JonnyGuru debunks old power supply myths | Ask a PC expert

Gordon sits down with Corsair's PSU expert Jon Gerow (aka JonnyGuru) to talk about over provisioning, single rail vs multi rail, temperature ratings and so much more.
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[@plasmathunderdx]

"Gordon sits down with Corsair's PSU expert Jon Gerow" they were standing the whole time..

[@ministerc.politics4305]

It's all lies and slanders!!

[@galacticupfan7386]

Minister C. Politics just like rtx

[@stevethea5250]

@@ministerc.politics4305 I WANT 80+ VIBRANIUM

[@emceeunderdogrising]

Got em!

[@Ryan-qn1wr]

Fake news

[@HypnoticSuggestion]

This guy is/was basically the most trusted person in PC hardware, maybe ever.

[@PixelGod240]

Pc Jesus aka Steve is close second!

[@LeesChannel]

@Ziv Zulander Anand is the literal definition of a sellout. Anandtech has slipped to the point where they are now doing paid reviews. Brian Klug was fantastic, the best writer at that time on Anandtech.

[@mangshu21]

They are good at what they do so they get hired..so many salty animals

[@BeardedHardware]

HypnoticSuggestion johnnyguru is the man when it comes to psus.

[@BeardedHardware]

I’ve got to work with him on the Corsair 1600 before release.. he does great work..

[@traeheck3614]

Sometimes PSU,s not only commit suicide but homicide as well.

[@Kalvinjj]

Indeed, and that's the last part of the video!

[@tuunaes]

And some PSUs are arsonists: www.theregister.co.uk/2012/11/26/exploding_computer_vs_reg_reader/ One of the PSUs in Jonnyguru's "gutless wonder" reviews was certainly heading that way with PCB getting seriously heated up look from that hour or two long testing.

[@NicksStuff]

Suicide-bombing kind of deal

[@wingracer1614]

@@tuunaes I just recently came home to a house full of smoke. My PSU had not only died but caught fire. Fortunately it was a small fire that went out on its own, the smoke was just from burned plastic and once I swapped in another PSU, the comp was fine. And this wasn't an el-cheapo special, it was a top of the line gold 850w from one of the main players.

[@tuunaes]

Western world safety regulations likely require flame retardant/self extinguishing materials. So once heat from some short circuit/collected dust ends, there shouldn't be continuing fire. Again cheap "China Export" garbages don't care much about regulations and can keep burning until there's nothing more left to burn.

[@sblantipodi]

I choose my power supply based on this man suggestions since more than 10 years. Thanks Jonny

[@bradhilton118]

Yep. Absolutely. Wasn't sure on the AX860i 2 years ago, because of the complaints about it online, and he explained to me that the failure rate was less than 1% and that it'd be very very unlikely that I'd experience any issues with boot loops or anything else. Been just over 2 years now running the fearsome FX 9590, and the AX860i hasn't turned on it's fan, hasn't had any problems and is still running fine today. I'll also be transferrring it over to a 3950x build when that comes out.

[@parasemic]

Well, if you chose correctly you should still be on your first or second unit :p

[@Star_Sn1per]

So you bought a Seasonic? lol

[@sblantipodi]

@@Star_Sn1per at first an emerald, than a seasonic and then an ax860i 😁

[@emmanuila7747]

@@Star_Sn1per Seasonic and if I will buy again only Seasonic will do the job for me their prizes is good.

[@KevinSmith-qi5yn]

I do exactly what Corsair does when buying a PSU. I get a Seasonic.

[@Chuzo1946]

Lmao

[@S2GUnit]

loll

[@SternLX]

Seasonic. The ONLY PSU brand I have ran in my builds for the last 20 years.

[@0s0sXD]

@@SternLX damn Is it really that good? Wow

[@0s0sXD]

@@SternLX I have a powrsupply who I think is not enough to power my new graphics card. Thermaltake 730watt amd radeon 5700xt

[@santinojoshuatorre1695]

in jonnyguru we trust. it's veeeeery nice to see that he hasn't lost any of his honesty even after being affiliated with a company. amazing.

[@dstblj5222]

That's common a lot of brands have stuff like that no different then any SSD brand not Kingston micron, Samsung, sk hynix, or nanya

[@sarfaraz.hosseini]

THE Johnny Guru in person. Legend.

[@olo398]

yep

[@Maisonier]

The man. The myth. The legend.

[@__aceofspades]

I had real respect for Jon from when he used to run Johnny guru, and now he helps engineer PSU's, and in this video he basically advocated not buying the most expensive PSU's mad props.

[@ImDembe]

Yep, a good psu cost around 100$ today but people still cheap out...come on you buy a gpu for 400$ and shit to pump power in to it :D

[@importfruchte]

I bet Johnny was cringing when he had to say anything about the VS series ... those are real garbage!

