Advice needed on a PSU

[lokitexas]

I have been running the Kingwin Mach1 600 PSU in my system for 2 years now. Not only is it the prettiest PSU I have ever seen, but the modular design is great. Now heres my problem...

I am going to be getting another 8800GTS sooner or later and am also thinking of adding another loop in my WC setup. I know I am going to need more juice. I have been terribly happy with this PSU, but I am also aware its not one of the big name brands.

Reviews have been good, and I personaly have not had issues with kingwin, so is there anything someone would like to add that might sway my decision from getting this http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817121026 ?

I am in no big rush, just "looking" right now.

[ScottinIndy]

I would just spend an additional $20 and get a BFG and the lifetime warranty. Superior quality with a lifetime warranty is well worth the extra $20 IMO.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817702007

[lokitexas]

I would need modular though.

[thideras]

I would need modular though.Corsair HX620 :)

One of the quietest power supplies you will never hear, plus modular and great build quality! ;)

[moto211]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817814014

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817256011

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817153038

[JamesXP]

Not another kingwin Moto..

HX620 from www.buy.com or the BFG-ES800, Truepower Quattro...

all capable, and nice quality :P

[RollingThunder]

Loki,

Thideras and James gave you good choices: Corsair HX620 is a great unit and it's plenty with about 20-25% overhead for you depending on the rest of your hardware.

[lokitexas]

BFG-ES800 doesnt look modular. Thanks everyone for suggestions.

And I guess what I am asking is...why is Kingwin so bad? Review sites are biased? Just wondering if people have used them and had bad experiences? Or just brand loyalty? Just saying get ______ doesnt explain why :)

[Evilsizer]

www.jonnyguru.com really the only site to read PSU reviews on,IMO. not all review sites follow the testing that jonny does. most consider testing throwing it into a computer and stressing it while gaming. thats not stressing a psu, you need a big load tester like jonny uses.

[lokitexas]

www.jonnyguru.com really the only site to read PSU reviews on,IMO. not all review sites follow the testing that jonny does. most consider testing throwing it into a computer and stressing it while gaming. thats not stressing a psu, you need a big load tester like jonny uses.

I agree. But the links of reviews for the Kingwin Mach 1 800 from Jonny's site are both pretty good ones.

So again, do people just dog a PSU because it isnt one of the ones people mention alot? Or is it because its bad? Again just curious why folks dont like this brand...when I cant find negative about em :)

[RollingThunder]

I agree. But the links of reviews for the Kingwin Mach 1 800 from Jonny's site are both pretty good ones.

So again, do people just dog a PSU because it isnt one of the ones people mention alot? Or is it because its bad? Again just curious why folks dont like this brand...when I cant find negative about em :)

Loki,

Go here, "search" in "reviews" for Kingwin. While it's not the same model you listed, the other Kingwin reviews are not good at all. There's a lot of professional negatives with the Kingwin models tested.

http://jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Review_Cat&recatnum=13

You can also look here in the "Stickys" for power supplies to avoid. Kingwin is right there.

http://www.ocforums.com/showthread.php?t=458204

[ScottinIndy]

It isn't about doggin anyone, It's about quality, Reliability and who actually stands behind their product if you do have a problem. The name brands on this forum have earned their reputation, So yeah there probably is somewhat of a loyalty factor, However the loyalty has been earned.
I would just suggest that you do some research before you make your choice, You said you have time before you order, There is some great info available in the stickies here in the PSU section as well as checking out reviews of specific PSU's. In the end, An informed decision is usually a good decision.
You have mentioned a couple of times about folks here having brand loyalty, Sounds to me like you have brand loyalty, I think what folks here are saying is explore your options.

[ratbuddy]

www.jonnyguru.com really the only site to read PSU reviews on,IMO. not all review sites follow the testing that jonny does. most consider testing throwing it into a computer and stressing it while gaming. thats not stressing a psu, you need a big load tester like jonny uses.

I gotta say, I think you might want to consider SPCR's PSU reviews. Here's an example: http://www.silentpcreview.com/article813-page1.html

I actually prefer them to JG's a little (though his are great, don't get me wrong) because they give all the same information (and sometimes more) without the oddball commentary about squirrels and beavers and whatnot.

edit: Scott, your point about brands earning their name is certainly true, but things do take turns for the worse from time to time. Remember when Ballistix was highly recommended every time someone asked what type of memory to buy? Personally, I did my own homework, heard a few people here and there complaining about failure, and didn't buy it. Now it's one of the brands people are being steered away from, but it could go that way for ANY piece of hardware.. Suggestions on brand from forum members are one piece of the puzzle, but the buyer really needs to do some homework as well.

