Antec True Power 330W PSU
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OK, this is a review of the Antec TruePower 330W PSU, so let’s get down to business. I received the unit, unboxed it, plugged it in and the PC worked, the end. Thank you, can I have my fee now SPeeD, I’ve finished the review? What, what you mean I get paid by the word, damn, how am I going to flesh this out to earn my buck fifty fee? What’s there to say about a power supply unit? No one really gives them much thought, after all, how difficult is it, it just supplies a little juice to motherboard and hard drive, surely there is nothing of interest or concern?
Joking aside, I think that that my previous statement is what most people muse over when buying a PSU, that and how cheap is it! What people don’t realise is that every component, every transistor, every drive, CPU and that expensive video card are nothing without a constant supply of clean and stable electricity. You certainly build your pc house on a foundation of sand if you buy a cheap PSU, as the slightest variance in the AC or DC will crash your pride and joy.
Although the Antec TruePower 330W is the baby of the line, it comes packed with it’s bigger siblings features. These features can be broadly separated into two areas:
* supplying clean and stable direct current reducing background noise through variable speed * control of fans
The unit is capable of supporting either AMD (Athlon) or Intel (P4) motherboards, so it’s a safe investment on that front. And a good PSU should be considered for transplant into the next system you build, so always buy one with some extra wattage elbow room.
fig.1 Strange alien being makes a break for cover
You get a heavy unit (around 5lbs) wrapped in bubble, and a small but informative “User Manual”. The unit comes in standard ATX size, so unless you have an oddly shaped case, it should just drop in. An examination of the unit shows 15x various connectors, so it is highly unlikely you will need to buy additional molex, as you get 7x of the little tinkers for regular devices, as well as 2x dedicated to fans.
The 2x large fan grills (supporting 80 & 92mm fan) are done in a gold effect, nothing special, but pleasing to the eye non-the-less. The unit was fixed at 230volt, although I have seen others with the usual 115v 230v switch.
fig.2 Oh oh, I can see right up your ….
fig.3 The PSU that conquered the DevH labs- grrrrr
Now for some specs (queue Musak)
Antec Power Supplies
Model: TRUE330
| FEATURES |
Maximum Power | 330W |
Switches | ATX Logic on-off additional power rocker switch |
Special Connectors | AUX Power
ATX12V
3-pin Fan Sensor
Fan Only |
Transient Response | +5V,+12V outputs return to within 5% in less than 1ms for 20% load change. |
P. G. Signal | 100-500ms |
Over Voltage Protection
recycle AC to reset | +5V trip point < +6.5V
+3.3V trip point < +4.1V
+12V trip point < +14.4V |
Overload Protection | Latching Protection
+5V @ < 47A
+3.3V @ < 48A
+12V @ < 18A |
Leakage Current | <3.5mA @ 240VAC |
| DIMENSIONS |
Unit Size | 5.9"(L) x 5.5"(W) x 3.4"(H)
15cm(L) x 14 cm(W) x 8.6 cm(H) |
Net Weight | 5lbs.
2.3kg |
INPUT |
Input Voltage | 230VAC |
Input Frequency Range | 47Hz to 63Hz |
Input Surge Current | < 80A @ 115VAC |
Input Current | 4.0A for 230VAC |
Hold-up Time | >17ms at Full Load |
Efficiency | > 68% |
EMI/RFI | FCC Class B
CISPR22 Class |
OUTPUT |
| +5V | -5V | +12V | -12V | +3.3V | +5V SB |
Max. Load | 30A* | 0.5A | 17A | 1.0A | 28A* | 2A |
Min. Load | 0A | 0A | 0.8A | 0A | 0A | 0A |
Load Reg. | ±3% | ±5% | ±3% | ±5% | ±3% | ±5% |
Ripple V(p-p) | 50mV | 50mV | 120mV | 120mV | 50mV | 50mV |
* +5V, +3.3V & +12V maximum output 310 Watts max. |
ENVIRONMENTAL |
| Operating Temp. | 10 to 50ºC |
Operating Alt. | Sea Level 10,000 ft. |
Non-Operating Vibration | Operating: 10-300 Hz, 0.5G, 3 axes, 1 hr. ea. axis
Non-operating: 10-300 Hz, 2.0G, 3 axes, 1 hr. ea. axis |
MTBF | 80,000 hrs. @ 25ºC |
Approvals | UL, CSA, TUV, CB, CE, SEMKO, NEMKO, DEMKO |
I think the key points are that it will last a long time, 9 years, and that it has overload protection for those embarrassing moments in life.
Next: Where’s the meat and potatoes? >>
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