Antec = CRAP

[MotzKopf]

I've had it. I've had 3 Antec PSUs over the last 6 years, and they all share one thing in common, they're all dead. None of them were overloaded, each system was well below their rated load capacity.

1) NeoPower 480 - Ah she was a beauty, queen of her day. But alas after her warranty passed - >POP!< - and she was no more. That little mini explosion actually blew a transistor right off the circuit board.

2) SmartPower 350 - She seemed pretty smart at the time, just the thing to power my daughter's P4D. Again a nice modular PSU, so I thought. The one day the LED fans started to slower and dimmer, then brighter and faster, and so on. Hmmm ... that's no good. Should have known better, but after turning it off until cold, I turned it back on again. This time there was a bigger - > P O P ! < - which included a burst of flames, and cloud of smoke. When the dust settled, there was 1 dead Antec PSU, and 1 dead 80GB boot drive. (I sent the drive to i365 for evaluation. I figured it was probably a simple electronic fix and shouldn't be too bad. Well I was right it was a simple fix, but they wanted to charge me $700, and it was going to take 3-4 weeks. I said no thanks.)

3) SmartPower 500 - I bought this bi*ch to replace the Neo-Powersupply that threw up a transistor. My wife had to have her computer up immediately, so I had to pay a premium for said bi*ch from Staples. At the time the SmartPower 350 was still alive, so I figured it should be a safe bet in a pinch. Well two years later, she joined her lesser sibling in the trash heap, hopefully where that dude with horns lives. But unlike her older relatives, she just went quietly, though emits a high pitched whining sound, when you flip her switch.

I thought ah, it's just a PSU failure, no worries. Yea, right. Sure enough after I installed my brand new OCZ Fatal1ty 550 (yea that's right, no more Antec in my house), my boot drive didn't show up in the BIOs. NOOOOOOO! Checked all my connections, moved it to another bus, put it on it's own power cable, then it was confirmed after plugging it into my APRICORN USB SATA adapter. My wife's relatively new 7200.12 Barracuda was pronounced dead.

What confuses me is that I have two 7200.8 Barracudas in the same system RAID 1, and they are both unscathed. Thank god, as they are all my families digital pictures. Maybe 7200.8's are just more rugged, 7200.12's are much smaller.

So there's my tail of woe, a cautionary tail for all other casual enthusiasts. Have a bulletproof backup strategy, and in my humble opinion stay as far away from Antec PSUs entry-level Antec PSUs as possible.

edit

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/46/Bahamas_beach.JPG

Can't have a post without a picture....

[tinymouse2]

I have the Antec TruePower Quattro 850W and I haven't had a problem with it yet.
2 years of running and it being in 3 separate rigs (old rig, backup rig and my current rig) and it's still performing fine. Voltages haven't changed since I first brought it.

I think you've just had some seriously bad luck :(

[GrimX9]

You didn't exactly buy the best of the best...

[burebista]

SmartPower series were flawed. Infamous Fuhjyyu capacitors leaking/bulging.
NeoPower should last more. It's a Seasonic. Probably bad luck for you.
FYI actual Antec's are very good PSU's. Their flagship Signature (Delta) followed by TP New (Seasonic), CP (Delta), Quattro (Enhance) and EarthWatts (Delta).

Sorry you have bad luck with bad models.

[rk15000]

Sorry to hear about your power supply issues with Antec. I heard that they do make good equipment and PSUs despite your troubles :-(

If you want to try a different PSU, I highly recommend Corsair. They are among the best in the business.

My 650 TX has a lot of power (650W) and the cables are well wrapped and manageable. In additon, the single 12V rail is a plus.

On newegg: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139005&Tpk=Corsair%20650Tx

Good luck!

[Marshmallow64]

Sorry to hear about your PSU troubles. =( I also had one Antec go bad on me fairly soon, but their RMA procedure went by smoothly and fast.

I just stick with Corsair now.

[Mr.Guvernment]

Maybe you got bad power in your house?

the EarthWatts are an awsome series!

[MotzKopf]

I guess the SmartPower series were the Pintos of Antec PSUs. Maybe Antec shouldn't be selling Pintos.

[MotzKopf]

Anyone with an Antec more than 4 years old?

[diaz]

Mine is only 2 years old, but you definitely picked some really really low ranking supplies (the last 2). That series is on my "stay away from" list...

Check my sig for PSU's to buy, or to stay away from...

[tinymouse2]

Anyone with an Antec more than 4 years old?

That would be me.
I don't have it here but it's an old non modular 450W and it's still holding up strong in an ooold backup rig (p4 with an old AGP card :D)

I don't bother testing the voltages on it but I have no reason to suspect it's borked at all.

[Ancient_1]

Anyone with an Antec more than 4 years old?