[@MapOfEurasia]

This comment needs more likes! VS series are real garbage.

[@daris98]

The new, grey VS PSUs are actually not too bad, I'd say they're just below the Seasonic S12II in terms of performance and longevity.

[@daris98]

@@knit-abroad-glide Still an improvement from the yellow one.

[@tristankendrikreyes9184]

garbage yes. but then again some people (friend of mine in this particular case) run VS with a FX series processor with a 1070 and never bothering to clean their rig. i've had a good laugh dissing the people who built the pc, dissing him and his rig

[@user-qc6pg6ef6h]

bUt iT wOrKs fInE fOr mE

[@TN-6969]

Man this guy was the last word on PSUs for a long ass time. I left the scene for a good amount of years and when I came back his site went to hell, I was wondering what happened to him. Didn't know Corsair hired him.

[@SpeedyGoneFroglegs]

Damn, you weren't kidding about the site, it's all a bunch of javascript shit. Doesn't even have the review for my PSU anymore, although the thread it was linked in still exists. At least the forums still seem okay for now.

[@stevethea5250]

@@SpeedyGoneFroglegs seems fine to me ?

[@ImDembe]

They are still going, Hardware Secrets site is dead. Looks like alot of other sites have good reviews nowdays, Tomshardware is one of them.

[@nolandderlugner1351]

@@ImDembe AHAHAHA good joke buddy

[@ImDembe]

@@nolandderlugner1351 i wrote good, not perfect. Feel free to check them out...

[@sixstringedthing]

If you're gonna talk to an expert, get THE expert. Nice one, much respect for a guy that really knows his stuff. Interesting that he works for Corsair now.

[@lxvideostuff7200]

"if you cant beat them, join them"

[@jcmarin3223]

Thank you, thank you, thank you, PCWorld, for bringing in an expert to talk about A VERY IMPORTANT component of a PC. And no, I am NOT being sarcastic!

[@AJDOLDCHANNELARCHIVE]

Agreed, the question asked are great too. Most interviewers never delve into any detailed questions or anything worthwhile. Very interesting discussion over all.

[@ayuchanayuko]

Just like in the human body, you don't mess with your heart pumping life into you. Cpu=brain Psu=heart Mobo=nerves/cns

[@AJDOLDCHANNELARCHIVE]

@@ayuchanayuko Good analogy. And for the spiritual/metaphysical out there... User = soul.

[@0FFICERPROBLEM]

What's the GPU then?

[@AJDOLDCHANNELARCHIVE]

@@0FFICERPROBLEM Muscles? Eyes/Retina?

[@SIW808]

4 years ago I bought the XFX XTR 650W PSU because of his review of the unit. Still using it up to now. This man is a legend

[@beersandbacon]

You've now met the only person in the world who hates modular power cables.

[@TheAnon03]

More or less my thoughts when I heard that

[@ryanmalin]

I also dislike modular PSUs. So at least 2 people dont like em

[@pH7oslo]

@@ryanmalin May I ask why?

[@mrdumbfellow927]

@@pH7oslo to be different and nothing else I'm sure. Notice the host didn't exactly have a reason either.

[@ImDembe]

I have no clue why people hate semi modular psus, it's not like your not going to use the 24-pin or the 4+4 to the cpu...

[@HylianOverlord]

That intro is way too loud.

[@stevethea5250]

lol

[@Dennzer1]

Thank you

[@craigprall9636]

I really enjoyed this video. I even understood most of it. Gordon didn't need a primer on PSUs nearly as much as he did on how to pronounce "Gerow." :)

[@foxwannabe8470]

He pronounced it correctly

[@syncmonism]

I bought my (non Corsair) PSU based on a Johnny Guru review and recommendation (from before he worked for Corsair). It is an EVGA Supernova 750 G2, and it was surprisingly inexpensive at the time (less than $100 CAD). I didn't need a 750 watt PSU, but ALL of the similar 550 and 650 Watt units were around the same price OR MORE.

[@deliriumcode]

High quality content! Thanks for this guest. ;)

[@TheRealLink]

Read so many of his reviews and has definitely influenced my buying decisions. Thanks PCWorld and Jonny for taking the time to do this interview.

[@Ren04700]

One word: Awesome! All my questions regarding PSU answered in one video. Thanks guys.

[@PedroDavidMoran]

HARDCOREEEE!!!! ; D Hi Jon, hi Gordon. Great Ask a PC expert ep!. See you around guys. Thumbs up!

[@peterpanther8627]

I love John Gerow, he seems like the GabeN of PSUs.

