Tom's Hardware Verdict
The PowerSpec PSX 850GFM achieves a high value score thanks to its fair price. For a few dollars more, though, there are better-performing PSUs out there. This power supply is worth considering if you don't want to spend more than $100, but must have integrated RGB lighting.
Pros
- +
Reasonable price
- +
ETA-A & 80 PLUS Gold efficiency
- +
Not noisy (LAMBDA-A-)
- +
Fully modular
- +
2x EPS and 6x PCIe connectors
- +
Selectable semi-passive operation
- +
RGB lighting
Cons
- -
Over-temperature protection is missing or set too high
- -
Low-quality fan
- -
PCIe and EPS sockets are identical (on the PSU side)
- -
Badly tuned OCP at 3.3V
- -
Less than 17ms hold-up time
- -
Short distance between four-pin Molex connectors
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Features & Specifications
PowerSpec, formerly called Inland, is Micro Center's house brand. For those of you who aren't familiar with Micro Center, it's considered one of America's leading electronics device retailers, with 25 stores across the nation. Although some of the company's products are only available in-store, most of its PowerSpec PSUs can be purchased online. The PSX 850GFM, specifically, sells for $100 through Micro Center's website. It offers 80 PLUS Gold and ETA-A efficiency levels, modular cabling, and RGB lighting. But perfection eludes this model: its biggest weakness is a BaoDiKai cooling fan that employs a sleeve bearing. We're not sure it'll make it through Micro Center's 10-year warranty. The company should have ditched the RGB lighting in favor of a better fan.
The PSX 850GFM has the name Super Power on its box, though we're not sure if that's a series designator or just a marketing description. We do know that High Power manufactures this PSU. Because the OEM does a good job of building value-oriented platforms, its designs are popular among smaller brands looking to populate their own power supply portfolios.
Specifications
| Manufacturer (OEM) | High Power |
| Max. DC Output | 850W |
| Efficiency | 80 PLUS Gold, ETA-A (88-91%) |
| Noise | LAMBDA-A- (25-30 dB[A]) |
| Modular | ✓ (Fully) |
| Intel C6/C7 Power State Support | ✓ |
| Operating Temperature (Continuous Full Load) | 0 - 50°C |
| Over Voltage Protection | ✓ |
| Under Voltage Protection | ✓ |
| Over Power Protection | ✓ |
| Over Current (+12V) Protection | ✓ |
| Over Temperature Protection | ✗ |
| Short Circuit Protection | ✓ |
| Surge Protection | ✓ |
| Inrush Current Protection | ✓ |
| Fan Failure Protection | ✗ |
| No Load Operation | ✓ |
| Cooling | 135mm Sleeve Bearing Fan (BDH13525S) |
| Semi-Passive Operation | ✓ (Selectable) |
| Dimensions (WxHxD) | 152 mm (W) x 87 mm (H) x 162 mm (D) |
| Weight | 1.59 kg (3.51 lb) |
| Form Factor | ATX12V v2.4, EPS 2.92 |
| Warranty | 10 Years |
PowerSpec's PSX 850GFM is 80 PLUS Gold- and ETA-A-certified. With regard to noise, it satisfies the LAMBDA-A- specification's requirements; it isn't noisy under normal operating conditions. Our test results do suggest that this PSU lacks over-temperature protection. Moreover, the first two samples we tested had issues with over-current protection on the 3.3V rail being set too high, leading to the DC-DC converter's failure. High Power reviewed our findings and subsequently lowered the OCP's triggering point at 3.3V.
The 135mm sleeve bearing-based fan might have RGB lighting, but its build quality is low (especially for a $100 PSU covered by a 10-year warranty). A higher-quality fan with at least a rifle bearing should have been used instead. There is a selectable semi-passive mode available, which alleviates some of the fan's workload if you leave it enabled.
A depth measurement of 162mm is considered fairly compact. However, similar-capacity PSUs like Seasonic's Focus Plus models feature even smaller dimensions.
Power Specifications
| Rail | 3.3V | 5V | 12V | 5VSB | -12V | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Max. Power | Amps | 22 | 22 | 70.9 | 3 | 0.3 |
| Watts | 120 | 850 | 15 | 3.6 | ||
| Total Max. Power (W) | 850 |
On paper, the minor rails deliver up to 120W maximum power, though we found they can go much higher. The single +12V rail is able to handle the PSX 850GFM's full capacity on its own. This is typical for a PSU that utilizes DC-DC converters for the minor rails. Moreover, the 5VSB rail sports enough capacity to satisfy a modern system's needs.
Cables & Connectors
| Modular Cables | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Description | Cable Count | Connector Count (Total) | Gauge | In Cable Capacitors |
| ATX connector 20+4 pin (600mm) | 1 | 1 | 18AWG | No |
| 4+4 pin EPS12V (650mm+150mm) | 2 | 2 | 16-18AWG | No |
| 6+2 pin PCIe (500mm+150mm) | 3 | 6 | 16AWG | No |
| SATA (500mm+150mm+150mm150mm) | 3 | 12 | 18AWG | No |
| Four-pin Molex (550mm+100mm+100mm+100mm) | 1 | 4 | 18AWG | No |
| FDD Adapter (+150mm) | 1 | 1 | 22AWG | No |
| RGB Cable (580mm+80mm) | 1 | 2 | 26AWG | No |
| AC Power Cord (1430mm) - C13 coupler | 1 | 1 | 14AWG | - |
It's great to see this PSU equipped with two EPS connectors, extending compatibility to motherboards designed for high-end CPUs. There are also six PCIe connectors available, supporting multiple graphics cards in small cryptocurrency mining systems. You get plenty of SATA connectors, along with four Molex connectors for peripheral devices like fans and water cooling pumps. Besides a Berg adapter, an RGB cable is also provided for connecting the PSU to a motherboard with lighting control/sync options.
The cables don't have any extra ripple filtering capacitors, and their length is satisfactory. The distance between connectors is ideal on all of cables except for the four-pin Molex ones, where the connectors are only 10cm apart. We'd like to see 15cm between them, at least.
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