - Physical Look - Outside
To no one's surprise, the be quiet! Pure Power 12 1000W looks remarkably familiar to the be quiet! Pure Power 12 M 1000W, with the only exception of the fixed cables. First, we have the same all-black finish on the SECC steel enclosure. The label and stamped company logo are both facing upside-down in this orientation, which indicates users should install the unit with the fan facing down. For its physical size, the Pure Power 12 1000W is small for the wattage, with a standard ATX form factor and 16.0cm in length. Most non-modular power supplies are shorter than modular units by a centimeter or two, as the extra length accommodates its connector board at the back, but this is not the case. In standard ATX or eATX chassis, this length should not be much of a problem.
At the top, the fan has metal bars over the intake to prevent cables or fingers from entering this area while allowing air to flow freely here. This grille is secured to the rest of the enclosure with a screw in each corner. The 120mm fan underneath generates airflow by drawing air from the bottom of the power supply over the internal components to keep them cool. Exhaust heat is then pushed out the back of the power supply through the other opening on this power supply. Five screws around the power supply keep the whole unit enclosed with one screw covered by a warranty seal. This means you cannot open the be quiet! Pure Power 12 1000W without voiding its 10-year warranty.
On the back of the power supply, there is a typical honeycomb-style grille. There is also a horizontally aligned male connector for power input on one side of the unit with an on/off switch beside it. We do not have a zero RPM fan mode switch here, but be quiet! says the fan should be quiet enough in everyday loads such that it does not create too much noise when rotating. Otherwise, this ventilation area is important to allow heat to flow out of the back. Most modern power supplies have an automatic full range 110V to 240V AC line voltage selection, so there is no need for a manual switch, as seen on older power supply units without active PFC.
As mentioned previously, the be quiet! Pure Power 12 1000W uses fixed cables and is a non-modular power supply. The cable lead-out location is as seen above, and two of the cables are wrapped in their own mesh sleeves. There are no red or yellow cables, which is a good thing. While non-modular power supplies may make for a messy cabling job, especially if not all the connectors are utilized, it does mean that there is no reduced electrical contact loss at the connectors. Even so, this is not a huge issue for modular power supplies, and personally, I much prefer working with a modular one. Otherwise, external build quality of the be quiet! Pure Power 12 1000W is good. Edges are smoothed over, but scratches may still show up. Panel gaps are also kept to a minimum.
The voltage specification label is located on the outer panel of the be quiet! Pure Power 12 1000W. There are two main virtual rails. Up to 22A can be delivered via the +3.3V rail for a total of 72.6W, while the 22A on the +5V rail brings the output to 110W in this area. The total combined output for the +3.3V and +5V rail is 120W. In other words, your power allocation combination must fall within the limits of the listed specifications. Meanwhile, a single powerful +12V delivers up to 83.3A for a maximum power output of 1000W. This is different from the modular be quiet! Pure Power 12 M 1000W, which used two +12V rails. Overall, the combined power output for the be quiet! Pure Power 12 1000W is an unsurprising 1000W. It does sound a bit confusing to understand how this works at first, but this configuration allows flexible power demands and should be sufficient to accommodate most users. I have seen higher power outputs in the +3.3V and 5V rails for similar rated units, but this is the same as the Pure Power 12 M, and the overall distribution is still reasonable for a 1000W power supply.
The be quiet! Pure Power 12 1000W is 80 Plus Gold certified, which means that it is certified to be at least 87%, 90%, 87% efficient at 20%, 50%, and 100% load, respectively. Higher certifications available for power supplies of this type include 80 Plus Platinum and 80 Plus Titanium at press time.
The be quiet! Pure Power 12 1000W has a total of eight cables permanently attached to the unit. Two of these cables are wrapped in a mesh sleeve, while the others are flat cables. 16 AWG wires are found on the ATX 24-pin, PCIe 6+2 pin, and 12V-2x6 cables. Everything else is 18 AWG, which is standard.
- 1x ATX 20+4pin, 55.0cm
- 1x ATX/EPS 4+4 pin, 60.0cm
- 1x ATX/EPS 8 pin, 60.0cm
- 1x 12V-2x6 PCIe 12+4 pin, 60.0cm
- 1x PCIe 6+2 pin/6 pin, two connectors, 50.0cm to first connector, 15.0cm spacing thereafter
- 1x PCIe 6+2 pin/6 pin, 50.0cm
- 1x SATA, four connectors, 50.0cm to first connector, 15.0cm spacing thereafter
- 1x SATA/Molex, three connectors, 50.0cm to first connector, 15.0cm spacing thereafter
All these measurements are approximate, but should be accurate when measured from end to end. These cables are long enough and should be long enough for a standard mid-tower case. The spacing between the peripheral and SATA connections is also good at 15.0cm. Unfortunately, if you have a build that does not utilize the extra cables, you are stuck with them attached to the unit.
Page Index
1. Introduction, Packaging, Specifications
2. Physical Look - Outside
3. Physical Look - Inside
4. Minor Tests and Conclusion
