Bitfenix Whisper Series 550W PSU Review
Bitfenix recently released its Whisper PSU family, which, as it name implies, promises quiet operation. This review focuses on the 550W model, offering 80 PLUS Gold efficiency and fully modular cabling.
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Protection Features, Evaluated
Check out our PSUs 101 article to learn more about PSU protection features.
Our protection features evaluation methodology is described in detail here.
Protection Features | |
---|---|
OCP | 12V1: 35.6A (142.4%) 12V2: 36.0A (144%) 12V3: 38.2A (127.3%) 5V: 28.0A (140%) 3.3V: 29.75A (148.75%) 5VSB: 4.6A (184%) |
OPP | 721.51W (131.18%) |
OTP | Yes (>130°C @ +12V heat sink) |
SCP | 12V: Yes 5V: Yes 3.3V: Yes 5VSB: Yes -12V: Yes |
PWR_OK | Operates properly |
NLO | Yes |
SIP | Surge: MOV Inrush: NTC Thermistor & Bypass Relay |
Because we didn't see excess ripple or lousy load regulation, it's fairly safe to conclude that OCP is configured properly on all rails. The OPP triggering point looks to be a little higher than usual, though the PSU doesn't have a problem delivering over 720W of power subjected to normal operating temperatures.
This platform features over-temperature protection, which is set quite high since the unit is rated at 50°C for continuous full load delivery. Moreover, SCP is present on all rails and the power-good signal provides accurate information to the system. Finally there is a MOV (Metal Oxide Varistor) in the transient filtering stage for protection against spikes, while the inrush current protection consists of an NTC thermistor and a bypass relay.
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Aris Mpitziopoulos is a contributing editor at Tom's Hardware, covering PSUs.
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Aris_Mp Indeed, its performance was a nice surprise for me as well. It's good to see some new competition in this market.Reply -
Nuckles_56 Damn, I wonder what Australian pricing will be like for this unit, as I'd be almost tempted to replace my current PSU with a quieter one like this if it is priced wellReply -
Aris_Mp 19083753 said:Hi, please give me quick advice: Bitfenix Whisper M 550W or Corsair RM550x ?
Which ever you can find at a lower price. Performance wise they are very close.
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jonnyguru One noticeable difference between the RMx and the Whisper is that the RMx uses an MCU for the fan controller instead of the standard thermistor/transistor circuit in the BitFenix product.Reply