Corsair PSUs

V

Vediovus

Gawd
Joined
Jun 19, 2008
Messages
698
Sell me on one. Looking at the 550 650 and 750, since my Earthwatts 430s got more load on it then it likes, and its starting to whine when I put a load on the cpu + gpu at the same time. System is a X3 [email protected], 8800GT, 2gb ram on a crappy ecs mobo thats getting replaced when 790GX/SB750 actually shows up.
 
with that system a Corsair HX620 would be more than enough /thread
 
The Corsair 450VX would be enough for your setup. However I highly recommend getting the 750TX for $100 from provantage.com. It's a great deal on a quality 750W PSU.
 
I've been real happy. I currently have an HX620 and have an HX1000 on order. They make real good power supplies. More or less they seem to find a design that is good, but needs some work, and fix it up to be truly great. For example the HX620 is Seasonic powersupply (M12 line I think) and is made by Seasonic. However there were a few gotchas with the Seasonic supplies, like for example a small fan that could make noise to cool a hot spot. Well Corsair decided to get rid of the small fan, and just spec higher temperature capacitors that didn't mind the heat.

They basically choose top notch providers and spec the supplies to use top notch parts. End result is the best PSU I've ever owned. The 620 is extremely quiet and provides very stable power. I am also totally sold on modular cables. Makes the case much less cluttered.

Personally I recommend sticking with their modular supplies since the cabling is so nice, but if you need more power for less dollars, the non-modular would be fine. Just go and figure out what your peak system draw is going to be, and buy a PSU that's at least twice that in terms of ratings. Corsair's fan controllers seem to be set up to not start speeding up until 50% power is exceeded, so you want less than that to maintain optimal noise level. That's actually the major reason I'm getting the 1000. A 620 would continue to work fine, even for the higher power components I'm looking at adding, but I'm looking at pushing past the mark at which the 620 is as quiet as possible.
 
Vediovus said:
Sell me on one. Looking at the 550 650 and 750, since my Earthwatts 430s got more load on it then it likes, and its starting to whine when I put a load on the cpu + gpu at the same time. System is a X3 [email protected], 8800GT, 2gb ram on a crappy ecs mobo thats getting replaced when 790GX/SB750 actually shows up.
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Your rig should be consuming <300W from the psu while running torture tests and/or gaming. Whining noises can also emit from the motherboard and video card.
 
Yeah someone else suggested I check the video card, and it turned out to be it. I assumed PSU cause I had one make a similar noise on me before, right before it died on me.
 
i love my TX750 and HX620.

also:

Jcdenton69 said:
ive had problems similar to this, i install something new into the PC and suddenly notice a high pitch squeal or whine sound coming from the PC. i thought it was the PSU at first as well, but after testing multiple PSUs from Corsair, OCZ, Enermax, Mushkin and Antec, the whine kept going, turns out it was the motherboard. happened to both an EVGA 680i and Asus M2N SLI Deluxe. it would whine whenever you stressed the system, and i also noticed it whined more often when you were using the mouse or the scroll wheel.
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leSLIe said:
with that system a Corsair HX620 would be more than enough /thread
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I just purchased my 1st Corsair psu (Corsair HX620) and it was DOA. Just to be sure, I tested it in two known/working systems before contacting Corsair for technical support/RMA.

I realize that DOA's happen from time to time & your mileage may vary.

This is my 1st ever DOA psu though, so I'm a little disappointed & wary of Corsair psu's.
 
You really should make up your own mind by checking the competent reviews of several brands in the power range you need looking at internal construction, performance, warranty and support. I did and ended up with Corsair for my machines.
 
Angus66 said:
I just purchased my 1st Corsair psu (Corsair HX620) and it was DOA. Just to be sure, I tested it in two known/working systems before contacting Corsair for technical support/RMA.

I realize that DOA's happen from time to time & your mileage may vary.

This is my 1st ever DOA psu though, so I'm a little disappointed & wary of Corsair psu's.
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There's no doubt that DOA anything is an inconvenience. However you should also be wary of Seasonic since they are the ones that built your psu. ;) Corsair has one of the best warranties in the business, and they will typically go above and beyond if needed. In case you are still wary just search this forum for countless threads praising Corsair.
 
device manager said:
There's no doubt that DOA anything is an inconvenience. However you should also be wary of Seasonic since they are the ones that built your psu. ;) Corsair has one of the best warranties in the business, and they will typically go above and beyond if needed. In case you are still wary just search this forum for countless threads praising Corsair.
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Hopefully everything will go smoothly with Corsair Tech support, RMA & the replacement 620HX.