I just replaced my 6+ year old Antec Tru Control 550. It still functions and has had a hard life. The 1st 3years it was in my water cooled P4 folding 24/7 (it is my avatar). Then it took a year off when my MB died but then went into my OC'd e8400/HD3750 that also ran 24/7 tho not folding but most nights was spent converting HDTV programs to xvid untill I got my i7 rig. It still was running 24/7 bit only as a file server and recording HDTV, it has 3 tuners.

One thing I noticed when I took it out of my P4 rig is that the bottom fan had died and I never did replace it.

[Albaholic]

Their signature series is where the good stuff is

[Blazing fire]

Some antecs are bad but some are good. Is it unreasonable for customers to complain and condemn Antec? Is it the customer's responsibility to discover whether this is a good model or one which is destined to fail? Does this mean antec is a good company?

IMO, with so many bad PSUs and occasional good ones, I don't trust Antec as a company anymore. On the contary, corsair's PSUs are generally good, with some exceptional ones, like hx850. But no particular Corsair model that I know of is as bad as the worse Antec. Sure, there are some QC problems with corsair PSUs, but that's once in a blue moon, and it does not apply to the entire series.

[deadlysyn]

Some antecs are bad but some are good. Is it unreasonable for customers to complain and condemn Antec? Is it the customer's responsibility to discover whether this is a good model or one which is destined to fail? Does this mean antec is a good company?

IMO, with so many bad PSUs and occasional good ones, I don't trust Antec as a company anymore. On the contary, corsair's PSUs are generally good, with some exceptional ones, like hx850. But no particular Corsair model that I know of is as bad as the worse Antec. Sure, there are some QC problems with corsair PSUs, but that's once in a blue moon, and it does not apply to the entire series.

It is up to the consumer to know what they are buying. Is it Neweggs job to tell you that a Corsair PSU is much better than the more expensive Tagan? As a system builder, I go out of my way to explain to my clients why the Antec EarthWatts or Corsair PSU is better than the $20 garbage that someone else in town would sell them. The point the members are trying to make, is that if the OP had done a little bit of research before buying those bad PSU's, he wouldn't have a reason to be bad mouthing Antec. I have sold a lot of Antec PSU's over the couple of years that I have been in business, and even have one in my rig. The reason that I can do this with a clear mind, is because I do some research before I decide to sell it. Every company has had their bad apples, and because Antec has a few models of PSU's that have problems is no reason to write them off. Look at Crucial with the D9 fiasco. Does that make them a bad company? Does the counterfeit i7 issue that plagued Newegg make them a bad company?

To be honest, I think that a PSU that lasts as long as the warranty has done it's job. I have a Neo 500 in the quad rig in my sig. It came with a 5 year warranty, and has been running a rig that folds 24/7 for a little over a year without a hiccup. Even with the rig at a 100% load on both the CPU and GPU, I can put my DMM on the 12 volt rails, and still find them within specs. It is uninformed consumers that keep companies like Powmax in business.

Edit: I have seen Oklahoma Wolf (the king of PSU reviews for jonnyguru.com) post up a few times about the OCZ Fatal1ty PSU's having some problems with high ripple, which can cause some problems for your VRM's and other parts on your GPU and mobo. I have tried searching for the posts, but can't seem to find them now. He may be in shortly to chime in as well. Some of his highest rated PSU's happen to be Antecs as well.

[Oklahoma Wolf]

IMO, with so many bad PSUs and occasional good ones, I don't trust Antec as a company anymore.

They have more decent ones than bad ones these days.

Edit: I have seen Oklahoma Wolf (the king of PSU reviews for jonnyguru.com) post up a few times about the OCZ Fatal1ty PSU's having some problems with high ripple

That would be the GameXStream aka FSP Epsilon units.

[deadlysyn]

That would be the GameXStream aka FSP Epsilon units.

I stand corrected. Thanks for pointing that out, OW. I tend to try to point others toward Corsair, Antec, and the like more often anyway. My wifes rig has an OCZ StealthXStream 500, which is reportedly the same OEM as the Silverstone Strider 500W, so the whole OCZ line can't be judged as poor quality based on one model set. They do own PCP&C now, after all.:p

[baqai]

Using True Blue 480W for around 5 years without any problems ... i guess you had a case of bad luck

[drmeff]

Anyone with an Antec more than 4 years old?

I have an old 350w, 480w, and 550w all of which are still working perfectly. The 350 has been chugging along in a p4 northwood rig for my grandma for nearly 7 years, the 480 was been in 3 of my rigs and now and is now powering an AMD x5200 backup comp. The 550 spent 3 years in my main comp and is now powering an x4 640 computer for my good ol' mom.

I can't complain, sounds like baaad luck for you!

[Zap]

SmartPower series were flawed. Infamous Fuhjyyu capacitors leaking/bulging.
NeoPower should last more.

I think the early NeoPowers also used Fuhjyyu caps.

Maybe you got bad power in your house?


Well, the Smartpower units were known to have cap problems, but that's a good point. A friend of mine used to have power supplies die several times a year. After about a half dozen units die (of various brands) he got a line conditioner (not a UPS and not a surge strip) and his problems went away.

