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Without a good stable power supply it
doesn't matter what other components you have in your system and how
much they cost, the PSU is the heart of any system, and if it doesn't
work right then nothing else will either.
Today for review I've got the
GlacialPower GP-AL650A
650Watt Power Supply, this PSU is billed as a gamers power supply,
it's not SLI certified, but it is 80plus certified. From my time with
it I've found it to be a quiet and stable PSU, that works well and
does what it has to do. It's not fancy, it just works...
GlacialPower
GP-AL650A 650Watt Power Supply
Author: Kristofer Brozio
Sponsor:
GlacialPower
Tech
Specs,Features or the Basic Info:
GlacialPower
GP-AL650A 650Watt Power Supply
Specs/Features:
-ATX12V Version 2.2
-Design with active PFC
function
-Dual +12V rails and +5Vsb
capability 15 W
-Full output power from 0°C
to 50°C
-Full protection features of
SCP, OVP, OCP, OPP, OTP
-Power efficiency meet Energy
Star 80 plus program criterion
-Fan speed control and delay
shut down to extend components life time
-Fan switch off (0 dBA) at low
load and selectable between 8cm and 12cm
-RoHS compliance and 2 year
warranty
-Manufactured with high
reliability and in strict processes
A
Better Look at Things:
The packaging for this power
supply is rather nice, it's classy looking box with a picture of the
PSU on the front along with specs, features and diagrams on the back.
Opening the box we find the power supply itself, along with a user
manual.. hmm, no screws and no main power cable.
 
The GlacialPower GP-AL650A feels
solidly made, and has a nice large fan on the bottom to help cool it
off. The side of course shows the standard identifications label, and
the back has the common honeycomb ventilation.
 
 
For connections we've got two 6/8
pin PCIE connectors, 6 SATA connectors, 6 Molex and 1 FDD connection.
 
 
Installation and Testing:
Since this is a smaller style PSU,
standard ATX size, it fits fine in my case with no problems except
hitting the CPU cooler, but that's not the power supplies fault.
I installed this power supply in
my secondary system that consists of:
Intel c2d6420
2gigs Crucial Ballistix Tracer
PC2-8500 Ram
1x hard drive
1x dvd/rw
Connect3d X1800GTO video card
2x120mm fans
For load testing I ran 3dmark06
and Orthos Stress prime and monitored the 12v and 5v lines with my
trusty multimeter. Since this is my secondary testing system it gets
quite workout all the time as well.
Idle Voltages:
12v = 12.14v – 12.15v
5v = 4.99v
Load Voltages:
12v = 12.11v – 12.12v
5v = 4.99v – 5.00v
The 12v rails dropped under load,
and are well within tolerances but never stabilize, they are
constantly jumping about, but still the variances are not that bad,
though I would have liked to see them stabilize under load.
Summary
and Comments:
The GlacialPower GP-AL650A
650Watt Power Supply is silent at all times, and it's got lots of
connections for most systems out there today.
The voltages never really
stabilized and that troubles me a bit, but still they are within ATX
specs.
DragonSteelMods gives the
GlacialPower GP-AL650A 650Watt Power Supply a 4 out of 5 score.
Pros:
-Quiet
-Lots of connections
Cons:
-Missing pieces
-Voltages jump around at load
I
would like to thank GlacialPower for the chance to review the GP-AL650A 650Watt Power Supply and for their continued support of DSM.
review# 505
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Power Supplies 
