PSU most common failure mode?

[Citizen Snips]

What is the most common way for a PSU to die? I have a Corsair TX650W I bought in 2009 that has been running basically 24/7 ever since, but normally only at a load of 150-200W based on my Kill-A-Watt readings. It had a 5 year warranty so I'm wondering how much longer it's going to last. The fan seems like the weakest link in a PSU, but I could be wrong.

 

[Bandalo]

Moving parts are always the most likely to fail, so the fan is #1 failure mode.

After that, you'd probably have them fail by either user error (i.e., shorting a connector, pinching a cable) or by input power surges or spikes.

 

[pendragon1]

yup what he said. since its out of warranty you can always pop it open to inspect it. if there are no bad caps or signs of overheating it could last another five years. and you can replace the fan if you have/want to.

 

[Tsumi]

First is most likely the fan. After that it is the capacitors. Everything else has a very low chance of failing.

 

[cyclone3d]

In the olden days, it definitely was the fan.

The good units now generally have ball-bearing fans which have a very low chance of failure. I only use ball-bearing fans for case fans as well because of this. Absolutely 0 reason to waste money on non-ball bearing fans and have to replace them every year or so, sometimes sooner. The really crappy ones only last a few months.

After that it is capacitors. Cheapo power supplies use crappy capacitors and will fail much faster than good power supplies.