ATI issues official CrossFire certification for all three High-End be quiet! Dark Power Pro Power Supplies with intelligent Cable-Management for Radeon® X1800, X1600 and X1300 CrossFire Solutions


Glinde, 06.July 2006. All three High-End Power Supplies within be quiet! Dark Power Pro Series are permitted to bear the official ATI CrossFire quality seal since July 5th, 2006. ATI certifies the 430 Watt, 530 Watt as well as 600 Watt Power Supplies with intelligent Cable-Management for Radeon® X1800, X1600 und X1300 Crossfire Solutions.

The new be quiet! Dark Power Pro PSUs already having received several awards from the trade press since product launch in March 2006. The ATI CrossFire certification is an important acknowledgement of the time invested in the development of the new be quiet! PSU series and confirms be quiet! as Power Supply specialist within the market. The compliance of be quiet! Dark Power Pro Power Supplies is confirmed at http://www.ati.com/technology/crossfire/buildyourown2.html  Website.

These days 650 watt power supplies are the norm. Yeah, 650 watts. Imagine the power requirements of computers in 5 years time. You'll probably need your own nucleur power plant just to run it.

Power supply manufacturers must have been watching too many episodes of Top Gear. Hmm, how can we improve our car. I know lets stick another 200 watts of power in there.  That'll impress them. But do we really need all this juice just to play a few rounds of Counter Strike Source?

Of course we do. This is boys toys. Big muscle power specs, lots of noise, flashing lights and the use of obscene amounts of power. If your power supply doesn't feature all of that you should hang your head in shame. Better read the NZXT psu review then.

"While the NZXT Precise Power Supply doesn't have modular leads, it has efficient power, is Active PFC, looks great, and has a quiet 120mm fan. It comes with the standard leads, but also has dual PCI-E lends for an NVIDIA SLI or ATI Crossfire setup. It even has 6 fan connectors on three additional leads. Overall, it's a very stable power supply that will satisfy most computer users. Watch the Video to find out more..."

Enermax has recently announced the Galaxy range of high-end PSUs.

After showing the world's first 1000W class PSU prototype in August 2005 at Games Convention show in Germany, the world wondered, why it has not been released ever since. The reason was a redesign to newest technology. While all other manufacturers have released since only ordinary 1000W class PSU's with normal 4 rail technology, ENERMAX decided to design a PSU, which would be able to power 2007 & 2008 server systems to give customers the utmost benefit possible.

The result: Five 12V rails, which are an integral part of the upcoming revision of EPS12V PSU design guide by Intel, which will specify 1000W class PSUs and respective technical requirements especially five rails as a must to be versatile enough to power quad core & quad systems as well as quad graphics (GPU) systems. Besides 6 natively connected drives, up to 18 additional drives can be connected. The sophisticated 6-pin sockets allow SATA and PATA connection without restrictions.

Fully rated at 50C the output per model is 850W & 1000W. This ability is not only based on its rail design, but also on the delay of its release. Continuous meetings with other key players in the IT industry gave essential information on power consumption of their future products and ENERMAX distributed the connectors to these products perfectly on the five rails. Its single PCB allowed to integrate 13.5cm & 8cm fans, which cool it permanently for 24/7 full power output even at 50C.

Product codes are: ENERMAX GALAXY 1000 EGA1000EWL (1000W), ENERMAX GALAXY 850 EGA850EWL (850W)

The Galaxy line of PSUs will be available from July onwards. Prices and detailed specifications will be released soon.

OCZ seem unstoppable with their range of memory and power supplies. The choice of hardware enthusiasts all over the world, they really do make some damn fine products. This 600w power supply is a beast and perfect for high powered overclocked systems.

“Like the PowerStream and ModStream Power Supplies, OCZ has hit the mark again. While the GameXStream Power Supply doesn't have adjustable rails or modular design, it still has lots going for it. At the top of the list for most computer users who demand quality is the requirement for the Power Supply to provide enough power for their needs. This product comes in a 600W and 700W configurations, so not a problem….”

If you need a small nucleur power plant in your computer, the OCZ GameXStream 600W PSU is defintely worth a look.

Mushkin are reknowned for their superior quality and ultra reliable memory modules. Established in 1994, they have become a firm favourite with overclockers and hardware enthusiats who demand the ultimate in high performance components.   Mushkin recently expanded their product stable to offer a top of the range power supply aimed at power thirsty systems. Find out how their new enhanced 650w PSU unit performs in our UK exclusive.

Tweaknews are at it again with a review of the Cooler Master iGreen 430watt power supply.

"Overall, Cooler Master has a solid product here. While it is not suitable for high-end extreme gaming systems full of every peripheral imaginable, the efficiency and relative silence makes it ideal for a moderately built DAW or HTPC. There are higher wattage iGreen power supplies available in 500 and 600 watts."

3dGameMan gets his teeth and lense into the Thermaltake ToughPower 550W power supply.

“The Thermaltake ToughPower 550W Power Supply offers enough power for most computer systems and does support NVIDIA SLI and ATI CrossFire setups. Although, I would recommend one of their newer ToughPower higher wattage Power Supplies with Active PFC for current SLI and CrossFire setups. This is to insure system stability. This Power Supply though does have affordability in its favor and a very quiet 120mm fan. If you are on a budget be sure to check this model out.”

Who would have thought that 1000 watts would be used in a personal computer system! Well, the fact is, most still don't require this kind of serious power. However, for the serious computer user and especially the hardcore gamer, it most definitely is. With dual NVIDIA SLI and ATI CrossFire setups becoming common place, a high-quality power supply with lots of juice is a necessity. Also, most serious gamers will push their systems to the absolute limit…

If you prefer your PSU to have all the power but none of the clutter, Enermax has a modular solution that's well worth a look! Available in a number of power outputs, MaXit put the 400W PSU under the torture bench.