be quiet! Straight Power 10 400W

[Zen__]

Hi,
is be quiet! Straight Power 10 400W a good choice for a new system I'm building? It costs 75€. It's a quite low power pc (i5-6600, no gpu, 4x sata drives, no overclocking).

The alternative is PURE POWER L8 | 300W (50€) but it only has 3 sata connections and it seems to have shorter cables compared to Straight power 10.

What do you suggest?

Thanks.

[CA_Steve]

the SPP 10 400W is a good choice.

[quest_for_silence]

+1 : the E10 400W is audibly quieter than the L8 300W, it is more efficient, it is better built and it is DC-DC regulated.
On the other hand, about the SATA connectors, if you're using SSDs or 12V drives (like modern WDC) you may also use SATA splitters or Molex-to-SATA adapters safely. With reference to that, another option might be the SFX 300W Silverstone SST-ST30SF (which is smaller and more efficient than the L8).

[Zen__]

+1 : the E10 400W is audibly quieter than the L8 300W, it is more efficient, it is better built and it is DC-DC regulated.
On the other hand, about the SATA connectors, if you're using SSDs or 12V drives (like modern WDC) you may also use SATA splitters or Molex-to-SATA adapters safely. With reference to that, another option might be the SFX 300W Silverstone SST-ST30SF (which is smaller and more efficient than the L8).

So, is this the right ranking: 1) E10 400W 2) SST-ST30SF 3) L8 300W?

Thanks.

[CA_Steve]

yes

[Zen__]

I've just compared noise levels of the above psu, according to techical specs:

Code: Select all

bequiet! Pure Power 300:              13.4dBA (20% load)             13.8dBA (50% load)        16.6dBA (100% load)

Silverstone SST-ST30SF:               0 ~ 38 dBA (0dBA when internal psu temp is below 55°C, otherwise 18dBA minimum)

bequiet! Straight Power 400:         10dBA (20% load)                10.4dBA (50% load)         11.7dBA (100% load)

Why SST-ST30SF is better than bequiet! Pure Power 300? Thanks

[xan_user]

Why?

-because ...

techical specs:

can not be trusted.

[Zen__]

Hi,
is Enermax Revolution X't ERX530AWT (530W) a good alternative to bequiet! Straight Power 400? It costs 85 euro but it's semi modular. Thanks.

[lodestar]

There is also the Enermax Revolution X't 430W Gold Hybrid Modular ERX430AWT which should be even cheaper. From my local supplier in the UK this is around 15% less than the Straight Power 10 400W and is probably the lowest cost Gold unit they have.

[quest_for_silence]

Why SST-ST30SF is better than bequiet! Pure Power 300? Thanks

In your proposed system it's better as it's more efficient and quieter (broadly speaking in any system with an expected power draw up to about 130W DC it should be among the quietest options available). BTW look for third-parties figures when you check manufacturers specs.

Hi,
is Enermax Revolution X't ERX530AWT (530W) a good alternative to bequiet! Straight Power 400? It costs 85 euro but it's semi modular. Thanks.

No, it's audibly louder than any other quoted PSU, and less efficient at your expected power draws: moreover, it's an overpriced low-end CWT unit, somewhat similar to the low end Corsair CX-series (main differences are DC/DC to boast efficiency/regulation, seen just on the CX750, and a better fan, but all in all it's pretty low end).

There is also the Enermax Revolution X't 430W Gold Hybrid Modular ERX430AWT which should be even cheaper. From my local supplier in the UK this is around 15% less than the Straight Power 10 400W and is probably the lowest cost Gold unit they have.

The smaller X't is EOL (due to lack of sales), but above all it's more junk than the larger siblings: at idle it's louder than the E10 at full load, and it fails to deliver its full rated power above 40°C.

The X't platform doesn't worth any recommendation, avoid.

[lodestar]

Equally one reviewer had doubts about the Straight Power 10 400 in terms of capacitor quality. But the issue here is that if a Gold PSU is required for around 85 euros the choice is distinctly limited. And all of the potential choices are budget models and as ever you only get what you pay for. If the finances will stretch to it I would recommend the Corsair 550 Watt RM550X. In the UK this costs about 20% more than the Straight Power 10 but I hear that the euro price can be more like 95 to 100. The RM550X is fully modular which the Straight Power is not. It is also a semi-passive PSU so the fan will stay off unless it is triggered by a combination of load and/or ambient temperatures. Corsair say that this is around the 250w load level so for a non-overclocked CPU only build this could be effectively never.

