Sigma Monster SP-1000C PSU
Intro
In the world of Power Supplies, there are those companies that have been in the business for decades and those smaller ones, trying to push up into the light to get a chance to show what they’ve got. Sigma is one of those smaller companies. We all know Sigma for their cases when they have been in the PSU business for a while offering many different power ratings and style units to meet any enthusiast needs. Today we are reviewing the SP-1000C, better known as the Sigma Monster Power Supply. With 1000 watts of power capabilities, we find out if it is up to the task of powering everything we throw at it.
First Thoughts
The Sigma Monster has recently roared its way into my life, and let’s just say this piece of equipment is a nice addition to my machine.
The first thing I noticed when I received this box from UPS was the unusual packaging, which may be just what they had at the store house. It was very well wrapped and when it was un-boxed I noticed the multi layers of bubble wrap. After the bubble wrap was removed there was yet another layer of cellophane wrapping on it. All in all this PSU came with the intent of a tornado delivering it.
Once I removed the PSU from the box I noticed it was very light weight. The PSU has an extremely quiet 120mm blue LED fan.
Sigma claims that this PSU has high efficiency green power to save energy. The cables are wrapped in black mesh, which even though they are mostly concealed in my system, they still looked very professional exposed. The PSU was built with next generation 8 pin PCI-Express graphic card connectors.
The box comes with:
4 + 4 pins ATX 12V connector
4 x SATA connector
8 x 4 pins MOLEX connectors
2 x Floppy connectors
20 + 4 pins main power connector
3 x PCI-E 6 pins
1 x PCI-E 6 + 2 pins
Performance
Test System:
-Q6600 Intel Quad core CPU
-Asus striker II extreme
-Evga geForce 9800 GTX +
-4 gigs DDR2
-2 500 gig SATA HDD’s
-2 Optical Drives
-1000 watt Sigma Monster PSU
-7 USB devices
System was fully loaded whilst ripping a DVD and running prime 95 and with all USB devices operational and voltages measured using the Asus probe monitoring software provided with the motherboard to get accurate voltages through the motherboard.
Screen shots were taking during idle and then fully loaded up. Voltage drops were VERY minimal as this PSU had no problem cranking the amps up and holding voltages right up to manufacturer specs for the different components.
North Bridge, South Bridge, V-core and memory voltages were the only fluctuations we had when on and off load but only by very minute .01 volt discrepancies.
Final Thoughts
The only problem that I could see could possibly be for the neat freaks out there is all of the cables. In my situation my case came with a back panel which you can run the cords around to hide them from plain view.
Luckily this PSU is also modular and although when using lots of the available cables, management can be a headache; with time and patience a neat job can be done no matter what case you are using.
The thing that really impressed me was how well this PSU held up on load. I also never had a low USB voltage problem. I was also impressed with the blue led that emits from the back of the case/PSU. In the dark it gives my case a mean backend!
Overview
Price: 10/10 Frags: At $185 MSRP, this has got to be one of the cheapest 1000 watt PSU’s on the market. There is no excuse for not having enough power anymore when the guys over at Sigma can offer this unit to gamers at such a price!
Packaging: 10/10 Frags: Although the packaging from sigma didn’t seem original, it was still very well packed and packaged for shipping to ensure the safe arrival of the unit to us. The display box is a very mean and scary sight. The claw rips into the box exposing a blue led PSU fan.
Design: 9/10 Frags: A sleek gun metal gray adorns the PSU, giving it a gritty rough feel. It is almost a washed out black. The only reason it gets a 9/10 is because I have a black case and sometimes the grey can stick out. I hope they offer this model in alternate colors.
Features: 10/10 Frags: The PSU is a heaping 1000W's of goodness that will make any gamer shiver in his boots. With enough plugs to hook it up to the Space Shuttle plus and the ability to power almost anything I throw at it whilst doing so with green power, this is a definitely the PSU of choice for not only budget builders; but those looking for solid performance as well.
Overall this product scores a 9.75 out of 10 Frags, making it Clan Team Xtreme Approved.
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