Unreal - 500 watt PSU $20 shipped @ MicroCenter

Wow I love [H] reviews :)

The Bottom Line

With the PHD650, Diablotek seemingly tried to polish a turd with a turd and as such we got the expected outcome, a pile of crap. Given the horrible build quality of the unit and poor component selection of the unit that is hardly a startling result. With a current price of ~$49.99, users would be better off taking their cash and setting it on fire rather than buying this unit. There is quite literally no price point or situation where the Diablotek PHD650 should be a consideration for users as it failed almost every test possible today. Retailers and e-tailers should be ashamed to be selling such a product.
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Techx said:
Wow I love [H] reviews :)

Quote:
The Bottom Line

With the PHD650, Diablotek seemingly tried to polish a turd with a turd and as such we got the expected outcome, a pile of crap. Given the horrible build quality of the unit and poor component selection of the unit that is hardly a startling result. With a current price of ~$49.99, users would be better off taking their cash and setting it on fire rather than buying this unit. There is quite literally no price point or situation where the Diablotek PHD650 should be a consideration for users as it failed almost every test possible today. Retailers and e-tailers should be ashamed to be selling such a product.
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LMFAO!
 
It has been a long time since we have seen such a useless power supply come through our review process. In fact the only unit I remember off the top of my head that comes close to matching this piece of crap was the Ultra X2 750W EE (Exploding Edition). I think one of the best things I can say about the Diablotek PHD650 is that it gives me a real legitimate reason to recommend the Cooler Master GX 650 watts over some other unit. Congratulations in that regard Diablotek, you just made another piece of goose crap look like the golden egg.
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LOL, I love HardOCP reviews. Not afraid to do real tests and give their unbiased results without any window dressing.
 
Any reader here actually thinking this PSU is a good deal, make no mistake! This PSU is a piece of crap and is a DO NOT BUY at any price.

Just in case someone's sarcasm detector was broken today. PSA for the day complete.
 
This one of those "I have no idea what I am doing" PSU's that litter the shelves of my local CompUSA/TigerDirect. Everytime I see someone pick one up, I make it my job to stop him or her from making the worst mistake of their PC building lives. I don't want to see anymore components fried and sent to the trash heap because someone decided to cheap out on a PSU because the wattage was high and the price was low. Brings back the painful Ultra X3 memories of '06. 4/26/06 -Never Forget
 
FurBurglar said:
Why exactly is this littering the Hot Deals forum?
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It's a great rickroll for someone looking to get a 500w PSU, why else.

I've asked a bunch of times and no one has told me, how do I lock threads? I'll lock this so that it doesn't keep going to the top, and people can still LOL @ it until it fades away.
 
Ehren8879 said:
Any reader here actually thinking this PSU is a good deal, make no mistake! This PSU is a piece of crap and is a DO NOT BUY at any price.

Just in case someone's sarcasm detector was broken today. PSA for the day complete.
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damnit I went ahead and bought it not thinking. I figured it could power my Rig. Grrrr
















Just kidding. This PSU is junk
 
4LC4PON3 said:
damnit I went ahead and bought it not thinking. I figured it could power my Rig. Grrrr

Just kidding. This PSU is junk
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Atleast most junk has a reusable purpose. This PSU is just a worthless pile of shit.
 
That is a hot deal!

When your system bursts into flames get the marshmellos out and you are all set!
 
I have used the Ultra 500w (the one that was free... 39.99 shipped + $40 rebate = paid me 1 cent to take it)

I use it daily, have done so for 3+ years.... not a single problem with my daily used Ultra 500w. I don't clean my crap like a clean freak either so there's dust all in it I bet.

Running a shitty ECS board with a Pentium D, 2 drives, DVDRW, and your basic Pci-E geforce video cards.... not a single problem. I am going to really stress it soon with a gtx 460.... after that I plan to get a 700w ultra (with lifetime warranty now) ... call me crazy, but they are a good bang for buck to me obviously.
 
Dylan80 said:
I have used the Ultra 500w (the one that was free... 39.99 shipped + $40 rebate = paid me 1 cent to take it)
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I know, but it's not approved by the gods so it's "bad". Just ignore them if you find low priced hardware that works. There's plenty out there in a sea of junk.

I've also been using one of the free after rebate Ultra 500W PSUs for years. It works and I'm happy with it.
 
