Raidmax Monster RX-700AT Power Supply Review

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Pros, Cons And Final Verdict

Raidmax has a close relationship with Andyson, since most of its PSU portfolio is made by this manufacturer. Naturally, it's one of the first companies to adopt Andyson's new Titanium platform.

This isn't a cutting-edge design, but it still offers very high efficiency. And under optimal conditions it satisfies the 80 PLUS Titanium requirements. The RX-700AT features tight load regulation and good ripple suppression at +12V, and it has an efficient 5VSB rail that also scores the best load regulation we've ever measured. The minor rails perform well in our suite, except for the Advanced Transient Response tests where the 3.3V rail couldn't keep its voltage above 3.2V. Nevertheless, it doesn't go out of the corresponding ATX spec, so the RX-700AT technically passes.

Aside from its official price, this is a good PSU. Where Raidmax really slips up is a lackluster warranty. Even mainstream PSUs from the competition include three-year coverage, but the RX-700AT only gives you two years. Since Andyson's very similar N700 is backed by a five-year warranty, we have a hard time swallowing Raidmax's warranty approach. We have to imagine there was a disagreement with the manufacturer (Andyson) on this matter.

Despite the many good aspects of this PSU, there are some questionable areas, including the single EPS connector and the high inrush currents that show a serious omission in the design. Raidmax left off an NTC thermistor, responsible for protecting against large inrush currents, in an effort to increase efficiency. If the company backed up the thermistor with a bypass relay, efficiency wouldn't have been dinged. Another significant problem is the low hold-up time, which is followed by a longer power-good signal. Once that signal is de-asserted, the +12V rail is out of spec and close to 11V. This is an issue that needs addressing immediately. If Andyson's engineers try to increase the hold-up time with larger bulk caps, efficiency will take a hit and likely torpedo the Titanium rating. Still, we expect PSUs to satisfy the ATX spec's guidelines, and the power-good signal should be at least 1ms lower than the actual hold-up time. It's unfortunate that we run into this problem so often.

To wrap up, Raidmax's MSRP is definitely high. However, the company claims its RX-700AT's will sell for about $20 less, so expect a street price around $130. If we could get the company to extend its warranty to five years, this PSU would become a decent choice for anyone who wants Titanium efficiency without breaking the bank. As it sits now, though, many enthusiasts will keep looking for better-protected alternatives. Finally, the hold-up time issue needs to be fixed sooner than later. It's up to Raidmax to turn all of our complaints around to make the RX-700AT a more competitive product. 

Update 5/18/2016: Raidmax informed us that the warranty of the RX-700AT has been extended to five years.

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Aris Mpitziopoulos is a Contributing Editor for Tom's Hardware, covering Power Supplies.

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Contributing Editor

Aris Mpitziopoulos is a Contributing Editor at Tom's Hardware US, covering PSUs.

  • vladm007
    You can see the level of faith Raidmax has on the quality by having a 2 years warranty.
    Reply
  • g-unit1111
    17870964 said:
    You can see the level of faith Raidmax has on the quality by having a 2 years warranty.

    Yeah that's kind of a deal breaker. :lol:
    Reply
  • turkey3_scratch
    Another unit cheating on the PWR_OK tests. I'm sick of this crap. Also, those caps on the modular board don't look like Chemi-Con polymers, they look like electrolytics (not that it matters, I'm just questioning if you made a wording error). I also don't like the lack of a thermistor at all. That's some really high inrush current. They could have dished out some cash for one and a relay. I also think the warranty needs increased, but realistically it should last a lot longer than 2 years.
    Reply
  • powernod
    17871369 said:
    Another unit cheating on the PWR_OK tests. I'm sick of this crap. Also, those caps on the modular board don't look like Chemi-Con polymers, they look like electrolytics (not that it matters, I'm just questioning if you made a wording error). I also don't like the lack of a thermistor at all. That's some really high inrush current. They could have dished out some cash for one and a relay. I also think the warranty needs increased, but realistically it should last a lot longer than 2 years.

    Exactly my thoughts! ;)
    Failure at Power_OK signal & huge amount of inrush current = Deal-breaker for me :pfff:
    Reply
  • Aris_Mp
    if they provide a 5-year warranty and work on the price it has potential. The inrush current is an easy fix with a relay-bypass relay, however the lower than the required hold-up time isn't so easy addressable. A larger bulk cap will need more Amps to charge and more Amps lead to increase power losses, so efficiency will take a hit.
    Reply
  • basroil
    Very close to be very good, and then it fails at the holdup time... looks like there's still only two real PSU manufacturers (seasonic and superflower)
    Reply
  • Sakkura
    Why would anyone wonder why Raidmax only has a 2-year warranty? With the junk they've released in the past, it's a miracle they provide any warranty at all.
    Reply
  • g-unit1111
    17872208 said:
    if they provide a 5-year warranty and work on the price it has potential. The inrush current is an easy fix with a relay-bypass relay, however the lower than the required hold-up time isn't so easy addressable. A larger bulk cap will need more Amps to charge and more Amps lead to increase power losses, so efficiency will take a hit.

    I think any warranty above 5 years is kind of redundant. In 7 or 10 years you won't have that PSU anyways since you'll be replacing it with something new to keep up with new tech. 5 years I would say is about the length of time a warranty should be.
    Reply
  • turkey3_scratch
    17872463 said:
    Very close to be very good, and then it fails at the holdup time... looks like there's still only two real PSU manufacturers (seasonic and superflower)

    Superflower cheats on holdup time on various units. Look at the Leadex Gold 550. The 650 G2 also is a problem most likely, and the 750 G2.
    Reply
  • firefoxx04
    I've used their cheaper units 3 times. One failed, however, it's environment was a worst case scenario. Very hot Michigan summer with no ac, dusty room, and almost always running the system with 100% cpu and gpu load.
    Reply