[Oklahoma Wolf]

oddball commentary

Hey, I resemble that remark :p

Squirrels... haven't used that one yet. And I have a Corsair HX1000 review coming soon...

[ratbuddy]

Hey, I resemble that remark :p

Squirrels... haven't used that one yet. And I have a Corsair HX1000 review coming soon...

Like I said, I still read and trust you guys reviews, just some of the quirkiness (that many find funny I'm sure) seems out of place in a review :beer:

Personally, I'm more interested in reviews of el-cheapo PSUs. With the big boys, we pretty much know which names are OK. When someone comes on looking for a $600 gaming machine though, right now people suggest a VX450 or 550, which run around $60-$80. Is there no solid 450 watt PSU for ~$30?

Hrm, I'm getting a little off topic here, sorry :p

[ScottinIndy]

I gotta say, I think you might want to consider SPCR's PSU reviews. Here's an example: http://www.silentpcreview.com/article813-page1.html

I actually prefer them to JG's a little (though his are great, don't get me wrong) because they give all the same information (and sometimes more) without the oddball commentary about squirrels and beavers and whatnot.

edit: Scott, your point about brands earning their name is certainly true, but things do take turns for the worse from time to time. Remember when Ballistix was highly recommended every time someone asked what type of memory to buy? Personally, I did my own homework, heard a few people here and there complaining about failure, and didn't buy it. Now it's one of the brands people are being steered away from, but it could go that way for ANY piece of hardware.. Suggestions on brand from forum members are one piece of the puzzle, but the buyer really needs to do some homework as well.

Yup, Bottom line, Take some time and do some research!:beer:

[lokitexas]

Makes sense. Yeah I got time. Just upgraded my CPU, Mobo, Ram, and Vid card...so need to let the wife calm down...before buying something else.

Makes sense, and I dont have any kind of brand loyalty when it comes to PC componets. Though I wish AMD would get the crap together :).

Thanks again guys!

[Oklahoma Wolf]

Is there no solid 450 watt PSU for ~$30?

None that I would use.

As for my reviewing style... honestly it doesn't bother me at all that a few people don't care for the humor. Can't fully please everyone. Most of my feedback is overwhelmingly positive. If it were overwhelmingly negative, I can infodump with the best of them :)

I have a few cheap units on the review pile that'll be up in the next little while. For the time being though, most of my May reviews are going to be the more high end units.

There's an Aspire in the pile I'm just dying to get to though :D

[ScottinIndy]

Like I said, I still read and trust you guys reviews, just some of the quirkiness (that many find funny I'm sure) seems out of place in a review :beer:

Personally, I'm more interested in reviews of el-cheapo PSUs. With the big boys, we pretty much know which names are OK. When someone comes on looking for a $600 gaming machine though, right now people suggest a VX450 or 550, which run around $60-$80. Is there no solid 450 watt PSU for ~$30?

Hrm, I'm getting a little off topic here, sorry :p

None that I would use.

As for my reviewing style... honestly it doesn't bother me at all that a few people don't care for the humor. Can't fully please everyone. Most of my feedback is overwhelmingly positive :)

I have a few cheap units on the review pile that'll be up in the next little while. For the time being, most of my May reviews are going to be the more high end units.

There's an Aspire in the pile I'm just dying to get to though :D


I enjoy a little levity in the reviews:beer: As far as "Cheap", And quality, You used to get pretty good bang for buck out of some of the lower powered Enhance models on Ewiz, However they have jumped the prices on them in the last year or so.

[ratbuddy]

None that I would use.

As for my reviewing style... honestly it doesn't bother me at all that a few people don't care for the humor. Can't fully please everyone. Most of my feedback is overwhelmingly positive. If it were overwhelmingly negative, I can infodump with the best of them :)

I have a few cheap units on the review pile that'll be up in the next little while. For the time being though, most of my May reviews are going to be the more high end units.

There's an Aspire in the pile I'm just dying to get to though :D

I'd love to see the Antec Basiq 500 I asked about here put through the test process, although with the rebate expired it's no longer $35..

[JamesXP]

Basiq FSP based, I'm willing to say it's just a bit lower than the FSP blue storm he just reviewed.

[ScottinIndy]

I'd love to see the Antec Basiq 500 I asked about here put through the test process, although with the rebate expired it's no longer $35..