I did a TON of research & read a lot of reviews (including the [H] one obviously ;) ) before buying the 620HX, and I still have faith that Corsair will stand behind their product.
 
Angus66 said:
I just purchased my 1st Corsair psu (Corsair HX620) and it was DOA. Just to be sure, I tested it in two known/working systems before contacting Corsair for technical support/RMA.

I realize that DOA's happen from time to time & your mileage may vary.

This is my 1st ever DOA psu though, so I'm a little disappointed & wary of Corsair psu's.
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I've read other reports about Corsair PSU DOAs. I'm wondering if they are cost reducing their products. I remember the HX620W from a couple of years ago was considered an excellent product.
 
msabo said:
I've read other reports about Corsair PSU DOAs. I'm wondering if they are cost reducing their products. I remember the HX620W from a couple of years ago was considered an excellent product.
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Costing down a unit typically doesn't result in increased DOA's. Increased DOA's typically come from more units being shipped as the DOA and defect rate is fairly low and rarely fluctuates on a mature product. As such greater volume shows more DOA's as the total number of units is greater thus that small percentage of units results in more total units. ;)
 
Paul_Johnson said:
Costing down a unit typically doesn't result in increased DOA's. Increased DOA's typically come from more units being shipped as the DOA and defect rate is fairly low and rarely fluctuates on a mature product. As such greater volume shows more DOA's as the total number of units is greater thus that small percentage of units results in more total units. ;)
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I concur that the number of DOAs will statistically increase as unit volumes increase, all things being equal. However, cost reducing can absolutely result in a higher probably of DOA. Use of less expensive and perhaps inferior discrete parts, less QA, even changes in packaging are just a few examples which can directly result in increased probability of a DOA.
 
msabo said:
However, cost reducing can absolutely result in high probably of DOA. Use of less expensive and perhaps inferior discrete parts, less QA, even changes in packaging are just a few examples which can directly result in increased probability of a DOA.
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Of your examples on 2 of 3 normally could result in higher DOA. Those are packaging, and QC. The packaging hasn't changed so that is out which leaves QC. I doubt the QC has suffered given that Seasonic has been producing the same lines for a long period of time with few issues and Corsair does QC stateside as well. DOA means Dead on Arrival, before the unit is used. "Inferior components" (which no one has shown so far) typically does not show up causing DOA's since the unit has not been powered on to have time to fail (now if you were claiming they were failing as soon or after you turn them on it becomes a possibility). Now manufacturing process changes or adhesive (and such) changes can reuslt in higher DOA's but adhesive and such is typically not considered a discrete part.
 
Paul_Johnson said:
Of your examples on 2 of 3 normally could result in higher DOA. Those are packaging, and QC. The packaging hasn't changed so that is out which leaves QC. I doubt the QC has suffered given that Seasonic has been producing the same lines for a long period of time with few issues and Corsair does QC stateside as well. DOA means Dead on Arrival, before the unit is used. "Inferior components" (which no one has shown so far) typically does not show up causing DOA's since the unit has not been powered on to have time to fail (now if you were claiming they were failing as soon or after you turn them on it becomes a possibility). Now manufacturing process changes or adhesive (and such) changes can reuslt in higher DOA's but adhesive and such is typically not considered a discrete part.
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Sounds as though we now agree that cost reduction can in fact result in higher DOA. ;)
 
msabo said:
Sounds as though we now agree that cost reduction can in fact result in higher DOA. ;)
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Most importantly - there has been no cost reduction on the HX series. I only wish there were. With fuel prices and the US dollar being so weak, we actually pay more for them now than we did 2 years ago when we launched them.

Last quarter we did have record units shipped, though. We sold a lot more PSUs in April, May, and June of this year than we did in the same 3 months last year.

With thousands and thousands of units per months shipping, even if we had as high as 1% DOA, it'd show up all over forums and we'd have a warehouse full of dead PSUs pretty quickly. Our return rate on PSUs is extremely low.
 
Paul_Johnson said:
No absolutely not for the reason you implied as being the main culprit...as I explained.
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First, I never suggested a “main culprit”. I simply listed a few areas, off the top of my head, where cost reduction can lead to higher DOAs to refute your comment that they aren’t related. They absolutely are related. Also, I never said those areas I mentioned were comprehensive, which by the way there not.

