FSP BlueStorm 500W & Thermaltake Pure Power-TWV500
FSP BlueStorm 500W
Retail Name (if known) FSP Group BlueStorm 500 Rated Output Power 500W Specification ATX 2.0 Power Switch Yes Input Voltage Selectable 110V & 240V, 50 & 60Hz Fan(s) 120mm Cable runs 24-pin EATX with P4+ split
P4
2 x SATA
2 x 4-pin Molex, 1 floppy
3 x 4-pin Molex
3 x 4-pin Molex
PEGMax currents +3.3V = 30A
+12V = 15A + 15A
+5V = 28ACombined power for +3.3V and +5V 160W Passed certification checks Yes (CE, China, passing LVD, EMC Directive. UL, Taiwan, UL 60950-1)
FSP's BlueStorm 500W is an interesting one. FSP openly admitted to us that the 500W rating is a peak power rating, the company marketing it that way to compete with other competitors in Europe that do the same kind of thing. That means it fails our testing, despite doing well at its actual rating of ~445W, since it wouldn't pass a full-load sitting at the peak rating for the full half hour. When the unit failed at 500W it just switched itself off rather than blowing an internal fuse or worse; the output load regulation works well.
At ~445W it was fine, with decent efficiency and the 120mm cooling the unit down adequately. Connectivity is decent and the unit itself looks really nice in a powder-coated blue. However one of the aims of this group test is to weed out those who advertise with peak power ratings rather than a figure a consumer can actually rely on and put some faith in, so it fails overall.
FSP may reconsider the marketing stance for Blue Storm, especially since they have true 500W SKUs aplenty, but costs are forcing their hand at the moment in a market with small margins for the OEM and their vendors.
Recommended system: Mid-range to high-end desktop systems based around P4 (including high-speed Prescott), AMD Athlon Socket A and AMD Athlon 64 and Sempron on Socket 754 and Socket 939. Be acutely aware that 500W is a peak output and not sustained.
Thermaltake Pure Power-TWV500
Retail Name (if known) Thermaltake Purepower 500W Rated Output Power 500W Specification ATX 2.0 Power Switch Yes Input Voltage 115 & 230V switch, 50-60Hz Fan(s) 120mm Cable runs 24-pin EATX with P4+ split
P4
2 x SATA
2 x SATA
3 x 4-pin Molex, 1 floppy
3 x 4-pin Molex, 1 floppy
2 x PEGMax currents +3.3V = 30A
+12V = 18A + 18A
+5V = 30ACombined power for +3.3V and +5V 220W Passed certification checks No
Thermaltake's TWV500 was excellent. It passed testing without any issues, voltages were fine even under load, efficiency was higher than average and the two +12V rails have high current capacity. Idle power was lower than most and the heat appeared to be being dissipated properly with none of the sides of the unit overly hot after the half-hour load test. The 500W load condition featured a full 32A combined draw on both 12V rails, near to the unit's 12V max. A high-end desktop supply that does very little wrong, generously giving you plenty of current draw from the +12V rails.
Recommended system: Mid-range to high-end desktop systems based around P4 (including high-speed Prescott), AMD Athlon Socket A and AMD Athlon 64 and Sempron on Socket 754 and Socket 939.