[@Galahad993]

Except this guy actually cares about what he’s doing

[@cdyjkr]

Had a cheaper CX650 on my old system that fried during a power spike. Corsair replaced it so quickly and painlessly, while paying for shipping and pre-approving the RMA process. I've bought nothing but Corsair since, I was impressed by their customer support and friendliness. They even have me a coupon for a discount on any retailer I would like. 10/10 company imo.

[@Gaijin101]

Gordon, please make more videos like this. Really important expert info!

[@brykit1972]

"GODDAM IT!" So glad I watched to the end. :D And glad I watched, period. I feel like a PSU expert now!

[@mannyc19]

He is great ! Down to earth,and humvle,and extremely Knowledgeable!

[@Joostinonline]

In this video he is, but he's an asshole on forums

[@0FFICERPROBLEM]

No u

[@7rich79]

Thanks that was very helpful. My knowledge has been updated, especially with regards to over provisioning and efficiency :)

[@NoThisIsPatrick.]

I have an old Antec TP-750w blue that I bought in 2009 that ran nonstop 24/7 in a media server and its still running til this day, love that thing.

[@N0N0111]

My Corsair HX1000 still going after 11 YEARS! Just make sure to blast out the dust each year :D

[@vaeloreonari7516]

Seasonic says it best "It's the heart of your system" and the old adage definitely applies here, you get what you pay for. Running a Crosshair VII Hero, 2700x and a EVGA 2080ti Ultra with a 750w Seasonic Focus Gold Plus, 10 yr warranty, runs like a boss!!

[@render5098]

Corsair's good stuff is all seasonic for a reason. (and a lot of their low end stuff are great wall, again for a reason..) ;o

[@Frostie3672]

Running the same board & cpu as you but with a 1080ti, had it powered by a Silverstone Strider 1000w which was 9 years old when I sold it and that thing never missed a beat, replaced it with a seasonic 1000w psu last year, I don't need that much power but the way I see it is to buy a bigger psu wattage wise than you need to factor in future upgrades.

[@c4nchi]

but components are more efficient every time not less efficient, you need less power now than 10 years ago.

[@MrSeon123]

@@render5098 The only series from Corsair that's Seasonic is the AX. All the others are GW, CWT and Flextronics. The AX is probably the series that makes least sense to buy, no matter what system you're powering

[@vaeloreonari7516]

@@c4nchi yea the seasonic psu configurator recommended a 850w psu, i knew that a 750 would be plenty😉

[@AJDOLDCHANNELARCHIVE]

Brilliant to hear some real knowledge and great questions asked... very informative and interesting video! Cheers guys!

[@bobgreene2892]

Very much appreciate this interview-- Jon Gerow smoothly and expertly shows why certain misunderstandings about PSUs can threaten our equipment and investment in a major way. I like the fact Gordon reviews-- one by one-- each of those myths and areas of ignorance (most of which I shared with him). He covers not only the levels of performance (bronze, silver, gold and platinum efficiencies), but the single-and-multi-rail design, and even the old idea that PSU weight counts. The information was so dense, I watched the interview with many replays at various points. So, yes, I have met many of the PSU disasters mentioned, ranging from a fried mainboard connector to a "stealth" overheating PSU issue (indicating under-capacity and/or end of service life), so I listened with rapt attention-- all this information complementing / confirming my gradual evolution of understanding over the years. Today, I run all critical/production equipment from only the highest quality, longest-warranty PSUs I can afford, as my first priority. My rationale is simple-- most problems encountered began with a PSU problem, and rippled downstream (in worst cases). Of course, I have followed GMU (Gordon) over the years well before PCWorld went entirely digital, and highly value his continued effort at excellence and expertise. Of course, I subscribed.

[@KaziQTR]

I've been using my two FSP Platinum PSUs for 5 years now. One reason even good PSUs blow is that people get the power from an interactive line UPS not an online one. Making the PSU overwork to correct for those stair voltage steps. Remember, these PSUs are active. They will constantly try to match the voltage peak and current to the same time for highest efficiency aka same degree. It'll be a constant of .99 or 1 on your watt meter. Use online UPS if you have to use one with these active PSUs.

[@KaziQTR]

@Brad Viviviyal exactly what I tried to say with explanation.

I remember the days of the original IBM PC and AT and their clones. A fanless PSU would have made no sense because the fan in the power supply was the only driver of air flow in the case!

[@hjaltithomas]

Thank you Jon for giving the time, really informative.

[@jmr1969x]

The men the myths the Legends! Johnny Guru & Gordon Mah Ung! Awesome stuff!

[@Atreea]

i remember buying a 550w unit that is actually 350w, popped mid game & took my hdd, bought a decent second hand fsp psu (still atx 2.2 rip) cuz i dont have a lot of money at the time and my pc is fine since then

[@Buffinator1988]

I have an AX860 and it's fantastic. That being said seasonic titanium models are the pinnacle in my opinion. Most normal people should just focus on getting a gold rated unit from any reputable brand - emphasis on "reputable".

