Corsair AX650 PSU review

[siopao1984]

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Corsair might have started off as a RAM manufacturer but today they diversified into several other market areas. One of those areas is the power supply market, with the company today offering tens of products divided into five different product series. Today we are having a look at a product from their best series, the AX650, a 650W 80Plus Gold certified power supply of fully modular design. The AX650 is the least powerful unit of the series, with Corsair pointing out that it was designed for enthusiasts requiring a medium wattage power supply but will settle for nothing less than top performance. Let us see if the AX650 can deliver what Corsair promises.Manufacturer’s features and specifications·Supports the latest ATX12V v2.31 and EPS 2.92 standards and is backward compatible with ATX12V 2.2 and ATX12V 2.01 systems·An ultra-quiet 120mm double ball-bearing fan delivers excellent airflow at an exceptionally low noise level by varying fan speed in response to temperature·80 Plus Gold certified to deliver at least 90% efficiency at 50% load·Active Power Factor Correction (PFC) with PF value of 0.99·Universal AC input from 90~264V·No more hassle of flipping that tiny red switch to select the voltage input!·A dedicated single +12V rail offers maximum compatibility with the latest components·Over-voltage and over-current protection, under-voltage protection, and short circuit protection provide maximum safety to your critical system components·High-quality Japanese capacitors provide uncompromised performance and reliability·Completely modular cable system allows you to use only the cables you need·Power supply upgrade and replacement is easy, as the cables only need to be disconnected at the power supply·Low-profile, flat cable design reduces air friction and helps maximize airflow through your computer's chassis·A seven year warranty and lifetime access to Corsair's legendary technical support and customer service·Dimensions: 150mm(W) x 86mm(H) x 160mm(L)·MTBF: 100,000 hours·Safety Approvals: UL, CUL, CE, CB, FCC Class B, TÜV, CCC, C-tick

Corsair AX650
AC INPUT	90-264V ~ 15A 50/60Hz
DC OUTPUT	+5V	+3.3V	+12V	-12V	+5Vsb
MAX CURRENT	25A	25A	54A	0.5A	3A
MAX COMBINED WATTAGE	125W		648W	6W	15W
	TOTAL POWER: 650W @ 50°C ambient temperature

Read more: Corsair AX650 PSU review by VR-Zone.com

[siopao1984]

The AX650 is supplied in a large, sturdy cardboard box with an almost all-black theme. The artwork on the packaging is very simple, probably because Corsair wants to pair this product with a “professional” theme. A wealth of information about the unit itself can be found at the sides and rear of the box.

Inside the package, the power supply is very well secured between Styrofoam pieces and is enclosed inside a black cloth pouch instead of a standard bubble bag, which pouch you can reuse for any purpose you see fit.

The bundle that is supplied with the AX650 PSU is nothing more than Spartan. Except from the black pouch which protects the PSU and the standard AC power cable, you will also receive several short black cables ties, black screws, a case badge with the company logo and a well written manual. There are no cable straps or other accessories, which might feel a little disappointing considering the class of the power supply.

You will also receive the modular cables inside a large nylon storage pouch. The SATA and Molex power cables are not sleeved but a ‘flat’, entirely black cable. The thicker cables are entirely black but sleeved as well.

Read more: Corsair AX650 PSU review by VR-Zone.com

[siopao1984]

Much like with most Corsair power supplies, the chassis of the AX650 is entirely black and sprayed with a matte paint. The design of this power supply is very subtle considering its class and if not for the side stickers one could hardly tell the difference between it and a medium-class power supply. The AX650 is only 160mm long and should easily fit inside any case able to house an ATX power supply.



Corsair’s usual decorative stickers with the unit’s model and company logo can be still found at both sides of the power supply. The chassis also forms a frame around the stickers, creating a quality visual effect.



The sticker with the unit's electrical specifications can be found at the top of the chassis and there is no frame surrounding it. This sticker will only be visible in cases which have the PSU compartment placed at the bottom of the case.



The rear is entirely perforated to allow for the air pushed by the cooling fan to escape towards the outside of the case. The unit uses a standard AC power cable and there is a standard rocker on/off switch at the rear, as well as a small sticker with the series logo.



The front side of the chassis is littered with the connectors of the modular cables. This power supply is fully modular, meaning that not even the ATX cable is hardwired to the body of the unit. Strangely, there is no sticker or even a hint about which cable goes where, although the connectors are keyed and the user cannot insert a cable’s plug inside a wrong connector. This unit offers the following number of connectors:

Modular cables

24-pin ATX connector

1 x 4+4 pin 12V CPU connector

4 x 6+2 pin 12V PCIe connectors

8 x Molex connectors

8 x SATA connectors

2 x Floppy connector

*Editor’s note: the floppy connectors utilize Molex connectors through adapters.



Read more: Corsair AX650 PSU review by VR-Zone.com

[siopao1984]

Corsair entrusted the cooling of their AX750 unit to be taken care of by a 140mm fan made by Sanyo Denki. The model of the fan is 9S1212F404, has a ball bearing and a maximum rotational speed of 2200RPM. The fan has no PWM control but the PSU does control its speed according to the unit’s internal temperature. A thin plastic sheet is covering about 15% of the fan's surface, which Corsair probably installed in an attempt to direct the airflow in a more efficient way.





Much like the TX V2 series, Corsair based the smaller 80Plus Gold AX series units on Seasonic designs. However, the base design Corsair chose for their AX series units is entirely different than the one we encountered while reviewing the TX V2 series power supply.



