INTRODUCTION

    Whether you're building a new system or looking to upgrade the one you already have getting a good power supply unit is the way to go. This was certainly something many people used to neglect in the past but nowadays things have changed for the best and well, we have many manufacturers to thank for that (both power supply and graphics cards ones). Seasonic is among those manufacturers and today with me I have their Core GX-850 ATX 3 power supply unit.

    Sea Sonic Electronics Co., Ltd was founded in 1975 by engineers. Since its early beginnings the company has rigorously maintained its focus on the research, development and production of technologically advanced, high-quality products. During its almost five decades of operations Sea Sonic became well-established in the production of PC power supplies to become one of the trendsetters in the design and manufacturing in this market.

   The Core GX line is the 2nd one by Seasonic to bear that name (V2) and as expected all available models in it (650/750/850W) are ATX 3.1 & PCIe 5.1 compliant, fully modular, available in 2 different colors and 80 PLUS Gold certified (up to 90% electrical efficiency). The Core GX-850 model which I have here with me today is equipped with a single 12V-2X6 power connector (600W), three 6+2 pin PCIe power connectors, single strong +12V rail (70A) capable of delivering roughly 97% of the units’ total power output (840W) and a peak power output of no less than 968W (peak should now be up to around 1.93KW for up to 100ms - once again however this is not something I can test). It also features the OptiSink technology for optimal heat dissipation (up to 8 times better), full-bridge LLC with DC to DC design, active PFC, high-quality capacitors, and a full array of electrical protections including over-current (OCP), over-voltage (OVP), under-voltage (UVP), short-circuit (SCP), over-temperature (OTP) and over-power (OPP). As for warranty Seasonic covers the entire Core GX line with a generous 7-year limited warranty.

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

The Core GX is shipped inside a black or white box (depends on the color of the unit) the front of which has the Seasonic logo, warranty, and line name.

On the left side Seasonic has placed the units’ specifications and electrical table.

Turning the box around we find the product features.

Along with the Core GX-850, its power cord and modular cables inside the box you'll also find 12 cable ties, 3 cable straps, 4 mounting screws and a card pointing to the usual Steam sweepstakes by Seasonic.

THE CORE GX-850 ATX 3 EXTERIOR

For the Core GX line Seasonic has used PVC cables, including for the 12V-2X6 one.

The Core GX-850 follows the typical ATX factor and so its 150mm long, 140mm wide and 86mm tall.

Under the bottom grille Seasonic has placed an 120mm hydro dynamic bearing fan.

Both the company and model names are printed on the sides.

Typically, the electrical table is placed on top of the enclosure.

All 9 modular power ports located at the front are tagged.

At the rear we find the power port and the on/off power switch.

THE CORE GX-850 ATX 3 INTERIOR

Once again Seasonic has used an high-speed (2200RPM) fan manufactured by Ong Hua (Honghua Electronic Technology).

The Core GX ATX 3 is another cable free layout power supply line (the Optisink PCB is located at the top).

The primary capacitor is manufactured by the Taiwanese Teapo and is certified for use up to 105 degrees Celsius.

Secondary capacitors are again manufactured by Teapo and are also certified for use up to 105 degrees.

TEST BED

TESTING METHODOLOGY

     Using a dedicated measurement instrument such as a Chroma or a SunMoon to test power supply units is without doubt the most ideal and accurate way (not to mention the fastest) to do that currently. However, it's certainly not the only way there is and so pretty much anyone can test a power supply unit just by using a test rig. Certainly, limitations do apply and so you can't really push a 1000W power supply to its limits if your system only uses 500W at peak loads and that's why over the years we saved certain hardware components for the purpose of building a dedicated PSU test rig. True it may not be as accurate as the above mentioned solutions, but it comes really close and is in fact much closer to real world usage. So as always, we ran several games with maximum graphic options enabled at a resolution of 2560x1600 in order to stress every hardware component and increase the overall power demands of the system. The Passmark BurnIn Test was also used to overstress the components in an effort to provide the most accurate results possible. As a final test we also used the latest OCCT 4.4 software and its dedicated PSU testing suite since it can really bring a power supply to its knees after inside a few minutes.

   Rail stability was checked/measured with the CPUID Hardware monitor and a Metex multimeter which also recorded the system load in idle and in load. As always try to remember that the power consumption numbers listed in the graph are the highest (Peak) ones recorded during the entire duration of the tests and not the average ones. Noise levels coming from the fan were recorded using the high precision HD600 ExTech Sound dBA Meter from the rear of the unit and at a range of no more than 5-10cm. Readings under load are recorded the exact moment we manually switch the fans of all graphics cards from full speed to almost zero, that way the fan of the power supply does not have enough time to slow its RPM and so by doing this we get very accurate noise level readings. Needless to say, in order to get 100% accurate readings, you need to have a noise isolated room for that exact purpose, something which is quite impossible unless you are working inside a real lab (some people use very small noise insulated boxes but due to their size both heat and noise exceed normal levels and so the results can't really be considered to be 100% accurate, nor realistic for that matter). Also do take into account that since all noise measurements take place from just 5-10cm away the final noise levels to reach your ears will be considerably less.

* After well over 10 years of testing PSUs the Intel Core i7-920 CPU of this rig failed and so we replaced it with a Xeon X5660 (we also swapped the GA-X58A-UD7 for the G1. Assassin).

TEST RESULTS

CONCLUSION

    The Core GX ATX 3 line of power supply units by Seasonic was released as a cost-effective choice for people looking for high performance, features, and quality (although the caps by Teapo may put some potential buyers on defense) without having to spend lots in the process. Well, the Core GX-850 ATX 3 does just that, rail stability is near excellent, electrical protections are the same we see with higher-end models and as for noise levels the 2200RPM fan by Ong Hua (Hong Hua) may not be the most silent at load, but it doesn’t really stand out in a bad way (although it could get even louder up to 850W). In terms of features yes, the Core GX-850 may not pack the same ones we see with higher-end lines by Seasonic but the OptiSink technology alone which reduces temperatures is more than plenty.

    Currently the Core GX-850 ATX 3 power supply retails for USD129.99 inside the USA (Amazon.com) and for 138.93Euros inside the EU (Amazon.de) a price tag which is quite balanced for a Seasonic model. Overall the Core GX-850 might not be on the same level with the Focus, Vertex and Prime models but it delivers where it counts and for that it gets the Golden Award.

PROS

- Very Good Build Quality
- Rock Solid Rail Stability
- ATX 3.1 & PCIe 5.1 Compliant
- 12V2X6 600W Connector
- Strong Single Rail (70A)
- 80 PLUS Gold Certified
- Electrical Protections (OCP/OVP/OPP/UVP/SCP/OTP)
- Available In Black & White Colors
- 7 Year Limited Warranty

CONS

- Teapo Capacitors (For Some)
- White Model Availability (Currently)
- Noise Levels (Over 800W)