Need a replacement for the discontinued Corsair VX450W PSU

[mikeymikec]

I've trusted Corsair's VX450W for a long time. 5-year warranty, quiet without any weird extra sounds, a meaty 12V rail and more recent versions had the double CPU connector rather. It sold for about £50 in the UK, and none I've installed have failed yet. Then Corsair discontinued it.

I tried the Corsair CX430W. Only a 2-year warranty but only £35. It is almost as quiet as the VX450W, but it has a subtle annoying sound while running idle, and more disturbingly, 4 out of 5 PSUs I've bought have had problems - one with an intermittent screaming PSU fan, and three wouldn't allow the computer to resume from S3 standby about 50% of the time. I tried a spare old VX450W in two of those machines (same motherboard in each) and S3 resume worked fine. So I currently trust the CX430W about as far as I can throw it.

So I have a problem, coming up with a replacement. The PC specs are basically as follows:

AMD Athlon II X2 250
ASUS M4A89GTD PRO/USB3
Crucial single or dual-channel DDR3-1333
1x 7200rpm SATA HD
1x DVDRW SATA
and on-board everything else.

However I would like a PSU that can handle the best AM3 CPU and say one decent graphics card without having to worry about it in the long term (by long term I mean about 6 - 7 years). I think I would pay a maximum of about £50 (UKP) for it ($82 USD) but it would have to at least be as good as the VX450W all-round (reliability, efficiency, warranty, noise level) to justify that price.

The only brand I pretty much refuse to buy is CoolerMaster, as I had a run-in with them a good few years ago with a similar failure rate.

I considered the Seasonic S12II-430 as allegedly Corsair PSUs are at least based on Seasonic designs, but it's a high price for only a 2-year warranty, and I'm worried that it's a little too similar to the CX430

I also considered an XFX Pro 450W but according to one review its noise level under high load is alarmingly high. I would consider FSP but their website isn't good for finding useful information, and some models that my supplier shows are missing from the website. At the moment the OCZ StealthStream 2 500W seems to be at the top of my list, but it's missing the extra 4-pin CPU power connector. I'm assuming that the second one comes into play when using a high-end AM3 processor, but I don't know.

 

[theAnimal]

Antec Earthwatts/High Current Gamer/Neo Eco would be good choices. The Seasonic is a good PSU, better than the CX430. (Note: Some Corsair PSUs are Seasonic but not all.)

 

[hardboy]

Afaik seasonic 520 and corsair 450 are the same

 

[Doclife]

Antec HCG-400 (400W) , HCG-520 (520W) are Seasonic made PSUs. I installed the HCG-400 in my newly built SB system and it's quiet. I can enter and exit S3 sleep mode without any problems. These PSUs are similar in design as Seasonic's own S12II series PSUs and have a 3-year warranty.

Perhaps the Seasonic S12II-430 you're looking at is an older revision and has 2-year warranty. Here the US, the Seasonic S12II-430B has a 5-year warranty period.

 

[dualsmp]

I have a VX 450 as well and didn't like the direction Corsair went with their CX PSU's either. The VX 450 is a Seasonic unit so you should probably look for something in the Seasonic range.

SeaSonic S12II 520 has a 5 year warranty in the US, not sure if it carries the same warranty in the UK. Jonnyguru gave this unit high marks.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-094-_-Product

http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story&reid=185

 

[mikeymikec]

My mistake. The Seasonic S12II-430 has a 3-year warranty. I think I'll be going with that in the future despite the cost for less warranty, and the dual-rails which jonnyguru thinks is just one.

 

[mikeymikec]

Well, I started using the S12II-430s, and all was well, but now it seems that they've discontinued that PSU as well!

I'm thinking of going out on a limb with Corsair with the Gamer Series, the GS 600. It's a bit more expensive, but as with many things in electronics, the lower ones in the range lack silly things like EPS12V, or have weedy dual 12V rails, or have a noisy fan.

 

[Pneumothorax]

If you're willing to go back to Corsair again, why don't you look at the TX650 V2. It's a seasonic unit, not a cheapie CWT. Put one in a friend's build a couple of weeks ago. Very quiet.

 

[mikeymikec]

I really don't want to be going as high as £61 (UKP - price for the GS600) for a PSU for what could potentially always be a dual-core basic Athlon II setup, but I want something with a reasonable bit of upgrade room (eg. CPU, another disk, graphics card), let alone the prices of the TX range.

- edit - I've done a bit (10 minutes) of reading up, and while it worries me that the CX430 and GS 600 are both made by CWT, I'm less worried by the generally ok rep that CWT seems to have. What's your experience with it / reason for saying 'cheapie'?

I wish to God that the VX450 hadn't been discontinued. Now there was a good PSU, expensive, but trustworthy and quiet IMO.

 

[Blastman]

The Silverstone Strider Essential 500W should be a good alternative to the Corsair CX430W. Better 12v ratings, 80+ certified and very quiet according to the reviews. Should be close in price to the Corsair CX430W.

 

[BoomerD]

The Silverstone Strider Essential 500W should be a good alternative to the Corsair CX430W. Better 12v ratings, 80+ certified and very quiet according to the reviews. Should be close in price to the Corsair CX430W.

IMO, not as good of build quality. The Essential series are either Sirfa/High Power built, or Sirtec built.

Probably not going to blow up and take your hardware with it...but not the best performer in the bunch either.

 

[Blastman]

Another suggestion would be to check out the Antec High Current Gamer sries 400W or 500W psu's. They're a little more $ than the Silverstone Strider Essential and maybe a step up in quality but still well priced.