[@CampyCamper]

Yeah i have a Seasonic titanium but most of the time i find myself recommending gold rated PSUs from either Seasonic, EVGA, Corsair to my friends. There's just so much quality and value with the 10 year warranty they all provide. A quality 550W-650W is enough for pretty much any gaming PC norwadays

[@mangshu21]

I have a seasonic s12g 550w gold psu from 2013.. no problems to this day

[@MrSeon123]

The Seasonic Prime Titanium is absolutely not the pinnacle. That's not about opinion, that's fact. The AX1600i is objectively the best PSU by any measure, except for things like watts/litre. By your suggestion, the EVGA G1/NEX 80+ Gold would be a good buy. It's absolutely not. It's based on the Aurum, and it's very low end, group regulated and absolute hot garbage.

[@Buffinator1988]

@@MrSeon123 Your being pedantic. In one extremely niche segment with the insane wattage.... Corsair win. But every other segment Seasonic rule the roost. That's a fact! Also its not impossible to buy a lemon from a reputable brand, but it's unusual so I stand by my advice.

[@MrSeon123]

@@Buffinator1988 No matter how much power your PC draw, the AX1600i will outperform any Seasonic. If you want the pinnacle of PSUs, you get that, and just ignore the wattage. Besides, would you really call the Prime the "pinnacle", when it lacks any options for multi rail OCP, and uses a super crappy fan? And because it's Seasonic, it will have worse QC than PSUs from larger companies. This is due to Seasonic outsourcing so much.

[@xBruceLee88x]

He's always been a good source for finding out if a PSU is good or not. What he said about older type power supplies explains the issue with the one in my rig now. I just ordered a replacement not too long ago, just have to swap it in

[@TeeMaaLyt]

it's good to see a real technician, a real professional talking about PC hardware on youtube

[@jlu]

Jonnyguru works at Corsair now?! Holy crap, how did I not know about this!

[@mgg4142]

The man, the myth, the legend himself.

[@Damalycus]

This is one of the best tech videos I've stumbled on in a long time.

[@ShakerBuildTech]

Great interview! Appreciate the info.

[@chris746568462]

One thing I do not like with a lot of these newer PSU's is they are all going for Fluid Dynamic Bearing fans. Unless it's done right they are basically a sleeve bearing with a fancy name. Twin ball bearing, please.

[@bobgreene2892]

At least one of the top hard drive brands boasts of its fluid dynamic bearings-- are you still skeptical? Have you had one fail?

[@chris746568462]

@@bobgreene2892 Alot of hard drives use FDB bearings. I think it's pretty much the norm now. I think more effort in R&D is done on a HDD than a fan though. There are far more benefits to having a FDB over ball bearing especially in a hdd where it can't be replaced... like i said, it just has to be made right. I have yet to see a fan have similar quality as hdd bearing, noctua and sunon maglev are good contenders I suppose. None of my FDB fans have failed, some of the older ones make strange ticking noises though, dependant on orientation. I install and repair industrial fans too. You will almost always find ball bearing there. Proven, reliable, replaceable...

[@bobgreene2892]

@@chris746568462 I usually insist on all-ball-bearing fans, and only gradually have begun to trust the (MTBF) projected lifespans for fluid dynamic bearing hard drives. FDB-based drives offer more value, as you point out, IF they are manufactured properly. But the temptation is strong to manufacture for a planned failure date. That said, what drives the bottom-line marketers crazy are the customers who insist on high quality with longest life for their dollars. That intangible is still called reputation, and it builds sales volume more often than not in even a shark-frenzy market.

[@perwestermark8920]

@@bobgreene2892 ball bearings are noisy. As long as the FDB are protected from dust, they hand work for a huge number of years. Just about all HDD uses it - but it's easier in a HDD since it has already an hermetical seal to protect the platters/heads so no extra work to keep the bearing protected from dust.

[@MrRacine32]

I followed Johnny recommendations on my second high end build nearly 10 years ago on my i7 extreme cpu build. Still going strong and didn't cheap out on the psu.

[@CaTcHaFiShBiTcH]

What psu did you get? Any recommendations

[@ImDembe]

@@CaTcHaFiShBiTcH Why would you buy a 10 year old model today? Everything is better today even than 10 year old psus.

[@CaTcHaFiShBiTcH]

​@@ImDembe I have a Supernova G3 750. Previously had the HX750 and that thing had mad coil whine for some reason. Was really disappointed

[@ImDembe]

@@CaTcHaFiShBiTcH To bad, Supernova G3 are great psus :)

[@lynxissiodorensis2319]

Good interview, thanks.

