Zippy PSL-6850P [Archive] - jonnyGURU Forums

jonnyGURU

10-11-2006, 10:55 PM

First off, I want to thank irev210 for this PSU.

He sent the Zippy PSL-6850P 850W PSU to me so I could run my usual gamut of testing on it.

Now, I'm not sure if I'm going to do an "official" review of this unit because it's got some hours on it and irev210 did a fan mod to it, but I do have enough info on this PSU to where neither may matter.

First, some photos:

1. is the PSU installed in the case. Note the scribble on the label.

2. is a close up of the label. About the scribble: Apparently my daughter found this power supply boring looking too, because despite all of the power supplies I have laying around, she chose THIS ONE to take a marker too.

3. None of the cables are sleeved.

4. Here are the connectors of the Zippy plugged into the load tester.

5. The rear 80MM grill makes you think this is the only fan cooling this beast.

jonnyGURU

10-11-2006, 10:58 PM

More photos:

1. Here's the side of the PSU where the cables come out.

2. Another shot of the non-sleeved cables.

3. A warning label across the top of the Primary caps (Nippon Chemicon, BTW.)

4. Angle shot of the Zippy.

5. Side shot of the Zippy.

jonnyGURU

10-11-2006, 11:06 PM

More photos:

1. A thermal pad dissipates heat from the Primary heatsink to the housing of the PSU.

2. An overhead shot of the PSU.

3. Another side shot.

4. Here's the reason this thing is so loud: a 40MM fan inside the housing. The only way to describe this sound is... well... take a vacuum cleaner and put it up against yor skull. Yeah. It's loud.

5. Nippon Chemicon caps on the secondary side too.

jonnyGURU

10-11-2006, 11:08 PM

One more photo....

This is a shot of the Secondary side heatsinks. Notice the threaded holes. The cover of the PSU actually screws into these sinks, thus helping the heat dissipation of the heatsinks to the housing.

jonnyGURU

10-11-2006, 11:14 PM

Cable count below...

Interesting how they include two PCI-e's so it can do SLI... but no SATA.

jonnyGURU

10-11-2006, 11:16 PM

Here's a layout of the rails....

jonnyGURU

10-11-2006, 11:17 PM

More tomorrow... I'm going to watch TV now. :D

jonnyGURU

10-12-2006, 08:01 AM

Now for the load tests.....

For voltage regulation, we're seeing some pretty good things. Only a .19V drop on the 12V rail going from only a 10A load to a 60A load.

3.3V and 5V barely budged.

I was surprised how well the efficiency was. I honestly didn't expect 76% and up with a server power supply.

You'll see the exhaust temperatures sort of plateau during test 4. This is when the 40MM fan kicked in. It didn't kick into full RPM until test 6, at which the noise was unbareable.

The hot box test revealed no change in voltages, efficiency, etc. The 40MM fan kicked in during test 3 and was at full RPM during test 4.

The temperatures did get rather high, though. So despite noises similar to that of a hydraulic engine room, the PSU was getting rather hot.

jonnyGURU

10-12-2006, 08:05 AM

Since we only have one 12V rail, I did with the Oscope what I did with the Sintek PSU I reviewed. I set channel A to the typical 50mV scale so we can do side by side comparisons with other PSU's I've reviewed, and I set channel B to a 10mV scale so we can better see the ripple.

So here's test 1's ripple measurements....

jonnyGURU

10-12-2006, 08:07 AM

With only just over 10mV of ripple on the 12V rail, test 2 reveals nothing worth talking about either.

jonnyGURU

10-12-2006, 08:09 AM

We're nearing 20mV on the 12V rail, but still nothing substantial.

jonnyGURU

10-12-2006, 08:10 AM

Test 4 ripple....

jonnyGURU

10-12-2006, 08:13 AM

Test 5 ripple....

jonnyGURU

10-12-2006, 08:15 AM

Now 30mV on the 12V rail and only 10mV on the 3.3V rail. Still WAY within the 120mV for 12V and 50mV for 3.3V and 5V spec.

jonnyGURU

10-12-2006, 08:17 AM

Finally, test 7.

Not much change here since test 6, despite the crossload (low 3.3V and 5V load.)

jonnyGURU

10-12-2006, 08:20 AM

jonnyGURU

10-12-2006, 08:21 AM

Well that sounds ominous.........

Nice pics :)

Zippy certainly doesn't mind keeping the thing cool at all costs from the sound of it.

