Gigabyte UD850GM Power Supply Review

After the issues that the P750GM and P850GM encountered, Gigabyte released the refresh UD line, which uses an updated platform from the same OEM, with all problems solved. The protection features are correctly set now, preventing the PSU from going beyond its limits. We don't often encounter PSUs with tightly set protection features. With all modifications that MEIC did to improve the platform's reliability, it seems that it also affected overall performance, with the UD850GM staying notably behind the P850GM. However, we prefer lower performance and a reliable platform over better performance and less reliable one.

We expect the addition of PCIe 5.0 cables to the UD850GM to keep up with the upcoming GPU releases. Most brands plan on just providing extra cables to keep the existing PSUs in the market, but the cable change alone doesn't make these units ATX v3.0 compatible. The transient response requirements of Intel's new spec are demanding, and although we don't fully agree with them, every PSU that boasts ATX v3.0 compatibility has to pass them without issue. This means that a simple cable change might not be enough for the UD850GM. If it has a PCIe 5.0 connector the next time we encounter it, we will have to run even more demanding tests. Currently, there is no unit in this category with such a connector. 

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Disclaimer: Aris Mpitziopoulos is Tom's Hardware's PSU reviewer. He is also the Chief Testing Engineer of Cybenetics and developed the Cybenetics certification methodologies apart from his role on Tom's Hardware. Neither Tom's Hardware nor its parent company, Future PLC, are financially involved with Cybenetics. Aris does not perform the actual certifications for Cybenetics.