Micronics Caslon II 600W PSU Review: A Low-Cost Gem?

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By Aris Mpitziopoulos
published

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Performance, Value, Noise & Efficiency

Performance Rating

The following graph shows the Caslon II’s total performance rating, comparing it to other units we have tested. To be more specific, the tested unit is shown as 100 percent, and every other unit's performance is shown relative to it.

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The Caslon II's overall performance is low due to its outdated platform and the secondary side's group regulated scheme.

Performance Per Dollar

The following chart may be the most interesting to many of you because it depicts the unit's performance-per-dollar score. We looked up the current price of each PSU on popular online shops and used those prices and all relative performance numbers to calculate the index. If the specific unit wasn't available in the United States, we searched for it in popular European Union shops, converting the listed price to USD (without VAT). Note that all of the numbers in the following graph are normalized by the rated power of each PSU.  

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Despite a reasonable price, low performance hits the Caslon II 600W's value score hard.

Noise Rating

The graph below depicts the cooling fan's average noise over the PSU's operating range, with an ambient temperature between 30°C and 32°C (86°F to 89.6°F).

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You can't call this a noisy PSU, but it isn't quiet either.

Efficiency Rating

The following graph shows the PSU's average efficiency throughout its operating range, with an ambient temperature close to 30°C.

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Micronics lands in last place when it comes to efficiency, falling quite a ways behind the competition.


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Aris Mpitziopoulos
Contributing Editor

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

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6 Comments Comment from the forums
  • nobspls
    Why would anyone choose this one say over the Corsair CX650M? Which you can get typically for $50.
    Reply
  • Aris_Mp
    Personally I would also take the CX650M in any day of the week, for $50.
    Reply
  • spentshells
    " Not only does this minimize your carbon footprint"

    The idea of conserving electricity is a fallacy, if you use less the people selling can sell more to someone else..... they aren't just holding on to the energy you saved because you're a hero saving the world.

    Making your footprint smaller doesn't matter in the least when someone else's foot print just gets that much bigger.

    Save some money, sure but for how long? The less you use the more they can charge for that smaller amount later on..... that's how it is.


    On a different note, Ill likely try the psu out at one point on a build for someone else.
    Reply
  • rohs42
    > The idea of conserving electricity is a fallacy

    No it isn't. Of course a 100 megawatt generator will not be turned off if someone saves 10 watts of power. But if a 10 million people save 10 watts of power, then of course it will be turned off. And if 100 million people save 10 watts, then there'll be no business case for that new gigawatt power plant.

    As citizens, consumers and voters we all bear a small share of responsibility for the state of the world, and we all have a small part to play in making it better. It's only through working together that humanity improves. Your appeal to helplessness and apathy is pathetic.
    Reply
  • jabliese
    Hey Tom's,

    Once upon a time, we had an extensive brown out at work, which went on for 3 days. On day 2, I was surprised to find many of the PC's that were still working were on 60v power. Over the years, it did not seem to have a adverse affect on any of the power supplies. Lately, I have been wondering what their efficiency numbers looked like during that time, any chance you could add a severe undervolt test to the power supply suite?
    Reply
  • Aris_Mp
    60V is too low. Most PSUs won't even work at such low voltage. I am surprised to hear that the PSUs at your work were working under such conditions for days.

    Efficiency drops along with voltage input. I want to add more protection tests, however I already have enough fails with the current ones. Nonetheless, I am keeping every suggestion under consideration.
    Reply