Thortech Thunderbolt 850 W Power Supply Review

Introduction

Thortech is a power supply brand that belongs to the memory manufacturer, GeIL. So far they have only released units with 80 Plus Gold certification and modular cabling system under two series: Thunderbolt, with 650 W, 850 W, 1,000 W, and 1,200 W versions; and Thunderbolt Plus, with only one model (800 W), which we’ve already reviewed. The only difference between the two series is the presence of a digital power meter on the Thunderbolt Plus model. Let’s see if the Thunderbolt 850 W power supply is a good product.

The power supplies from Thortech are manufactured by Sirfa/Highpower.

Figure 1: Thortech Thunderbolt 850 W power supply

Figure 2: Thortech Thunderbolt 850 W power supply

The Thortech Thunderbolt 850 W is 6.3” (160 mm) deep, using a 135 mm ball bearing fan on its bottom (Globe Fan RL4Z B1352512H).

This unit has a modular cabling system, with four cables permanently attached to the power supply with nylon sleeves. This power supply comes with the following cables:

• Main motherboard cable with a 20/24-pin connector, 20.5” (52 cm) long, permanently attached to the power supply
• One cable with one EPS12V connector, 22.8” (58 cm) long, permanently attached to the power supply
• One cable with two ATX12V connectors that together form an EPS12V connector, 22.8” (58 cm) long, permanently attached to the power supply
• Four cables, each with one six/eight-pin connector for video cards, 22” (56 cm) long, modular cabling system
• One cable with three SATA power connectors, 22.8” (58 cm) to the first connector, 7.3” (18.5 cm) between connectors, permanently attached to the power supply
• Three cables, each with three SATA power connectors, 18.9” (48 cm) to the first connector, 7.9” (20 cm) between connectors, modular cabling system
• One cable with three standard peripheral power connectors, 19.7” (50 cm) to the first connector, 7.9” (20 cm) between connectors, modular cabling system
• One cable with three standard peripheral power connectors and one floppy disk drive power connector, 19.7” (50 cm) to the first connector, 7.9” (20 cm) between connectors, modular cabling system

All wires are 18 AWG, except the wires on the main motherboard cable, which are 16 AWG (i.e., thicker), which is very nice to see.

The cable configuration is good, with 12 SATA power connectors and an above-the-average distance between connectors. This unit could have six video card power connectors in order to allow the installation of three high-end video cards without the need of power adapters.

Figure 3: Cables

Let’s now take an in-depth look inside this power supply.