Cooler Master Silent Pro M 600 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 ou
tput 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 from the cable that is permanently attached to the power supply and all other cables were connected to the load tester +12VA input).
| Input | Test 1 | Test 2 | Test 3 | Test 4 | Test 5 |
| +12VA | 4 A (48 W) | 9 A (108 W) | 13 A (156 W) | 17.5 A (210 W) | 21.5 A (258 W) |
| +12VB | 4 A (48 W) | 9 A (108 W) | 13 A (156 W) | 17.5 A (210 W) | 21.5 A (258 W) |
| +5V | 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 (5 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 A (5 W) | 1.5 A (7.5 W) | 2 A (10 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 | 114.9 W | 242.2 W | 356.1 W | 479.7 W | 592.4 W |
| % Max Load | 19.2% | 40.4% | 59.4% | 80.0% | 98.7% |
| Room Temp. | 43.8° C | 43.4° C | 44.9° C | 47.4° C | 47.6° C |
| PSU Temp. | 42.1° C | 42.1° C | 45.2° C | 47.3° C | 50.5° C |
| Voltage Regulation | Pass | Pass | Pass | Pass | Pass |
| Ripple and Noise | Pass | Pass | Pass | Pass | Pass |
| AC Power | 134.4 W | 279.7 W | 417.2 W | 575.0 W | 731.0 W |
| Efficiency | 85.5% | 86.6% | 85.4% | 83.4% | 81.0% |
| AC Voltage | 116.2 V | 114.9 V | 113.5 V | 111.6 V | 109.2 V |
| Power Factor | 0.964 | 0.988 | 0.993 | 0.995 | 0.995 |
| Final Result | Pass | Pass | Pass | Pass | Pass |
Cooler Master Silent Pro M 600 W can really deliver its labeled power at high temperatures.
We were actually surprised with its performance. Since it has “only” the standard 80 Plus certification, we were expecting to see a unit with 80-82% efficiency across the board, but we are happy to be wrong: Cooler Master Silent Pro M 600 W could achieve a high efficiency between 85.5% and 86.6% when we pulled up to 360 W. Pulling 480 W from it efficiency was still high at 83.4%. And at full load (600 W) efficiency was at 81%.
Voltage regulation was excellent, with all voltages within 3% from their nominal values (except -12 V during all tests one and two) – 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, which were very low. Below you can see the results during 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 16: +12VA input from load tester at 592.4 W (55.6 mV).
Figure 17: +12VB input from load tester at 592.4 W (47.6 mV).
Figure 18: +5 V rail with power supply delivering 592.4 W (15.6 mV).
Figure 19: +3.3 V rail with power supply delivering 592.4 W (9.2 mV).
Let’s see if we can pull more power from this unit.