Second, you seem to think DOA means only “Dead On Arrival” when it also means “Defective On Arrival”. Although I’ll give you Dead is the worst form of Defective. :) So inferior parts may in fact lead to defects and thus increased RMA.

Third, my comments here are generic to the electronic industry (which I have 30 years experience in), not specific to Corsair PSUs. I don’t work for Corsair or their ODM, I don’t know if they have been doing any cost reduction or not.
 
Redbeard said:
Most importantly - there has been no cost reduction on the HX series. I only wish there were. With fuel prices and the US dollar being so weak, we actually pay more for them now than we did 2 years ago when we launched them.
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Actually in this case I'm thinking of your ODM reducing their per unit costs -- BOM costs, mfg costs, etc. Not specifically their price to you. Although they are typically related.
 
msabo said:
First, I never suggested a “main culprit”. I simply listed a few areas, off the top of my head, where cost reduction can lead to higher DOAs to refute your comment that they aren’t related. They absolutely are related. Also, I never said those areas I mentioned were comprehensive, which by the way there not.

Second, you seem to think DOA means only “Dead On Arrival” when it also means “Defective On Arrival”. Although I’ll give you Dead is the worst form of Defective. :) So inferior parts may in fact lead to defects and thus increased RMA.

Third, my comments here are generic to the electronic industry (which I have 30 years experience in), not specific to Corsair PSUs. I don’t work for Corsair or their ODM, I don’t know if they have been doing any cost reduction or not.
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If you have worked in the electronics industry for 30 years than you know exactly what costing down a unit refers too and the rest of your comments are superfluous attempts to confuse the issue that you were accusing them of substituting important components and not changing packaging.

The bottom line is DOA units have not been used for a component to fail because they have been cost down to an inferior part as you have implied. Further, a Corsair representative has responded to your claims and indicated that you are incorrect in your supposition.
 
Paul_Johnson said:
If you have worked in the electronics industry for 30 years than you know exactly what costing down a unit refers too and the rest of your comments are superfluous attempts to confuse the issue that you were accusing them of substituting important components and not changing packaging.
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I never accused Corsair of doing any such thing. That is an unfair statement Paul and I take offence at that accusation. Please, go back and read what I wrote.

To Corsair – if you found, in any way, what I wrote disparaging, then I apologize to you. I was trying to explain a simple concept to Paul, which I meant to be generic and not at all specific to Corsair products. Looking back, I should have taken the conversation to a separate thread so the concepts could not have be conflated.

Further, a Corsair representative has responded to your claims and indicated that you are incorrect in your supposition.
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He did and what claims Paul? Do you not understand that he replied that Corsair are not getting any cost reduction from their ODM. He did not mention if ODM had cost reduced the product being manufactured. Which by the way, I’m not saying the ODM did cost reduce, because I have not way of knowing. Also, I’m not saying cost reduction is always a bad thing. I’ve seen numerous cases where BOM cost reduction resulted lower MTBF, because a better design resulted in fewer components to fail. But, I’ve also seen cases where cost reduction activities resulted in escapes, DOAs, and lines down.
 
msabo said:
I never accused Corsair of doing any such thing. That is an unfair statement Paul and I take offence at that accusation. Please, go back and read what I wrote.

To Corsair – if you found, in any way, what I wrote disparaging, then I apologize to you. I was trying to explain a simple concept to Paul, which I meant to be generic and not at all specific to Corsair products. Looking back, I should have taken the conversation to a separate thread so the concepts could not have be conflated.



He did and what claims Paul? Do you not understand that he replied that Corsair are not getting any cost reduction from their ODM. He did not mention if ODM had cost reduced the product being manufactured. Which by the way, I’m not saying the ODM did cost reduce, because I have not way of knowing. Also, I’m not saying cost reduction is always a bad thing. I’ve seen numerous cases where BOM cost reduction resulted lower MTBF, because a better design resulted in fewer components to fail. But, I’ve also seen cases where cost reduction activities resulted in escapes, DOAs, and lines down.
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So you are now asserting that you did not mean cost down in the context which it is commonly used?
 
Actually I think defective is worse than dead. A defective PSU can take other parts with it, a dead one just won't work. ;)

Back on topic. My current PSU is working just fine for the moment but I may need to upgrade it when I do my next GPU upgrade. When I do, a modular Corsair is at or near the top of my list.
 
RamonGTP said:
Actually I think defective is worse than dead. A defective PSU can take other parts with it, a dead one just won't work. ;)
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LOL, that's very true. Many years ago I had a Compaq desktop and the PSU was acting up. I called customer support to see if I need to RMA it. When I explained the problem, I can remember the tech shouting, "pull the plug! pull the plug!".
 
