Officially disappointed with Corsair PSU's

I just got one of these.. I hope I didn't get a bum one.. Although if it is, it's most likely because it looks like somebody at Newegg dropped it 20 feet before packing it, from the rather crushed look one corner had.. But the foam surrounding the power supply itself seemed to have taken the force of it.

One thing about this power supply that struck me as I was installing it though is that the modular wires are really, really long. I'm installing it into a large full tower, and the SATA power cables can hang out of the bottom.. And I had to put my hard drives as far apart as possible so the wire between them wouldn't bulge out and block the freakin' side panel. :eek:
 
Blue Falcon said:
So let me get this straight.... you installed your PSU in an Antec Three Hundred with the fan facing DOWN?

This would in effect almost completely cut off airflow to the PSU as the fan would be unable to pull in air and exhaust it through the rear grill, thereby cooling the internal components when operating.

I'm not surprised it popped, although you'd think these units would have a thermal cutoff to prevent such violent death.

When mounting a PSU with a fan on the 'bottom' of the unit in one of these cases where the PSU is installed at the bottom, you usually have to mount it upside down (the fan will be on top, the labels on the PSU will be upside down).
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Just as an FYI, the psu CAN be mounted with the fan facing down.

RAM GUY said:
As long as the PSU does not sit flush on the bottom of the case, and there is room for air to pass under it, then you should be able to install it with the fan facing down.
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I feel your pain. My Enermax Liberty blew up in the same way when it was only a few inches from my head. It tripped my UPS, I reset the UPS and the PSU exploded, either a huge spark or flames and sent my hurteling backwards.

Got an RMAed unit that had problems turning the PC on and off (had to keep pressing the power switch until it would finaly activate) Some kind of switch bounce issue. The 3rd PSU is working fine though so far. I bought modular, and I was happy to be able to just unplug the PSU and RMA get the new one and plug it in without messing with all the cables.

N/M that advantage of modular....
Enermax decided to fill in one of the pins on the connectors on the new model so the old cables would not plug in withotu cutting that pin housing off, so I had to replace all the cables anyways :(
 
xdivenx said:
Corsair Rep in 3, 2, 1.......
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A little late :D

Redbeard said:
Angus66, your failure sounds pretty odd. I've literally used hundreds of our PSUs and rarely do I come across a DOA or a failure, specifically under that low a load.

This is far from normal, and while I can understand your displeasure and suspicions, please let me know if there's anything I can do for you during the RMA process.

Please feel free to PM me with your contact information and anything you hear back, or if you'd prefer you can email me: [email protected]

I'm the only guy who gets that email, so if you send me your contact info and everything I'll see what I can do to make this right for you.
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They will take care of you. My CS experiences with Corsair have been nothing short of stellar. Sounds like you just had shitty luck.
 
Justintoxicated said:
I feel your pain. My Enermax Liberty blew up in the same way when it was only a few inches from my head. It tripped my UPS, I reset the UPS and the PSU exploded, either a huge spark or flames and sent my hurteling backwards.

Got an RMAed unit that had problems turning the PC on and off (had to keep pressing the power switch until it would finaly activate) Some kind of switch bounce issue. The 3rd PSU is working fine though so far. I bought modular, and I was happy to be able to just unplug the PSU and RMA get the new one and plug it in without messing with all the cables.

N/M that advantage of modular....
Enermax decided to fill in one of the pins on the connectors on the new model so the old cables would not plug in withotu cutting that pin housing off, so I had to replace all the cables anyways :(
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The EXACT same experience with my Liberty. My second one has been golden for a couple years now.
 
Hmmm... I'm sure that if Corsairs had an inherent issue with exploding, I'd have noticed by now. I have three of them (HX620W, HX520 and VX450), plus I often put Corsairs in computers I build for friends, work colleagues and their friends. Sounds pretty crazy what happened to you though, that I'll agree with you on.
 
I had a HX620 die on me. Machine was turned on and then I walked back to the machine smoke was coming out the back... RMA was supper fast and I was up and running. The PSU was maybe 3 moths old... nothing fancy of a system... It happens... Great company and service though...
 
Just as an update, I shipped the 620HX back to Corsair for replacement.

In the meantime, I purchased another power supply to temporarily take the place of the 620HX.

