EVGA SuperNOVA 550 G2 PSU Review

Why you can trust Tom's Hardware Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing products and services so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about how we test.

Ripple Measurements

To learn how we measure ripple, please click here.

The following table includes the ripple levels we measured on the rails of the EVGA 550 G2 unit. The limits, according to the ATX specification, are 120mV (+12V) and 50mV (5V, 3.3V and 5VSB).

Swipe to scroll horizontally
Test12V5V3.3V5VSBPass/Fail
10% Load4.7 mV5.9 mV6.1 mV5.0 mVPass
20% Load5.8 mV8.2 mV9.4 mV5.9 mVPass
30% Load6.1 mV8.4 mV10.6 mV6.3 mVPass
40% Load6.5 mV8.4 mV10.2 mV6.5 mVPass
50% Load6.5 mV8.6 mV10.4 mV7.0 mVPass
60% Load6.8 mV8.6 mV10.8 mV7.1 mVPass
70% Load6.9 mV8.7 mV11.5 mV7.3 mVPass
80% Load7.5 mV9.4 mV11.6 mV8.2 mVPass
90% Load7.7 mV9.9 mV11.8 mV9.4 mVPass
100% Load7.9 mV10.1 mV12.4 mV12.2 mVPass
110% Load8.0 mV10.3 mV12.5 mV12.4 mVPass
Cross-Load 16.1 mV8.7 mV11.5 mV10.6 mVPass
Cross-Load 27.8 mV9.7 mV11.6 mV9.8 mVPass

All Super Flower implementations are ripple proof, and this PSU is no exception. Actually, ripple suppression on the 550 G2 is jaw dropping, with less than 10 mV at +12V, even in worst-case scenarios. And on all of the rest of the rails, ripple didn't even reach 13 mV. Ripple suppression is one of the most crucial factors for PSUs, and the SuperNOVA 550 G2 is among the best-performing PSUs money can buy today.

Ripple Oscilloscope Screenshots

The following oscilloscope screenshots illustrate the AC ripple and noise registered on the main rails (+12V, 5V, 3.3V and 5VSB) — the bigger the fluctuations on the screen, the bigger the ripple/noise. We set 0.01V/Div (each vertical division/box equals 0.01V) as the standard for all measurements.

Ripple At Full Load

Ripple At 110 Percent Load

Ripple At Cross-Load 1

Ripple At Cross-Load 2

Aris Mpitziopoulos
Contributing Editor

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

  • marraco
    Wow. Ripple behavior is fantastic.

    I would like to see another test. I had a PC with a Coolermaster PSU and 4 HD which were put to sleep mode/hibernation. Sometimes when the 4 HD were powered up the PC hanged, because the 4 HD demanded so much transient power that it threw the PSU voltages out of specs.

    I was thinking that I had a great PSU, but it was expensive garbage.
    Reply
  • Aris_Mp
    this scenario is covered by the transient response tests, which I conduct in page #7 of the review.
    Reply
  • giantbucket
    i don't get it... isn't this like trying to sell a Ferrari with only 3 cylinders to appeal to the sub-$100,000 clientele?
    Reply
  • dstarr3
    Super Flower makes some great hardware. I'm all over this for my upcoming modest gaming rig.
    Reply
  • damric
    It's all about the LEADEX.
    Reply
  • dstarr3
    i don't get it... isn't this like trying to sell a Ferrari with only 3 cylinders to appeal to the sub-$100,000 clientele?

    The problem is that all of the best-built, best-featured PSUs were being made in 850, 1000, 1200, 1600W variants. If you had just a modest system, something mid-range, you either had to get a PSU that was way overkill, or you had to settle for PSUs that weren't so well built, or as efficient, or as fully-featured. So, this is an attempt to distribute very high-quality products to more of the market. And I am 110% A-Okay with that.
    Reply
  • MasterDell
    i don't get it... isn't this like trying to sell a Ferrari with only 3 cylinders to appeal to the sub-$100,000 clientele?

    The problem is that all of the best-built, best-featured PSUs were being made in 850, 1000, 1200, 1600W variants. If you had just a modest system, something mid-range, you either had to get a PSU that was way overkill, or you had to settle for PSUs that weren't so well built, or as efficient, or as fully-featured. So, this is an attempt to distribute very high-quality products to more of the market. And I am 110% A-Okay with that.
    I agree with this to some extent because there are and were tons of PSU's made by Seasonic. Whether they were Antec units or XFX units OEM'd by Seasonic or not.. They were made by Seasonic. Now, as for fully modular, gold rated variants, those were and still are far and few between. However there are tons of Bronze semi-modular/none modular units which are great for mid-range builds.

    I actually own this unit and used it in a build with a 960. I got it right when it came out and for it's price, it offered a ton. I live in Canada and PSU's are way over-priced and the prices make no sense on them. But this unit was priced extremely well likely due to it's availability so I picked one up. No problems and I am glad EVGA is filling this market void. Good on em.
    Reply
  • Nuckles_56
    Nice to see a low wattage power supply being reviewed for a change and particularly one which performs very well
    Reply
  • turkey3_scratch
    I think I found my PSU. I don't need any 750W, but I had trouble finding a high quality 550W unit, and this is it!
    Reply
  • g-unit1111
    I have two G2s, these are far and away some of the best PSUs on the market! Good to see that EVGA is making some lower wattage models that have the same quality and consistency.
    Reply