It doesn't bother me so much, some people with lots of money are like that.. I'm just a broke college grad. :D

I thought it was shitty and causing my system reboot the last year.. but someone literally gave me an antec ps the other day and it still restarts the same way so it must be my shitty ECS motherboard thats been restarting the whole time, not the PS.

But yeah, ya can't beat free :D I was just throwing my pos. review for the Ultra since everyone here doesn't seem to trust them. I took the chance (for free, wtf) and so far, so good... I don't overclock or use anything beefy though (yet! :D Can't wait til Thursdayyy)
 
I don't think anything will beat that geeks.com deal which was something like $13 for a 500 watt PSU but it was actually a highly rated Silverstone that retailed at like $80-90. It was debadged and had less cables, but it was the same PSU underneath.
 
Dylan80 said:
I have used the Ultra 500w (the one that was free... 39.99 shipped + $40 rebate = paid me 1 cent to take it)

I use it daily, have done so for 3+ years.... not a single problem with my daily used Ultra 500w. I don't clean my crap like a clean freak either so there's dust all in it I bet.

Running a shitty ECS board with a Pentium D, 2 drives, DVDRW, and your basic Pci-E geforce video cards.... not a single problem. I am going to really stress it soon with a gtx 460.... after that I plan to get a 700w ultra (with lifetime warranty now) ... call me crazy, but they are a good bang for buck to me obviously.
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pxc said:
I know, but it's not approved by the gods so it's "bad". Just ignore them if you find low priced hardware that works. There's plenty out there in a sea of junk.

I've also been using one of the free after rebate Ultra 500W PSUs for years. It works and I'm happy with it.
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Ultra also has a lifetime warranty with registration. I can't comment on how that compares to potentially destroying some of your hardware, but they must have some degree of confidence in their products, and they haven't gone under from fulfilling RMAs yet, so you guys make a good point.

Some Ultras also get pretty good reviews. It all depends on the design and the OEM that makes it. The Andyson ones have received generally good reviews. The X3 1000 got a 9.5 from JG. So it all depends, on a case by case basis.
 
pxc said:
I know, but it's not approved by the gods so it's "bad". Just ignore them if you find low priced hardware that works. There's plenty out there in a sea of junk.

I've also been using one of the free after rebate Ultra 500W PSUs for years. It works and I'm happy with it.
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Why do you have your sig, and then post a comment like this. The reviewers of HardOCP, Jonnyguru are very objective. They test PSUs properlyt, not just tossing them in a rig and saying "it's good, platnium awards for everybody!".

If "being approved by the gods" equates to "performs as printed on the box", then yeah, I guess I'm an elitist prick that want's to (gasp) get what I paid for.
 
canna said:
Why do you have your sig
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The trees must be getting in the way of the forest. I have no problems with reviews making a judgement based on testing criteria, when testing a particular product. So Brand X 500W PSU can't reliably sustain 500W? Cool story bro and all that.

However, with multiple suppliers (sometimes changing) and models that go through revisions, I do have a problem with the blanket statements by both the PSU gods and wanna-be gods. It's with the "this 4 year old model was tested and it's not perfect, all PSUs by that manufacturer are junk" mindset I have problems. Plus, there is far more typical use of PSUs than running at 100% load, and many PSUs run fine at lower loads. Without dying. Without blowing up. Without causing instability.

No one even recommends a 500W PSU for a known 500W load. Not even the gods.

Difference of opinion, blah, blah, blah.
 
Ultra is barely a step above the low quality PSU market. They aren't as worthless as Diablotek but aren't as good as Cooler Master, Thermaltake. They fall somewhere in the bottom group. Ultra is just another risky brand to go with and I wouldn't recommend them for a quality build. I had a 750W Modular Ultra PSU that I ended up getting for free as an open box item from TigerDirect. A year and a half and suddenly, *FIZZLE* *POP* "What's that smell? OH JESUS CHRIST!". Never again.

Reliable: Best if spending over $1000 on your build.
Corsair, XFX, BFG, Rosewill, Silverstone, Zalman, Kingwin

Better Odds: Best for budget builds in the sub $500 range.
Thermaltake, Cooler Master, NZXT, ABS, Sparkle, Apevia,

Limbo: You never know with these PSU's.
Ultra, OCZ, Antec

Bottom of the Barrel: Best for HTPC's, Work PC's, anything replaceable.
Diablotek, Xion, Enermax, Logisys, (Insert other weird brand name here)
 
I don't think I would trust a BFG or Rosewill PSU with a $1000+ build. Most BFG's are made buy the same OEM as Ultra. I know some OCZ PS are garbage, but I have had my Gamexstream 700 Watt PS for 4 years now, and has powered multiple overclocked quad core systems for me without issue. It is still powering the second rig in my signature, which you can see is no slouch.
 
