Review of Vantec's 470W Tri-Fan PSU

PSUs: The source of DC power for all components in the PC & often a big noise source.

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ChiefWeasel
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Review of Vantec's 470W Tri-Fan PSU

Post by ChiefWeasel » Tue Sep 24, 2002 4:01 am

Frosty Tech have done a review of Vantec's new PSU.

Just thought id mention it since i seem to remember something about an SPCR preview on the front page?

MikeC
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Post by MikeC » Tue Sep 24, 2002 8:03 am

The preview can still be seen in REVIEWS, under LIST ALL TOPICS from the main menu. It is NOT a quiet PSU & has no chance to be quiet with 3 fans. Louder than any PSU on the recommended list. I do not think it is worth a review & will likely return the samples as it is unsuitable for use in a quiet PC.

davidhooper
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Post by davidhooper » Tue Sep 24, 2002 9:28 am

do not think it is worth a review & will likely return the samples
Chuckle :D Mike doesn't mince his words!

MikeC
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Post by MikeC » Tue Sep 24, 2002 10:36 am

Actually, I would not be negative about this PSU if they weren't marketing it as a quiet "Stealth" model. If they said, for example, that it is well-suited for servers and other tough 24/7 apps that need reliable cooling but still remains relatively quiet, I'd say fine, let's have a look. But that is not the way it is presented. "Stealth"... :roll:

I think that as quiet becomes more sellable, we'll see more questionable claims & marketing schemes until or unless some kind of standard for truth in advertising (about noise) prevails. That's another good reason to support Tomas Risberg's (The Silent PC website) call for consistent and mandatory standardized testing of noise in PC components -- at least for those who make declarations of noise. In the meanwhile, I would like to do what I can to discourage such marketing.
Last edited by MikeC on Tue Jan 14, 2003 4:34 pm, edited 2 times in total.

Queue
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Post by Queue » Tue Sep 24, 2002 12:21 pm

Gee, mebbe they called it "Stealth" cuz of the cool black aluminum case? :roll:

Queue

MikeC
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Post by MikeC » Tue Sep 24, 2002 2:02 pm

That's probably a part of it, Queue, but the "Stealth" line's slogan is "Power in Silence", includes fans promoted as being quiet, and the PSU literature specifically cites low noise as a primary feature.

Still, upon further consideration, I have decided that it is only fair to do a full review of the product that Vantec submitted and document its strengths & weaknesses.

ChiefWeasel
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Post by ChiefWeasel » Wed Sep 25, 2002 2:11 am

Since its really aimed at a different market to the 'standard' home user, maybe you could compare it to an Enermax which is capable of putting out the same power. Maybe its description of quiet is valid when compared to other PSUs which can put out ~500W?

Not sure how you could fully load these PSUs thou? Maybe run two computers of them? (I remember seeing somewhere that they tested a PSU by running 2 mobos off it - maybe at [H]ardOCP?)

Queue
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Post by Queue » Wed Sep 25, 2002 6:51 am

ChiefWeasel makes a valid point. It is all relative. I have an Enermax EG465P-VE that claims to be "low noise" and is anything but.

Queue

MikeC
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Post by MikeC » Wed Sep 25, 2002 8:46 am

Queue wrote:ChiefWeasel makes a valid point. It is all relative. I have an Enermax EG465P-VE that claims to be "low noise" and is anything but.

Queue
Good suggestion. I do have a 365 Enermax and a 400W Seasonic will try to compare. I have a way to load up the 12V line to 300W...

rally
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Post by rally » Wed Sep 25, 2002 12:34 pm

MikeC wrote: In the meanwhile, I would like to do what I can to discourage such marketing.
Amen to that :D
As this is my first post on this awesome forum, I would like to congratulate mike on setting up such a great resource for all who are serious and interested in fighting the never ending and ongoing battle against pc noise.
Once again thanks mike and keep up the great work :D

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