[@DDT2005]

My new Corsair VS650 just came with wrong size installation screws, had to use screws that came with my case.

[@milohajek]

I love corsair, my AX1500i is great and i never knew that there was a 10 YEAR WARRANTY until i had an issue with my AX1200i, WOW impressive and that is just one reason to pay up for a quality Corsair PSU

[@milohajek]

True, you can't beat a company that stands behind its products the way Corsair does. I just got a 128GB DDR4 Memory pack for my new PC i build (Corsair Vengeance LPX) and it works right out of the box, just like the awesome i9-9900KS i got (the damn things runs all 16 threads at or over 5.0 GHz WITHOUT ME CHANGING ANY SETTING, JUST "OUT-OF-THE-BOX", its amazing, i have never had that kind of luck with AMD CPUs, and i have given them so many chances and yet everytime i have been let down, so its INTEL FOR LIFE for me. But as for their power supplies, i had one with a bad TDP switch, that would only shut off when you pressed the system through the video card, and i tried several different high end cards, all of them triggered it, and of coarse this GPU was a upgrade for my old 2012 build so i didn't notice it until 2016-2017, and i thought that i was out $485 or so for the AX1200i that i had because it had been well over 3-5 years, and the engineer tells me that he'll have the RMA department send me out a prepaid shipper and get me a replacement ASAP, i was shocked, he said "Yes, all our power supplies (and i am assuming he means higher end or at least gold level or higher ones, but i could be wrong as i dont buy Bronze level PSUs) have a 10 year warranty, that is customer service.

[@AntiqueMeme]

Damn I'm glad y'all kept the ending I got a real laugh out of it 😂

[@mattcassle4880]

love the outtakes at the end!! subed

[@michaelnager6059]

The efficiency might not make much difference in somewhere like Idaho where electricity is pretty cheap at $0.08 per KiloWatt Hour; however this is a different story with regard to somewhere like Hawaii where the cost of electricity is $0.34 per KiloWatt Hour (over four times as much). So the choice of the efficiency of your PSU is VERY RELEVANT depending on where you live.

[@MrSeon123]

No. Let's take a reasonably high end system with a 2070 Super. It's a 215W GPU, so the system will draw less than 300W under a gaming load. Let's use 300W. Let's now take a scenario where you play 4 hours per day on average for 365 days. The cost difference between running a CX550 and a TX550M will be about $4,90. So no, it's still not important. You shouldn't buy a PSU based on efficiency, you should buy it based on the performance, noise, protections, etc.

[@michaelnager6059]

@@MrSeon123 So a CPU uses fuck all energy then? It's just the GPU? So let's be realistic and have a gaming system with something like a 9700K you would need 570 Watts (with all the other bits and bobs) Now this is what the PSU would supply to the system, however at 85% efficiency it would be drawing 670.5 Watts from the socket whereas at 92% efficiency it would be drawing 619.5 Watts which is a difference of over 50 Watts. That's not chump change.

[@sonnikdoh2510]

I clicked because of the initech shirt.

[@SgtStickyTits]

Where are my TPS reports Gordon? If you could have them on my desk by noon that'd be great m'kay?

[@cybotx1024]

This guy and the guy who used to write PSU reviews at hardwaresecrets will always have a special place in my heart

[@GameplayandTalk]

Great talk! Definitely learned a thing or two, thanks.

Every single PSU i had did not live 1 year past warranty, this time i bought one with 12 year warranty :P

[@N0N0111]

If you live in a country where the power goes out when it rains. Then you know you need to have extra surge protectors running before you attache the PSU.

[@Hellagoth654]

@@N0N0111 agreed if its that much of a problem I suggest a battery backup so you can keep your stuff safe.

[@AznUzer]

Nisco Racing surge protector, not protectors. NEVER daisy chain surge protectors

[@prunn]

Question : PSU with hybrid fan, why is the decision to stop/run the fan is based on power delivery and not with a temperature sensor? if someone has higher ambiant, can it get damaged from heat?

[@neatoelectro3687]

I imagine that they have its speed/watt curve based on the max operational ambient temperature rating (50 C).

[@bazejm187]

also it depends... u can have for example corsair rmx with dedicated MCU for temperature (it managing rpms by temperature, power delivery and few, various things). another psus should have thermistor for measuring trigger point to start spinning the fan. it's not good like mcu, but still... but i can be in mistake, just i know, that very cheap power supplies have connected fan to power of +12v without any thermistor.

[@slipknottin]

They talk about this briefly in the video. Ambient temps (unless you live in an oven) aren’t significant enough to actually cause problems for the psu.

