Power supply manufacturers are really focusing on 80Plus efficiency standards versus max wattage. And, it seems that many of them are paying closer attention to what we the consumers want. For example, we recently tested one of Rosewill’s strategically focused 750 watt Fortress Platinum power supplies and found that the OEM, ATNG, manufactures decently efficient units for them. While the price conscious unit takes care of them, the Tachyon 1000 Platinum modular PSU caters to a more demanding enthusiast. Let’s take a look to see if the Tachyon 1Kw plant offers what is needed and whether or not it has the heart to keep up with today’s top end systems.
Features and Specifications
While the Fortress series are hard wired for a better budget solution, the Tachyon are modular and appeal to a higher end need. Both share similar designs but the key features are different. Here are the main features that give the Tachyon its purpose and differentiation.
- 80 PLUS PLATINUM Certified – At least 87% efficiency
- Continuous 1000W@50°C
- Single 12V rail power deliver – ideal especially for gaming systems
- SLI & CrossFire Ready – 6 x 6+2pin Connector
- Modular cable design – great for wire management
- One silent 140mm fan with auto fan speed temperature control
- Active-PFC with auto AC-input voltage adjustment(100-240V)
- Smooth black coated housing
- Mesh sleeving on all cables – better appearance and ventilation
- Over Current/Voltage/Power Protection, Under Voltage Protection, and Short Circuit Protection provide maximum safety and component protection
- Safety & EMI Approval: cTUVus, FCC, CE, ROHS
This unit has six 6+2pin connectors. That’s enough for three high end GIGABYTE GTX 670 OC video cards configured in SLI. Instead of a 120 or 135mm cooling fan, a 140mm fan is used which means lower fan noise without sacrificing air flow. The unit also offers all the right power protection features as well.
Looking at the commonly important specifications, the PSU offers 20 Amp +3.3V and +5V power rails. But the best power comes from the 83 Amp single +12V rail. The heart of the plant distributes this power evenly and accurately among the connected cables whether fixed or modular.
As far as pricing and availability, many Rosewill products are still a NewEgg exclusive, but distribution has been increasing into other retailers like Amazon and Buy.com. Pricing for this unit retails for $239.99 US and is backed by a 5 year warranty.
What’s in the Box?
The Tachyon bundle includes the PSU, power cord, manual, cable management bag with included cabling, and black screws for installation. Four black thumb screws are also included for tooless installation. Too bad the bundle doesn’t include Velcro straps or zip ties to aid in cable management.
The longest cable reaches 42 inches while the shortest 20+4pin is only 22 inches followed by the 4+4pin and 8pin at 24 inches. Taller, larger enclosures may require some extensions to properly hide or route wires, of which there are many options. Otherwise, the rest are plenty long.
The cabling itself is wrapped with common nylon braiding and the ends are properly terminated with a rather thick shrink wrap to ensure resistance to repetitive abuse.
Tachyon 1000 Platinum Inspected
The Tachyon has that rugged exterior look even though you may not easily see inside your enclosure once installed. At least you don’t have to use kid gloves during installation. The other main point of interest is what’s inside.
The unit utilizes two Nippon Chemi-Con electrolytic 400V capacitors but they aren’t identical though. One is a 560 uF and the other a 470 uF. The unit also has all the necessary controllers and objective circuits needed to ensure the 80Plus Platinum efficiency. A 140mm Globe fan blows about 40 to 130 CFM of air to cool all of the components. Similar listed 140mm fans create about 35 to 40 dB noise.
An engineering colleague pointed out that the unit has a couple of potential issues. First, the unit doesn’t have proper protection against surges, pointing out the unit is missing a necessary fuse of sorts. Users should always use a good quality surge protector, but it seems just a little more important with this product. Second, we noticed that the fan controller mini-PC board flexes back and forth a bit because it’s only attached by what appears to be thin soldering. Without proper OTP (over temperature protection), the fans won’t spin up properly so if for some reason component temps reach or exceed specifications, it will cease to function. Remember, heat is the number one killer of electrical components.
With all the nitpicking aside, let’s see how the sum of the parts perform in our tests.
Test System Setup
The unit was monitored with an o-scope complements of some aerospace colleagues and placed on an artificial load circuit. This will test 25%, 50%, 75%, and 100% loads as well as report voltage rail levels, fluctuations, and ripple. A secondary mini test was conducted with a system using the following components simply to corroborate the lab findings:
- CPU: Intel Core i7-3960X Sandy Bridge-E
- Motherboard: ASUS P9X79 Deluxe motherboard
- Memory: Kingston Technology 16GB HyperX Genesis Memory Kit
- GPU(s): ZOTAC GTX 680 AMP video cards in SLI.
Our operating system was Windows 7 professional and pushing a little overclock helped to see how the PSU communicated with the motherboard. Keep in mind some users don’t care too much for this method since the motherboard(s) may not always report voltages properly. However, I have yet to see the P9X79 Deluxe come up short in this area as it is nearly dead accurate.
Rosewill Tachyon 1000 – Power Performance
The objective is simple here. The PSU was loaded down three different times at idle (20-25%), 50% load, and 100% full load to stress the life out of each voltage rail. Efficiency is also included with each stage as well. And, ripple measurements are included at full load. The lower the mV, the better the power supply.
After the electronics smell dissipated, the unit maintained very good rail voltage output. At full load, the unit managed to very admirably control ripple. This is somewhat expected given that only the best Japanese capacitors, higher end rectifiers, and extra MOSFETS were used in its assembly. Finally, the unit is 92% efficient when flexing out 1000 watts. In fact, the unit exceeded 1100 watts while still maintaining just about 90% efficiency.
Rosewill Tachyon 1000 – Noise Levels
During testing the Tachyon’s fan RPMs seemed a little sporadic which I would attribute to the ambient temperature. It’s not really a big deal but a little tricky getting the right results. The noise levels here are the highest experienced with a comfortable 72 F (22 C). In the end, these noise levels are expected especially from higher wattage power supplies. However, over the noise of a high end system, it’s not so much of an issue, but it is worth mentioning if your system goals are for silence.
Final Thoughts
It’s often interesting to see OEMs using different plants to manufacture their power supplies. Rosewill used ATNG for their lower wattage 550-750 Fortress Platinum and Super Flower for their Tachyon 1000 Platinum. While the Fortress fit the price tag, the Tachyon could use a couple touch ups in regards to the extra internal surge protection and maybe a bit of silicone (or screws) to stabilize the fan controller board as a preventative measure for long term performance. Granted, everyone should be using a surge protector anyway because things like lightning strikes can destroy anything in its path, regardless of preparation.
Ultimately, the Rosewill 1000 Platinum boasts a very capable internal power plant offering 92% efficiency and providing very clean power even if it’s over a single rail. A standard 5 year warranty should appease power users especially given it’s $239.99 retail price tag, which makes it just about the most affordable 1KW modular power supply available. And we would assume that any manufacturing defects created by the points mentioned in our inspection should/could be ironed out by the length of the warranty as well.
All things considered, even the not so apparent internal shortcomings, the Rosewill 1000 Platinum is still a very well made power supply unit and comes highly recommended by us at this price.
Pros
- Truly 80Plus Platinum efficiency
- Very strong power rails
- Low ripple and respectable transient
- Modular cabling easy to use
- Quiet normal operations
- Simple, yet attractive unit
- 5 Year Warranty
- 1000 Watts at a very affordable price
Cons
- Fan control board not well secured
- Could use a protective fuse (just in case)
Overall Rating: 9.0 / 10.0
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