Mirror, mirror on the wall, who has the best consumer power-supply unit (PSU) of them all? That’s a question that Enermax believes it can answer with its aptly-named REVOLUTION 85+ unit.
Chock-full of features and released in 850W, 950W, 1,050W, and 1,250W models, Enermax challenged us to find a better consumer PSU. With such a boast, it was only fair that we took a look at one – the 850W model – to see if it would find a way into the no-holds-barred system.
Enermax, too, believes the 850W PSU offers decent value for money once users appreciate the underpinnings. That’s some sentiment when it comes in at nearly $260. Let’s find out just how good it is in our review.
Just like its recently launched Pro and Modu series, the Revolution sports its claimed efficiency as a medal on its chest and is rated to deliver at least 85+ percent on the outside at least, in reality though, for the model we tested on a 230V supply (it will be lower if you live in a 115V country) it was closer to 90 percent in some circumstances. As such it’s 80 Plus Silver rated and we don’t honestly expect these results to drop that much between now and retail, but we will be sure to re-test to find out.
Dropping the Galaxy brand is a controversial decision – why lose a very popular and established name for something new? Well Enermax is in fact not so much dropping it but shifting it aside for something new. The new Galaxy will be the EVO brand will be relaunched in a similar glossy black design to the current Galaxy DXX, but will have a higher efficiency range of (quoted by Enermax) 85-89 percent compared to 81-85 on the current Galaxy at 230V.
The Revolution on the other hand will have the same gun-mental design as the Pro/Modu 82+, but will feature a slightly lower noise 13.5cm fan on all but the 1,250W model. This is because the Revolution has a higher quoted efficiency of a massive 87-91 percent, which means it wastes less power as heat, so less needs to be removed.
Neither features the second 80mm fan that the original Galaxy DXX has, meaning it’s significantly quieter too. In fact, during testing we found it’s probably one of the quietest kilowatt PSUs we’ve heard to date and even at full load the 1,050W model wasn’t gasping for air like so many others. It certainly wasn’t silent, in fact it was still audible but much less intrusive than we’re used to from a very high powered PSU.
If you’re after something a little more inexpensive, the EVO will be more competitively priced, however we’ve yet to see whether it can keep up with the Corsair HX1000W’s 87 percent efficiency at under $224. In our opinion, the Galaxy name may carry it in Germany but not in the UK any more where people are more concerned with value rather than being brand loyal. Does three percent more efficiency warrant a bolt load more cash? What about a UK RMA base or a much quieter PSU – do these things swing it for you? The value is certainly a varied argument and we still contest how many people really need a full kilowatt in their systems in the first place.