It seems Fry's (In store) is running either the Antec Basiq or the Earthwatt 500 model in ads a couple of times a month, This weeks Wed/Thur add has the Earthwatt 500 for $49, Last week they had the Basiq for $34.99 IIRC. I agree the Basiq would be a nice one to see a review on.

[Evilsizer]

I'd love to see the Antec Basiq 500 I asked about here put through the test process, although with the rebate expired it's no longer $35..

i would say the EA430 is a better psu then that one.

as looking at this
http://www.antec.com/us/productDetails.php?ProdID=23500
first thing i would worried about is no posting of temp it is able to run in. such as the EA430
http://www.antec.com/us/productDetails.php?ProdID=27430

as i think its safe to say that 500watt unit, is prolly at 25 or 35c rating vs 50c. even look at the 12v rails between the units, the 500watt looks underrated vs the 430. we already know the EA line uses seasonic PCB's for the psu section. what im saying is i would power any rig first with a EA430 before the B-500 psu, for a cheap rig.

*edit*
i looked and looked, couldnt find any reviews on the B-500 unit.

[Oklahoma Wolf]

I'd love to see the Antec Basiq 500 I asked about here put through the test process, although with the rebate expired it's no longer $35..

Don't have one of them in the review pile, and Antec hasn't been too forthcoming with review samples. You might be waiting a while on that one, especially since I'm now replacing the Nikon 3700 with a camera more worthy of a hardware review site (Fuji S700).

Monday's review is a 550W, and then it's back to the 1kW+ units for two weeks. Haven't decided what to throw on the load tester that third week yet.

[JamesXP]

You're tongue :P

(boy that would be fun)



Aspire would be very laughable, and you'd probably win some of the internets from letting it release its seductive smoke :)

[ScottinIndy]

Don't have one of them in the review pile, and Antec hasn't been too forthcoming with review samples. You might be waiting a while on that one, especially since I'm now replacing the Nikon 3700 with a camera more worthy of a hardware review site (Fuji S700).

Monday's review is a 550W, and then it's back to the 1kW+ units for two weeks. Haven't decided what to throw on the load tester that third week yet.

Any chance we see any of the Xigmatek's getting reviewed in the not so distant future?

[Oklahoma Wolf]

I'd love to do one of the Xigmateks, but nothing planned in the immediate future. Besides, I have enough CWT PSH based units in the pile already ;)

[RollingThunder]

I'd love to do one of the Xigmateks, but nothing planned in the immediate future. Besides, I have enough CWT PSH based units in the pile already ;)


OW, I love the 4th of July reviews and the sparklers that end with a big KABOOM! They are priceless. :thup: :clap:

[Oklahoma Wolf]

lol - I have two units that promise lightshows in the pile... won't say which two. There was a third, but it surprised me - that's Monday's review.

[ScottinIndy]

I'd love to do one of the Xigmateks, but nothing planned in the immediate future. Besides, I have enough CWT PSH based units in the pile already ;)


I understand, I must admit I am somewhat intrigued by the 750watt modular Xigmatek that Newegg is selling for $129. If it is indeed a solid unit, That is some pretty good bang for buck.

[Oklahoma Wolf]

I must admit I am somewhat intrigued by the 750watt modular Xigmatek

Most likely a 750W CWT PSH. Just like the Corsair TX750 and Thermaltake Toughpower 750 with minor design differences.

[jonnyGURU]

Like I said, I still read and trust you guys reviews, just some of the quirkiness (that many find funny I'm sure) seems out of place in a review :beer:

Well.. the reviews are written like that for a reason. I guarantee you that 99% of people that read reviews read the intro and the conclusion and miss all of the meat and potatoes in between. Keeping the levity up keeps the reader engaged. Besides, we're not writing technical documents. Nobody said we HAD TO take ourselves seriously. It's not like we make a fortune writing them. One of the reasons we write reviews is because it's fun. If we have to be serious too, we're not going to have fun. I won't name names, but sometimes when I read some of these reviews I think the author would rather be having his teeth drilled than reviewing a product. And when they do make an off-color remark, you have to wonder if they're making an attempt at humor or are making some sort of sarcastic stab at the product.

When I sent the BFG ES-800 out for review, I sent one to Paul, Gabriel, SKYMTL and Chris Adcock because I knew they'd beat the crap out of the unit AND put some personality into the review. I pruposely didn't send the unit out to some others that would write something that read like the instruction manual for a gas stove regardless of their testing methodology. Of course, if they ask for the unit they'll probably get one, but I'd rather have a bunch of good reviews out there people will actually READ than a bunch of "quantum physics allows me to calculate two thumbs up" type reviews.