Seasonic SS400 RevA3 out soon

bcat · Post by **bcat** » Mon Mar 29, 2004 12:54 pm

Seasonic SS400 RevA3 out soon

After seeing a post here that Seasonic will replace the SS400-AGX revA2's with the A1 I got an RMA and sent my A2 back. Seasonic called me on 03/22 to say they don't have any more A1's but I could wait for the rev A3, which should be available the end of April. Being as this SS400 was intended to replace a still working Antec PP412 I opted to wait for the A3 and hope for the best.

I called Seasonic today and spoke to June in RMA, she confirmed the end of April and said the A3 is already on the boat on their way to the US. She said the A3 will fix the fan circuit problem of the A2 and also correct a problem with the A1, I'm not aware the A1 had any fan problems; perhaps the fan not starting until psu internal temp increases

I wasn't able to get any technical info from her, only that Seasonic feels the revA3 will be an improvement of the A1 & A2.

Perhaps Mike C could contact someone at Seasonic and get some specifics as to what this revision means in technical terms.

zuperdee · Post by **zuperdee** » Mon Mar 29, 2004 1:21 pm

Rats!!! Sounds like this means yet another choice for me to consdier.

Stephen7372 · Post by **Stephen7372** » Tue Mar 30, 2004 2:59 am

Where in the world are these powes supplies made

Post by **Ralf Hutter** » Tue Mar 30, 2004 5:18 am

Well, if the rev A3 is as quiet as the rev A1's, that's certainly wonderful news! This is a very good PSU but I just can't recommend the noisy rev A2 version of it.

Post by **MikeC** » Tue Mar 30, 2004 8:52 am

I did receive a recent email stating that some rev A3 Super series PSUs would be sent for me to examine. I have no technical details, just that A3 corrects any/all fan controller problems of previous versions. The Seasonics, like most PSUs, are manufactured in China, with the company being based in Taiwan.

Stephen7372 · Post by **Stephen7372** » Tue Mar 30, 2004 8:56 am

Thanks I suppose everything is made in China these days,shame you can't buy it directly.
These people http://world.altavista.com/ do do a Chinese to English translation website thing though

The Business LInk is dreadfull booo !

bcat · Post by **bcat** » Wed Mar 31, 2004 5:49 am

Mike C said:

I did receive a recent email stating that some rev A3 Super series PSUs would be sent for me to examine.

That is great news. I am anxious to hear what your impression will be after receiving the A3 for evaluation.

Hopefully this revision will solve the fan circuit problems once and for all.

HammerSandwich · Post by **HammerSandwich** » Thu Apr 01, 2004 1:27 pm

MikeC wrote:...just that A3 corrects any/all fan controller problems of previous versions.

Sure am glad I didn't void my A2's warranty! I'll keep my fingers crossed here.

Post by **Ralf Hutter** » Fri Apr 02, 2004 6:35 am

Hopefully the boxes will be marked so the consumer can tell which revision they're getting, otherwise it'll be a total crapshoot, just like it is right now with the rev A1- A2 situation.

bcat · Post by **bcat** » Fri Apr 02, 2004 6:40 pm

HammerSandwich said:

Sure am glad I didn't void my A2's warranty!

Me too!

It's funny that I never experienced the erratic fan problems that many here have talked about. I attributed that to either my revA2 being in a full tower case with excellent airflow; but more likely because the motherboard is a MSI KT133a chipset - 512 SDram and a Matrox 450 32mb vid card - ie: 2001 technology.

I seem to remember reading the fan ckt sensor revs up the fan when it detects a sudden increase in the power draw. Temp wasn't the culprit, but putting a sudden increased load on the psu would cause the fan to become demonic

Has anyone here attributed their A2 problems to be caused by something other then case temps ?

At some point I will upgrade mb - memory- etc and didn't want to find SS400 suddenly acting demonic.

Talz · Post by **Talz** » Fri Apr 02, 2004 7:28 pm

I believe it's heat related, I could reduce the revving in mine by speeding up the intakes. Of course this was rather pointless since that made even more noise.