The replacement psu works just fine, and it would seem that no components were damaged when the 2nd 620HX popped. :)
 
Angus66 said:
Just as an FYI, the psu CAN be mounted with the fan facing down.
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I've got an Antec Three Hundred, there is quite literally no room underneath the PSU. Certainly not enough for the cooling fan to pull in an adequate amount of air if it were mounted facing downward.

But whatever *shrug* everyone has their own way of doing things I guess. Hopefully you'll have better luck with your replacement. :)
 
Blue Falcon said:
I've got an Antec Three Hundred, there is quite literally no room underneath the PSU. Certainly not enough for the cooling fan to pull in an adequate amount of air if it were mounted facing downward.

But whatever *shrug* everyone has their own way of doing things I guess. Hopefully you'll have better luck with your replacement. :)
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The quote I posted was straight from a Corsair rep.

With that said, I may flip the replacement psu over after a few days, just to see what kind of difference (if any) it makes.

Whether I agree with you 100% or not, thanks for the input & your opinion. :cool:
 
Paul_Johnson said:
A switching transistor blew? Are you sure?

They only generally blow if they are undersized or not cooled at all.
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My Corsair HX520 came with the crappiest fan I've ever seen in a PSU. It had so much flex in it and the tolerances of the blades were so screwy that the damned blades made contact with the sidewalls of the fan whenever the fan would spin up. I had this problem with two units. Oddly the interior build quality was solid so I just said the hell with it and I replaced their cheap ass fan. I wish I had kept pictures of the fan, but I think I tossed the fan otherwise I'd show you what I meant. However now that the cheap fan is gone the PSU is running great in my girlfriends computer.
 
Dan_D said:
My Corsair HX520 came with the crappiest fan I've ever seen in a PSU. It had so much flex in it and the tolerances of the blades were so screwy that the damned blades made contact with the sidewalls of the fan whenever the fan would spin up. I had this problem with two units. Oddly the interior build quality was solid so I just said the hell with it and I replaced their cheap ass fan. I wish I had kept pictures of the fan, but I think I tossed the fan otherwise I'd show you what I meant. However now that the cheap fan is gone the PSU is running great in my girlfriends computer.
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QFT. I, for one, would LOVE to replace the fan in my 620 with a noctua or at least a yate loon or something...

Warranty though...
 
Arcygenical said:
QFT. I, for one, would LOVE to replace the fan in my 620 with a noctua or at least a yate loon or something...

Warranty though...
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I voided my warranty because I needed a working PSU at 4AM and the stores were closed. That and I felt that the unit was solid quality overall and aside from the fan blades hitting the side wall of the fan housing the unit worked fine. So I simply fixed the problem.
 
I am kind of relieved to note that it took only 2 pages and 30 posts for the Corsair rep to step in and take actions.

Many people here had quick technical responses from Corsair, that is the kind of advertising that will make them keeping selling a lot of PSUs even with less than four years on the market.
 
I'm using 2 620's and a 520 and never had any fan issues. I wonder if they had a bad supply of fans for a certain run of units. I bought one 620 and the 520 in late 2006, and the other 620 in late 2007, and never had any problems.
 
Seasonic loves those ADDA fans. Can't say one has ever given me a cooling issue though, or has made any unusual noise with the exception of one that had a cracked blade.
 
Angus66 said:
the "Warranty Void If Removed" label appears to have been replaced at some point.
There's left-over adhesive the same shape/size as the label above/to the left of the label currently on the psu.
Could the "WVIR" label have simply been reapplied at the factory before shipping?

Another thing I noticed were several small scuff - marks that appear to have been made by whatever the psu was installed into before I received it. These marks don't correspond to the tabs/brackets on the three hundred cases' psu mounts & my 1st Corsair 620HX had no such marks.

Could this psu have been returned/tested/refurbished/repackaged?

Maybe that would explain why it failed.

The box was shrink-wrapped & was supposed to be a brand-new replacement...
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Well, a "slightly off" WVIR sticker is not unusual, nor is the "snail trail" of goo. Sometimes the PSU's get hot in transit and the sticker slides to the side a little leaving a trail of goop.

device manager said:
What exactly does Corsair (and other vendors) do with their RMA'ed merchandise? It is quite possible that you received a refurb psu. However I do recall seeing RAMGUY mention that only new units are sent out for RMA replacements.


Think of all of the psu failures that aren't posted on message forums. ;) In the grand scheme of things parts do fail. I'm sure that Corsair's failure rates are extremely low considering the volume that they're moving. If you want a 620HX then get it; don't base your decision around a single forum post.
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True. Corsair's actual failure rate is probably about 1%. Typical of any quality PSU. Problem is, 99% of those that are happy with their purchase don't post anything. 99% of those who are unhappy DO post.

