POLL: What is your favorite PSU Manufacturer?

[AmberClad]

I actually wonder about that Powmax name, and if maybe their marketing department might have been trying to capitalize on the success and reputation of Enermax...

*runs off to trademark Oceansonic* :laugh:

 

[Geto]

Where can you buy Zippy's in the states?

 

[Super Nade]

Originally posted by: Geto
Where can you buy Zippy's in the states?

I bought mine here-->
http://store.myaopen.com/ziposu.html

This was two years ago.

 

[gingerstewart55]

Originally posted by: JEDIYoda

Originally posted by: HOOfan 1
really it would probably just be easier to say your favorite OEM manufacturer.

CWT
Seasonic
Etasis
Enhanced
TOPOWER
Seventeam
etc.

why?
An Antec PSU made my Seasinoc is not a PC Power & Cooliong PSI.
Niether is a Seasonic a Antec PSU.


Just because a PSU made for another company by an OEM mean mothing!


Some of the better companies actually have there own enginneers and there own design teams.


wonders never cease,,,

Haven't worked in manufacturing long, have you? Despite a company having its own engineers and design teams, the quality of the product and how it's made always ends up with the manufacturer....not the design team nor their engineers.

Consider......a group of engineers with their design team sends out specs for XX part to several manufacturers, requesting sample parts and cost. (Yes, this is how it's done.)

The manufacturer returns the requested samples made as close to what the engineers wanted, but with probably changes in its design, simply because those engineers, unless they actually work in the manufacturing plant, have really no idea how the part(s) are made in reality.

So, then the original engineers and the chosen manufacturing plant's engineers meet and come to an agreement on the final design....one that the manufacturer can produce in a cost-effective manner and can be produced in the plant without wholesale purchasing of new machinery, unless a long-term contract can be signed and the design engineers' company can guarantee the machinery wil be paid for through the contract and delivered product.

Most manufacturers, though, try to deliver requested parts using existing production facilities......which in most cases requires several redesigns of the part, be it a bearing or power supply, until the design meets both the purchasing company's requirements and the manufacturing company's production capabilities.

So, in the end, the OEM manufacturer does indeed matter. If PCP&C had chosen, for instance, Enhance to produce their Silencer line instead of Seasonic, I'd guarantee you the guts would be vastly different from what they look like right now.....in componentry selection and layout.

That's how it's done.

From years of experience working with two manufacturers......one in insulating forms (firebrick, ceramic coatings and brick, etc.....for kilns, furnaces, etc.) and one who manufacturers roller and taper bearings (Timken Co.)

 

[Yellowbeard]

Haven't worked in manufacturing long, have you? Despite a company having its own engineers and design teams, the quality of the product and how it's made always ends up with the manufacturer....not the design team nor their engineers.

IMO, both are equally important. The design engineers are the people that designate the component specifications and design criteria. That certainly plays into quality before the manufacturer ever gets a shot at it. What it really amounts to is that the weak link in the chain is going to be your most likely failure point.

So, you if you have the "best" PSU design in the world and hand it over to a team of chimps for manufacturing, I would expect manufacturing related failures and defects. Banana peels don't make good PSU components.

If those same chimps design the PSU, you could have NASA fabrication shop doing 1 offs of the PSU and it would be terrible. You can't make a silk purse from a sows ear.

No one aspect is significantly more important than the other.

 

[spittledip]

Originally posted by: gingerstewart55
Haven't worked in manufacturing long, have you?

LOL, what a snotty response!

Ultra is still missing btw. I voted Enermax.. don't really have a favorite though, just a few brands I prefer more than others... although ultra isn't one of those. I would still buy an Ultra though

 

[Mucker]

I voted Antec because that is primarily what I have used for 10+ years. Out of about 10 of their psu's that I've used, only one failed prematurely, the infamous SP2-500.

I also like my Fortron 550, Enhance 500, and Corsair HX620 very much.

Antec can throw a good deal out there and that is why I use them, not to mention that the voltage control with all of my units has been excellent. I bought my Seasonic built Trio 650 for $50 AR, and my current Enhance built TPQ-850 for $99 AR.

I am glad Antec is taking strides to correct their misteps too.

With that said, it is really hard to beat Corsair these days. 50C rating and primo parts in the value line? Prices are very reasonable too.

Considering that a fully loaded Quad system with a single high end VC will not draw more than 500w, you don't have to spend a ton to get quality power....

 

[justinm]

I've always liked Antec and Enermax.

 

[HOOfan 1]

Originally posted by: JEDIYoda


why?
An Antec PSU made my Seasinoc is not a PC Power & Cooliong PSI.
Niether is a Seasonic a Antec PSU.


Just because a PSU made for another company by an OEM mean mothing!


Some of the better companies actually have there own enginneers and there own design teams.


wonders never cease,,,

because many companies sell PSUs from different OEM manufacturers and the quality difference between them is often based on which OEM they use. Also the quality of different lines among the same retail sellers can vary greatly. This can be said of OEMs as well, but it seems to be less prevelant. If you want to say favorite manufacturer, you might as well list what specific line of PSUs is your favorite. Afterall how constructive is this thread anyway, it isn't like any concrete reasons for choosing the various manufacturers of choice have been given yet.

also for the very reason that is rampant in this thread...considering this thread originally was a poll (at least when I posted my reply), there are just far too many retail manufacturers out there to list.

