InWin Commander 750w
Testing
Test Rig
| Processor | Intel Core 2 Duo E9450 @ 3.2 GHZ, 1.475V |
|---|---|
| Motherboard | XFX 790i Ultra |
| RAM | Crucial DDR3 12800 2GB @ 1600 MHZ 2.0V |
| Graphics Card | Sapphire HD 4870 X2 |
| HDD | Hitachi Deskstar 250GB |
| OS | Windows XP Pro x86 |
Methodology
Testing power supplies is a fairly simple process compared to other products. The unit is hooked up to the most powerful hardware we have available at the time, and left in an idle state for 30 minutes. After that time, we use a multimeter plugged into the ATX power connector, and a PF and wattage meter for their results respectively. Then, the PC(s) that the unit is powering are loaded as far as they can go to guarantee maximum power draw, and the results are taken again.
The software used to load the PC was S&M on 2 of the CPU’s cores, and our Crysis benchmark running at full tilt ("high" settings for everything, 8 x AA and 1600*1200) to load the GPU and the other 2 CPU cores.
Thanks to XFX, for the motherboard, and Sapphire for the GPU.
For comparison purposes, we’ve used the previously reviewed QPower 1050w, and XSpice 750w.
Results
The Commander fairs pretty damn well in the rail test. It has almost perfect 3.3v rails, only 5 hundredths out on the 5v rail, and even less far from ideal on the 12v too. It trounces the Xspice and Qpower units and is very stable indeed, barely fluctuating one hundredth of a volt.
|
PF Standby
|
PF Idle
|
PF Load
|
Watt Standby
|
Watt Idle
|
Watt Load
|
|
| Shiny QPower |
0.19
|
0.9
|
0.96
|
6
|
308
|
521
|
| XSpice 750w |
0.17
|
0.85
|
0.93
|
7
|
284
|
513
|
| Commander 750w |
0.19
|
0.94
|
0.96
|
6
|
276
|
472
|
Looking at PF, the Commander again beats the QPower and Xspice on idle and load. Also, in regards to watts, it needs at least 30 watts less to run this hardware which is always nice to see. This means lower running costs; huzzah.
The PF rating is a good way to test the efficiency of the unit, closer to the ideal of 1, the better. For a full run down on PF ratings, check out our glossary entry here.
Noise
The InWin Commander isn’t the quietest PSU around. From a distance of a couple of feet away it is slightly audible, but it’s still very faint. The pitch of the noise is reasonably low also, so it’s not a particularly irritating sound. It’s quiet, but it’s far from silent.
Cost
The only listing I could find for this unit priced it at $212 AUD, which when google converted out to GBP, turns out to be £87. This is a bit more expensive than the Qpower it was compared to, but an extra £10 or so would hardly perturb those looking for extra stability and tight rails.
ABOUT THIS AUTHOR
this thing served me very well for around 2 years and started giving trouble for my new core i5 sandy bridge system , when i use this psu and start windows 7 ultimate setup it just crashes at the step of optimizing performance . i switched to a new seasonic x650 gold and the installation finished fine . i loved this psu at the times of buying it but later on i thought this psu is a shame compared to some seasonic , corsair etc. the first point of me hating this is because it only gives 18 amps on 12 v range thats a big shame for a 750 w psu isnt it . loved the fancy cable wallet and the bag though but those are really not of much use for me . army green color is cool but careful not to hit anything too hard on it or the paint will peel off . this is simply not worth for the high prize u pay . i never had any idea of gaming psu’s those days otherwise i would have looked else where for sure .