Silverstone st45sf

Patyrn

Weaksauce
Joined
Nov 11, 2010
Messages
109
The old thread was deleted, so I decided to make a new one to document my ongoing quest to find a working one.

I just plugged in my third st45sf and this one is a bit better than the previous two. It pops\clicks only if I run p95 and 3dmark simultaneously. 3dmark or p95 alone aren't sufficient to bring about the problem.

The system I'm running it on is:

evga GTX560 ti superclocked - 170 tdp
intel i7 920 - 130 tdp

I'm trying to decide if I should just keep this one and cross my fingers that with the lower power consumption of the i5 2500k I will avoid the clicking in real-world situations?

What have your experiences been? Where and when did you buy yours? What's the TDP of your components?
 
I like where you're going with this thread. 3 out of 3 PSU's have issues. I also have this PSU however my system is not powerful enough to exceed 300 watts. Though I do plan to build a more powerful PC soon that should definitely exceed 300w. You should make a video of your problem if possible. Everyone who has this problem should try to document their PSU clicking on video.
 
Patyrn, since I am in Taiwan and our tech support here hasn't had any returned ST45SF to check for months. Can you please PM me or send me an e-mail ([email protected]) with your name and address so I can double check with either our branch offices to see if we can have the PSUs you returned sent back to us for testing?

Also, what motherboard and rest of components are you using? As far as I know, there are no LGA1366 Mini-ITX board available so I am a bit surprised you are using Core i7 920 as your CPU (actually one of our testing kits for the ST45SF during development has a Core i7 920 as well, but that was on a Micro-ATX board). And how close do you have to be to the PSU to hear the noise?
 
Patyrn, since I am in Taiwan and our tech support here hasn't had any returned ST45SF to check for months. Can you please PM me or send me an e-mail ([email protected]) with your name and address so I can double check with either our branch offices to see if we can have the PSUs you returned sent back to us for testing?

Also, what motherboard and rest of components are you using? As far as I know, there are no LGA1366 Mini-ITX board available so I am a bit surprised you are using Core i7 920 as your CPU (actually one of our testing kits for the ST45SF during development has a Core i7 920 as well, but that was on a Micro-ATX board). And how close do you have to be to the PSU to hear the noise?

Well, the ST45SF comes with an ATX12V bracket to allow it to fit in normal cases, iirc.
 
Patyrn, since I am in Taiwan and our tech support here hasn't had any returned ST45SF to check for months. Can you please PM me or send me an e-mail ([email protected]) with your name and address so I can double check with either our branch offices to see if we can have the PSUs you returned sent back to us for testing?

NP, sent.

Also, what motherboard and rest of components are you using? As far as I know, there are no LGA1366 Mini-ITX board available so I am a bit surprised you are using Core i7 920 as your CPU (actually one of our testing kits for the ST45SF during development has a Core i7 920 as well, but that was on a Micro-ATX board). And how close do you have to be to the PSU to hear the noise?

My mobo is a Asus Rampage II Gene X58. The computer I'm building is what I'm buying the PSU for. I've just been plugging it into my current computer to test it while I get all the parts together for my new one.

The only things I have plugged in during the test is the above mobo, the i7 920, an evga gtx 560ti superclocked, one 256G Samsung SSD, and one 120mm CPU fan.

I can hear the noise with it sitting maybe 3 feet from my ears laying on my desk (I simply open up my case and replace my case's psu connections with the st45sf's. When it happens the fan is silent enough that I can't hear it over the rest of my system, but the snapping sound I can still hear. I tried to get a recording on my phone of the noise, but the mic really doesn't pick it up very well over the airflow and fan noise. Actually the best description I can give for the noise is the sound it makes when you shock yourself on a doorknob.
 
Anyone got one of these lying around? I'll give it a proper test: i7-875k, h55itx-a-e w/ onboard ssd, unlocked 6950.
 
Another update on this drama.

My local store got 2 more in stock so I went and exchanged twice more and had the same problem twice more. This is #5 in a row so far that's defective. My next step is going to be to ask them to order a new one rather than transfer it in from one of their other locations, in case they happened to get a whole batch of bad ones and distributed them around their stores.
 
That's an interesting issue. I've built nearly a dozen systems with that PSU with GTX 460s and i7-860s without any issues at all under load.
 
That's an interesting issue. I've built nearly a dozen systems with that PSU with GTX 460s and i7-860s without any issues at all under load.

Was this under benching load or regular gaming load? Looking here http://www.guru3d.com/article/geforce-gtx-460-review/13 it seems unlikely that you're actually pulling more than 300 watts, since your processor is 35 less TDP than the one in that review.

Do you live in the US? When/where were these bought?
 
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That's an interesting issue. I've built nearly a dozen systems with that PSU with GTX 460s and i7-860s without any issues at all under load.

