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May 1, 2006 by Devon
Cooke
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Product
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ePower Tiger EP-550P5-T1
550W ATX12V 2.01 Power Supply with detachable cables |
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Manufacturer
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ePower
Technology |
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Market Price
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~US$100 |
Sometimes, a name says a lot. For example, the ePower Tiger associates a power
supply with a certain feline power: A silent but deadly killer of a power supply
that holds its power in check until the last second before it strikes (perfect
for first person shooters). A more cynical person might notice that such lyrical
names are rarely associated with high end products. The Ford Focus, Toyota Echo,
and the Pontiac Sunfire may sound cool, but any car nut knows that these are
vastly out-performed by the Acura NSX, the Honda S2000, or the BMW Z3. For some
reason, high end products often have names that appear to be random
alphanumeric strings.
Of course, there are exceptions
to both rules and a product shouldn't be judged by its name. A well
named product might be aptly described by its name, but, unfortunately,
it's not easy to tell which ones. Will the ePower
Tiger live up to its name? There's only one way to find out: Throw it on the
test bench and let the results do the talking.
We've looked at a feline product from ePower before. Our
review of the semi-passive Lion noted that the it remained silent for
a surprisingly long time, but concerns about its cooling system made us wonder
about its longevity. Naturally, we'll be curious to see whether the Tiger suffers
from a similar problem. Hopefully, the more conventional fan-cooled design will
mean that the cooling problems have been resolved, but, as always, there will
be the question of noise.
FEATURE HIGHLIGHTS
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| FEATURE & BRIEF |
COMMENT |
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E Power Technology Silent Engine technology with 120mm cooling fan
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If there's a fan involved,
"Silent Engine" is a misnomer. |
| EMI filter added
PCIe power leads for SLI function |
Reduces ripple for more
stable VGA overclocks. |
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EZ cable plug for all power leads
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The cables are detachable. |
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Able to use in even IPC or storage cases not required a board to power
up
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True of most power supplies
... but a power supply isn't much use without a board of some kind. |
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20+4 Pin ATX connector and 4+4 connector to fit PCIe and
non PCIe boards
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Compatible with dual-CPU
motherboards. |
| Compatible with P4,
AMD, Dual Xeon EPS 12V boards |
Just like any other ATX12V
/ EPS12V power supply. |
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Short Circuit Protection, Over Voltage Protection, Over
Current Protection
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All are pretty standard. |
| UL, CE, CB, FCC certified |
Good to know. |
| 100% HI-POT tested |
A standard part of quality
control. |
| 3 year
limited warranty |
Details are
hidden here. |
| Black mesh wrapped power
leads and reflective nick coating chassis |
Nick coating? Perhaps
this refers to nickel plating. |
SPECIFICATIONS
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OUTPUT SPECIFICATIONS: ePower Tiger EP-550P5-T1
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AC Input
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115/230 VAC @ 60/50 Hz
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AC Input Current
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10A @ 115VAC / 6A @ 230VAC
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DC Output
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+3.3V
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+5V
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+12V1
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+12V2
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-12V
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-5V
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+5VSB
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Maximum Output Current
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28A
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40A
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20A
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20A
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1.0A
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0.8A
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2.5A
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Maximum Combined
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210W
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35A continuous
40A peak
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12W
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4W
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12.5W
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530W
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28W
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550W
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The specifications for the Tiger make it seem like an odd mongrel of a power
supply. On the one hand, it contains a -5V line, which was dropped from the
ATX12V specification more than four years ago and has been out of common use
for even longer. On the other hand, it advertises split +12V rails, which are
required by the much more recent ATX12V 2.0. In addition, the +5V line is rated
at 40A — also a throwback to times when the +5V rail was the primary source
of power. On top of that, ePower's
web site documents the +5V rating as 48A — an unbelievable number that
would push the rating for the +5V line above what is specified for the +3.3V
and +5V rails combined.
In actual use, only the two +12V rails are likely to see even half of their
rated values, and even then only on very high powered systems. As we have documented
several times
in the past, the vast majority of systems draw well under 200W.
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