Is that 40mm redundant or temp sensor?

Temperature controlled.

Cool, I like the single rail!

Hello seller. I am Professor John Smith from the University of Nigeria. I am currently in london on leave, but someone stole this from me, and I am desperate to get another one just like it. If you accept, please send me a link to your item. I will have my client send you a cheque for $500, please take what the item is worth, keep an extra $100, and send the back to me.

Thank you.

I know Zippy makes very good PSU's but I wish they'd spend a little effort on appearance. Sleeved cables would be nice as would a rubber grommet around the cables instead of just a hole in the side.

Oklahoma Wolf

10-12-2006, 10:24 AM

I couldn't use this thing for any length of time with that 40MM fan in there.

Even though I'm not a silence nut I probably couldn't either. That is, if I had enough load that required one of these to begin with. I'm hoping if Zippy does release a 1kW model soon, they've found a way to get rid of that little noisemaker.

jonnyGURU

10-12-2006, 10:31 AM

Oklahoma Wolf

10-12-2006, 10:37 AM

True... I mean, the load was hardcore to get that little guy to spin, but then you've got to think, "if I need an 850W power supply, I need a 850W power supply" so a load like that wouldn't be unrealistic. Right?

Right you are... I think I'd probably use the Silverstone 850W instead if I were in the market though I don't recall it regulating as well as the Zippy. Will have to go re-read that review.

Meantime, hopefully Super Nade's 600W keeps its fan bearable ;)

jonnyGURU

10-12-2006, 11:29 AM

Yeah. The Silverstone 850W has good enough regulation, efficiency isn't as good, but it's so much quieter.

Spectre

10-12-2006, 12:28 PM

So to summarize, no doubt this is a solid performing power supply. With great regulation, very decent efficiency and active PFC. I was surprised to see two 8-pin EPS and one 6-pin EPS paired up with a pair of PCI-e connectors. Still a bit confused by the lack of SATA connectors, though.

It is the revision he has I believe. The PSL-6850P(G1) has SATA connectors http://www.zippy.com.tw/backend/download/download/power/Manual/%A8%CF%A5%CE%A4%E2%A5U%20User%20Guide%20of%20PS2%2 0PSU%20_%A4%A4%AD%5E%C2%B2%C5%E9_-A2-951004.pdf

Not to mention SATA hardrives aren't usually what I would put in a server that required that much power.......

The fact that the PSU is ugly as sin, that's in the eye of the beholder. But the noise, I'm sorry Zippy fans, I couldn't use this thing for any length of time with that 40MM fan in there. If Zippy was concerned with cooling in this quadrant of the PSU, they should have just put an 80MM on the inside side of the housing.

It is in a server closet that already is load so I can't hear it over the other noise in there. Which is what Zippy was probably going with ;)

GalvanizedYankee

10-12-2006, 12:31 PM

That's ashame, 40mm PSU fans belong in sound proof server rooms.
I modded a Zippy for an external 92x25 via an adapter and bonded an 80x15 Zalman to the off-side of the intake grill=quiet on my HP2-6460P.

Zippys are nickel plated=no rust ever and near impossible to break the surface. Sleeving is not done because that makes using a clamp meter a hassel.

EDIT: I have done some sleeving. If the heatshrink is installed too close to the shells the pins will be pulled askew, this can make plugging in the connection more of a hassel. I leave 1.5" of wire exposed. Just a comment jon because I've read you questioning why so much wire is/was left nekid. :D

Nullvoid

10-12-2006, 12:44 PM

Maybe modded with something like this rasurbo fan http://www.quietpc.com/gb-en-gbp/products/casefans/fan-40-50 it would be bearable. But then whether it would shift enough air to keep it cool...*shrug*.

Super Nade

10-12-2006, 01:36 PM

Meantime, hopefully Super Nade's 600W keeps its fan bearable ;)

As I recall, the gaming units have sleeved cables and the works. The fans are all Sanyo Denki, so reliability should not be an issue. My unit probably has a Hitachi on the Primary side (took a quick peek) and UCC on the secondary. I would expect efficiency around the 72% mark and anything above would be a bonus. The pacakage is fully retail and it also has a Chroma-ATE report you could compare your tests with. The report is not very informative, it just says "PASS" on all those tests. There is also a note regarding minimum currents to be maintained when cross-loading.