My TwinFrozerII OC GTX460 and X3440 (~~~ i7 860S) didn't have an issue with the 300W PSU...
 
Was this under benching load or regular gaming load? Looking here http://www.guru3d.com/article/geforce-gtx-460-review/13 it seems unlikely that you're actually pulling more than 300 watts, since your processor is 35 less TDP than the one in that review.

Do you live in the US? When/where were these bought?

I am in the US. I do stress testing with Prime95 and Furmark. I don't think I checked the kill-a-watt to see what it was drawing though. The PSUs came with the 450W version of the SG05 and came directly from Silverstone.
 
I could probably bench one with a higher wattage config to see if I can replicate the problem, but I don't think I would be able to get to that until next week.
 
Please do it. Most of us are interested in i7 2600k + GTX560ti (factory overclocked preferrably since it has slightly higher power consumption).
I think those are the most power hungry components you could fit in SG05.
 
I could probably bench one with a higher wattage config to see if I can replicate the problem, but I don't think I would be able to get to that until next week.

That would be awesome. I am not sure that I have seen someone with a config that's definitely pulling down 300+ watts who has ever said they've got no problems, other than the reviews where they really hammer them and don't mention any weird noises.

I got the guy at my store to order a totally fresh PSU just in case they simply got a bad batch. He did say they order their stuff to one location then distribute it, so it is entirely possible.
 
That would be awesome. I am not sure that I have seen someone with a config that's definitely pulling down 300+ watts who has ever said they've got no problems, other than the reviews where they really hammer them and don't mention any weird noises.

me neither and i dont care. its not like if someone find a cherry-pick golden one that work like it suposed to thats gonna magically solve all the problems of the other ones available. :rolleyes:
 
Thanks, Jen -- sent you a PM.

I'm going to stomp on this thing :) At least I'll have plenty of data to send to Silverstone for "reference" :D
 
Another update on this drama.

My local store got 2 more in stock so I went and exchanged twice more and had the same problem twice more. This is #5 in a row so far that's defective. My next step is going to be to ask them to order a new one rather than transfer it in from one of their other locations, in case they happened to get a whole batch of bad ones and distributed them around their stores.

Patyrn, I think at this point you should stop trying until we can test the same combination of products that you used. We are probably looking at some sort of compatibility issue here in which the noise you hear will always be there no matter how many ST45SF you tried.
 
Patyrn, I think at this point you should stop trying until we can test the same combination of products that you used. We are probably looking at some sort of compatibility issue here in which the noise you hear will always be there no matter how many ST45SF you tried.

compatibility issue? is actually very simple, let me try to explain it to you:

with all the different hardware tried by different people in different countries, the result is all the same: this PSU cant handle nowhere near the advertised 450w. pronto. thats it. to put it more bluntly: it doesnt work. no "compatibility issue" amigo, like this PSU, nowhere near. understand?
 
compatibility issue? is actually very simple, let me try to explain it to you:

with all the different hardware tried by different people in different countries, the result is all the same: this PSU cant handle nowhere near the advertised 450w. pronto. thats it. to put it more bluntly: it doesnt work. no "compatibility issue" amigo, like this PSU, nowhere near. understand?

lol. It could be the PSU is one of the rare designs that kill-a-watts are really bad at reading (rare, but they exist), but that wouldn't explain why JonnyGuru (well, Oklahoma Wolf :p) didn't notice any problems in his sample :(
 
I write from Italy, I bought 2 just became available, 1 has not been tried yet.
The one I use is with i5-2400 and HD5850, confirm the faint noise when running 3D Mark06.

Edit
reflection: with i7-2600K + hd 5850 under stress more than once I had blocked image and BSOD, I thought I had problem with temperatures but never exceeded 80°C, I begin to have doubts on the power supply. When I have time I will be studied more carefully.
 
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compatibility issue? is actually very simple, let me try to explain it to you:

with all the different hardware tried by different people in different countries, the result is all the same: this PSU cant handle nowhere near the advertised 450w. pronto. thats it. to put it more bluntly: it doesnt work. no "compatibility issue" amigo, like this PSU, nowhere near. understand?

Please don't post in this thread if you can't keep it civil. I'm pretty sure you were a big part of the reason the last one was deleted.

I write from Italy, I bought 2 just became available, 1 has not been tried yet.
The one I use is with i5-2400 and HD5850, confirm the faint noise when running 3D Mark06.

Interesting. That's finally some evidence that it's not something to do with wall voltage. Your hardware is also totally different from mine.

Patyrn, I think at this point you should stop trying until we can test the same combination of products that you used. We are probably looking at some sort of compatibility issue here in which the noise you hear will always be there no matter how many ST45SF you tried.

Yeah this one will be the last, then I'll just keep the one which did it the least and cross my fingers that my lower power consumption i5 in my new system avoids the issue during normal operation. We'll know for sure if it's some odd compatibility quirk once the zotac z68 mitx board comes out, because that's all I'm waiting for on my new build.

