Montech Century II Gold 1050W ATX 3.1 power supply review

Founded in 2016, Montech is a relatively new player in the PC components market, striving to establish itself with a portfolio that includes cases, coolers, power supplies, and peripherals. The company aims to deliver products offering competitive performance at accessible price points, making premium features available to budget-conscious users.

The Montech Century II Gold 1050W is a modern ATX 3.1 power supply unit that targets mainstream PC builders seeking solid performance without extravagant pricing. We examine the Century II Gold to determine whether it's worth taking a spot amongst the best power supplies on our list. Developed in collaboration with XWY (Shenzhen Xin Weiye Technology Co.), a newer OEM founded by former HKC employees, the Century II combines practical design elements with modern power delivery technologies, a modular interface, and compliance with the latest ATX specifications.

Specifications and Design

In the Box

We received the Century II Gold in a large cardboard box with a brushed metal artistic theme. Upon opening, the PSU is contained within a nylon pouch, with foam inserts protecting it during shipping.

The bundle includes the necessary mounting screws, an AC power cable, a few cable ties, and several cable straps – a purely practical accessory set.

The Century II's cables feature black connectors with ribbon-like, unsleeved wires. The unit includes one 12V-2x6 connector and six 6+2 pin PCIe connectors, though it is worth noting that the six PCIe connectors share three cables in pairs. While the total number of connectors is adequate for a 1050W unit, we would have preferred to see two 12V-2x6 connectors for a power supply with this output capacity.

External Appearance

At 140mm in length, the Century II adheres to ATX specifications precisely, ensuring compatibility with any ATX-compliant case. Montech made some effort to make the unit visually appealing without going overboard.

It features a two-tone color scheme, with half black and half silver, finished in matte paint. The sides contain decorative embossments and etchings. The fan finger guard is integrated into the chassis with a triangle-centered pattern that gives the unit a unique appearance, though we have concerns about its aerodynamics potentially increasing noise when the fan spins at high speeds.

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The front features the standard AC cable receptacle and power switch, plus a button to toggle the hybrid fan mode. The top houses a sticker displaying electrical specifications and certifications, while the rear contains the modular cable connectors with a simple surrounding legend.

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Internal Design

The Century II employs a Hong Hua HA13525H12F-Z 135mm fan - a surprising find in a 140mm-long PSU. This fan uses a fluid dynamic bearing (FDB) engine, which typically offers quieter operation than ball-bearing fans while maintaining good reliability, though FDB bearings can degrade quickly at high temperatures. Fortunately, the fan is not expected to work overtime since the PSU features a zero-RPM mode. The fan's top speed of about 2300 RPM is very high for its size.

The OEM behind the Century II is XWY (Shenzhen Xin Weiye Technology Co.), a brand-new company founded by former HKC employees. This marks our first encounter with this OEM, though close inspection reveals that the platform is very similar to recent XPG and ThermalTake products previously manufactured by HKC.

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The input filtering stage consists of two Y capacitors, two X capacitors, and two filtering inductors, which is a baseline configuration for a 1050W unit. Two rectifying bridges share a heatsink with the Active Power Factor Correction (APFC) components. The APFC stage uses two WAYON WMJ36N65F2 MOSFETs and one diode on the same heatsink as the rectifiers. A large plain inductor and two Nippon Chemi-Con capacitors (470 μF and 570 μF) complete the APFC circuitry.

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The primary inversion stage employs another two WAYON WMJ36N65F2 MOSFETs on the same heatsink, using a typical half-bridge LLC topology. On the secondary side, six Infineon ISC012N04LM6 MOSFETs at the underside of the PSU generate the primary 12V line, while DC-to-DC circuits on a large vertical daughterboard generate the 3.3V and 5V lines.

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The secondary side capacitors are a mix of Nippon Chemi-Con, Rubycon, and Toshin Kogyo products. While Toshin Kogyo is not commonly found in PC PSUs, it is a reputable Japanese manufacturer.

Cold Test Results

Cold Test Results (25°C Ambient)

For the testing of PSUs, we are using high precision electronic loads with a maximum power draw of 2700 Watts, a Rigol DS5042M 40 MHz oscilloscope, an Extech 380803 power analyzer, two high precision UNI-T UT-325 digital thermometers, an Extech HD600 SPL meter, a self-designed hotbox and various other bits and parts.

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Under standard conditions, the Century II Gold achieved 90.3% average efficiency at 115 VAC and 91.1% at 230 VAC across the 10% to 100% load range. The unit meets and greatly exceeds the 80Plus Gold certification requirements at low-to-medium loads, but misses the Platinum certification because its efficiency drops significantly at maximum load. This explains why Cybenetics awards it a Platinum certification while CLEAResult gives it Gold, Cybenetics largely bases their rating on average efficiency rather than peak load performance. We should note that the Cybenetics certification is published by Montech’s marketing and is printed on the box of the unit itself but Cybenetics have not published their certification results at the time of this review. The efficiency curve shows optimal performance between 40% and 50% load, where it reaches its peak values. At very low loads, the unit demonstrates passable but not exceptional efficiency.

