SFF.Network Silverstone’s Passive SFX-L PSU launched !

Walderstorn

Average Stuffer
Apr 29, 2018
84
37
Too bad no release date...that said i can't wait at this point so unfortunately i won't be able to buy it for my next build.
 

Kwirek

Cable-Tie Ninja
Nov 19, 2016
186
198
The operating temperature of 40 degrees celsius... Well it is passive so I suppose you'll have to place it carefully regarding to airflow.
 

AFD

Minimal Tinkerer
May 10, 2015
3
2
Dang, think I need this.

Still haven't even opened the SF600 I bought 2 years ago.. guess I just need to do a new SFF build with all my extra parts =/

(Hey Phuncz, long time no see!
)
 

AFD

Minimal Tinkerer
May 10, 2015
3
2
I remember seeing you around on the [H] forum, welcome to the SFFN forum ! Even though your account is about as old as mine :D

Thanks! I disappeared from [H] shortly after creating an account here.. kinda helped me stop incessantly upgrading/side-grading my last build (by not reading about new parts, which is no fun!) XD

My educated guess: "bbbbzzzzzzzzzzz bzz bbbzzzzzzzzz"

Ahhh, hope not, though I immediately thought the same. Luckily, my last two Silverstone SFX units weren't too bad with electrical noise (horrible fan noise on both though)
 
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AFD

Minimal Tinkerer
May 10, 2015
3
2
Are they usually prone to it? I ask because I am considering an sfx-l 700...
Iirc, it's been an issue with both their SFX and SFX-L models. Think they've since switched to better Japanese caps for some models, but I honestly have no idea if it's still a problem.

Thinking back, I do recall my ST45SF having an incredibly high-pitched whine at times. The only electrical noise my newer SX600-G makes is a very brief 'nose-dive' sound right before the fan kicks on (only happens if the system is started cold, and just once, if at all). The crappy fan is another story.

There's a lot of different factors at play as well, including your hearing, noise sensitivity, ambient noise, and possibly even your household electrical wiring. But.. I'm pretty sure it's just the caps XD
 
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Mackan

Airflow Optimizer
Jun 2, 2016
302
160
I kind of expect it to have coil whine... but yeah, let's hope not. Would be failure for a passive unit that is supposed to define silence. I have a SF600 that is dead quiet when it comes to coil whine. Corsair even have warranty for coil whine, if I recall correctly.
 

EdZ

Virtual Realist
May 11, 2015
1,578
2,107
It's inductors that whine, not capacitors. If you capacitors are making noise, they're letting out the Magic Blue Smoke and you will notice very quickly by the device no longer working. Plus, the whole thing is wrapped in a hefty chunk of metal, with no holes, and most of the components will probably be potted to it to maintain heat transfer to the case.

Coil whine in a PSU is as much down to all the components drawing power from the PSU as the PSU itself. It;s all down the the frequency and amount by which the components are chaing how much power they are drawing, so you could end up with loud whine with one particular component that happens to resonate but no whine at all if it's swapped for something else.
 

BaK

King of Cable Management
Bronze Supporter
May 17, 2016
930
931
I was (apparently mistakenly) thinking that the SFX-L PSUs were designed around the 120mm fan, in order to be more silent than the 'regular' SFX PSUs with their 80mm fans.
So I'm a bit disappointed to see this fanless PSU still with an SFX-L sizing...
I guess this is dictated by the components they have to use for a passive environment.
 
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Walderstorn

Average Stuffer
Apr 29, 2018
84
37
my SX 700LPT goes pliiiiiiiiiiii pliiiiiiiiiii pliiiiiiiiiii pliiiiiiiiiiii while the PC's off, lol

I hope, if i choose to buy that one, that it doesnt. I would even consider the 800w if that would make it quieter, which doesnt seem to be... :|

Is your version the 1st or the 2nd? They said that they changed to fans.
 

Phuncz

Lord of the Boards
Original poster
SFFn Staff
May 9, 2015
5,827
4,902
I was (apparently mistakenly) thinking that the SFX-L PSUs were designed around the 120mm fan, in order to be more silent than the 'regular' SFX PSUs with their 80mm fans.
So I'm a bit disappointed to see this fanless PSU still with an SFX-L sizing...
I guess this is dictated by the components they have to use for a passive environment.
Basically any air-cooled PSU can be a passive PSU if it's downrated enough so the components stay within their thermal limits without a cooler. This is "basically" (*) the SX800-LTI internally that's downrated so it's able to sustain this load. Another SFX-L PSU wouldn't even have been possible without a high efficiency, Silverstone said to us in the past. Maybe if enough of these sell, an SFX version could be possible but I'd be amazed if it would be rated over 300W.

(*) mind you that the entire enclosure is made of much thicker aluminium so it can't be an exact 1:1, but it probably has a large amount of similar electrical components.