Angus66 said:
I assumed (possibly incorrectly so) at 1st that the replacement psu was brand new as the box was shrink-wrapped when I received it & at 1st glance the psu appeared 100% new.

Now I'm not so sure... :mad:

I'll certainly be handling this return/exchange through Corsair, and hopefully the 3rd psu will function correctly.
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Well... it could be something the vendor received back from a customer and then re-shrinkwrapped. That happens to us alot unfortunately. A vendor repackages a product and ships it back out and then when another gets the product in "less than new" condition, we get blamed for it. :(
 
JonGerow said:
Well, a "slightly off" WVIR sticker is not unusual, nor is the "snail trail" of goo. Sometimes the PSU's get hot in transit and the sticker slides to the side a little leaving a trail of goop.



True. Corsair's actual failure rate is probably about 1%. Typical of any quality PSU. Problem is, 99% of those that are happy with their purchase don't post anything. 99% of those who are unhappy DO post.



Well... it could be something the vendor received back from a customer and then re-shrinkwrapped. That happens to us alot unfortunately. A vendor repackages a product and ships it back out and then when another gets the product in "less than new" condition, we get blamed for it. :(
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Point(s) taken... ;)

I would have purchased a BFGTech ES-800 800w power supply to begin with if it had modular cables. :(
 
FWIW, I have another temporary replacement psu in my system until Corsair sends me a replacement.

I installed the temporary psu in my system in the exact same manner as the other (3) psu's (fan facing downward) and it has worked without issue.

Exhaust temperatures for the psu are in the 80 - 94 deg F range (idle to long gaming sessions), with a 74 - 80 deg F room temp.
 
Am just going to throw my 2 cents in here. While you can mount the PSU fan down, I would agree with others, that this practice is highly unadvised. You are essentially starving the fan of proper airflow. Look at the clearance you have below your PSU and the clearance above the PSU, the decision should be quite clear.

As far as dirty main power goes, I would disagree with several that have claimed you should check it. You have stated several times that you ran on a thermaltake with no issues and even use a "high-quality surge protector". I think this is more an issue of bad luck with the PSUs, "maybe" complicated by lack proper airflow. I quote maybe to stress nothing is truly certain.

Over the years, I have ran Enlight PSUs, Thermaltake PSUs, Antec PSUs, Corsair PSUs and even one or two generic PSUs (in my early years of pc building) and I have yet run into a blown or bad PSU (crosses fingers). So one could look at it this way, you have taken my hits for me. Thanks.

I wouldnt be upset with Corsair. I would just take it as you got unlucky. My one bad experience, so far, with bad parts has been a Abit motherboard i received in 2002. It has a large gouge in the tracings between the RAM slots and the northbridge. I understand that companies will occasionally put out a bad part, but I wont say that all Abit boards are bad, based on one or two incidents.
 
Just as an update, I received my replacement 620HX direct from Corsair.

I haven't had a chance to swap it out yet for the Thermaltake unit that's been in it's place since the previous Corsair unit popped.

Hopefully I'll swap in the Corsair unit this weekend.
 
Angus66 said:
Just as an update, I received my replacement 620HX direct from Corsair.

I haven't had a chance to swap it out yet for the Thermaltake unit that's been in it's place since the previous Corsair unit popped.

Hopefully I'll swap in the Corsair unit this weekend.
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Great, let me know how it goes!
 
Paul_Johnson said:
Well any arch or even the fuse blowing can do that. ;)
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Orienting the PSU fan down is typically a bad idea in any case with the PSU at the bottom (such as the Three Hundred); in fact, the Three Hundred's manual specifically suggests that the PSU be *flipped* (mounted so the fan is facing up).

(No, I didn't grab the manual specifically for this response; I'm looking hard at the Three Hundred as my next case *and* as a replacement case for my Mom, and I downloaded the Three Hundred's manual as this would be the first time I ever bought a case where the PSU bottom-mounts.)
 
