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 minimal load on the power supply, initial consumption was rated at 13W as measured by our wall meter, which is somewhat high compared to other power supplies we have reported on. For your reference, the Cooler Master V750 750W had an initial consumption of 8W. Independent reviews from websites with professional load testing equipment showed the FSP Hydro G 850W delivered good efficiency and above average voltage regulation and ripple depending on the rail. This is an 80 Plus Gold certified power supply unit.
Voltages with minimal load are mostly accurate, with the exception of the 12V line. While all of the other lines were within 4%, the 12V line varied by 1.1V, which signifies a variance of 9.2%. This may not seem like a whole lot, but this is quite a bit, and it makes me question the reliability of the 12V line. Even so, as we do not have adequate equipment to test the whole power supply itself, I will refrain from making too much of a commotion. The PG (power good) delay is decent, and is within its rated range and general power supply standard of 370ms.
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 these components all measure power, they are not the same as each other. 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. Under nominal loads, the power factor value of the FSP Hydro G 850W stayed between 0.97 and 0.98, indicating that the active PFC function is working well.
The FSP Hydro G 850W is a relatively quiet power supply during normal operation. Where 0 is silent and 10 is the loudest, I would rate the Hydro G 850W at 3.0/10 acoustically under nominal loads. As previously mentioned, this is also a semi-passive power supply, as the fan's profile only ramps up when there is more load. One thing I should note, due to the aggressive fan profile, and the fact many of the components use the power supply's chassis as a heatsink, the power supply may feel a tad warm in regular operation. This is regular behavior, and the thermal heat pad underneath is doing its job in dissipating heat around the shell of the Hydro G 850W.
FSP provided this product to APH Networks for the purpose of evaluation.
FSP's Hydro G 850W is a good power supply, manufactured and branded by themselves. According to our affiliates, this 850W unit provided good quality voltage regulation, although it was not the case with my particular unit. Otherwise, ripple control and standby efficiency are also rated as top notch. Combine this with a great build quality overall, and FSP has done a decent job. Cables included with the Hydro G 850W are also adequate in length and flexibility. It is also nice to see FSP providing a bit of customization with their side decals, but this solution may be hit or miss for some users. Even so, with a retail pricing of $115 USD at press time and backed by a five year warranty, the FSP Hydro G 850W is a great choice for a fully-modular solution.
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Page Index
1. Introduction, Packaging, Specifications
2. Physical Look - Outside
3. Physical Look - Inside
4. Minor Tests and Conclusion