[@prunn]

@@slipknottin my old case didn't have a schrout, I had hardware that was outputting a lot of heat inside the case, the frame of my PSU became really hot and the fan wasn't spinning because it wasn't outputting enough power. I caught it early and turn the hybrid off... it worked fine from there, but what if...

[@renardgrise]

I'm really enjoying the "Ask an Expert" series, keep it up!

[@renardgrise]

Proudly run a CX Series Corsair PSU in my newest gaming rig! All of my other PCs also are powered by Corsair... I've never had a bad Corsair PSU.

[@Harklein]

Thank you for clearing some things out for us old timers/OG's/90's kids about PSU Evolutions and that new PSU's has a linear efficiency compared to old topology that has a curved efficiency. I'm praying to God now that my VS550 80+ don't explode on my RX570 since you said newer graphics cards drinks power so fast that old topology can't keep up...

[@indigoskywalker]

You don’t like modular psu cables? So you prefer the stupid idea we had in the 90’s

[@keylock32]

I think not because he don't like the function, but rather about the cost, regular person don't really care about aesthetic especially about power supply which you will never see in regular setup. 20-50% price increase just for modular is a lot.

[@techxbd]

where is the new Tier list of 2019 by Jonnyguru?

[@mleise8292]

"An overworked capacitor is the same as an overheated capacitor." These things are good to know when it comes to why one should reserve money for the PSU. High ripple will work, but your mainboard could randomly die after 2 years.

[@LeesChannel]

This was a great episode

[@ibrahimtariq8625]

This was very informative. Excellent video. Running a 7 year old Corsair HX750.

[@8man_01]

Didn't know he's working for Corsair now. He helped me determine if my ~6 yr. old FSP Raider 650W was dying and causing reboots during games. Was already eyeing the CXM550 as a replacement and now no more reboots.

[@tuunaes]

Second rate capacitors and really mediocre 12V ripple already as new (would say FSP overrated it by 100W) aren't good starting place for longevity. www.hardwaresecrets.com/fsp-raider-650-w-power-supply-review/2/ www.hardwaresecrets.com/fsp-raider-650-w-power-supply-review/8/ Again that CX550M is equally far from good with some cheap caps and failure to meet hold up time of ATX spec and lacking protections: www.hardwareinsights.com/corsair-cx550m-farewell-group-design/7/#Conclusion-and-evaluation That model was clearly devised by some bean counter looking for way to get more profits by using brand image to sell substandard crap. Would treat it with some derating and replace before five years. Unless your PC use is at most hour or two per day.

[@jasonblankenship4418]

Thank you for this. I always wondered the real difference between 80+,bronze,gold, and platinum.

[@XX-121]

better build = better efficiency = less wasted power getting converted to heat = better thermals/overclocking & less fan noise

[@Robert-hz7ef]

I have a Corsair 750w SFX psu in my micro itx system. The atx adaptor bracket is great for ensuring the positioning of the psu doesn’t obstruct air flow to a axial fan style graphics card in the Fractal Define S5 Nano case. And because it’s fully modular, I could use a spare atx cpu power cable as the sfx cpu cable was too short.

[@jurisreno]

"who knows what Nvidia or ATI... AMD"

[@Panhead49EL]

lol, yea, he dated himself there for sure.

[@Nothuman76]

Seasonic is my brand, got a 15 year one still running to this day. Very old out of date machine but if i need to start its there... it ran for almost 10 years with out being powered off...

[@conyo985]

Woah!

[@zoomzabba452]

I've had one bad Seasonic. First series 1000 Platinum. They have a known issue with a starting circuit. 3 months past the 7 year warranty, mine refused to allow restarts. I'd have to switch it off and let it drain before I could power up. Replaced it with a SGX-650 as I get ready to go SFF. 10 YEAR WARRANTY

[@averydangerouscat7381]

"A 20% DOA rate would be terrible, but 4/5 people would still see no problem with the product"

[@viduranisal]

Loved the video, very informative! Two thumbs up

[@MaxedHardware]

Loving the audio levels in this

[@cesarnono13]

For real

[@herbertholland924]

I had a cheap power supply take out my Motherboard, HDD, and Video card once, after that I didn't cheap out anymore.

[@docferringer]

The two components in your system that you should never cheap out on are your motherboard and your power supply. Both are directly connected to every other component in your build, and both will give you random instability that you can't troubleshoot (at best), or will fail spectacularly and wreck who knows what else in your system when they do.

[@1pcfred]

Same with me. Once burned twice shy.

[@Zarrx]

anychance it was a cheap surge protector??

[@1pcfred]

@@Zarrx having decent electric service I never use a surge protector. I rely on my PSU to filter and regulate the current my systems run on. That's it's job after all. Although I did lose some equipment a while back due to a lightning strike. No computers but I lost a network switch. Likely due to poor isolation between the primary and secondary. Or rather non-existent isolation. Cheap wall warts are cheap.