I wish you'd mail me one you've confirmed can handle 450 watts without making noise and then if it *does* make noise for me still you'll know for a fact it's some odd compatibility thing.
 
I have this power supply with an overclocked 1055t and a gtx470 with absolutely no issues so far. Although the first psu was doa this one has been fine with no chirping whining or clicking. Then again I'm not running Furmark and p95 at the same time which is stupid in my humble opinion. I just play video games and encode video and do what I'd normally do.
 
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I have this power supply with an overclocked 1055t and a gtx470 with absolutely no issues so far. Although the first psu was doa this one has been fine with no chirping whining or clicking. Then again I'm not running Furmark and p95 at the same time which is fucken stupid in my humble opinion. I just play video games and encode video and do what I'd normally do.

I agree running both is pretty stupid\pointless. The only reason I'm doing it is to push my system wattage up as high as it will go to test for this issue. I want to make sure my system can handle it if I got a bigger vid card or an overclocked processor that will consume over 300w without pushing it with artificial benchmarks.

You should try running both and report back, the info would be enlightening.
 
I would but everything is running so good I'm afraid I'll mess something up. My cpu oc is stable and my video card is stock so I'm just going to enjoy my computer and not worry about the power supply unless something happens.

I won't run Furmark under any circumstance, it's puts an ungodly strain on the video card. Last time I used Furmark my 4830 reched 100 degrees within minutes. It never got close to those temps while gaming so I haven't used it since. If I do have any problems down the road I will let you guys know though. Hopefully you'll get things straightend out Good luck.
 
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having available an hour, I put on the test-bench a gigabyte with 2600K, 4gb ddr3 and an old HD2900XT, opened the second st45sf and run P95 + Furmark. I do not get more than 325w of consumption, for now this second psu do not make any noise.
Regards
 
having available an hour, I put on the test-bench a gigabyte with 2600K, 4gb ddr3 and an old HD2900XT, opened the second st45sf and run P95 + Furmark. I do not get more than 325w of consumption, for now this second psu do not make any noise.
Regards

Sounds like you might have a keeper. You should juice it up with an oc on your CPU to be sure.
 
I want to buy the SG05-450.. but living in Iceland, I need to get it either from the UK or the US, which means I'll have an absolute bastard of a time trying to claim any kind of warranty, and I'd hate to have a PSU that stutters under pressure and whines, seeing as it'll host an HTPC that will double as a lan rig.. ;/

Should I just ditch my dreams of the SG05 and go for a different mitx case?
 
Why dont you just buy the 'old' SG05 with the 300W PSU ? Its more than plenty for most setups anyway. If you use an HD6870 or even a GTX560ti, you shouldnt have any problems with the 300W psu. Couple that with an i5 CPU (HT from i7 not working in games anyway) and you're good to go.
You can be quite sure that PSU will do its job just fine.
 
Whilst the HD6870 should be okay, the GTX560Ti seems to go slightly over 300W:

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/GPU11/229

For the GTX470/570 you should really be looking to get the ST45SF. Then again I don't know how happy the 300W model is with going slightly over it's rated usage.

Having said that, that's with an i7 so you can probably knock some watts off for i5/i3.
 
They got one of the psus that I rma'd and were able to duplicate the problem in one test rig. So it seems to be a mobo compatibility issue. They are investing causes/solutions right now.
 
They got one of the psus that I rma'd and were able to duplicate the problem in one test rig. So it seems to be a mobo compatibility issue. They are investing causes/solutions right now.

Interesting. Thanks for that update.
 
They got one of the psus that I rma'd and were able to duplicate the problem in one test rig. So it seems to be a mobo compatibility issue. They are investing causes/solutions right now.

Finally some progress...although I'm not to sure I understand how there can be a motherboard compatibilty issue as I thought the ATX power standards are standards.
 
My system is still running without issue with an oc'd Thuban and a GTX 470. I think it's a decent psu considering the fact that I'd never run this setup with anything less than a good 500w power supply if I had a choice of power supplies
 
If you hear anymore let us know. I'm curious about this incompatibility problem myself.
 
I find it a little strange that we dont see any new SFX psu's. SFX market is growing fast. I want a 500w gold or even platinium from seasonic. with a smart fan, modular short cables :D
 
I find it a little strange that we dont see any new SFX psu's. SFX market is growing fast. I want a 500w gold or even platinium from seasonic. with a smart fan, modular short cables :D

i want one of those as well

Jen
 
I find it a little strange that we dont see any new SFX psu's. SFX market is growing fast. I want a 500w gold or even platinium from seasonic. with a smart fan, modular short cables :D

Ill quote to that.
Wish I had the balls to shorten some of the cables on my st45sf.
 
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