Page 2 - Physical Look - Outside
The GAMDIAS HELIOS P2-750G 750W looks quite generic with its exterior appearance, especially when you start looking at the details. The whole shell is covered with a matte finish that leans more towards an economical design. The top has a slatted pattern that exposes the internal fan for air to flow freely. Underneath the grille, we have a 120mm fan attached to the top with four metal screws. On the top, you can see there are four screws to hold the metal enclosure together. One of these screws is hidden behind a warranty sticker. Tampering with this sticker will void the warranty. I definitely tried to investigate the length of this warranty, but I could not find it anywhere in the user manual or on GAMDIAS' website. This is a pretty standard thing to state, so it is a bit strange GAMDIAS has omitted the information.
With a ruler, we know the GAMDIAS HELIOS P2-750G 750W measures 14cm in length, which is quite short compared to other ATX-sized power supplies. Most fixed cable power supplies are shorter than their modular counterpart, as there is no extra real estate needed for the connector board at the back. We will explore what this looks like later when we delve inside. For most mid-tower ATX chassis, this sort of length will be a non-issue. Even for smaller mATX or mITX cases, you probably will only be concerned when you are working with a media PC style of case, as even a few centimeters could affect compatibility. In the end, the result changes from case to case, so your mileage may vary.
At the back, we have a square grid pattern to allow airflow through. This ventilation area plays a crucial role in allowing heat to flow out 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 some older units. Therefore, the back only has a power switch and a standard power input. There is no silent mode with the GAMDIAS HELIOS P2-750G 750W.
As I have already mentioned, the GAMDIAS HELIOS P2-750G 750W 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. Thankfully, GAMDIAS kept all of these cables fully black, so we do not see any ketchup or mustard cables. 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. External build quality of the GAMDIAS HELIOS P2-750G 750W is average. Edges are a bit sharp on the fingers and the finish scratches off relatively easily against any other metal. On the other hand, panel gaps are kept to a minimum.
The voltage specification label for the GAMDIAS HELIOS P2-750G 750W is on the back panel. There are two main virtual rails. Up to 22A can be delivered via the +3.3V rail for a total of 72.6W. The +5V rail can deliver 22A too for an output of 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 rail delivers up to 62.5A or 750W to reduce operating overhead compared to multiple +12V rails. Overall, the combined power output for the HELIOS P2-750G is an unsurprising 750W. 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. The overall distribution is reasonable for a 750W power supply. Just to note, GAMDIAS also has HELIOS P2 units with 850W, 1000W, and 1300W output. The two higher wattage units are quite a bit different as they are fully modular.
The GAMDIAS HELIOS P2-750G 750W has badges for both 80 Plus Gold and Cybenetics Gold printed on it. However, after some digging, I was unable to find any basis of truth in these certifications. Looking through the publicly available databases from CLEAResult, the developers of 80 Plus, and Cybenetics, the HELIOS P2-750G 750W is not present in either database.
At first, we asked GAMDIAS, and they mentioned this was a rebranded High Power OEM design that had been previously certified. However, we uncovered more as we investigated further. First of all, whenever a company relabels an OEM unit, they must get re-certified before they can use either efficiency rating. For Cybenetics specifically, they will re-test and publish results for the specific model even if they have validated a differently labeled version in the past. This is because there are still potential varying elements like internal components or cable lengths, which may affect the overall efficiency. Secondly, it appears no corresponding High Power model was tested by CLEAResult or Cybenetics. If you look through CLEAResult's database, there are some 850W High Power units listed. However, the newest ones are dated 2020 at press time, which is before the introduction of the 12VHPWR connector and the ATX 3.0 standard. Therefore, we were unable to verify whether the GAMDIAS HELIOS P2-750G 750W's 80 Plus Gold certification is valid or not.
During our investigation, we reached out to the two companies for feedback. CLEAResult did not get back to us, but Aris Mpitziopoulos of Cybenetics confirmed our suspicions by stating that his team had not validated any of the HELIOS P2 units at the time of this article. Furthermore, Aris emphasized to us that all manufacturers cannot use the Cybenetics badges for a product until their testing is complete and the corresponding report is issued.
After going back to GAMDIAS with our findings, they removed all of the text and badges referring to Cybenetics from their product page. However, both badges can still be found on the power supply itself as well as their Amazon listing. Their updated marketing material on the product page says this unit is "designed to meet 80 PLUS Gold standards" rather than actually stating it has been verified. I find this statement quite misleading. All in all, any efficiency claims in the HELIOS P2 lineup are not backed by the third-party organizations it claims to be issued by.
As aforementioned, the GAMDIAS HELIOS P2-750G 750W is a non-modular power supply, and all seven cables are permanently attached to the unit. Two of these cables are wrapped in a mesh sleeve, while the other three are flat cables. All of the cable wires are 18AWG, with the exception of the 12VHPWR cable, which is 16AWG. The seven included cables are as is:
- 1x ATX 20+4pin, 50.0cm
- 1x ATX/EPS 4+4 pin, 60.0cm
- 1x 12VHPWR PCIe 12+4 pin, 50.0cm
- 1x PCIe 6+2 pin/6 pin, 50.0cm to first connector, 15.0cm spacing thereafter
- 2x SATA, 3 connectors each, 40.0cm to first connector, 15.0cm spacing thereafter
- 1x Molex, 3 connectors each, 40.0cm to first connector, 15.0cm spacing thereafter
All these measurements are approximate, but should be accurate measured from end to end. These cables are quite short and may become an issue if you have a case with a separate basement or area for the power supply. On the other hand, the spacing between the peripheral and SATA connections is good at 15.0cm. Unfortunately, if you have a build that does not utilize either of the peripheral 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