Post by **Ralf Hutter** » Sat Apr 03, 2004 9:12 am

bcat wrote: Has anyone here attributed their A2 problems to be caused by something other then case temps ?

It has nothing to do with case or PSU temps, it seems to have something to do with the load on the PSU.

The PSU fan ramps up even when the case temps are down in the 20's, but only if you load the PSU sufficiently.

The PSU fans don't ramp up at all, even if the case temps are near 40°C, as long as there's not much load on the PSU.

HammerSandwich · Post by **HammerSandwich** » Sat Apr 03, 2004 11:09 am

I agree with Ralf's summary, but I've also noticed that my 350AGX-A2 is particular about case ventilation. Negative pressure makes it ramp up much sooner and higher than positive. Check out the fan speeds from a couple of brief Prime95 runs in my Genie. The first is with negative pressure from using only exhaust fans and passive front intake. In the second, I turned on the front 120 and flipped the rear 120 into another intake, resulting in seriously positive pressure. Case fans were undervolted in both runs. Note also the horrid spikes when the load stops.

Post by **Ralf Hutter** » Sat Apr 03, 2004 4:43 pm

HammerSandwich wrote:I agree with Ralf's summary, but I've also noticed that my 350AGX-A2 is particular about case ventilation. Negative pressure makes it ramp up much sooner and higher than positive. Check out the fan speeds from a couple of brief Prime95 runs in my Genie. The first is with negative pressure from using only exhaust fans and passive front intake. In the second, I turned on the front 120 and flipped the rear 120 into another intake, resulting in seriously positive pressure.

That's all fine and dandy but in any system I've played with over the past few years, positive pressure gives me higher case and CPU temps. I wouldn't be too thrilled to have to put up with that just to keep the PSU fan revs down a bit.

Face it, there's just something wrong with the rev A2 fan control circuit and hopefully they've fixed it on the rev A3's.

HammerSandwich wrote:Note also the horrid spikes when the load stops.

Yes, that's exactly what I saw on the rev A2's that I tried. It would run at about 2100-2200 under load and jump up tp about 2500 rpm when the load was stopped.

zuperdee · Post by **zuperdee** » Sat Apr 10, 2004 3:47 am

So has anyone been able to get hold of a Rev A3 yet? I am wondering:

a) how it will fare compared to RevA2, and exactly what the difference in the circuit is.

b) I am also wondering how we'll be able to know for sure when purchasing that we're getting an A3 and not an A2. It would be kinda nice if the revision was labeled on the box or model number somewhere, the way Zalman has done with the revisions of their PSUs (e.g. ZM300A/B and ZM400A/B).

bcat · Post by **bcat** » Sat Apr 10, 2004 4:14 pm

zuperdee said:

So has anyone been able to get hold of a Rev A3 yet?

According to Seasonic's RMA dept I should get my A3 right around the end of this month. When I do I'll post any relevant info I can find about it, ie: packaging; or if any included promo material gives any specs or details regarding the A3 revision. I suspect Mike C. may get his shipment before me as he is much closer to Seasonic's CA location then I am.

I don't think there are any A3's in the USA at this point. Seasonic said the shipment I'm waiting for is the first release for the states. I'd guess they should also be available thru retail channels around the same time period.

Post by **MikeC** » Sat Apr 10, 2004 4:20 pm

I have a couple of Super series A3s on the test bench right now, both Tornado & Silencer. So far, no problems. Will post a quick report in a few days -- if Seasonic gives me permission to release this info; these are said to be preliminary versions that are not 100% finalized.

McChen · Post by **McChen** » Sun Apr 11, 2004 11:26 am

Is Seasonic revising the Super Tornado series as well? Or is it just the Super Silencer? From the posts here, it sounds like the Tornado could use some work too.....

Toth · Post by **Toth** » Sun Apr 11, 2004 7:11 pm

McChen wrote:Is Seasonic revising the Super Tornado series as well? Or is it just the Super Silencer? From the posts here, it sounds like the Tornado could use some work too.....

MikeC wrote:I have a couple of Super series A3s on the test bench right now, both Tornado & Silencer.

