About to buy Seasonic SS-300FS...
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About to buy Seasonic SS-300FS...
Hi guys,
I'm about to buy the Seasonic SS-300FS PSU. Any last minute good experiences/warnings in the next 15mins before purchase?
I'm getting it for a touch over £50. Zalman ZM300A-APF not available in the UK and the Q-Tech 300W is more expensive. Good decision?
I'm about to buy the Seasonic SS-300FS PSU. Any last minute good experiences/warnings in the next 15mins before purchase?
I'm getting it for a touch over £50. Zalman ZM300A-APF not available in the UK and the Q-Tech 300W is more expensive. Good decision?
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Yup, they're good reasons
An interesting SS story, BTW. One system builder recently told me they replace the fan in the SS with a Panaflo to get the minimal noise. The Panaflo doesn't start on starup because the fan voltage is so low. In a few minutes when the PSU HS gets a bit hotter, the themistor gradually kicks up the fan voltage, at which point, the Panaflo starts spinning. Once it begins, the Panaflo pretty much stays at close to minimal speed because only a small amount of airflow is enough to keep the thermistor below the kick up level temp in most systems. They haven't seen any increase in PSU failures since they started this some months ago, so it seems reasonably safe. The Panaflo is considerably quieter than the stock SS fan, so if you decide you want even quieter & don't mind losing the warranty, this might be worthwhile.
Just my 2 cents.
An interesting SS story, BTW. One system builder recently told me they replace the fan in the SS with a Panaflo to get the minimal noise. The Panaflo doesn't start on starup because the fan voltage is so low. In a few minutes when the PSU HS gets a bit hotter, the themistor gradually kicks up the fan voltage, at which point, the Panaflo starts spinning. Once it begins, the Panaflo pretty much stays at close to minimal speed because only a small amount of airflow is enough to keep the thermistor below the kick up level temp in most systems. They haven't seen any increase in PSU failures since they started this some months ago, so it seems reasonably safe. The Panaflo is considerably quieter than the stock SS fan, so if you decide you want even quieter & don't mind losing the warranty, this might be worthwhile.
Just my 2 cents.
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UK place to buy: http://www.koolnquiet.co.uk/index.php?m ... alog&id=16
No significant user difference between APFC and passive PFC versions. For info on PFC, read the Zalman PSU review.
No significant user difference between APFC and passive PFC versions. For info on PFC, read the Zalman PSU review.
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Oz, I'm getting it from koolnquiet, from the link MikeC suggested. Their online purchasing system is really archaic - last night I placed the order and they mailed me saying "We will contact you shortly to arrange payment"! And I don't think they accept credit cards. Shipping is £8.65 after VAT
nerotek, according to the PDF on the Seasonic site, they only make an APFC 300W PSU.
nerotek, according to the PDF on the Seasonic site, they only make an APFC 300W PSU.
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Too bad about the payment setup; maybe they've already had some scammers. VISA's fine print, at least in Canada, basically says any customer whose card you didn't physically imprint can void the transaction and the merchant has absolutely no recourse. My better half does acc work for some online service orgs; this is their biggest ongoing headache, they're dropping VISA now.davidhooper wrote:koolnquiet... online purchasing system is really archaic... they only make an APFC 300W PSU.
BTW, I thought I saw a passive PFC 300 SS at Silicon Acoustics. (One of our sponsors.)
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www.theoverclockingstore.co.ukOz wrote: Also, do you know any places to buy Alpha heatsinks (overclockers.co.uk seem to have been out of stock for 3 months)?
www.chillblast.co.uk
www.overclock.co.uk
www.kustompcs.co.uk
www.tekheads.co.uk
www.over-clock.co.uk
Try some of these sites Oz, hopefully one will have them in!
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-UPDATE-
They rang me today (on my mobile!) to enquire if I had received their email. I hadn't and still haven't. Though the man said I could pay with a credit card after all. Argh. I'll keep you updated.
