LEPA G 500 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 our tests, the +12VA and +12VB input were connected to the power supply +12V1 and +12V3 rails, while the +12VB input was connected to the power supply +12V1 rail.
| Input | Test 1 | Test 2 | Test 3 | Test 4 | Test 5 |
| +12VA | 4 A (48 W) | 7.5 A (90 W) | 11 A (132 W) | 14 A (168 W) | 17.5 A (210 W) |
| +12VB | 3 A (36 W) | 7 A (84 W) | 10.5 A (126 W) | 14 A (168 W) | 17.5 A (210 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 (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 A (5 W) | 1.5 A (7.5 W) | 2 A (10 W) | 2.5 A (12.5 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 | 104.7 W | 204.1 W | 307.8 W | 404.7 W | 502.2 W |
| % Max Load | 20.9% | 40.8% | 61.6% | 80.9% | 100.4% |
| Room Temp. | 45.6° C | 44.4° C | 44.2° C | 44.6° C | 46.8° C |
| PSU Temp. | 51.3° C | 51.2° C | 51.0° C | 51.2° C | 52.2° C |
| Voltage Regulation | Pass | Pass | Pass | Pass | Pass |
| Ripple and Noise | Pass | Pass | Pass | Pass | Pass |
| AC Power | 118.5 W | 224.6 W | 340.2 W | 456.3 W | 573.7 W |
| Efficiency | 88.4% | 90.9% | 90.5% | 88.7% | 87.5% |
| AC Voltage | 118.6 V | 117.5 V | 116.7 V | 115.9 V | 114.5 V |
| Power Factor | 0.978 | 0.98 | 0.988 | 0.993 | 0.995 |
| Final Result | Pass | Pass | Pass | Pass | Pass |
The LEPA G 500 W passed our test with flying colors, being able to deliver its labeled wattage at high temperatures.
Efficiency was outstanding, between 87.5% and 90.9%, completely fulfilling the 80 Plus Gold requirements (87% minimum at light and full loads, 90% minimum at typical load).
Voltage regulation was excellent, with all positive voltages within 3% of their nominal values (the -12 V output was outside this tighter regulation, but still inside the proper range). The ATX12V specification allows voltages to be up to 5% from their nominal values (10% for the -12 V output). Therefore this power supply presents voltages closer to their nominal values than necessary all the time.
Noise and ripple levels were always extremely low. Below you can see the results for the power supply outputs during test number five. The maximum allowed is 120 mV for the +12 V and -12 V outputs, and 50 mV for the +5 V, +3.3 V, and +5VSB outputs. All values are peak-to-peak figures.
Figure 22: +12VA input from load tester during test five at 502.2 W (37.4 mV)
Figure 23: +12VB input from load tester during test five at 502.2 W (37.6 mV)
Figure 24: +5V rail during test five at 502.2 W (13 mV)
Figure 25: +3.3 V rail during test five at 502.2 W (15.2 mV)
Let’s see if we can pull even more from the LEPA G 500 W.