The XPG Core Reactor II VE 850W PSU Review: Our First ATX 3.1 Power Supply
by E. Fylladitakis on May 2, 2024 10:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Cases/Cooling/PSUs
- PSUs
- 80Plus Gold
- XPG
- ATX v3.1
Hot Test Results (~45°C Ambient Temperature)
During its hot testing phase, the XPG Core Reactor II VE 850W PSU exhibits a marked decrease in efficiency under heavy loads, with figures dropping to 88.9% under a 115 VAC input and 89.7% with a 230 VAC source, compared to 90.9% and 91.7%, respectively, during cold testing. This significant decline is accentuated at higher load levels and is accompanied by signs of significant thermal stress. Although this PSU is rated for operation at an ambient temperature of up to 40°C, the effect that higher ambient temperatures had on its performance are rather severe.
In hot testing conditions, the fan of the XPG Core Reactor II VE 850W PSU operates continuously, at higher speeds than with a low ambient temperature and further increasing its speed as the load surpasses 400 Watts. It also nears its maximum speed as it approaches 80% capacity. This operational characteristic keeps the PSU relatively tolerable up to 60-65% load. However, beyond that point, the noise level rises significantly, making the unit audibly noticeable.
With its 120 mm fan, the XPG Core Reactor II VE 850W PSU effectively handles cooling, but temperatures do become uncomfortably high when the load exceeds 75%. Despite this increase, the temperatures remain below the threshold necessary to trigger the over-temperature protection (OTP). The designer seems to have made a major effort in balancing acoustics and thermal performance/reliability.
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meacupla - Friday, May 3, 2024 - link
Fire extinguisher for $40~50 is going to be like 1/100th the cost of a 5090, so it's a good investment. ReplyPeachNCream - Friday, May 3, 2024 - link
Funny, I don't recall my phone or laptop needing a power connector dedicated to the graphics capability. They both still seem perfectly capable of running Candy Crush, oddly enough. Replycharlesg - Friday, May 3, 2024 - link
Based on your prior comments, it appears you are quite computer literate. Or know how to use ChatGPT well.Therefore I'm surprised you don't know we're talking about a PSU that is used on "above average" capability computers, and not a phone or laptop?
And not necessarily even computers that are used to play Candy Crush! Reply
GeoffreyA - Saturday, May 4, 2024 - link
I think he makes a good point: isn't it rather ridiculous that high-end GPUs use so much power that they need a connector of their own? The phone, in contrast, can do a fair bit of graphics with merely a battery.It's the idea that budget hardware can, at a fraction of the power or cost, do 60, 70, 80% of what expensive, high-end hardware can. It's not too far from thinking in a Core-Zen fashion instead of Netburst. Reply
TheinsanegamerN - Monday, May 6, 2024 - link
No? Nothing is stopping you from gaming on a GT 1030. Why should GPUs stop scaling at an arbitrary point?you know what's ridiculous? Comparing a multi teraflop processing unit to a cell phone then pontificating about power use. Reply
GeoffreyA - Monday, May 6, 2024 - link
Fair enough. Let GPUs use the power needed to achieve their performance levels. It's better we have these than not. On the other side, many people will go on playing quite happily on phones and portable devices. I know a 'teen who games all the time on the Switch, running it on the TV too like a console. Sure, the framerates and graphics weren't the best, but not that bad either.A somewhat unrelated question: how much has graphics in games improved, despite the advances in hardware? Reply
GeoffreyA - Monday, May 6, 2024 - link
I admit my phrasing the other day wasn't the best, and thank you for pointing it out. I still stand by the notion that hardware outside the high end can do much. ReplyThreska - Monday, May 6, 2024 - link
Tune into the gamedev channels on YT and you'll see it has improved quite a bit. Lots of math and that's what GPUs do best. ReplyGeoffreyA - Tuesday, May 7, 2024 - link
Thanks. It just seems to my eyes that the gains haven't been commensurate with the hardware. Crysis 3 had a big part of today's graphics a decade ago. ReplyTheinsanegamerN - Monday, May 6, 2024 - link
Cool. Run Helldivers 2 on your phone and let me know how it goes. Reply