I'd move Antec and Rosewill to the "Better" category. Unless Rosewill PSUs are using Seasonic platforms now.
 
Exeodus said:
I don't think I would trust a BFG or Rosewill PSU with a $1000+ build. Most BFG's are made buy the same OEM as Ultra. I know some OCZ PS are garbage, but I have had my Gamexstream 700 Watt PS for 4 years now, and has powered multiple overclocked quad core systems for me without issue. It is still powering the second rig in my signature, which you can see is no slouch.
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BFG definitely doesn't belong there anymore but at the time they were one of the most reliable with excellent warranty, but obviously that doesn't apply anymore. OCZ is a hit or miss, you may have an excellent one but other times it bombs. I have my GameXtream 700W and it couldn't even power my single GTX 275. Rosewill's according to most reviews have been pretty ripe and have won a few newegg choice rewards (Haven't owned one personally but have heard good things). Antec is hit or miss for me so far. Me and my friend have both had to RMA our's once, but they definitely do back them up with a great warranty support.
 
You guys I know sometimes there is a certain paradigm, and it's hard to question or think beyond it, but for the most part the brand name that is marketing the PSU has nothing to do with it anyway. Ultra has different OEMs, as does Rosewill. I suggest you check out www.realhardtechx.com . Look at the reviews and get a sense of the general opinion of hardware review sites before you make an opinion.

Not all Ultras are lousy, JG gave the X3 1000 a 9.5 Gold award, and Hard gave it Silver. HardwareSecrets gave the Rosewill Green 630 a Gold award for being a great value, and it performed within spec in ripple and efficiency. I own the Green 700, powering an i5 750 and a 4860(soon a 6850 :)) and haven't had any problems with it in the 12 months I've owned it.
 
lol, I have a cheap-o EA-650 that I bought for $35 in my $1200 desktop. Works flawlessly.
 
pxc said:
lol, I have a cheap-o EA-650 that I bought for $35 in my $1200 desktop. Works flawlessly.
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The Earthwatt series of PSU by Antec have good reviews and track records from my understanding. While they are relatively inexpensive I wouldn't consider them "cheap-o"
 
pxc said:
lol, I have a cheap-o EA-650 that I bought for $35 in my $1200 desktop. Works flawlessly.
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Definitely not cheap-o by any standard.

This Diablotek is cheap-o, and why anyone would ever buy products from these no-name companies is beyond me.
 
XacTactX said:
You guys I know sometimes there is a certain paradigm, and it's hard to question or think beyond it, but for the most part the brand name that is marketing the PSU has nothing to do with it anyway. Ultra has different OEMs, as does Rosewill. I suggest you check out www.realhardtechx.com . Look at the reviews and get a sense of the general opinion of hardware review sites before you make an opinion.

Not all Ultras are lousy, JG gave the X3 1000 a 9.5 Gold award, and Hard gave it Silver. HardwareSecrets gave the Rosewill Green 630 a Gold award for being a great value, and it performed within spec in ripple and efficiency. I own the Green 700, powering an i5 750 and a 4860(soon a 6850 :)) and haven't had any problems with it in the 12 months I've owned it.
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Technically alot of stuff is manufactured by the same place, some factory in China, but Ultra's standards are lower than most. They also seem to lack any sort of quality control with constant bad batches and PSU's not meeting their max wattage output. Ultra is just another hit or miss brand. They can work great sometimes, other times they can just pop and die. All I know is, I would never leave my PC unattended for long periods of time with one, I fear them too much.
 
Emission said:
Definitely not cheap-o by any standard.

This Diablotek is cheap-o, and why anyone would ever buy products from these no-name companies is beyond me.
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Diablo was a good game. Lamborghini Diablo is a bad ass car.

A Diablo PSU has to be killer sick nasty, right?
 
ive had two ultra 600 watt modular PSUs, an X3 and an X4. the X3 worked great in my main rig til i got the X4 and put it in my server. then i gave the X4 to my roommate when i got my current rig. total, ive run these PSUs for about 3 years now, and both were bought second hand so who knows how long theyve been running? still dont recommend them i guess, but i loved mine. cheap, beautiful, and fully modular. :)
 
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