[wickedout]

I love my Earthwatts 750. I've had for like 6 months. No problems what so ever.

[CompuTamer]

Anyone heard anything about the Antec basiq series? I'm about to buy one for my brother's i3 system. Shouldn't need more than 400 watts to run everything.

[deadlysyn]

Anyone heard anything about the Antec basiq series? I'm about to buy one for my brother's i3 system. Shouldn't need more than 400 watts to run everything.

http://www.jonnyguru.com/forums/showthread.php?t=5999

Here you go. Looks like they may have switched them from FSP as the OEM to Delta. It may be a lower end Delta, but a low end Delta is still better than FSP. If you can spare a little bit extra coin, I would still recommend the EA430 over the Basiq.

[Niku-Sama]

i had a smart power about five years before buying my stealth x stream.

it was getting extremely weak and making werid noises, bought it right out of the gate when they came out. have had this SxS for about a year. the reviews of it were good

[Zap]

Anyone heard anything about the Antec basiq series? I'm about to buy one for my brother's i3 system. Shouldn't need more than 400 watts to run everything.

If the EarthWatts 380W is still on sale at Newegg, snag one for $35 with free shipping. Those are Delta units and are 80+ Bronze.

[MotzKopf]

Any recommendations for a line conditioner?

[deadlysyn]

If the EarthWatts 380W is still on sale at Newegg, snag one for $35 with free shipping. Those are Delta units and are 80+ Bronze.

If I'm not mistaken, this advice is coming from a BFG rep too.:thup: I was going to get a BFG LS550 for my rig, until I found out my distributor was out of stock. I ended up going with the Neo 500, and love it. I just wish it had a 120mm fan instead of the 80mm. When it ramps up (very, very rarely), it tends to be a little on the loud side.

[Zap]

Shhh, not so loud. :shiftyeyes;

Yeah, the mid-range/wattage BFG PSUs (LS and MX series) are all discontinued so there's nothing to recommend. Well, actually the GS/GX series are decent enough if you need something basic and at lower wattage, and of course they are better than all the crap cheap units out there. They aren't as good (or as expensive) as the better LS/MX series. They are rated peak, so for the continuous wattage just subtract 100W. For instance the BFG GS-450 power supply is $20 after rebate at Tiger Direct (http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4898173&CatId=106). It makes for a good and cheap 350W power supply (around 80% efficient, rated 350W continuous at 40°C) that isn't crappy like everything else in that price range. Oh yeah, don't forget to use Bing cashback because Tiger Direct usually does 8%. I've totally used GS series power supplies for cheap builds for friends because it would be insane to use a $100 PSU for a $400 computer, but you wouldn't want to use the crap that comes with a cheap case either.

BTW, I've load tested a GS-450 at 350W for around 20-30 minutes and it held up fine. I've also load tested a "450W" power supply that came in an unbranded $40 case from Geeks.com and it basically lasted a few seconds before starting to melt at less than half the claimed wattage (autopsy showed the solder and PCB started melting and shorted against the casing).

[Mr.Guvernment]

Some antecs are bad but some are good. Is it unreasonable for customers to complain and condemn Antec? Is it the customer's responsibility to discover whether this is a good model or one which is destined to fail? Does this mean Antec is a good company?

IMO, with so many bad PSUs and occasional good ones, I don't trust Antec as a company anymore. On the contrary, corsair's PSUs are generally good, with some exceptional ones, like hx850. But no particular Corsair model that I know of is as bad as the worse Antec. Sure, there are some QC problems with corsair PSUs, but that's once in a blue moon, and it does not apply to the entire series.

i disagree, if Antec is say a "household name" it got that way for being a good company, now if they choose to take shortcuts on cheaper level PSU's. then they should make sure they perform, if they went with some no name maker for low end, and a high end maker for their higher ups, then it is their own fault if they get a bad name

if i buy say a 450w Corsair or a 1000w Corsair, i expect the same quality all around, these companies need to stop taking short cuts and offer the same level of quality across all of their products.

i do also believe people should research before they buy, with an infinite amount of information available to them at the touch of a few words, it is easy, but again, if all they read is "antec is awesome" then it should not matter which antec they buy....

[mjw21a]

My first and last antec PSU was a 330W TruePower which shipped with my old Antec Performance Plus 660AMG, lasted about 4 years and 3 separate systems before it became the cause of stabillity issues.

My replacement PSU was a modular 520W Skyhawk (piece of cr@p), and after that I went to my current Corsair HX-520. My secondary rig is running a 550W Vantec ION2 (Topower) PSU.

The only failures were my ancient 330W TruePower and the SkyHawk sucked to begin with.....

[Zap]

these companies need to stop taking short cuts and offer the same level of quality across all of their products.


