Coolmax Fanless 480W Power Supply
Review by: Steve
Edited by: Ji4m
Provided by: Coolmax USA
Price: $172 Canadian

Introduction:
When fanless power supplies first hit the market they all had very low wattage ratings and were designed more for those who were not running high loads or extreme gaming computers. Now that technology and manufacturing has advanced there are now starting to emerge some fanless power supplies with higher wattages. Today we're looking at the 480W Coolmax fanless ATX power supply.

With fanless power supplies now carrying wattages of 480W and above, people are able to build more "extreme" computers using these types of power supplies. So far the Coolmax fanless power supply looks great, but will it be able to stand up to our tests and still come out on top?

In The Box:
(1) Coolmax Fanless 480W PSU
(1) 20 to 24 pin adapter
(1) 4 to 8 pin adapter
(1) Power Cord

 
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Specs:

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Features:
Turning on this power supply was definitely different than turning on others. Why? Nothing is the reason, you don't hear a thing because there isn't a single fan in it. Think of it like turning the key in your new Ferrari and hearing absolutely nothing yet the car is still fully running. In a Ferrari this would be a little disappointing, but in a computer I can't imagine it's very disappointing at all. Personally, the silence was a wonderful experience. Since the power supply is completely fanless they have used the entire case like one big heat sink. The casing is aluminum which most CPU heat sinks are made out of because it conducts heat very well. The case also has lots of ventilation holes all around it to help heat escape. When the power switch on the back is turned on it lights up red and is the only signal that the power supply is actually on!

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There are quite a few features under the hood of this power supply however! It features a built in EMI filter for low ripple noise. High performance components and heavy duty transformers for long life are two other features. A few other features I really love are it's over voltage, over power and short circuit protection. Those give you the extra security that if something major were to happen, the power supply has built in protection against it and shouldn't damage anything.

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Included in the package is a 20 to 24 pin adapter. This adapter will make the power supply compliant with the new ATX 2.03 standard which is starting to emerge in some of the newer systems now. Being compatible with both ATX standards assures that you will be able to use this power supply for many years to come.

There is also very large selection of connectors on the power supply and it comes SATA ready to support the latest in hard drives. The motherboard ATX connector has all it's wires sleeved in a black mesh covering. This not only adds a very nice appearance but it also helps keep the wires from being cut or damaged if you're routing them inside your case. There are also 10 molex connectors, 2 floppy connectors, 1 SATA connector, 1 aux, 1 - 4 pin (adaptable to 8 pin with included adapter) and of course the 20 pin ATX connector.

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