The filtering stage is great, starting with a closed filter mounted behind the A/C receptacle and continuing on the PCB. It totally consists of four Y-type capacitors, two X-type capacitors, four coils and a surge suppressing MOV.



The primary capacitors of the power supply are supplied by Nippon Chemi-Con and are rated at 420V/330μF at 105°C each. Nippon Chemi-Con also supplies all of the secondary side capacitors.



Multiple small heatsinks can be seen cooling the components of the AX650 unit. The bridge rectifiers are mounted on a small heatsink, as are the four secondary side MOSFETs which are responsible for the unit’s output. The primary side APFC MOSFETs share a larger, long heatsink.



Read more: Corsair AX650 PSU review by VR-Zone.com

[siopao1984]

In order to provide you with the most professional and accurate reviews, we are using the following equipment to test the performance of power supplies:



Modified SECC steel case with thermal generation and control components installed
Custom USB controlled DC load, 2.2KW maximum power drain
3KVA VARIAC
Lutron DW-6091 Power Analyzer
USB Instruments Stingray Oscilloscope
SL-5868P digital sound level meter
CompuLAB interface
MyPClab thermal interface
Labjack U3-HV interface
Custom calibration box
Custom software
More information about our testing equipment and methodology can be found in this article.





The Corsair AX650 80Plus Gold unit successfully completed all of our tests without any operational and/or performance problems. Despite the rather loose voltage regulation correlated with the class of the unit, the filtration is nothing short of remarkable, with none of the primary voltage lines having more than 20mV ripple under maximum load.



Being an 80Plus Gold unit, everyone would expect the AX650 to score very high during our electrical efficiency test so our very high results were not very surprising. The AX650 does reach a peak efficiency of 91.2% under nominal load which drops down to 88.4% under maximum load.



The thermal performance of the AX650 is very good, although we cannot say that it was incredible considering the 80Plus Gold certification and the class of the power supply. The power supply does stay cool during operation, reaching up to a maximum 13C delta under maximum load. It is clear that the very high electrical efficiency is to blame for the very low heat generation of this power supply.



Much like with the electrical efficiency of the power supply, everyone would expect an 80Plus Gold certified unit to score very well during the acoustics test as well. However, the Corsair AX650 did pleasantly surprise us this time with its astonishingly low noise generation which is certainly among the best we have ever encountered here in our labs.



Read more: Corsair AX650 PSU review by VR-Zone.com

[siopao1984]

Quality (30% of the total score)

We have never seen a Corsair product unworthy of a very high quality score and the AX650 is no exception. It is a very well made product, both externally and internally, without any manufacturing flaws or even aesthetic annoyances. Corsair chose the components of their AX650 unit very well; high quality and well known manufacturers provide each and every part and all of the capacitors are coming from Nippon Chemi-Con, a Japanese company. So confident is Corsair about the long term reliability of their product that covers it with a 7 year long warranty.

Quality Score 10/10



Performance (40% of the total score)

The overall performance of the Corsair AX650 unit was nothing short of magnificent. Despite the relatively loose voltage regulation, the voltage filtering is outstanding and the 12V line ripple would not even exceed 20mV under full load, a figure six times lower than the 120mV design guide limitation. The electrical efficiency was excellent, which of course was to be expected from an 80Plus Gold certified power supply, as was the thermal performance of the unit. However it was the acoustics performance of the AX650 which stood out, with the power supply barely generating a humming noise under maximum load.

Performance Score 9.5/10



Value (20% of the total score)

When it comes to value, unfortunately the AX650 will drive many enthusiasts into confusion. If someone wants a top performance and very reliable power supply is certainly willing to pay a premium price for it; however the MSRP price of the AX650 power supply is 169.99$ USD (220$ SGD, 125€ at the time of this review), which is much higher than other top tier products able to provide a similar power output. The exceptional quality, performance and very long warranty do improve the value score of this power supply considerably, yet we feel that the AX650 is very expensive to be able to easily compete in today’s market.

Value Score 7.5/10



Aesthetics (10% of the total score)

Corsair knows that when designing a power supply, you cannot really go wrong with an all-black and fully modular product. The AX650 is very well made and its subtle appearance is a very big aesthetic plus. Our only concern lies with the cables; half of the cables are sleeved and half are not, even though they all are entirely black. This could be a problem for perfectionists who like symmetry and are likely to simply strip off the sleeving from the thicker cables as well.

Aesthetics Score 9.0/10






Read more: Corsair AX650 PSU review by VR-Zone.com

[SantosJB]

looks good to me.

[akomao]

boss siopao how much kaha srp ani. ka daog ni ug 1xgtx 580?

[siopao1984]

boss siopao how much kaha srp ani. ka daog ni ug 1xgtx 580?

Value (20% of the total score)

When it comes to value, unfortunately the AX650 will drive many enthusiasts into confusion. If someone wants a top performance and very reliable power supply is certainly willing to pay a premium price for it; however the MSRP price of the AX650 power supply is 169.99$ USD (220$ SGD, 125€ at the time of this review), which is much higher than other top tier products able to provide a similar power output. The exceptional quality, performance and very long warranty do improve the value score of this power supply considerably, yet we feel that the AX650 is very expensive to be able to easily compete in today’s market.

Value Score 7.5/10

[zhrike]

$169.99... pila kaha ni inig abot ana diri sa ato... nice baya nga PSU dah...