[@docferringer]

​@@Zarrx Modern, high-quality power supplies have a lot of the same protection features that are built into high-end surge protectors and power line conditioners. Over/under current protection, over/under voltage (surge/brownout) protection, line filtering, etc. I wouldn't use your PC's power supply as a surge protector, but high-quality power supplies can and do pick up the slack of surge protectors (within reason). So to answer your question: Yes it could have been a crappy surge protector, but a quality power supply would have probably saved his components.

[@Krydolph]

One myth I would also like to have debunked if he is reading the comments... Haveing it always on vs turning on and off. I see several comments bragging how long the powersupplies have run, and many without even being turned off. But what I have heard is, that it's actually better for them to just run non stop than being turned on and off, as that puts a lot more stress on the components! Is there any validity to this? If there is, that could be why I never had a faulty PSU on my hands :)

[@Quinid1]

Well when you turn it on, it heats up, components including solder joints expand. When you turn it off, everything cools off, components and solder joints contract. It is definately plausible as this effect does indeed shorten the life of electronics in other environments. For example, this effect caused the terrible solder in the Xbox 360 to fail.

[@tbrayden3694]

Yeah, Gordon I’m going to need you to come into the office over the weekend to fill out a TPS report on this, and don’t forget the new cover sheet.

[@joevk6274]

JonnyGuru is the reason I bought the 750w Antec Earthwatts PSU in my PC like 8 years ago. It's been in two PCs (the first suffered a lightning strike through the dsl line) and is still going strong!

[@pf100andahalf]

I'm replying to a 3 year old comment, but I bought the 750w Antec Earthwatts PSU too, and have been using it for a very long time. It's now in my pc with an rtx 3080 and 5800x3d, and it's still working as well as the day I bought it. When I was planning on buying the Eartwatts PSU, my brother was telling me not to buy it, that being a multi-rail psu it could be a problem. I'm running two separate rails to my gpu, and the other two to the rest of everything. Yes, you do have to take 5 seconds to make sure the rails are distributed evenly, but I don't see a problem there.

[@kalix923]

I've got a Corsair psu. It's has the Best coilwhine I've ever heard..

[@CaTcHaFiShBiTcH]

Dude! I just got a hx750. Paid a bomb for is just to get really bad coil whine! Should I avoid them altogether? What do you recommend? Please get back to me

[@ImDembe]

It happens to all brands, you got warranty that cover it.

[@Guitar88]

Well you went out of luck,I have 2 a VS and a CX and never experienced coil whine on both machines

[@akashbhullar]

I'm running 550w 80+ gold with rx 5700xt even after the recommendation is 600w, that's the power and efficiency of Gold.

[@STR33TSofJUST1C3]

A 5700XT paired with a 9900K @5ghz draws just shy of 400 watts. Even a high quality 450 watt PSU can power this system. The "recommended" PSU wattages are *vastly* overestimated.

[@akashbhullar]

@@STR33TSofJUST1C3 Can't agree more on this. Still Clean Current, if i can call it, makes everybody happy including my PC.

[@bradhaines3142]

@@STR33TSofJUST1C3 only because of the 50% rule for peak effeciency, not saying it won't be capable. just saves power and heat going by the 50% rule so if it uses 400w at load, you'll want an 800w (maybe 750w) psu, even if 450w psu CAN do it, do you think your car should run right under the redline? it can doesn't mean it should.

[@STR33TSofJUST1C3]

@@bradhaines3142 50% rule is a myth. Here's a breakdown on LinusTechTips forum: /main/topic/1105357-common-psu-misconceptions/

[@averydangerouscat7381]

What a madlad!!

[@mattmorrow7777]

AX760 with an Intel 4790k at 4.4GHz with a 1070, 4x4GB sticks of Ripjaws, Samsung 840 150 SSD, Samsung 940 500SSD , Samsung 970 EVO NVMe M.2 1TB, 2x500GB WD Blacks, three DVD players and this Corsair AX760 is still kicking ass and taking names. The most beutiful part of the AX760 power supply is the copper you can see from the back of your case. The 1080p KING!

[@0Wayland]

Super interesting, thank you for this!

[@mamopy535]

the intro music is loud af!

[@Dennzer1]

Thank you

[@blech71]

The only company that has ever outlived many machines was SeaSonic. Though I have bought and still buy quite a bit of Corsair due to compatibility and features over the years. Though I always heard that Corsair doesn’t make their own but rather has their PSU’s built to their spec and then slaps their name on it. Which isn’t bad.