Just to throw in a positive note, my VX550 unit has been running without issues for months now. It's at least as good as the (ancient) 350 Watt Enermax unit it replaced (which has been running 24/7 for years) :)
 
Well, I'm glad it's working out but I wonder, does Corsair offer coverage for any components that might die due to the faulty PSU? I mean, if my 620HX explodes and takes my mobo with it, I think I have ever right to demand that corsair replaces both (provided, of course, that I didn't abuse either ;) )
 
TehQuick said:
Well, I'm glad it's working out but I wonder, does Corsair offer coverage for any components that might die due to the faulty PSU? I mean, if my 620HX explodes and takes my mobo with it, I think I have ever right to demand that corsair replaces both (provided, of course, that I didn't abuse either ;) )
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No, and I know of no manufacturer in ANY field who will guarantee that.
 
If the third one goes, I'll say that it is something else.I have done over a dozen builds for friends & family using both the 520HX & 620HX with zero problems. When I saw the words " disappointed " & " Corsair " on the same line my jaw dropped lol =).
 
DarkLegacy said:
If the third one goes, I'll say that it is something else.I have done over a dozen builds for friends & family using both the 520HX & 620HX with zero problems. When I saw the words " disappointed " & " Corsair " on the same line my jaw dropped lol =).
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Agreed. These are very high quality power supplies, it definitely seems like something else.
 
Corsair HX620W is one of the best power supplies you can find on the market, pleasing both average users and enthusiasts.. corsair did not skip on using top qaulity parts ,,,highly recommended psu.

i replaced a bfg 650 with the corsair hx620w , and noticed increasd system stability immediately....the bfg was a bad choice on my purchase,,after reading some reviews...it was not a higly recommended product.

corsair psu,s are made by seasonic....a plus
 
Best that I start chiming in, instead of just reading...not being lazy, just haven't had anything to relate in a forum I could reply in yet. Just an FYI. Luv this forum, great resource. I'm not an expert like many of you, somewhat'advanced but always learning.
_____

I'm doing a build right now, just taking a little break. Antec Three Hundred case and a Corsair 550ZX. I made sure to do a "sitting on top of the mobo boot test" before installing everything and my new Abit AN78GS and the Corsair started right up. I let run for half an hour, pre'adjusted some BIOS settings, etc.

I've talked with a Corsair Rep who said it would run just fine either way. I've also read replies from Antec Reps who've said the same.

I had planned on running fan'down, for cable routing purposes and to keep the lower front 120mm void of any obstructions. I just switched it to face'up. Cables can still be run a different route, although my 8-powerpin will not be as neatly tucked away. The lower 120mm still sits up enough that routing the cables across the bottom to the storage area will not inhibit airflow. And now, I won't have to worry about "whether it will or whether it won't." I'm one of those that believes it is the backbone of the system; ie, no scriimping.

I wouldn't hesitate to go psu face'down with the Antec P182 since it has even more clearance beneath the psu, chamber ventilation holes around the psu aperture in the back, and of course, having a dedicated fan drawing air into that chamber is a plus, too. And because I wanted a Corsair psu, I almost bought the P182 but got the 300 for $43 FS and five weeks ago, there was a $130 difference. See! I can buy a Drimmel now! The more you buy, the more you save! ha!

I might do the bottom mod to the case, eventually but adding a sleeve underneath fitting snugly so the psu only draws outside air, also adding a slide in filter underneath the case, and adequately raised feet. I have a 6x3 desk so my pc's always sit atop and keep it clean so dust is not as much an issue on as would be on the floor. Plus, I've never mod'd a case before and I obviously have Drimmel'fever soooooo, lol.

Okay, done rambling (lol) but do want to thank everyone who replied in this thread for doing so, on both sides of the issue. It gave me some ease for doing it this way but also encouraged me to monitor it.

Cheers, all and thanks.
 
Dan_D said:
My Corsair HX520 came with the crappiest fan I've ever seen in a PSU. It had so much flex in it and the tolerances of the blades were so screwy that the damned blades made contact with the sidewalls of the fan whenever the fan would spin up. I had this problem with two units. Oddly the interior build quality was solid so I just said the hell with it and I replaced their cheap ass fan. I wish I had kept pictures of the fan, but I think I tossed the fan otherwise I'd show you what I meant. However now that the cheap fan is gone the PSU is running great in my girlfriends computer.
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Sounds like my 550VX that would tick the whole time. I've used three of these units and they all had a ticking noise. Such a great PSU with such a crappy fan. I also said piss on the warranty and stuck a 1200rpm slipstream in the unit. Silent and has been ran 24/7 for months without a single issue.
 
I have the 620hx and the 520hx and I have never had any issues. I guess it is just the luck of the draw
 
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