[quest_for_silence]

Equally one reviewer had doubts about the Straight Power 10 400 in terms of capacitor quality.

Sometimes I feel you give some answers just to say something about, not because it's relevant: the louder Enermax 430 uses CapXon secondary caps, which are fare worse than Teapo ones used by FSP/Bequiet, and a just 85°C rated primary one, instead of a 105°C rated one. So, whether Bequiet caps quality were somehow a concern, according to you or the reviewer you quote, what about the Enermax ones, which are surely worse?

If the finances will stretch to it I would recommend the Corsair 550 Watt RM550X.

For its modular cabling? Because at 20-80W (the expected power range of the proposed build), the RM550x would hardly give any advantage (probably it should be marginally less efficient in that power range, half a watt or so).
Then why not a Super Flower Golden Silent, instead? It's Platinum rated (better efficiency than Gold), it's modular, it's fanless, it's probably even better built, and it would cost about the same... seriously, whether the OP is looking at 50/70 bucks PSU, why advice for 100/110 bucks ones (from +40% to +120%)? "I'd like to buy a Ford or an Opel, what do you think about?" - "Naaa, forget them: buy a Mercedes".

[Zen__]

Why SST-ST30SF is better than bequiet! Pure Power 300? Thanks

In your proposed system it's better as it's more efficient and quieter (broadly speaking in any system with an expected power draw up to about 130W DC it should be among the quietest options available). BTW look for third-parties figures when you check manufacturers specs.

Hi, are sur emy wattage needs are below 130? eXtreme Power Supply Calculator says my load wattage is 151 W (*)


Thanks

(*)
- 1x Skylake i5
- 2x 8gb ddr4
- 2x sata 5400rpm
- 1x ssd
- 1x usb 2.0 device
- 1x 80mm fan
- 2x 120mm fan

[quest_for_silence]

Hi, are sur emy wattage needs are below 130? eXtreme Power Supply Calculator says my load wattage is 151 W (*)

Absolutely yes: more probably that not you won't ever pass the 80W DC mark, so that you may think to use a tiny Pico-like PSU, instead of a fully fledged ATX PSU (so smaller and possibly quieter).

About online power supply calculators, unfortunately they're totally unreliable, they are just random figures generator: in other words, they just output bullshits.

For your comfort, you may check similar CPU reviews, those which record the whole PC draw: for instance like SPCR (65W Core i7 6700, 8 threads account for 106W AC, so around 80W DC), Guru3D (Core i5 6600K, measured with IGP at 64W), Phoronix (Core i5 6500, measured 59W peak, 41W on average and those are AC figures), the german ComputerBase (Core i5 6500 at 78W AC peak with Cinebench, 96W AC peak with AVX, so around 80W DC at most) and so on.

[Quinnbeast]

Equally one reviewer had doubts about the Straight Power 10 400 in terms of capacitor quality. But the issue here is that if a Gold PSU is required for around 85 euros the choice is distinctly limited. And all of the potential choices are budget models and as ever you only get what you pay for. If the finances will stretch to it I would recommend the Corsair 550 Watt RM550X. In the UK this costs about 20% more than the Straight Power 10 but I hear that the euro price can be more like 95 to 100. The RM550X is fully modular which the Straight Power is not. It is also a semi-passive PSU so the fan will stay off unless it is triggered by a combination of load and/or ambient temperatures. Corsair say that this is around the 250w load level so for a non-overclocked CPU only build this could be effectively never.

Fan noise is largely irrelevant given the RPM range of the Be Quiet SP 10s - they may not be semi-passive, but they're quite enough that it's just not an issue unless you wear your PC chassis as a hat. I've seen a few highly detailed reviews (johnnyguru et al)that class SP10 caps as "2nd teir" (i.e not absolutely best-in-class) but nothing sufficient to stop the units being recommended (often highly) in their price range while proving a 5-year warranty.

[lodestar]

I don't particularly like the cables on the SP10 400w including that they are non-modular. The Corsair is of course completely modular, and I prefer the flat cables. But only the OP knows if this is important enough to affect his choice.

[Zen__]

I don't particularly like the cables on the SP10 400w including that they are non-modular. The Corsair is of course completely modular, and I prefer the flat cables. But only the OP knows if this is important enough to affect his choice.

I think I can route them in the case (Nanoxia Deep Silence 4), behind motherboard tray.