 

[DrMrLordX]

Originally posted by: Yellowbeard

LOL.....does POW describe performance characteristics or the sound it makes when it explodes?

It's a well-known fact that PowMax is a front company for goblin sappers.

 

[BurnItDwn]

I've always liked Enermax, but I'm gonna vote PC Power & Cooling. I know putting all those amps on one 12v line isn't "spec" but I think that is the best way to get things done. That way you don't have to worry about overdrawing from one line, and under utilizing another.

 

[Mucker]

Plenty
Of
Watts
My
Ass
Xeebass

 

[Big Fat Fish]

TTT!

 

[HannibalX]

SeaSonic - they easily, hands down, make the best consumer level power supplies - period.

 

[DXtreme]

Originally posted by: Pale Rider
SeaSonic - they easily, hands down, make the best consumer level power supplies - period.

ditto!

 

[brxndxn]

I've been more impressed with Enermax (by far) than any other manufacturer.. Though, I'll admit it annoys me how expensive they are now.

 

[Cookie Monster]

I think corsair should be under seasonic since the HX series that most of us love are made from seasonic and sold under the brandname "corsair".

 

[Yellowbeard]

Originally posted by: Cookie Monster
I think corsair should be under seasonic since the HX series that most of us love are made from seasonic and sold under the brandname "corsair".

While Seasonic is obviously a good OEM, the PSUs they build for us are uniquely ours and not simply a rebadged Seasonic. So, having our own catagory is correct. If you go by this logic you'd have to remove many of the names on this list including Antec, PC P&C, et al.

 

[Capt Caveman]

Originally posted by: DXtreme

Originally posted by: Pale Rider
SeaSonic - they easily, hands down, make the best consumer level power supplies - period.

ditto!

 

[Fayd]

Sparkle.. DEFINITELY SPARKLE!


for no other reason that while providing a highly reliable product, it sounds like a 1 run line from some crappy chinese fly-by-night company.

haha.

 

[SparkyJJO]

Corsair and Seasonic are neck-to-neck I see. Not surprising, since the Corsair HX is seasonic-built (of course, with a few extra nice touches by Corsair :thumbsup: )

 

[piasabird]

Had pretty good luck with Antec Power Supplies. Usually get cheapest ones they sell. Seem to run cool and quiet all the time. If I had more money I might try some different brands and compare.

This has something to do with buying a lot of Antec computer cases.

 

[AmberClad]

Originally posted by: SparkyJJO
Corsair and Seasonic are neck-to-neck I see. Not surprising, since the Corsair HX is seasonic-built (of course, with a few extra nice touches by Corsair :thumbsup: )

I actually wonder how Seasonic feels about that. Aren't profit margins higher for retail products versus ODM/OEM manufacturing? But there are also the costs of marketing a retail product to consider, I suppose.

When was the last time someone recommended a Seasonic-branded PSU, as opposed to say a Corsair/PCP&P/Antec? They came out with the S12IIs, but I'm not sure many people noticed (I haven't seen many of them in people's sigs).

I guess what I'm getting at, is that since they started contract manufacturing well-known PSUs for other companies, I wonder if their own retail business has suffered as a result . (As in undermining their own retail product sales.)

Anyways, just some random musings.

 

[tomoyo]

Originally posted by: AmberClad

Originally posted by: SparkyJJO
Corsair and Seasonic are neck-to-neck I see. Not surprising, since the Corsair HX is seasonic-built (of course, with a few extra nice touches by Corsair :thumbsup: )

I actually wonder how Seasonic feels about that. Aren't profit margins higher for retail products versus ODM/OEM manufacturing? But there are also the costs of marketing a retail product to consider, I suppose.

When was the last time someone recommended a Seasonic-branded PSU, as opposed to say a Corsair/PCP&P/Antec? They came out with the S12IIs, but I'm not sure many people noticed (I haven't seen many of them in people's sigs).

I guess what I'm getting at, is that since they started contract manufacturing well-known PSUs for other companies, I wonder if their own retail business has suffered as a result . (As in undermining their own retail product sales.)

Anyways, just some random musings.

Purely conjecture here, but I think they're making quite a bit on just doing contract manufacturing. I doubt their retail sales were very much anyways, the retail side of the computer market itself is small, and the retail psu buyer is tiny in comparison. Their oem/odm business I would guess makes up at least 80% of their business, if not more. It's a really strange position to be both making product for various companies and also competing against them with your own retail units.

Even if their models were as well loved as the Hx-series, Seasonic just doesn't have quite the brand recognition of Corsair and probably never will.

 

[Yellowbeard]

Originally posted by: AmberClad

Originally posted by: SparkyJJOI guess what I'm getting at, is that since they started contract manufacturing well-known PSUs for other companies, I wonder if their own retail business has suffered as a result . (As in undermining their own retail product sales.)

This is purely a guess but, I'd say they make as much if not more making PSUs for others. For an OEM job, all they need to do is make them and bulk pack them off to whoever does the packaging for the other company. They minimize their handling. They don't have to package, ship, and distribute them through their own channels. They don't have to have an extra layer of employees to handle all of that extra activity. As I said, purely a guess. But, I can imagine it is lucrative or they would not be doing it.