I'm planning to build a low-power, value HTPC. I'm really undecided if I should go for an 80PLUS Bronze Seasonic PSU OR a laptop adapter from Cooler Master (Energy Star certified).

SETUP 1. I go for the laptop adapter. I'd have to choose a special Intel mini-itx mobo (DH61AG) which is pretty expensive. Mini-itx mobo + laptop adapter = very low power. Pico-PSUs are not available here in India.

SETUP 2. I go for Seasonic PSU. I get to choose a cheaper mini-itx mobo. Mini-itx mobo + Seasonic PSU = low power but a bit more than the above setup, far less expensive


I will be pairing the mobo with Sandybridge Pentium G620.

The big question is - is SETUP 1 really going to save me a SIGNIFICANT amount of power (in terms of watts) over SETUP 2? I mean...is it worth the higher cost? Or is it just a matter of 5-6 watts give or take?

I'm not too concerned about noise etc. Cost and low power are priority.

For a quick reference, see the power measurements here
http://silentpcreview.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=28&t=62702

Is there any place on the Web where they've compared a laptop PSU with an ATX one using the same components?

Thanks for the help....

I'm in the middle of doing that experiment right now.

System is an i3-3225 on an Intel DH77EB. Using an 80W Pico-psu + 90W Meanwell AC converter I'm getting 11-12W at idle using 3 waaay undervolted Scythe 120mm fans and a Samsung 256GB 830 SSD. Switching out the Pico-psu for an eight year-old 350W Seasonic SS350 PSU the idle watts go up to around 19-20. Later today I will be receiving a brand-new Seasonic SS360GP to play with. Will report back later.....

Wow...thanks a lot Ralf. It's exactly the kind of thing I was looking for. Awaiting your measurements with the Seasonic Gold unit...

It would've been great if you had a Bronze unit to test it with as well...

The Seasonic G-360 is more efficient at lower power levels than the older Bronze models. The whole post.

Idle with the SS360 is 16-17W. I also tested some pseudo-load figures by running Prime95 while simultaneously ripping a CD to FLAC using EAC and transferring 52GB of files from one internal drive to another. Both Pico-psu and Seasonic showed almost identical 52-53W loads. The old Seasonic I mentioned in my previous post (it's actually an SS300) showed a load of 58-59W.

oooh, really appreciate the numbers!

Same here...thanks a lot for your efforts...