That will not happen for any company that does not want to relegate themselves into a tiny niche. Not everyone cares about choosing a PSU with only 30mV ripple over one with 40mV ripple, but most people care that the PSU is in-stock when they need it, plus at a price that they're willing to pay. Enthusiasts also care that the PSU is of sufficient quality. Maybe hardcore enthusiasts care about that last tiny bit of performance/quality, but you can't grow a profitable business catering only to them - not when PSUs are commodities.

Even Corsair's lowest end units are not quite in the same league as their higher wattage units as far as platform and performance (ripple, etc.) is concerned. If Corsair made a 400-450W PSU that was exactly as good as their 850W PSU, they would not be able to sell any of them (at a profit) because they would be priced a lot higher than they are right now.

My first and last antec PSU was a 330W TruePower... lasted about 4 years and 3 separate systems
...
The only failures were my ancient 330W TruePower and.....

Four years is a pretty good amount of time for a PSU. The original Antec TruePower units had Fuhjyyu capacitors which turned out to have shorter lifespans than better capacitors. Note that I said "shorter." All capacitors have a limited lifespan, especially the common electrolytic capacitors used in most modern electronics. They "age" due to time and heat.

Of course the Skyhawk PSU was just full of fail.

[AnteRep]

I've had it. I've had 3 Antec PSUs over the last 6 years, and they all share one thing in common, they're all dead. None of them were overloaded, each system was well below their rated load capacity.

1) NeoPower 480 - Ah she was a beauty, queen of her day. But alas after her warranty passed - >POP!< - and she was no more. That little mini explosion actually blew a transistor right off the circuit board.

2) SmartPower 350 - She seemed pretty smart at the time, just the thing to power my daughter's P4D. Again a nice modular PSU, so I thought. The one day the LED fans started to slower and dimmer, then brighter and faster, and so on. Hmmm ... that's no good. Should have known better, but after turning it off until cold, I turned it back on again. This time there was a bigger - > P O P ! < - which included a burst of flames, and cloud of smoke. When the dust settled, there was 1 dead Antec PSU, and 1 dead 80GB boot drive. (I sent the drive to i365 for evaluation. I figured it was probably a simple electronic fix and shouldn't be too bad. Well I was right it was a simple fix, but they wanted to charge me $700, and it was going to take 3-4 weeks. I said no thanks.)

3) SmartPower 500 - I bought this bi*ch to replace the Neo-Powersupply that threw up a transistor. My wife had to have her computer up immediately, so I had to pay a premium for said bi*ch from Staples. At the time the SmartPower 350 was still alive, so I figured it should be a safe bet in a pinch. Well two years later, she joined her lesser sibling in the trash heap, hopefully where that dude with horns lives. But unlike her older relatives, she just went quietly, though emits a high pitched whining sound, when you flip her switch.

I thought ah, it's just a PSU failure, no worries. Yea, right. Sure enough after I installed my brand new OCZ Fatal1ty 550 (yea that's right, no more Antec in my house), my boot drive didn't show up in the BIOs. NOOOOOOO! Checked all my connections, moved it to another bus, put it on it's own power cable, then it was confirmed after plugging it into my APRICORN USB SATA adapter. My wife's relatively new 7200.12 Barracuda was pronounced dead.

What confuses me is that I have two 7200.8 Barracudas in the same system RAID 1, and they are both unscathed. Thank god, as they are all my families digital pictures. Maybe 7200.8's are just more rugged, 7200.12's are much smaller.

So there's my tail of woe, a cautionary tail for all other casual enthusiasts. Have a bulletproof backup strategy, and in my humble opinion stay as far away from Antec PSUs entry-level Antec PSUs as possible.

edit

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/46/Bahamas_beach.JPG

Can't have a post without a picture....

Hi MotzKopf,

I am sorry to hear that you've been having a few defective power supply from us. Most of the time, we have great power supplies that last long like a few of the other members have said. If any of your power supplies are still in warranty, please feel free to contact our customer support team so they could replace the power supply for you. Here is the link to contact our customer support. Please let me know if you have any questions, I will be more than happy to answer them. Again, I apologize for the three defective power supplies. I really hope we could somehow get you back to using our Antec products.

Regards,
Antec

[ratbuddy]

I have an Antec Smartpower 2.0 450 watter. I heard about the bad caps so I called Antec to ask if my PSU was affected. They took the date code and said it was the same month they stopped using the bad caps, so they couldn't be sure if my PSU was ok or not. They didn't offer an RMA and I didn't ask for one, I just stopped using the PSU before it could blow something up. It's literally a ($80) doorstop now.

[mjw21a]

Four years is a pretty good amount of time for a PSU. The original Antec TruePower units had Fuhjyyu capacitors which turned out to have shorter lifespans than better capacitors. Note that I said "shorter." All capacitors have a limited lifespan, especially the common electrolytic capacitors used in most modern electronics. They "age" due to time and heat.

Of course the Skyhawk PSU was just full of fail.

