be quiet! Dark Power Pro 10 650 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 the behavior of the reviewed unit 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 powers listed for each test, you may find a different value than what is posted under “Total” below. Since each output can have a slight variation (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. In 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, we configured the power supply to use a single +12 V rail design, so both inputs were connected to the power supply’s single +12 V rail. (We connected the EPS12V connector to the +12VB input.)
| Input | Test 1 | Test 2 | Test 3 | Test 4 | Test 5 |
| +12VA | 5 A (60 W) | 10 A (120 W) | 14.5 A (174 W) | 19 A (228 W) | 23.5 A (282 W) |
| +12VB | 5 A (60 W) | 10 A (120 W) | 14 A (168 W) | 19 A (228 W) | 23.5 A (282 W) |
| +5 V | 1 A (5 W) | 2 A (10 W) | 4 A (20 W) | 6 A (30 W) | 8 A (40 W) |
| +3.3 V | 1 A (3.3 W) | 2 A (6.6 W) | 4 A (13.2 W) | 6 A (19.8 W) | 8 A (26.4 W) |
| +5VSB | 1 A (5 W) | 1.5 A (7.5 W) | 2 A (10 W) | 2.5 A (12.5 W) | 3 A (15 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 | 139.2 W | 269.8 W | 389.4 W | 520.3 W | 646.6 W |
| % Max Load | 21.4% | 41.5% | 59.9% | 80.0% | 99.5% |
| Room Temp. | 46.3° C | 44.8° C | 45.0° C | 47.2° C | 45.7° C |
| PSU Temp. | 52.4° C | 52.2° C | 52.4° C | 54.3° C | 52.2° C |
| Voltage Regulation | Pass | Pass | Pass | Failed at +5VSB | Failed at +5VSB |
| Ripple and Noise | Pass | Pass | Pass | Pass | Pass |
| AC Power | 156.6 W | 298.9 W | 433.0 W | 585.8 W | 738.0 W |
| Efficiency | 88.9% | 90.3% | 89.9% | 88.8% | 87.6% |
| AC Voltage | 117.2 V | 115.7 V | 114.9 V | 113.2 V | 111.3 V |
| Power Factor | 0.995 | 0.927 | 0.998 | 0.998 | 0.998 |
| Final Result | Pass | Pass | Pass | Pass | Pass |
In our tests, the be quiet! Dark Power P
ro 10 650 W presented efficiency between 87.6% and 90.3%, perfectly matching the 80 Plus Gold certification, which promises a minimum efficiency of 87% at light (i.e., 20%) and full loads, and 90% at typical (i.e., 50%) load.
The ATX12V specification states that positive voltages must be within 5% of their nominal values, and negative voltages must be within 10% of their nominal values. We always expect power supplies to present voltages within 3% of their nominal values to consider them as “flawless.” You can see the results in the table below. We marked in red the values that were outside their proper range.
| Input | Test 1 | Test 2 | Test 3 | Test 4 | Test 5 |
| +12VA | ≤ 3% | ≤ 3% | ≤ 3% | ≤ 3% | ≤ 3% |
| +12VB | ≤ 3% | ≤ 3% | ≤ 3% | ≤ 3% | ≤ 3% |
| +5 V | ≤ 3% | ≤ 3% | ≤ 3% | ≤ 3% | ≤ 3% |
| +3.3 V | ≤ 3% | ≤ 3% | ≤ 3% | ≤ 3% | +3.18 V |
| +5VSB | ≤ 3% | ≤ 3% | ≤ 3% | +4.73 V | +4.74 V |
| -12 V | -11.48 V | -11.63 V | ≤ 3% | ≤ 3% | ≤ 3% |
Let’s discuss the ripple and noise levels on the next page.