Antec High Current Gamer 850W PSU Review: Compact And Powerful

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Load Regulation, Hold-Up Time & Inrush Current

To learn more about our PSU tests and methodology, please check out How We Test Power Supply Units. 

Primary Rails And 5VSB Load Regulation

Load Regulation testing is detailed here.

Hold-Up Time

Our hold-up time tests are described in detail here.

The hold-up time we measure is accurate, as is the power-good signal.

Inrush Current

For details on our inrush current testing, please click here.

Inrush current is low with both voltage inputs.

Load Regulation And Efficiency Measurements

The first set of tests reveals the stability of the voltage rails and the HCG850’s efficiency. The applied load equals (approximately) 10 to 110 percent of the PSU's maximum load in increments of 10 percentage points.

We conducted two additional tests. During the first, we stressed the two minor rails (5V and 3.3V) with a high load, while the load at +12V was only 0.1A. This test reveals whether a PSU is compatible with Intel's C6/C7 sleep states or not. In the second test, we determined the maximum load the +12V rail could handle with minimal load on the minor rails.

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Test #12V5V3.3V5VSBDC/AC (Watts)EfficiencyFan SpeedPSU NoiseTemps (In/Out)PF/AC Volts
15.199A1.984A1.976A0.986A84.85286.522%478 RPM9.6 dB(A)38.13°C0.969
12.165V5.048V3.336V5.071V98.07044.56°C115.05V
211.414A2.968A2.967A1.186A169.71989.731%496 RPM9.8 dB(A)38.87°C0.983
12.165V5.045V3.334V5.061V189.14145.77°C115.03V
317.989A3.473A3.475A1.385A254.94090.470%512 RPM11.5 dB(A)39.34°C0.986
12.166V5.042V3.332V5.051V281.79646.80°C115.01V
424.544A3.963A3.960A1.586A339.75890.397%515 RPM11.5 dB(A)39.86°C0.988
12.166V5.040V3.330V5.041V375.85248.19°C115.03V
530.752A4.966A4.953A1.786A424.64889.976%525 RPM11.7 dB(A)40.19°C0.988
12.167V5.038V3.328V5.031V471.95849.41°C115.02V
636.975A5.953A5.950A1.991A509.63989.328%823 RPM20.5 dB(A)41.32°C0.988
12.167V5.036V3.326V5.020V570.52551.06°C115.03V
743.194A6.954A6.945A2.196A594.58888.574%1185 RPM30.2 dB(A)42.02°C0.989
12.166V5.034V3.324V5.008V671.29352.26°C115.03V
849.424A7.948A7.945A2.400A679.57187.755%1646 RPM40.5 dB(A)43.61°C0.990
12.164V5.032V3.322V4.996V774.40054.51°C115.01V
956.066A8.454A8.458A2.400A764.51386.908%2053 RPM46.0 dB(A)44.65°C0.990
12.163V5.030V3.320V4.991V879.68056.17°C115.03V
1062.450A8.953A8.947A3.015A849.28485.787%2130 RPM49.1 dB(A)44.98°C0.991
12.163V5.029V3.318V4.973V989.99356.98°C115.01V
1169.430A8.956A8.952A3.017A934.18784.431%2150 RPM49.2 dB(A)46.28°C0.992
12.163V5.028V3.317V4.967V1106.44859.09°C115.03V
CL10.100A12.013A12.006A0.005A101.86484.708%520 RPM11.6 dB(A)41.49°C0.978
12.167V5.043V3.335V5.087V120.25351.22°C115.08V
CL269.958A1.002A1.002A1.002A864.30885.962%2140 RPM49.1 dB(A)45.97°C0.991
12.163V5.034V3.323V5.026V1005.45355.86°C115.04V

Load regulation on the +12V rail is flawless, and it's fairly tight on the minor rails. The HCG850's efficiency satisfies the 80 PLUS Gold standard's requirements with 20% of its maximum-rated load, it's a hair away with 50% load, and the PSU falls notably under its 87% requirement with full load. Then again, we run our tests at a much higher ambient temperature than the 80 PLUS organization.

At up to 60% of its maximum load, this PSU is downright quiet. Afterward, it starts to make its presence known. The HCG850 is particularly loud in the last three tests, where its fan spins at high speeds.

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Aris Mpitziopoulos
Contributing Editor

Aris Mpitziopoulos is a contributing editor at Tom's Hardware, covering PSUs.