I'd like to see what happens when this is violated. BTW, Jonny did you get a chance to make it to the PO yet? :)

jonnyGURU

10-12-2006, 02:25 PM

EDIT: I have done some sleeving. If the heatshrink is installed too close to the shells the pins will be pulled askew, this can make plugging in the connection more of a hassel. I leave 1.5" of wire exposed. Just a comment jon because I've read you questioning why so much wire is/was left nekid. :D

1 to 1.5" is fine.. heck... EXPECTED. It's when I see the 3 to 4" of no-sleeve or the cables that aren't sleeved BETWEEN the connectors.

I'd like to see what happens when this is violated. BTW, Jonny did you get a chance to make it to the PO yet? :)

Got it! In fact, I took pics of the box and outside of unit yesterday. I'm going to put it on the load tester this evening. Autopsy photos too if time allows (I do 15 minutes per test, so time gets eaten up quickly.)

Super Nade

10-12-2006, 02:45 PM

Not a problem mate. Take you time. I didn't mean to rush you.

jonnyGURU

10-12-2006, 03:22 PM

Not a problem mate. Take you time. I didn't mean to rush you.

That's ok. You can't rush me. You're about 1000 miles away. :D

irev210

10-12-2006, 08:34 PM

haha, jonnyGURU... i installed QUIET fans!

You shoulda heard the thing with the 3 blade delta 80MM in the rear and the sanyo Denki 40mm 15k rpm fan inside that I replaced with a slower, quiter delta (1/2 the noise, 1/2 the speed)

I thought sound-wise it was okay once the fan mods were done. If you look at the Delta in the rear it actually has a blue temp sensor sticking out a little to adjust fan speed.

Hopefully I can get a 700W unit to you, totally different beast. The ripple is supposed to be even LOWER, and BETTER voltage regulation...+ only 1 fan. If you are up for the review, I can get you a new one (as long as I get it back of course :)

60A on that 12V rail with only 30mV of ripple isnt bad at all.

Btw, I feel very lucky to have a signed power supply by the PS guru's daughter! It definitely made it less ugly... honestly bright pink markers would make that power supply look better.

The SATA cables, er, the lack of, is because of the version I got.

Anywho... awesome job you rock

jonnyGURU

10-12-2006, 09:09 PM

I thought sound-wise it was okay once the fan mods were done. If you look at the Delta in the rear it actually has a blue temp sensor sticking out a little to adjust fan speed.

What kind of build was this thing in?

irev210

10-12-2006, 10:20 PM

quad core kentfield, radeon x1900xtx graphics, single stage phase... nothing too exciting

is it overkill, yah... just a bit heh

just a kentfield overclocked with lots of vcore can use over ~300 watts

jonnyGURU

10-17-2006, 08:30 AM

Bump for those who missed this last time around....

Super Nade

10-17-2006, 10:08 AM

Why is this not up on the front page with all the other reviews?

Spectre

10-17-2006, 01:12 PM

Why is this not up on the front page with all the other reviews?

I think because the unit has been fan modded by its owner and it has a few miles on it.

jonnyGURU

10-17-2006, 01:16 PM

Yeah. I would LOVE to have an "official" PSL-6850P review, but any PSU I get needs to be an off the shelf virgin. Nothing modified, etc.

The results are still valid, and I cringe at the thought that this PSU could potentially be louder, but I can't list it with the official reviews.

Nullvoid

10-17-2006, 01:50 PM

I'm loving this quote from the bjorn3d review of the zippy:

"Some of you might question the noise emitted by 40mm fan inside the case while those measurements will be covered in the "Testing Phase" of this review. I will go ahead and say that this fan coupled with the 80mm dual ball bearing fan make for the quietest power supply for its size that I've ever had the pleasure to test."

It could be because he never takes it above 325w, but when you're already moaning about one modded with quieter fans, it made me chuckle reading that.

jonnyGURU

10-17-2006, 02:03 PM

It could be because he never takes it above 325w...

Precisely.

Or even in a hotter environment. The gun made it's way to my mouth much sooner during the hot box tests.

Super Nade

10-17-2006, 04:24 PM

Jonny, would mind starting a "used unit" review section on the front page? It would be nice to see how a unit handles age. It would be useful for someone with limited funds who is looking at the used market. I know you are super busy, but maybe you could let BabyGURU handle the used stuff. :D

Slartibartfast

10-19-2006, 11:00 AM

This is more or less the unit I have in my system currently, glad to see it has the guru's approval :)

Mine came with SATA connectors, but it isn't the gaming version. Came from here:

http://store.myaopen.com/psl6850p.html