Even though Thermaltake have been around for a long time they have only recently entered into the power supply market… around two years ago. That hasn’t stopped them from forming several series (7 at the time of this review) consisting of several products in each category. We had the chance to review and evaluate a few of these products in the past, such as the Toughpower XT 850W and the Toughpower Qfan 500W unit. Today we will present you another high performance power supply product from Thermaltake, the Evo Blue 750W.
Unlike most units around its power range, Thermaltake didn’t design the Evo Blue with maximum electrical performance in mind. This product is designed to catch the eye of modders and thus they intended it to be as aesthetically pleasing as possible. That said, no enthusiast would buy a power supply unable to offer good electrical performance, no matter how good it looks – so today we find out if it manages to do both.
Futuristic artwork covers the entire front part of the cardboard box and the sides are plain white. Some information about the features of the unit can be found at the rear side of the box, but no detailed information on its electrical specifications whatsoever. Inside the packaging everything is very well secured between thick Styrofoam pieces, keeping the product very safe during shipping.
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As with almost any PSU the rear part of the unit is entirely perforated for the warm air to escape outside the system’s chassis, however some will also escape from the meshed sides. At the rear there is a simple rocker on/off switch and the button which controls the fan’s lighting effects. The front of the unit is heavily populated, being home not only to the many connectors of the modular cables but also the unit’s electrical specifications and safety approvals, which Thermaltake engraved directly onto the chassis instead of using a sticker.
Apart from the 24-pin ATX cable all of the cables are modular. There are nine connectors, four red connectors for the PCIe cables, four black connectors for the SATA/Molex cables and one black connector for the CPU 12V power cable. Even though the connectors are colored the end user ought to be a little careful when attaching the cables to the unit. That is because the CPU 12V and PCIe cables share connectors of the exact same design and keying, consequently a PCIe power cable can be inserted to a PCIe connector and respectively the PCIe cables can be inserted into the CPU 12V connector.
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The interior of the Evo Blue 750W unit looks very much alike with that of the Toughpower XT 850W unit which we reviewed several months ago. It is based on a Channel Well design which is very popular for products in this class. Even though the base design is the same as the more powerful model of Thermaltake’s high performance series, some of the main components are different and the heatsinks are vastly inferior. There is one large primary transformer which is backed up by a commercial grade Matsushita 390uF capacitor. The secondary side is teeming with Teapo industrial grade capacitors. There is only one 12V line able to deliver up to 56A, almost 90% of the unit’s maximum total output. The heatsink are extremely basic and it certainly will be hard for the unit to operate quietly under heavy load, as the huge 140mm fan will have to speed up in order to keep the unit cool enough to operate properly.
Clearly we’d recommend the Evo Blue 750W to modders and enthusiasts who really care about the aesthetics of their system. The overall performance of the Evo Blue 750W unit is simply acceptable, which isn’t a very good thing to say about a product in this price range. It is a reliable product however which will not let you down and its unique appearance will certainly enhance the appearance of the interior.
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