They rang me today (on my mobile!) to enquire if I had received their email. I hadn't and still haven't. Though the man said I could pay with a credit card after all. Argh. I'll keep you updated.
Oh, OK then, I stand corrected.BTW, I thought I saw a passive PFC 300 SS at Silicon Acoustics.
Don't know yet. Will let you know.Does the fan plug in to a 2-pin connector inside the SS PSU, or do I have to do some soldering and stuff?
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hmm, if u were me would u pay $15 more to get the active over the passive?
http://www.siliconacoustics.com/seasonicpsus.html
seasonic ss-300fs $44
seasonic ss-300fs apfc $59
thx...
http://www.siliconacoustics.com/seasonicpsus.html
seasonic ss-300fs $44
seasonic ss-300fs apfc $59
thx...
only if you're "green" should you get PFC. otherwise, forget it, it does nothing for your system performace-wise. as mike said, the benifit is mostly at the power company side. the most i would argue it can do for you is it _might_ improve the power conditioning of your power lines in your house.
one cautious note with replacing the fan with a panaflo. if the panaflo doesn't initially start, motors have a large startup torque to get it spinning. that is, it will usually take a much higher initial voltage to get it running than the lowest voltage it will continues to run once it is already spinning. this startup voltage can vary if you're slowly bringing the voltage up from a stopped fan. in some theoretical cases, this might be when the power supply is already running too hot.
now one way to test if this is okay is through statisical empirical testing with a significant batch, which the system builder mentioned might have done (or is doing de facto with units in the field so far), but you are no longer guaranteed by design. this may be fine for the SS PS (if tested properly by the mentioned system builder), but the same note applies with doing this mod to other PSs. also note the standard disclaimer of risk and danger to your health of high voltage when opening up your power supply, and obviously voiding your warrenty.
having said that, i personally have removed both fans from my antec true power PS, replaced the exhaust fan with a panaflo, and brought the fan header out of the PS with the rest of the power cables on a 4-pin connector. on this particular PS and panaflo, it starts up at 5.5V consistantly (which is the starting voltage of the fan header on this PS). this may or may not be typical of panaflos or this PS. now i can plug the cable either into 12V, or the temp. controller fan header the antec PS supplies. i've also "tuned" the temperature controller fan headers by partially covering up the intake with tape so that temp. response partially feedback from the CPU temp.
one cautious note with replacing the fan with a panaflo. if the panaflo doesn't initially start, motors have a large startup torque to get it spinning. that is, it will usually take a much higher initial voltage to get it running than the lowest voltage it will continues to run once it is already spinning. this startup voltage can vary if you're slowly bringing the voltage up from a stopped fan. in some theoretical cases, this might be when the power supply is already running too hot.
now one way to test if this is okay is through statisical empirical testing with a significant batch, which the system builder mentioned might have done (or is doing de facto with units in the field so far), but you are no longer guaranteed by design. this may be fine for the SS PS (if tested properly by the mentioned system builder), but the same note applies with doing this mod to other PSs. also note the standard disclaimer of risk and danger to your health of high voltage when opening up your power supply, and obviously voiding your warrenty.
having said that, i personally have removed both fans from my antec true power PS, replaced the exhaust fan with a panaflo, and brought the fan header out of the PS with the rest of the power cables on a 4-pin connector. on this particular PS and panaflo, it starts up at 5.5V consistantly (which is the starting voltage of the fan header on this PS). this may or may not be typical of panaflos or this PS. now i can plug the cable either into 12V, or the temp. controller fan header the antec PS supplies. i've also "tuned" the temperature controller fan headers by partially covering up the intake with tape so that temp. response partially feedback from the CPU temp.
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re - the Panaflo in the SS PSU. Almost all the Panaflos I've used start at 5V or just under, some as low as 4.5V. The fan start voltage in the review sample SS300 is a little over 4.3V; another half volt will be more than enough to get it to start. I suspect this would happen fairly quickly in a system with a hot CPU right next to the PSU. It might be worth a quick test run.
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