Yup, thats why I now reasearch my units before buying.... I don't just rely on branding these days. :-/

[MotzKopf]

Hi MotzKopf,

I am sorry to hear that you've been having a few defective power supply from us. Most of the time, we have great power supplies that last long like a few of the other members have said. If any of your power supplies are still in warranty, please feel free to contact our customer support team so they could replace the power supply for you. Here is the link to contact our customer support. Please let me know if you have any questions, I will be more than happy to answer them. Again, I apologize for the three defective power supplies. I really hope we could somehow get you back to using our Antec products.

Regards,
Antec

I appreciate your response, unfortunately none of the power supplies are still under warranty. It seems that the NeoPower was built in such a way that it broke itself before anything could happen to any other components. But both SmartPower power supplies apparently didn't have sufficient voltage protection to prevent component failure.

On the upside, I believe I'll be able to recover my latest drive, with a PCB swap, as it of the current generation (I'll update with my outcome).

Has Antec ever thought of putting fuses on the 12V rails?

I think there would also be a market for 12V line conditioners that could fit in a 5.25" bay to put between a power supply and other 12V components.

I know Antec has a relatively good reputation, which is why I only bought Antec power supplies. I won't say I'll never buy an Antec power supply again, just that I won't be buying any soon. Maybe after my Corsair or OCZ blows up.

[AnteRep]

Hi Overclockers,

The SmartPower power supplies were created and manufactured by Channel Well Technology (CWT), which was a company that swapped out parts and cut some corners without informing us. They weren’t up to our quality standards and have effected the quality to our power supplies. As a result, we are done doing business with them (though they continue to make PSUs for Corsair) and have been using different OEMs ever since.

Best Regards,
Antec

[RJARRRPCGP]

Anyone with an Antec more than 4 years old?

Yes! My True 430 1.0, which was purchased in October, 2003! No signs of failure at this time.

[jmiller0526]

I have a 2 or 3 year old antec 600w, non modular, psu that still runs flawlessly. It was around $100 when i bought it and i think i definitely got more than my moneys worth with that one

[ratbuddy]

Hi Overclockers,

The SmartPower power supplies were created and manufactured by Channel Well Technology (CWT), which was a company that swapped out parts and cut some corners without informing us. They weren’t up to our quality standards and have effected the quality to our power supplies. As a result, we are done doing business with them (though they continue to make PSUs for Corsair) and have been using different OEMs ever since.

Best Regards,
Antec

Oddly enough, Corsair manages to to put out a high quality product even with CWT making them. Maybe Antec also cut corners in the QC department.

[ScottinIndy]

Oddly enough, Corsair manages to to put out a high quality product even with CWT making them. Maybe Antec also cut corners in the QC department.

My thoughts exactly, Dumping all the blame on CWT seems a bit seedy to me.

[RJARRRPCGP]

IIRC, the True 430 1.0 was made by CWT. And still was working fine at least 5 years later, caps looked fine in 2008, when I inspected the caps.

[gvguy39]

I have been using the Antec NeoPower 650 for over 2 years now and is now powering everything in my sig like a champ! Knocking on wood, I shutter making a statement like that, for fear I will power on my computer tomorrow and find the PSU dead...lol. I quickly checked my box and am relieved to find it has a 5 yr warranty.

[cobra342_]

I put an Antec earthwatts in my dads computer 6 months ago. In my computer I run a PC power and cooling 750 and in my next computer I'm going with Seasonic. Highly likely this one http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151087 expensive, but sweet. SeaSonic makes the best psu. Corsair, XFX, PC Power and Cooling(Scilencer) all high quality all built by SeaSonic.

[deadlysyn]

I put an Antec earthwatts in my dads computer 6 months ago. In my computer I run a PC power and cooling 750 and in my next computer I'm going with Seasonic. Highly likely this one http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151087 expensive, but sweet. SeaSonic makes the best psu. Corsair, XFX, PC Power and Cooling(Scilencer) all high quality all built by SeaSonic.

Antec has quite a few PSU's that were(?) Seasonic built. The Neo Series, and the lower power EarthWatts come to mind. Their higher powered and higher end PSU's seem to be Delta built now.:thup:

[cobra342_]

Who looks like a fool now?
ME:sly:

[deadlysyn]

Who looks like a fool now?
ME:sly:

I wouldn't say you look like a fool. We all learn something new every day. HERE (http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Review_Cat&recatnum=13) is an amazing resource for you. I keep it bookmarked, just so I can keep up on things when I have the time.

[lordkosc]

guess some people just have bad luck, I have 4 antec psu's, one going on 7 years , running non-stop, and no issues.

[cobra342_]

Thanks Deadlysyn lost all my bookmarks a few weeks ago and been trying to get them all back. Also it is good to have another good site to add to the mix.

