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PC
Power and Cooling Turbo Cool 510w Review Intro
As we all know, there
are tons of manufacturers out there offering many different power
supplies. As an extreme overclocker I'm always looking for the
most powerful and stable power supply to use. And trust me I've
used lots. My previous favorite was the Enermax 431w
"blue" power supply. It gave me good rails at stock and
after a volt mod it was even better. What made me want to try a
Turbo Cool though was my bud Tony. He had used one and was raving
about it so I said to myself I've got to review one of these beasts!
Features
You would say to yourself.. features?
Huh? Well this power supply has one very very good feature and it
would be individually adjustable rails. That means you can tweak
with the turn of a potentiometer your +3.3v, +5v, and +12v rails.
My motherboard reported a perfectly solid 3.3v, 5v, and 12v but for
overclocking you want to raise your rails a bit to get more
stability. So again by just turning the pots, I raised my 3.3v
rail to 3.4v, my 5v rail to 5.3v and my 12v rail to 12.5v.
Build Quality, Cooling, and Power
I know that some power supplies are pretty
horribly built. I have had molex connectors fall off, I've had
fans die, I've had things explode. It seems as though certain
companies... *cough*Enermax*cough* don't have very good quality control
on their earlier model power supplies. As I had stated in the
Intro though, my most recent Enermax is really nice. So if you're
going to get an Enermax, get the best model they offer :P
Now, what about cooling you say. Well this power supply has a
single 80mm fan, which I would say is pretty loud. It's made for
performance, not being quiet. This is fine by me but others may
complain. As for temperatures, I have a probe stuck in the back
next to the bottom of the heatsink near the mosfets on the inside of the
power supply. The temp right now is 33.3C and that is just fine
with me.
Another thing I'd like to mention, is power and how much you're really
getting. A little known fact about Enermax power supplies is that
the 550w rating is at a temperature of 0C. They also state that @
70C you will get zero watts. Now ask yourself when your power
supply is running @ 0C? Never! That means that you are NOT
getting 550w. Do the math! As for the 510w Turbo Cool, they
rate it @ 40C. To better explain what I'm saying, check out this
pdf file (if you don't have Acrobat click the image on the right,
below). As you can tell after reading that, these things are built
like TANKS. It is, in my view, the best power supply for
overclocking on the planet right now and I will be using it in my main
rig. I guarantee you that!
Pictures
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Angle shot |
The innards! |
The pots for the rails |
Label |
Click if you don't have
Acrobat |
Conclusion
I've now been using this power supply for about
two weeks and it's been performing just great. What with the built
in pots, the great cooling, and great build quality this power supply is
a must have for the most serious overclocker or professional who wants
the best. Just be prepared to pay for it. These puppies are
gonna cost you around $200 but it is WELL worth it! Questions
/ Comments? Send me an E-Mail! 
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