Angus66 said:
Hopefully everything will go smoothly with Corsair Tech support, RMA & the replacement 620HX.

I did a TON of research & read a lot of reviews (including the [H] one obviously ;) ) before buying the 620HX, and I still have faith that Corsair will stand behind their product.
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Just to follow-up on my above post, Corsair did contact me promptly after I notified them of the problem & they issued an RMA right away for my dead 620HX.

I'll be shipping it out today (unfortunately they are in CA and I'm shipping from PA :( ) & I will post back how quickly I receive another unit.
 
RamonGTP said:
Actually I think defective is worse than dead. A defective PSU can take other parts with it, a dead one just won't work. ;)

Back on topic. My current PSU is working just fine for the moment but I may need to upgrade it when I do my next GPU upgrade. When I do, a modular Corsair is at or near the top of my list.
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yeah that 1KW PSU is looking pretty wickedk 1000W of clean modular power...

too bad I totally dont need it, nor do I have a dollar to put toward it.

I'm betting a single 750W is enough to drive even 2 HD4870X2's...

anyways, to actually put something towards the OPs topic: I think people buy PSU's a little too often, that 400W unit will take you pretty far, and as I said above, a 750W will take you to the very end of the PC domain (and an 850W will take you into the Nvidia quattro super-computer domain).
 
I was on the fence between Corsair, Enermax, and SeaSonic for a while. I ended up going with a Corsair 450VX, because I was impressed by the level of care that Corsair puts into their products, and their reputation for excellent customer support. It's better to spend a few more dollars on a product with excellent support than one without, because when something goes wrong you definitely don't want to be the one holding the short end of the stick.
 
monkeybiziu said:
I was on the fence between Corsair, Enermax, and SeaSonic for a while. I ended up going with a Corsair 450VX, because I was impressed by the level of care that Corsair puts into their products, and their reputation for excellent customer support. It's better to spend a few more dollars on a product with excellent support than one without, because when something goes wrong you definitely don't want to be the one holding the short end of the stick.
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Those are the exact three brands I'll be considering when the time comes. Thus far I've only used Enermax in my personal builds and have always been very happy with them. Part of me wants to stick with what I know works but other part is itching to try something new.
 
While I know the OP doesn't need an HX1000 I couldn't be happier with mine. When I set to building my new PC I knew what I wanted hardware wise except for a PSU. So I researched away because I knew my HD4870's would suck power and I wanted to ensure I had headroom for future upgrading if needed. At the very least the HX1000 will just move into the next PC saving me a little bit of money. ;)

I looked at Thermaltake, Enermax, and Corsair when researching. I love the Thermaltake Toughpower series (my 750 TT in my old PC was rock solid) but their higher end PSUs just cost too friggin much. After rebate my HX1000 cost me nearly $100 less then the 1000watt TT toughpower PSU.

And many thanks to the [H] and their kick ass PSU reviews. The one about the HX1000 definitely helped me make my final decision.

-V
 
monkeybiziu said:
I was on the fence between Corsair, Enermax, and SeaSonic for a while. I ended up going with a Corsair 450VX, because I was impressed by the level of care that Corsair puts into their products, and their reputation for excellent customer support. It's better to spend a few more dollars on a product with excellent support than one without, because when something goes wrong you definitely don't want to be the one holding the short end of the stick.
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RamonGTP said:
Those are the exact three brands I'll be considering when the time comes. Thus far I've only used Enermax in my personal builds and have always been very happy with them. Part of me wants to stick with what I know works but other part is itching to try something new.
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the ironic thing is that all three companies ship Seasonic units. Corsair does have a handful of CWT units too (HX 1000W, 750W, and 450W), but mostly seasonic units. Seasonic has yet to sign with someone to produce an ugly power supply...
 
MrWizard6600 said:
the ironic thing is that all three companies ship Seasonic units. Corsair does have a handful of CWT units too (HX 1000W, 750W, and 450W),
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Close, the 450 is seasonic. The 550, 750, and 1000 are CWT. But there's no significant difference in quality or performance between the units we ship regardless of manufacturer. We have pretty tight Quality Control on our end and hold them to a higher (and more expensive) standard on theirs, and we also spec individual components like capacitors and fans.
 
I think the modular HX series is Seasonic, don't know about the other ones.
The VX450 is often enough for small systems like mine, but I recommend getting the HX520, since it is the 'smallest' one with modular cables.
 
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