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QuietPC QTechnology QT-02400G PSU |
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Intro
Ever feel like there is an evil gnome living inside your PC? A gnome who loves to play the bagpipes while riding his Harley and running a leaf blower? Any one who has ever grabbed a croquet mallet or similar blunt instrument in a vain attempt to find this evil gnome with the leaf blower, and bludgeon him repeatedly about the head, this review is for you.
If you’ve googled for info on how to quiet a pc, you’ve probably run across QuietPC. Funny how that works eh?. QuietPC carries a wide range of goodies designed specifically to bring a bit of peace and quiet to a noisy computing environment. From inexpensive rubber Quietfeet designed to lessen case vibration, to the new Acousti line of fans and noise dampeners to the Uber l337, (and very pricey) completely fan-less TNN-500 case from Zalman.
Today we review a quiet PSU of the 400 watt variety from the folks at QuietPC. Which at first may sound like an oxymoron, “Balderdash!” you say, 400W PSU’s are generally louder than there lesser brethren. After all, higher output generally means more heat and thus more/bigger fans.. I call it the, “I think we’re gonna need a bigger boat.” theory. Three fan configurations are not a bit uncommon in the today’s high wattage power supplies. And we've all heard claims of silent operation from manufacturers only to be disappointed when we plug it in. Vantec's slogan, "Power in Silence", comes to mind. The Vantec, while powerful, is anything but silent. It's the evil gnome's psu of choice.
The Unit
QuietPC QTechnology QT-02400G PSU
Shipping was fast. Dave Williamson of QuietPC sent me a shipping confirmation on a Wednesday and I had the PSU Friday. I was pleased to see the box arrived safe and apparently unmolested by Attila the UPS guy. Nothing fancy, a brown box with plenty of paper packing and not a single oh so annoying packing peanut. Every time I get a box with peanuts I spend the next couple days picking them up off the floor. I applaud anyone who avoids using them.
There were two more pleasant surprises. One, the box was clearly marked “Active PFC”, something I always look for when buying a power supply. I hadn't seen this info on QPC's web site. Active PFC or Power Factor Correction allows for much better power efficiency, up to a 95% theoretical limit. It diminishes total harmonics and automatically adjusts for AC input. This translates into more stable voltages across the line and a lower operating cost. It's much cheaper, and more commonplace, to use the capacitive method or Passive PFC to regulate voltage. Although active PFC circuitry adds to the cost of a power supply, it will pay for its self several times over during the power supplies life span.
The second surprise is the Gold Series isn’t really gold. In truth I new that before it arrived, but in addition to the standard silver/gray color the 02400G is available in black. I got the black model. I like black. It’s difficult to see in a photograph, but the black isn’t a jet black or even a charcoal black. It has what I can best describe as a titanium sheen to it. It's an appealing finish. It should go well with a wide variety of case colors. And rather than using the common contrasting gold or silver grill, black is used here as well. It gives the psu a nice clean integrated look.
Oops...make that three surprises. Sometimes it's the little things that make me happy. Notice how the side of the power supply that would normally be facing out in a windowed case does NOT have the spec sticker on it. Putting the info to the mother board side of the PSU goes a long way in cleaning up the look of a custom rig. I hope other manufacturers, take note and start putting stickers in less conspicuous places. I for one do not like seeing a manufactures name splashed all over a product. *cough* thermaltake *cough*
