NOX Apex 700W Modular PSU Review

Page 3 - Testing methods and results

The computer we tested NOX Apex 700W with was the best we had at the time, while at same time being one of the most powerful machines you could obtain nowadays.

• Motherboard: DFI LanParty DARK 790FXB-M2RSH
• CPU: AMD Phenom II (Deneb core) 940 Black Edition 3GHz
• Video cards: Sapphire HD4870X2 2GB
• Memory: 2 x 2GB A-Data DDR800
• Hard drive 1: Western Digital Velocity Raptor 10 000 RPM 150GB
• Hard drive 2: Seagate Barracuda 7200.11 7200RPM 300GB
• Optical drive: ASUS DVD+/-RW LightScribe 20x
• Cooler: 2 x 200mm fans, 2 x 120mm fans, 1 x 140mm fan

PSU's for comparison

• Corsair TX750W
• Silver Power SP-SS500
• Raptoxx Exxtreme Series RT-EBAD1200 1200W

Tests for PSU voltages in idle and under load modes were made with the above mentioned configuration. Later we decided to run tests for energy efficiency with few more PSU's, in which test we would measure the amount of power consumed from the system while performing the exactly same operations with the exactly same hardware but with different PSU. That would show with great preciseness the difference in effectiveness of the few "80+" models that were in the ModReactor lab.

For the tests we used a good multimeter. We measured the power consumed with a plain home Power Meter, that can be obtained anywhere for about 12$ - 20$ and has accuracy of +/- 1W, which is quite acceptable. The tests for Raptoxx RT-EBAD1200 were concluded with the above mentioned machine, but the tests for all other PSU's were concluded with ONLY ONE Sapphire HD4870X2, which lowers the power consumption of the system with up to 200W.

NOX Apex 700W voltages surprised us rather pleasantly. That PSU was the only one that kept their values rock solid under any condition. Even its more expensive brother in the same class was not performing so well. Voltages are nearly perfect and that will only prolong the life of your hardware.

As for energy efficiency, NOX Apex 700W unfortunately was worse than all of the other PSU's. It still is 700W 80+ PSU, but if you do care for the environment you should choose another model. Then again, if you were so concerned about nature you wouldn't buy such power hungry monster of a computer that needs 700W PSU…

{