[@MrSeon123]

Corsair doesn't make anything, but they do have customs designs. Mostly CWT and GW, with some Flextronics, HEC and Seasonic. Seasonic has worse QC than the larger companies, as they outsource so much. Even the PCB A manufacturing. They also like to skip out on protections and on the fan, even on their Prime Ultra Titanium.

[@bravestbullfighter]

I was on the JonnyGuru PSU forum. Rocking several tiny SF600 SFX PSUs that are rock solid.

[@PastorwithoutaPulpit]

Back in 2010 I was building two rigs and went with a review from TechGuru in choosing an XFX 550 and 750 Pro Bronze rated units. Both carried a 7 year warranty and I'm happy to say both are still going strong and metering out almost like when they were new. Sadly I'll have to go with another brand when I replace them as XFX has gotten out of the PSU game. So thanks for that review way back when John if you happen to be reading these comments...

[@chaython]

I wish this guru was independent need more of his reviews

[@JackWagonOne]

Check out TechPowerUp, their PSU reviews are pretty good.

[@blahorgaslisk7763]

Haven't the reviews on his site been done by OklahomaWolf for several years by now? I got the impression he was taking a hands off approach after signing with Corsair just for this reason.

[@SlowCobra]

WTF?!? I have never ever heard anyone claim they hated modular PSU's?!? In the words of Hank Hill "that boy just ain't right!" 😁

[@knifeyonline]

an added step and added cost for no real reason though, i'm sure he doesn't hate it because it's an inferior product

[@waldojim42]

For some time, they were a known source of voltage instability. Took a generation or two to get the connectors right.

[@GeneralZap]

Modular implies that more cables is a problem in full sized cases and its not.

[@HarshNerf]

Modular adds nothing except pretty cables and adds a shit ton of cost to a build

[@SlowCobra]

@@HarshNerf a "shit ton" that's a technical term right? $10-20 if you're poor as hell I guess is a shit ton. Not having a bunch of unnecessary cables flopping all around getting tangled up and then having to be stuffed somewhere is worth the "shit ton extra".

[@Moddersinc1]

Awesome job Jon! Keep up the great work!

[@mikeh6286]

I havent worked with computer assembly for 10 years but I know very well who JonnyGuru is and the awesome work he has done reviewing power supplies when noone else did. He's a psu pioneer!

[@fabianreich1917]

thank corsair for my premium PSU with a rattling fan

[@Eqpesan]

Get a New one on warranty, ez as that

[@fabianreich1917]

@@Eqpesan i just sent it back and bought a seasonic. never corsair again lol. first one had breaking sata connectors and the second a rattling fan. avoid the tx850m

[@ryanmalin]

@@fabianreich1917 you realize seasonic makes corsaire

[@lienuslatetips4894]

@@ryanmalin Only unit they make for Corsair these days is the AX850/1000.

[@thequantaleaper]

"I hate modular power supplies" ... am I supposed to take this seriously from this point forward? 😂😂

[@MyFootballGame]

@I Identify As Black I am not competent when it comes to PSUs and do not know why prople dont like modular PSUs. Seriously why do the not like them??

[@-rXr-]

Very nice guide and info on PSU 👍

[@NikitaLab]

Completely explains why my old AX series was causing my 1080 Ti to crash, wish this issue had more coverage.

[@Crimson_201]

19:57 CX is good VS and CXM is bad I thought CX and CXM were almost the same

[@1pcfred]

I had a PSU blow up and take the whole PC with it once. Now I just buy Seasonic PSUs. Problem solved.

[@dstblj5222]

Their are a few good brands and if the OEM is quality who cares what the box days.

[@yamilabugattas3895]

Great interview!

[@gaijinkuri684]

Very informative. He is right about people putting sfx in regular builds as I am planning to do the same soon when I upgrade my psu!

[@Stikibits]

Just get a Seasonic.

[@colei8752]

Not all Seasonics are good, like the S12 and S13

[@mangshu21]

My s12 is running to this day just fine..

[@titoepfx4272]

m12II is bottom of tier list

[@titoepfx4272]

@@mangshu21 isn't what this video is about?

[@MrSeon123]

11:28 jonnyGuru is talking about companies like Seasonic. All of their PSUs are rated for full power at 40°C, but they say up to 50°C on the label. This includes their highest end Prime Ultra Titanium. There are also plenty of other reasons not to choose Seasonics.

[@dominic.h.3363]

I jumped like three inches in my wheelchair with my headphone on from that intro. Jesus Christ, could you tone it down?!!

[@spikey2740]

Speaking of weight reminded me of something a fellow who had been in the military liked to say "400 cycle iron weighs a lot less than 60 cycle stuff" referring to the weight of the respective transformer cores.

[@niyazcool1]

Thank you for this informative content ❤️