[4GHZ_or_bust]

I hope I have the good luck. I've had Antec power supply for a whopping 2.... weeks with no problem so far. It's a big 1000w PSU for my main to handle dual GTX 470 and overclocked AMD x6 CPU. I could probably have gone with 850 and still have some room but at the time of ordering, the 1000w was like $10 more and it meant I'd have lots of power room if I decide to go crazy like a dozen hard drives or try for tri-SLi GTX 470 (after mobo upgrade, current supports 2 PCIe x8 and doesn't support SLi)

[deadlysyn]

I hope I have the good luck. I've had Antec power supply for a whopping 2.... weeks with no problem so far. It's a big 1000w PSU for my main to handle dual GTX 470 and overclocked AMD x6 CPU. I could probably have gone with 850 and still have some room but at the time of ordering, the 1000w was like $10 more and it meant I'd have lots of power room if I decide to go crazy like a dozen hard drives or try for tri-SLi GTX 470 (after mobo upgrade, current supports 2 PCIe x8 and doesn't support SLi)

Sounds like you might have gotten into that deal that was posted in Cyber Deals not too long ago?:comp:

[burebista]

Their higher powered and higher end PSU's seem to be Delta built now.:thup:
TP New are Seasonic S12D. Quattro are Enhance. :)

[deadlysyn]

TP New are Seasonic S12D. Quattro are Enhance. :)

And if IIRC, CP and Signature are both Delta builds. It has been a while since I have read the reviews though.:)

[burebista]

Yep. EarthWatts with D suffix are Delta too.

[QuietIce]

I've had it. I've had 3 Antec PSUs over the last 6 years, and they all share one thing in common, they're all dead. None of them were overloaded, each system was well below their rated load capacity.

1) NeoPower 480 - Ah she was a beauty, queen of her day. But alas after her warranty passed - >POP!< - and she was no more. That little mini explosion actually blew a transistor right off the circuit board.

2) SmartPower 350 - She seemed pretty smart at the time, just the thing to power my daughter's P4D. Again a nice modular PSU, so I thought. The one day the LED fans started to slower and dimmer, then brighter and faster, and so on. Hmmm ... that's no good. Should have known better, but after turning it off until cold, I turned it back on again. This time there was a bigger - > P O P ! < - which included a burst of flames, and cloud of smoke. When the dust settled, there was 1 dead Antec PSU, and 1 dead 80GB boot drive. (I sent the drive to i365 for evaluation. I figured it was probably a simple electronic fix and shouldn't be too bad. Well I was right it was a simple fix, but they wanted to charge me $700, and it was going to take 3-4 weeks. I said no thanks.)

3) SmartPower 500 - I bought this bi*ch to replace the Neo-Powersupply that threw up a transistor. My wife had to have her computer up immediately, so I had to pay a premium for said bi*ch from Staples. At the time the SmartPower 350 was still alive, so I figured it should be a safe bet in a pinch. Well two years later, she joined her lesser sibling in the trash heap, hopefully where that dude with horns lives. But unlike her older relatives, she just went quietly, though emits a high pitched whining sound, when you flip her switch. Every one of those PSUs you listed is Channel Well OEM ... :( http://forums.guru3d.com/showthread.php?p=2040825#post2040825

[Andrew149]

The seasonic seems to be where you wanna spend your money on a power supply but they dont make a 1000wat psu and than they make a 1000watt power supply for corsair?

[Bluefalcon13]

Anyone with an Antec more than 4 years old?

My old NeoHE 550W mostly modular PSU was/is great. Granted, I pulled it from the system, but powering a mild OC, plus 2 GFX cards (GTX260 + 8800GTS 320MB) while folding isn't very safe.... I upgraded (as you can see in sig) to another Antec, one with a bit more gutso. All in all, the NeoHE ran for just a hair under 4 years, with a single GFX card, and about a month with the dual GFX cards, until I bought my upgrade. No problems from me, I stick with Antec cause its treated me well. Sorry about your bad luck. :)

[athlonhead]

Any recommendations for a line conditioner?


This is what I use. They used to be cheaper on ebay then they are now though.

http://www.tripplite.com/en/products/model.cfm?txtModelID=2833&gclid=CNCAwMLH06ECFRRM5QodQjM9LA

http://cgi.ebay.com/Tripplite-LC1800-TRIPP-LITE-LC-1800-LINE-/130390702681?cmd=ViewItem&pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item1e5be43a59

[bobad]

Just bought an Antec 520W unit, and it came in DOA. GAH!!! I spent a whole
afternoon installing it, careful to route the wires neatly. Turned it on, and just SILENCE!
RMA it, DO IT AGAIN! The power supply was replaced, but that's an afternoon out of my
life I'll never get back.

I was so cheesed off, I spent the rest of the day reading PS reviews. Not only is Antec
having a lot of DOA's, but so are the other premium brands. I think they're all cheaping
out on components. No brand seem to stand out on quality, at least not in the 500-550W
units.