 

[mikeymikec]

Hmm, I'm not impressed with the GS 600 - the noise level is noticeably higher than the VX450W (perhaps twice the noise level), and I'm wondering whether the noise level would match say a cheapo WinPower PSU. It doesn't sound like there's anything wrong with it, just noisy. In a small room with about 2 metres between my computer (with a VX450W) and the new PC build (which doesn't even have a graphics card), I need to be standing over my computer before I start to hear mine compared to the noise of the new PC running.

I'm thinking of trying the OCZ ModXStream Pro 500W or 600W next. I think a good few of the Antec PSUs are CWT-made as well.

 

[mikeymikec]

I can't remember what it was I read about the OCZ ModXStream PSUs, but I decided against them in the end. I decided to go for the Corsair TX650V2 next, as it is a Seasonic one.

Ultra-quiet? Yeah, right.

The Seasonic S12II-430 seems to have come back in stock though. I'm worried that perhaps it will be in short supply though.

- edit - That Seasonic has been discontinued, really this time. I'll try the Antec HCG 520 next.

 

[mikeymikec]

The Antec HCG 520 is pretty quiet. Admittedly I don't have quite as good a grasp of its noise levels as the two builds I'm doing at the moment are Sandy Bridge ones, but IMO the general noise level is the same as the old VX450s. I'm happy with it so far.

 

[Zap]

Not that it'll help the OP across the pond, but Newegg has the Antec High Current Gamer 620W today as a Shellshocker for $40 after rebate. It is a SeaSonic built unit that is updated from the NEO ECO series and has a 135mm fan. It will be available from 3pm to 6pm PST at that price.

- edit - I've done a bit (10 minutes) of reading up, and while it worries me that the CX430 and GS 600 are both made by CWT, I'm less worried by the generally ok rep that CWT seems to have. What's your experience with it / reason for saying 'cheapie'?

For a cheapie, I have no problem with the CX430. It has passed scrutiny with multiple reviews (jonnyGURU.com, Hardware Secrets) and can do everything its label claims it can do. The new CX430V2 (version 2) is updated for better efficiency and is 80Plus certified. The only potential "problem" it has is that the fan is noisier than the VX450. At least, the original CX430 was. I haven't used a CX430V2 so I don't know if the fan is quieter. The CX430 was not loud, just not as quiet.

 

[mikeymikec]

An amendment to my previous post about the Antec HCG 520 - Not as noisy as the Corsair GS600 or TX650V2, but noisier than the Corsair VX450, IMO. I might try running it on its own to completely cancel out the noise level of the rest of the PC, but considering that the PC is a Sandy Bridge build, the Intel stock fan is running at 1000rpm and I know the Coolermaster 120mm chassis fan is pretty much silent (currently running at 700rpm), the Intel stock fan would have to be pretty noisy. It's a reasonable compromise for the time being I think.

As for the CX430, I just don't trust it any more. You have to admit, it would have to be a hell of a run of bad luck to have 4 out of 5 bad PSUs while the rest of that model are as reliable as the VX450 (I estimate that I've bought thirty VX450s over the years). I would have put up with its slightly rickety fan otherwise. I'm not saying that 80% of their total output of CX430s are going to be dodgy, but it has to be a significant percentage more than say the VX450.

Also, I'm sure that PSUs that get sent to reviewers go through a lot more QA than the average one off the line does. If you made a product that was about to be publicly scrutinised, wouldn't you cherry-pick to maximise your chances of a good review?

 

[TemjinGold]

Depends on the reviewer. I believe JG buys his own.

 

[Zap]

As for the CX430, I just don't trust it any more. You have to admit, it would have to be a hell of a run of bad luck to have 4 out of 5 bad PSUs

A heck of a bad luck streak. I've bought a few (3?) and they've all been fine. I just ordered a V2 ($18 after rebate/coupon/free shipping) so I'll see.

Also, I'm sure that PSUs that get sent to reviewers go through a lot more QA than the average one off the line does. If you made a product that was about to be publicly scrutinised, wouldn't you cherry-pick to maximise your chances of a good review?

See below.

Depends on the reviewer. I believe JG buys his own.

It varies.

The CX430 that jonnyGURU.com reviewed... I purchased with my own money and handed the shrink-wrapped box to Jon for review.

I think he purchased the CX430V2 with his own money. He also purchased the one Diablotek PSU for review with a combination of his and my money. Most of their PSUs they review are given to them by the manufacturer. Yes, it is possible that the PSUs are cherry picked, but I'm willing to bet most don't. If the PSU is shoddy, the company probably doesn't even have a way to make it better (unless it is a completely different PSU in the casing). There's plenty of PSU reviews that show the units in question to be not so good. If they were "cherry picked" then there would be 100% good reviews, right?

As an example, back when we worked for BFG, when we came out with the new EX-1200 PSU the only special treatment that the review PSUs got were that they were the first ones off the line and flown over from China while the rest were held until there was enough for a container, which took a few weeks on a boat, plus they were checked to make sure they weren't DOA before sending to the reviewer. Think UPS/FedEx "handling" a package halfway around the world, versus a bunch of them shrink wrapped safely on pallets inside containers. They were not cherry picked, and indeed the reviews were disappointing enough that BFG had the manufacturer (Andyson) re-work them to fix the issue before shipping them over. However, the mediocre reviews stayed on several web sites, including HardOCP and jonnyGURU.com.

Of course, some companies may very well cherry pick units, or transition cost-down revisions quickly. What I'm saying is that IMO most (especially reputable companies known for quality) would not do that.

 

[R4in]

The XFX Core 650 is being recommended quite a bit. Over kill from a 430 but its only $60 after rebate.