Page 2 - Physical Look - Outside
The design of the SilverStone Strider Plus ST75F-P 750W isn't particularly groundbreaking or exciting, but it is still pretty nice to look at aesthetically. Using the de-facto black matte finish, which has become almost a standard for most mid-range to high-end power supplies, it looks sophisticated yet clean enough so as not to be over the top. Meanwhile, the back of the power supply features the standard honeycomb meshing across the entire surface, save for the chassis mounting holes. Of course, the male AC line in connector is also found at the back of the power supply. As with most modern power supplies, it features automatic full range (100V-240V) AC line voltage selection for multiple countries with different voltages -- that means you won't find a voltage selection switch here. The only thing that is missing from what experienced users are used to find at the back of the power supply is the power switch; which has been surprisingly omitted from this PSU. It seems to be inconvenient at times to go without one, but realistically, not many people use it regularly anyway.
The SilverStone Strider Plus features a 135mm fan, similar to that of the Cooler Master Silent Pro M 1000W we have recently examined. A standard 8-ring fan grille is used to keep out big objects from interfering with the fan, be it the ever wandering hand, or loose internal components of any build. Like most power supply fan grilles, it is removable without disassembling the unit by using four screws located at the corners; four other screws that are found at the edge of the power supply are used to crack the entire thing open. Just a word of warning, there is a warranty seal on one of the power supply enclosure screws, and if is tampered with, then the warranty will be automatically voided.
In terms of size, the SilverStone Strider Plus ST75F-P 750W comes in at 150 mm(W) x 86 mm(H) x 160 mm(D). This is quite acceptable for a high performance, high wattage type power supply. It is very similar in dimensions to the aforementioned Cooler Master Silent Pro M 1000W, which is slightly deeper at 165mm. The added size allows for the bigger sized fan, as well as ability to accommodate more components with more clearance room. This translates to better cooling without compromising build quality or noise emissions. Interestingly enough, all power supplies under SilverStone's Strider Plus series come in at the same size. This means that the 750W, 850W and 1000W carry the same measurements -- it saves redundant development and manufacturing costs by utilizing as many overlapping components as possible. It is good to know that all three configurations, up to 1000W, are attainable at this size.
The SilverStone logo, as well as the word 'SilverStone', is molded onto the top of the power supply. Nothing else can be found on the top of the power supply other than the SilverStone branding as mentioned, and the four small holes near the corners most likely used for mounting the internal PCB. As aforementioned, SilverStone's Strider Plus ST75F-P 750W uses a black matte finish giving it that certain je ne sais quoi. The overall design is aesthetically pleasing, and the power supply feels solid. There is certainly no lack of build quality in this regard, as the corners are cut cleanly, and the metal is not prone to bending.
One thing that really helps the SilverStone Strider Plus ST75F-P 750W stand out from its competitors has to be its 100% fully modular cable design. Electrical engineers and enthusiasts alike would point out that this makes the modular power supply increase contact power loss, as all these connectors contribute to a certain degree of energy loss -- this is due to an extra set of connectors between the power source and destination. For this reason, most modular power supplies try to strike a balance here by having cables that are always connected fixed to the power supply, such as the 24-pin ATX and EPS 8-pin connectors. After all, these cables are always connected in practical use anyway; making them modular is not necessary and would only lower efficiency and raise production costs. The only situation when fully modular cables become beneficial is, when the user removes the power supply from their case for maintenance or replacement, there is no need to modify the cabling.
Located on the left side of the SilverStone Strider Plus ST75F-P 750W is the standard power output/rail configuration information label. The standard warning labels and various certifications can be found here as well. Additional wattage information can be found on the left side of the retail box. The +3.3V and +5V rail has a combined output wattage of 150W, while separately, they can theoretically get up to 66W and 125W respectively, while not going over the combined output of 150W as mentioned. The above calculations were done using the P=IV formula. The +12V rail has a maximum sustained current of 60A; peaks at 66A, and has a maximum sustained wattage of 720W. Notice how SilverStone uses a single +12V rail design, unlike Seasonic's S12D 850W, which uses two virtual rails. This reduces power delivery overhead on that rail. The -12V rail is rated at 0.3A, and holds 3.6W. Finally, the +5VSB is rated at 3.5A and 17.5W. Of course, all of this combined cannot be higher than the maximum combined wattage of 750W. Overall, the numbers are quite impressive and well designed for a 750W power supply.
The following modular cables listed by the quantity of total connectors are included out of the box:
- 1x ATX 20+4-pin
- 1x EPS 8-pin
- 2x ATX 4+4-pin (2 cables)
- 2x PCIe 6-pin (2 cables)
- 2x PCIe 6+2-pin (2 cables)
- 6x Molex (2 cables)
- 2x FDD 4-pin (End of one of the Molex cables)
- 6x SATA (3 cables)
As stated earlier, all the cables are modular, and come in separate bundles inside the box. There is no cable that isn't sleeved; all of them seem to be of good quality to make the cabling process even easier, as well as making the final product more aesthetically pleasing. All of the included cables are of adequate length, so that even the size of large full tower cases such as the Thermaltake Spedo proves to be no issue. SilverStone also offers short cable kits if you have a small form factor chassis. All the modular cables are designed so they can only be inserted one way in order to prevent confusion with other cables, or simply plugging them in wrong. All in all, these cables are designed very well.
Page Index
1. Introduction, Packaging, Specifications
2. Physical Look - Outside
3. Physical Look - Inside
4. Minor Tests and Conclusion