I have 3 or 4 old generic ($20) units laying around that ran for thousands of hours, and
still run. One would think a PS that cost 4X more would last as long as a cheapie. :\

[doz]

Just bought an Antec 520W unit, and it came in DOA. GAH!!! I spent a whole
afternoon installing it, careful to route the wires neatly. Turned it on, and just SILENCE!
RMA it, DO IT AGAIN! The power supply was replaced, but that's an afternoon out of my
life I'll never get back.

I was so cheesed off, I spent the rest of the day reading PS reviews. Not only is Antec
having a lot of DOA's, but so are the other premium brands. I think they're all cheaping
out on components. No brand seem to stand out on quality, at least not in the 500-550W
units.

I have 3 or 4 old generic ($20) units laying around that ran for thousands of hours, and
still run. One would think a PS that cost 4X more would last as long as a cheapie. :\

DOA happens with all parts.... Not just Antec... DOA doesnt mean its a bad product necessarily (unless the DOA numbers are high, which may indicate a problem). Should I not buy Gigabyte, or Asus because I have had DOA items from those companies?

[ArcturusVi]

Just bought an Antec 520W unit, and it came in DOA. GAH!!! I spent a whole
afternoon installing it, careful to route the wires neatly. Turned it on, and just SILENCE!
RMA it, DO IT AGAIN! The power supply was replaced, but that's an afternoon out of my
life I'll never get back.

I was so cheesed off, I spent the rest of the day reading PS reviews. Not only is Antec
having a lot of DOA's, but so are the other premium brands. I think they're all cheaping
out on components. No brand seem to stand out on quality, at least not in the 500-550W
units.

I have 3 or 4 old generic ($20) units laying around that ran for thousands of hours, and
still run. One would think a PS that cost 4X more would last as long as a cheapie. :\

Which is why I test the PSU before I route wires. Also to test other components as well.

[bobad]

Which is why I test the PSU before I route wires. Also to test other components as well.

Well, I guess I've installed 1000 new power supplies, and that's the first DOA
I can remember. You can bet I will test the replacement though! :)

Someone said Seasonic was the best bet right now, but I'm noticing more
complaints on NewEgg than normal. I've never seen power supply quality so
weak over so many usually excellent brands.

[ArcturusVi]

Well, I guess I've installed 1000 new power supplies, and that's the first DOA
I can remember. You can bet I will test the replacement though! :)

Someone said Seasonic was the best bet right now, but I'm noticing more
complaints on NewEgg than normal. I've never seen power supply quality so
weak over so many usually excellent brands.

I wasn't trying to be a complete jerk, if it came off that way. I too buy trusted brands, but still do a POST test before I put everything together. Makes knowing if it's a short, nixed connection, etc, rather than tracking hardware down.

I do this mainly because of two DOA ASUS boards I received. Third one was a charm.

[Voidbringer]

I had an Antec that came in an Antec Sonata case. It lived ... 5 or 6 years? When it died it just made a high pitched sound and didn't work. That's how I want my PSU to die. I bought a Corsair HX520w, which after 3 years and 1 month, caught fire and killed things. That's how I don't want them to die. Now I am using Seasonic X650. I'll let you know how this one works out in a few years. :p

Went through 3 ASUS boards, 1 DOA, 2 died within a year, now using Gigabyte. One is still going after 3 years, using it now in fact, and I've got a new one sitting on the table with a 1055T waiting for a heatsink to get up and running.

Can't trust branding these days, just try and go, and pray. Find something that works for and stick with it until you've a reason otherwise. Then move on.

[Super Nade]

I had an Antec that came in an Antec Sonata case. It lived ... 5 or 6 years? When it died it just made a high pitched sound and didn't work. That's how I want my PSU to die. I bought a Corsair HX520w, which after 3 years and 1 month, caught fire and killed things. That's how I don't want them to die. Now I am using Seasonic X650. I'll let you know how this one works out in a few years. :p

Went through 3 ASUS boards, 1 DOA, 2 died within a year, now using Gigabyte. One is still going after 3 years, using it now in fact, and I've got a new one sitting on the table with a 1055T waiting for a heatsink to get up and running.

Can't trust branding these days, just try and go, and pray. Find something that works for and stick with it until you've a reason otherwise. Then move on.

Wow! Looks like you don't have any luck with your hardware. Why don't you box up your rig and send it to me? Then we can avoid fires and explosions. You pay shipping. :chair: :D

[CompuTamer]

Wow! Looks like you don't have any luck with your hardware. Why don't you box up your rig and send it to me? Then we can avoid fires and explosions. You pay shipping. :chair: :D

I had an Antec that came in an Antec Sonata case. It lived ... 5 or 6 years? When it died it just made a high pitched sound and didn't work. That's how I want my PSU to die. I bought a Corsair HX520w, which after 3 years and 1 month, caught fire and killed things. That's how I don't want them to die. Now I am using Seasonic X650. I'll let you know how this one works out in a few years. :p

Went through 3 ASUS boards, 1 DOA, 2 died within a year, now using Gigabyte. One is still going after 3 years, using it now in fact, and I've got a new one sitting on the table with a 1055T waiting for a heatsink to get up and running.

