ThermalTake ToughPower 1200w Get our reviews RSS feed here  |
|||
 |
Author: SorX | ||
| Posted: 23:00, June 13th 2007 | |||
| Link: http://www.thermaltake.com | |||
| Score: 7 out of 10 [?] | |||
| Price: ~£170 | |||
| < previous<< first |
Going gets tough, the tough gets going
)
Click to enlarge
)
Click to enlarge
The ToughPower 1200w is sent in a typically unnecessary box which shows off the product itself, and advertises its main features including the 14cm fan, 8 pin PCI-e connectors and the hi-tech black coating.
)
Click to enlarge
)
Click to enlarge
Once out of the box, you can see that the ‘hi-tech black coating’ is actually a polished matt grey-brown colour. With the power supply, you get the PSU itself, a whole bunch of connectors, a manual, mounting screws, a silicon vibration killer, and a kettle lead.
)
Click to enlarge
)
Click to enlarge
)
Click to enlarge
There are eight SATA connectors, eight molex connectors, two FDD connectors, three 8 pin PCI-e and three 6 pin PCI-e plugs. This should be more than enough for even the hardcore user. These cables connect to the back of the unit to the labelled sockets, which match up with the tags on each of the wires so you know where to plug them. Feeding these sockets are four separate 12V rails.
)
Click to enlarge
Opening the case of the PSU, you’ll find what looks like two separate power supplies, squished together. The two sides are responsible for different rails, with one for 12v1 (20A), 12v4 (36A) and 3.3v (30A) and the other for 12v2 (20A), 12v3 (36A) and 5v (20A). Each spits out 600W max, which combines equals the 1200w advertised.
NOTE: The power supply was only taken apart for these pictures AFTER testing was completed.
)
Click to enlarge
)
Click to enlarge
The unit itself is longer than the usual power supply, and hence can fit a huge 14cm fan which will be able to rotate slower – producing less noise – while moving the same amount of air as its 120mm counterpart. The fan used my ThermalTake is a TT-1425B, made by Nice Full (Yate Loon) Electronics Ltd. To further reduce the ToughPowers noise output, there is a silicon mounting bracket that goes on the end of the PSU, stopping any vibration being passed on and amplified by your case.
)
Click to enlarge
)
Click to enlarge
This huge fan sucks air in, and blows it out the honeycombed rear which is where you’ll find the neon lit power switch which is nice and hefty meaning that you’ll be able to find it with just your fingers. Above this is the kettle lead socket where mains meets ToughPower.
)
Click to enlarge
The 1200w ToughPower manages to feature three 8 pin PCI-e connectors and another three 6 pin PCI-e. There are three converters from 8 pin to 6 pin so you can have a maximum of six 6 pin connectors. This allows for three 8800 ultras, or six x1950’s. Nice.
)
Click to enlarge
For your motherboard, there is the usual 20+4 pin ATX connector which seems a little pointless, as if you buy this power supply, you’ll have a 24pin board. To power multi core processors, there two 8 pin connectors, with one of them being a 4+4 plug allowing for back compatibility. These wires are constantly attached while the rest of the plugs are modular.
Every wire is sleeved in black mesh that keeps the cables as small as possible and increasing airflow in your case.
Another feature, which is quite small yet very useful, are the quick release molex plugs, which have a small tab that when pushed forces the molex out of its socket allowing for easy removal. You’ll see why these are useful when you have a molex stuck in an old hard disc.
Buy now
| < previous<< first |
Related reviews
The last time we got out mitts on Jeantech property, the power supply ended up being used in our ...
With the need for a steady and stable supply of power to fuel the most power hungry of PCs ...
With the recent addition of triple SLI and multi GPU gaming rather than single powerful cards, ...