Corsair HX620 & Cooler Master iGreen

Testing

To see if these supplies have what it takes to power a real-world enthusiast system, we created just such a rig to stress them out. We built a machine consisting of:

• Athlon FX-60 @ 2.8GHz;
  
• Abit AT8-32X CrossFire motherboard;
  
• X1900 Master card and Slave card for CrossFire;
  
• 2GB Corsair RAM;
  
• Four SATA hard drives and one PATA hard drive;
  
• Two DVD-RW optical drives connected on PATA;
  
• Two 120mm case fans.

We connected up the PSUs and looped 3DMark whilst carrying out a series of processor and system-intensive 2D operations including pre-selected PhotoShop scripts and file compression. This stressed the system and drew heavy load from the PSU. We left the systems looping for 6 hours to see how they would cope.

We recorded the voltages being put across the various rails whilst under load and idle using our trusty multi-meter.

Results

Both systems were happily buzzing away with their workloads at the end of the test period, but we found some interesting differences in the numbers between the two.

We found that the Coolermaster had quite a fluctuating current through the molex connectors whilst under heavy load, with the voltage running up and down between 12.20 and 12.10. Happily, even at 12.10 the devices are still getting enough current to function well. The PCI-Express connectors delivered a more stable voltage at 12.20, keeping our CrossFire cards running.

The Corsair was relatively more solid, with neither 12V rail blinking when asked to pump juice to our hungry components. We were particularly impressed with the performance of the PCI-Express 12V rail which didn't so much as waiver, despite the graphics work our hot CrossFire cards were doing.

Conclusions

The results suggest that our Corsair supply is a worthy entrant into the enthusiast market. It is rock solid under load, has great design features and is backed up by a strong warranty to give you peace of mind. The product designers at Corsair are true enthusiasts, and we get the feeling they've delivered the type of PSU they'd be happy to stick in their own rigs. At £111 it is very expensive, but it's got a unique modular design, is likely to last you well and is a sound investment - you get what you pay for, in this respect.

The Coolermaster unit performed undoubtedly well, too, and its added efficiency will be helpful to those looking to save the environment a little. Over the cost of the year it might save you a couple of quid in electricity, too. However, at £87 we feel it's a little rich for a non-modular supply. For enthusiasts who care at all about case thermals and interior design, modular is, in our view, essential.