Can't trust branding these days, just try and go, and pray. Find something that works for and stick with it until you've a reason otherwise. Then move on.
Lol, wow, you don't have great luck! :chair:

I had a PSU out of a cheapo case. Ran my pentium D just fine for a few years, then it just went *bang* *snap* and started smoking... yelled at my dad to unplug the extension cord, and opened it up.

Got to looking, and it was just a burnt out circuit. Got a new PSU, fired it up, and that one is still going today in my server.

The original PSU was probably worth like 5 bucks. Amazed it worked so well.

[=ACID RAIN=]

I wish I'd seen some of this before. An airing of grievances. I love it.

I have had nothing but bad luck with Antec power supplies. I had 3 fail, and on 2, they wouldn't even bother replacing them because I didn't have the receipt a year later. That's when I quit buying from Antec.

I love the digital age though, because now I can prove it. I gave up on this one and played with it some before gutting it for a few parts. I'm still gutting it, so I still have it. It was one of 3 failures I believe. I think it was about a year old. They seemed to like to die right after warranty, like on a schedule.

http://texasoverclockers.com/modules/coppermine/albums/userpics/10002/antecoops1.jpg

http://texasoverclockers.com/modules/coppermine/albums/userpics/10002/antecoops2.jpg

There's another blown cap on the backside of the heatsink as well.

Just to think AntecRep, if your guy on the phone back then had been useful and replaced my still under warranty PSU instead of being a jackass, I would have continued with your products, and wouldn't have steered over a dozen (and counting) away from your brand at purchasing time, not to mention the ones that never made it to the correction phase. Still steering, and people depend on my opinion on a semi-regular basis.

Obviously this is a TP 2.0. Who made that one?

[ScottinIndy]

I wish I'd seen some of this before. An airing of grievances. I love it.

I have had nothing but bad luck with Antec power supplies. I had 3 fail, and on 2, they wouldn't even bother replacing them because I didn't have the receipt a year later. That's when I quit buying from Antec.

I love the digital age though, because now I can prove it. I gave up on this one and played with it some before gutting it for a few parts. I'm still gutting it, so I still have it. It was one of 3 failures I believe. I think it was about a year old. They seemed to like to die right after warranty, like on a schedule.

http://texasoverclockers.com/modules/coppermine/albums/userpics/10002/antecoops1.jpg

http://texasoverclockers.com/modules/coppermine/albums/userpics/10002/antecoops2.jpg

There's another blown cap on the backside of the heatsink as well.


Obviously this is a TP 2.0. Who made that one?

Channel Well

[=ACID RAIN=]

Figures. Thanks for the info. They should have made good on that issue when I called, then.

I could have replace the caps at any point and kept using it, but meh. I've been lazy on that one.

[burebista]

Yep, CWT with infamous Fuhjyyu caps. :bang head

[Voidbringer]

My luck is a fickle and strange creature. The more I trust to it, the better I seem to be. I've got an 10 year old compaq running windows ME still in use upstairs. I've got an 5 year old gateway laptop, that I still use. That little Antec PSU that came with the Sonata case lasted 5-6 years. I've got a Sapphire X800GTO2 video card running in one machine that has been flashed for more pipes, replaced heatsink with a Zalman, and been overclocked for as long as I've had it. I have a 20GB Western Digital HD in a drawer right next to me that still works just fine. In fact, Corsair, ASUS, and Seagate are the only brands to ever fail on me in 10 years.

I suppose things seem a wee bit biased because the only time I ask questions here is when something has recently broken and I am attempting to create a new working setup. Its breaks, I bug you guys to find out how to fix it. :P And then the only time I speak up is against these things that I've had trouble with, trying to nudge people into trying something else. Even then, I expect people to go with these brands anyway.

If you want some positive recommendations, I've never had a Gigabyte, Western Digital, Intel, or AMD product fail. Ever. Next on my list of brand to buy is EVGA, and I am already fairly impressed already by this Seasonic PSU. And all of the shiny new stuff runs inside of my Cooler Master Stacker case, which I love. And most of it is cooled by Zalman heatsinks and Arctic Silver 5, which have always performed flawlessly.

By the way, that is why this main rig doesn't move much even though it has wheels. I have no doubt that this setup clocks in at around 50-55 pounds. No hardware for you. My cinder block. :P

[Clutch_Head]

my true 480 ran my 2.4C@3.5 1.5v with a 9800 pro crunching SETI 24/7.
12v line was 11.98v (load) until i upgraded from 512MB to 1GB of ram.
after a week i came home to a funky smell. voltage dropped to 11.85.
within spec but it was clear i overloaded the PSU.

bottom line it was a solid unit before i cooked it.

[Shell]

Antec PSUs... the first 2 died from bad caps, the second 2 were cheap delta rebrands and they're doing just fine.