The fan remains inactive until the load approaches 400 watts, contributing to the unit's silent operation during typical desktop usage. Beyond this threshold, fan speed increases linearly with load while maintaining relatively low noise levels throughout most of the operating range. The unit's thermal performance is good under standard conditions, with internal components remaining well within safe temperature limits even at higher loads, indicating effective thermal design despite the compact 140mm length.

Hot Test Results

Hot Test Results (~45°C Ambient)

In elevated ambient temperatures, the Century II's average efficiency decreased to 89.1% at 115 VAC and 89.8% at 230 VAC. The efficiency decline is measurable but not critical, with slightly more pronounced degradation at heavy loads, suggesting minor thermal stress.

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The fan activates much sooner in hot conditions, engaging at just below 200 watts. It maintains a low speed up to 600 watts, after which it increases significantly, raising noise levels potentially due to both fan speed and aerodynamic turbulence from the fan grill design. The fan approaches maximum speed only at full load under high temperature conditions.

PSU Quality and Bottom Line

Power Supply Quality

The Montech Century II Gold demonstrated very good electrical performance overall. Ripple measurements revealed maximum deviations of 30 mV on the 12V rail, 16 mV on the 5V rail, and 18 mV on the 3.3V rail—all well below the ATX specification limits. The voltage ripple filtering is fantastic across all voltage lines. Voltage regulation is slightly above 1% for all rails (12V: 1.1%, 5V: 1.4%, 3.3V: 1.2%), which while not exceptional, is very good for a unit in this class.

During our thorough assessment, we evaluate the essential protection features of every power supply unit we review, including Over Current Protection (OCP), Over Voltage Protection (OVP), Over Power Protection (OPP), and Short Circuit Protection (SCP). The protection features function properly, with OCP limits set at 140% for the 3.3V rail, 146% for the 5V rail, and 126% for the 12V rail. OPP triggered at 128% under hot conditions. While these protection triggers seem high, they are not excessively so, and the higher values for the 3.3V and 5V lines likely result from the manufacturer underrating the DC-to-DC circuitry, which benefits long-term reliability.

Bottom Line

The Montech Century II Gold 1050W ATX 3.1 is a well-engineered power supply that delivers solid performance at an exceptional price point. With its balanced aesthetic featuring a two-tone color scheme (half black, half silver) and modest decorative elements, the unit offers a distinctive appearance without sacrificing functionality. At exactly 140mm in length, it adheres perfectly to ATX specifications, ensuring compatibility with virtually any modern case. It features a fully modular design with practical cabling, though the decision to share three cables for six PCIe connectors and include only one 12V-2x6 connector is somewhat limiting for a 1050W unit that might otherwise power multiple high-end components.

Electrically, the Century II Gold performs very well for its class. Voltage regulation hovers slightly above 1% for all rails and ripple suppression is excellent, with values well below industry limits. Protection circuits function properly, with OCP limits set at 140% for the 3.3V rail, 146% for the 5V rail, and 126% for the 12V rail, while OPP triggers at 128% under hot conditions. These figures demonstrate solid power delivery stability suitable for high-performance gaming systems and workstations with demanding components. The PSU's protection circuits also function properly, with OCP trigger points set a bit high but not excessively so, providing adequate protection while allowing for power headroom during transient loads. The seemingly high triggers for the 3.3V and 5V rails likely reflect conservative ratings for the DC-to-DC circuitry, potentially benefiting long-term reliability.

The Century II maintains good internal temperatures under standard conditions, though performance declines somewhat under heavy load in high ambient temperatures. The 135mm FDB fan is an impressive inclusion in such a compact unit, and the zero-RPM mode keeps the unit silent up to moderate loads (approximately 400W in standard conditions, 200W in elevated temperatures). However, when heavily loaded in hot environments, the fan speed increases substantially, approaching its high maximum of 2300 RPM, and the triangle-centered pattern fan grid may contribute to increased noise through aerodynamic turbulence. Component selection shows thoughtful engineering, with great quality parts and craftsmanship, enhancing reliability.

In conclusion, while the OEM behind this unit (XWY) is new to the market, their engineering team's heritage from HKC is evident in the solid platform design. The Montech Century II Gold 1050W represents an impressive value proposition, offering balanced all-around performance without critical weaknesses. Currently retailing for just $110 and backed by a 10-year warranty, it represents exceptional value for an ATX 3.1 compliant PSU with its combination of good electrical performance, adequate thermal management, and quality component selection. For builders seeking reliable power for high-performance systems without breaking the bank, the Century II Gold 1050W makes a compelling case as the practical choice in the mainstream enthusiast power supply market.

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