Emphasis mine.

bcat · Post by **bcat** » Wed Apr 14, 2004 6:55 pm

I heard from Seasonic today, I have a UPS tracking number for a revA3 RMA. It is shipping via ground so will probably be here by the end of next week.

The early report from Mike C. is promising

If it's packed in a retail box I'll look for any distinctive revA3 markings and let you all know.

Rukes · Post by **Rukes** » Tue Apr 20, 2004 4:08 pm

Maybe A3 will get rid of the horrible rattling sound from the fan that developed in my A1 model.

Sadly, Seasonic does not cross-ship so I gotta buy another power supply to replace the current one.

bcat · Post by **bcat** » Wed Apr 21, 2004 1:43 pm

UPS dropped off a revA3 SS400 today. There are two things on the front of the retail box it came in that may help to distinguish it from the previous versions.

It came with one SATA converter and on the front of the box there is a stick on label above the picture of the psu that says "Serial ATA Ready". Another stick on label says "400W (450W peak) ATX 12V v.1.3 power supply". I think the "(450W peak)" part of the label may be new but I'm not sure about that. Other then that there is nothing on the box to designate it's an A3.

Oh, the A3 fan is the same Super Red fan as used previously.

Can anyone with a rev1 or rev2 box check for those two labels?

I ran a revA2 for about 6 weeks in a 4 year old, low power draw system (2400XP-MSI mb w/ KT133A chipset-Matrox450- 512mb 133SDram- ST 40gb IV). I'm not a gamer and mostly use the box for web surfing, email,etc. I never experienced the erratic fan problems with the A2 that has been widely discussed here; therefore I don't think I could give a good evaluation of this new A3 version.

I'm finishing up some mods to the case this will go in so I haven't fired it up yet. Hopefully Mike C. will post his impressions if Seasonic gives him the OK to do so.

Post by **Ralf Hutter** » Thu Apr 22, 2004 5:08 am

bcat wrote:Another stick on label says "400W (450W peak) ATX 12V v.1.3 power supply". I think the "(450W peak)" part of the label may be new but I'm not sure about that.

Each of my rev A1 boxes have that identical sticker so that won't be of any use.

The "SATA" thing might be a good clue though. Neither my rev A1's or the one rev A2 that I had have SATA connectors, so hopefully that will be enough to differentiate the rev A3s.

mr_pickles · Post by **mr_pickles** » Fri May 07, 2004 6:58 am

Any new discoveries/news on this front? Haven't heard a peep about the A3's in a little while.

I need to buy a new power supply in the not too distant future and am heavily leaning towards a SuperSilencer (A3 of course).

RaNDoMMAI · Post by **RaNDoMMAI** » Fri May 07, 2004 7:27 am

mr_pickles wrote:Any new discoveries/news on this front? Haven't heard a peep about the A3's in a little while.

I need to buy a new power supply in the not too distant future and am heavily leaning towards a SuperSilencer (A3 of course).

maybe MikeC is totally shocked by how quiet the A3 ares he is going crazy!

~RaNDoM

Post by **MikeC** » Fri May 07, 2004 9:32 am

In this case, no news is not good news. I've been asked to stay mum, but I think this is safe to say: Rev A3 is not on the stands yet for good reason.

Post by **NeilBlanchard** » Fri May 07, 2004 10:34 am

RaNDoMMAI · Post by **RaNDoMMAI** » Fri May 07, 2004 10:39 am

So nexus is still the king

hmm...

~RaNDoM

Post by **NeilBlanchard** » Fri May 07, 2004 10:57 am

Hello:

RaNDoMMAI wrote:So nexus is still the king

Maybe, or maybe not...

patord · Post by **patord** » Fri May 07, 2004 11:24 am

MikeC wrote:In this case, no news is not good news. I've been asked to stay mum, but I think this is safe to say: Rev A3 is not on the stands yet for good reason.

Did you sign a NDA or is this simply out of courtesy since they sent you sample PSUs to test?

I'm sure those of us waiting to RMA our A2's for some A3s are waiting for what you have to say...

TIA

Seasonic SS400 RevA3 out soon

Seasonic SS400 RevA3 out soon

where

uh oh...

maybe...maybe not