3R System iCEAGE IA450HP80 450 W Power Supply Review
Load Tests
Contents
We conducted several tests with this power supply, as described in the article Hardware Secrets Power Supply Test Methodology.
First we tested this power supply with five different load patterns, trying to pull around 20%, 40%, 60%, 80%, and 100% of its labeled maximum capacity (actual percentage used listed under “% Max Load”), watching how the reviewed unit behaved under each load. In the table below we list the load patterns we used and the results for each load.
If you add all the power listed for each test, you may find a different value than what is posted under “Total” below. Since each output can vary slightly (e.g., the +5 V output working at +5.10 V), the actual total amount of power being delivered is slightly different than the calculated value. On the “Total” row we are using the real amount of power being delivered, as measured by our load tester.
The +12VA and +12VB inputs listed below are the two +12 V independent inputs from our load tester. During this test both inputs were connected to the power supply single rail (+12VB input was connected to the power supply EPS12V connector and all other cables were connected to the load tester +12VA input).
Note: We are now using the names +12VA and +12VB for the two inputs from our load tester because some people were thinking that the “+12V1” and “+12V2” names present on our table referred to the power supply rails, which is not the case.
| Input | Test 1 | Test 2 | Test 3 | Test 4 | Test 5 |
| +12VA | 3 A (36 W) | 6.5 A (78 W) | 9.5 A (114 W) | 13 A (156 W) | 16 A (192 W) |
| +12VB | 3 A (36 W) | 6.5 A (78 W) | 9.5 A (114 W) | 13 A (156 W) | 16 A (192 W) |
| +5V | 1 A (5 W) | 2 A (10 W) | 4 A (20 W) | 5 A (25 W) | 7 A (35 W) |
| +3.3 V | 1 A (5 W) | 2 A (6.6 W) | 4 A (13.2 W) | 5 A (16.5 W) | 7 A (23.1 W) |
| +5VSB | 1 A (5 W) | 1 A (5 W) | 1 A (5 W) | 1.5 A (7.5 W) | 2 A (10 W) |
| -12 V | 0.5 A (6 W) | 0.5 A (6 W) | 0.5 A (6 W) | 0.5 A (6 W) | 0.5 A (6 W) |
| Total | 90.4 W | 182.1 W | 270.0 W | 360.9 W | 449.0 W |
| % Max Load | 20.1% | 40.5% | 60.0% | 80.2% | 99.8% |
| Room Temp. | 44.9° C | 43.6° C | 43.6° C | 45.2° C | 47.0° C |
| PSU Temp. | 43.7° C | 43.9° C | 44.1° C | 42.8° C | 46.8° C |
| Voltage Regulation | Pass | Pass | Pass | Pass | Pass |
| R ipple and Noise |
Pass | Pass | Pass | Pass | Pass |
| AC Power | 111.9 W | 218.1 W | 325.2 W | 441.0 W | 561.0 W |
| Efficiency | 80.8% | 83.5% | 83.0% | 81.8% | 80.0% |
| AC Voltage | 118.3 V | 117.3 V | 116.4 V | 115.2 V | 113.9 V |
| Power Factor | 0.604 | 0.652 | 0.674 | 0.688 | 0.700 |
| Final Result | Pass | Pass | Pass | Pass | Pass |
iCEAGE IA450HP80 from 3R System can really deliver its labeled power at high temperatures.
This power supply presented efficiency between 80% and 83% during our tests, which is excellent for a low-cost power supply. In fact, this is the first power supply without active PFC that we’ve seen achieving 80%+ efficiency across the board, thanks for its two-transistor forward switching section, unusual for a power supply from this category.
Voltage regulation was superb, with all voltages within 3% from their nominal values (including the -12 V output) – i.e., values closer to their “face value” than required, as the ATX12V specification allows voltages to be within 5% from their nominal values (10% for -12 V).
And then we have noise and ripple, always very low, except on +3.3 V during test five, where this output was operating at its maximum allowed level. Below you can see the results for test five. The maximum allowed is 120 mV on +12 V and 50 mV on +5 V and +3.3 V. All these numbers are peak-to-peak figures.
Figure 15: +12VA input from load tester at 449 W (34.6 mV).
Figure 16: +12VB input from load tester at 449 W (40.8 mV).
Figure 17: +5 V rail with power supply delivering 449 W (23 mV).
Figure 18: +3.3 V rail with power supply delivering 449 W (50 mV).
Now let’s see if this unit can deliver more than 450 W.