XS Official PSU Of The Month: November 2006

[perkam]

November is the month of SUPER Releases...and not to dissapoint those with G80 and Quad Core rigs that want stable and efficient power...I'm honoured to introduce the Official XS November PSU Of the Month:

Silverstone ST56ZF Zeus Series 560W Power Supply


(Pictures Courtesy of Micutzu)

Yup...XS's first official no-nonsense PSU recommendation to those that love unbridled power for an AMAZING PRICE !!!

The Silverstone ST56ZF uses high quality etasis-based server components to deliver 38A on the 12V Rail that can handle far more than just 560W. Besides the fact that the 40A/38A on the 5V/3.3V respectively are indicative of its server heritage as seen on some Zippy PSUs, the Silverstone is perhaps best compared to the one and only PC Power & Cooling 510...with multiple review sites comparing the two on the same level and finding that it isn't far behind at all

http://www.pcmoddingmy.com/e107_plug...?content.335.5

If thats not enough...perhaps the fact that the PSU DOES have a pot able to adjust its 12V and 5V rails might win you over No the PSU doesn't have quad rails...or 4 pci-e connectors, or that modular cabling...and it isn't silent...and in the face of some of the seasonic based PSUs...one would consider why would anyone even consider such an old school PSU...

Therein, however, lies its greatest strength With efficiency that never falls below 75-85% range !! despite the more modest official estimate of 78% in the official numbers, the Silverstone can handle the best of today's SLI systems with the exception of the oncoming DX10 GFX in SLI...as this psu is really reminiscent of a time when amps made or destroyed power supplies, and single rail PSUs rules the power landscape.

But wait !!! How much does JonnyGuru like it ?!?!?!

Much to my surprise, the voltages did not drop AT ALL! That just proves that this power supply was rated at 50°C and has no de-rating curve, at least none up to 47°C! So the ST56ZF gets a 10 in these tests! And because the power supply handled the 34A load flawlessly without ever dropping out of spec, it scores perfectly here too!

I also wanted to see how the power supply handled being put under a maximum load on the 12V rails while the 3.3V and 5V were relatively low. To do this, I put 19A on each of the 12V rails, but reduced the 3.3V rail to only 3A and the 5V rail to only 4A. Even though the Silverstone manual clearly states that stable voltages can only be guaranteed if there is a minimum 10A capacitive load on the 3.3V and 5V rails, my ST56ZF was still putting out 11.56V on that 12V rail. Fantastic!

The o-scope screenshots (courtesy of USB-Instrument's Stingray's EasyScope II) show a nearly flawless output voltage on all rails during all tests. That's going to count towards an even higher performance score.

http://www.jonnyguru.com/PSU/ST56ZF/

To sum up, the Silverstone ST56ZF offers the power of the PCP&C 510 SLI in simple neat and affordable package for those who don't mind giving up a little bit of silence for zippy level stability

Check it out:

$107 at Case-Mod.com (well known site): http://www.case-mod.com/store/silver...73.html?src=fr
$109 at East Luna (Very Well known site ): http://www.eastluna.com/hardware/details.php?id=1127

Get ready to oc that QX6700, Single G80 Rig TO THE MAX with this psu

Perkam