Antec Earthwatts Platinum 650W PSU Review

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Antec is a firm known to every enthusiast. The company has been around ever since 1986, making them one of the oldest companies focusing on high performance PC equipment. Antec has been producing high end power supplies and computer cases for as long as most of us can remember, while today they remain a major played in the market. Today we will take a look at the latest upgrade of their famous Earthwatts power supply series. Having been designed for maximum efficiency, the Earthwatts series is not the most powerful series Antec currently retails; however, their latest Earthwatts units bear the rare 80Plus Platinum efficiency certification.Manufacturer features and specifications

• 50W Continuous Power — Guaranteed 650W of Continuous Power from Antec
• 80 PLUS® PLATINUM certified — Up to 93% efficient, to reduce your electricity bill
• Save Energy and Money — Reduce your electricity bill by up to 25%!
• AQ3 — Antec Quality 3 year warranty and lifetime global 24/7 support
• 120 mm DBB Silence — Whisper-quiet high-quality double ball bearing fan with long lifetime
• Thermal Manager — An advanced low voltage fan control for optimal heat & noise management
• High Current Rails — 2 fully-protected High Current +12V rails with high load capabilities ensure maximum CPU & GPU compatibility
• Multi PCI-E — 2 PCI-E connectors for multiple GPU support
• CircuitShield™ — Over Current Protection (OCP), Over Voltage Protection (OVP), Under Voltage Protection (UVP), Short Circuit Protection (SCP), Over Power Protection (OPP), Surge & Inrush Protection (SIP), No Load Operation (NLO) & Brown-Out Protection (BOP)
• Japanese heavy-duty caps — High-performance Japanese capacitors ensure tightest DC stability and regulation
• Operating Temperature: 0°C — 50°C
• Safety Approvals: UL, cUL, CB, CE, FCC, TÜV, BSMI, CCC, C-Tick, GOST-R, KCC
• Size:
  
  • 3.4" (H) x 5.9" (W) x 5.5" (D)
  • 86 mm (H) x 150 mm (W) x 140 mm (D)
  • Net Weight: 4.4 lbs / 2.0 kg

Read more: Antec Earthwatts Platinum 650W PSU Review by VR-Zone.com

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Antec supplies the Earthwatts unit inside a cardboard box featuring a very classy, serious artistic theme. It is clear that above everything else the company is focusing heavily on the fact that this is an 80Plus Platinum certified power supply.



We received an engineering sample of the power supply, which is why we only received the unit along with a standard AC power cable, therefore we are unable to comment on the bundle of this product. The company informed us that the retail version will include some basic mounting screws and standard cable ties, the standard “minimum” bundle which accompanies most power supplies.

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Much like the theme of the box, the Earthwatts unit features a very sharp, professional design. There are no fancy colors or peculiar shapes; the entire unit is sprayed with a smooth black paint and the sleeving of every single cable is black too. The honeycomb fan grill is part of the chassis, not an additional part. The power supply is fairly small, measuring only 150mm deep, ensuring that it will easily fit inside any ATX compliant case.



A large sticker with details regarding the electrical specifications of the power supply covers the entire right side of the unit.



The rear is entirely perforated to allow for the air pushed by the cooling fan to escape towards the outside of the case. Antec opted for the common honeycomb design, the holes of which however are smaller than those over the cooling fan. At the rear side of the unit we only found a standard AC power plug and an on/off switch.



At the front we only found a few stickers regarding features and certifications of the power supply. All of this unit’s cables are hardwired. This unit offers the following number of connectors:

Native cables
24-pin ATX connector
4+4 pin ATX12V CPU connector
2 x 6+2 pin PCIe connectors
6 x SATA connectors
4 x Molex connectors
1 x Floppy connector

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The simple black fan responsible for the cooling of the Earthwatts Platinum 650W unit is made by Yate Loon electronics. It is a rather famous model among PSU manufacturers, featuring a ball bearing engine and with a maximum speed of 2300RPM.



Antec entrusted FSP to be the OEM of their Earthwatts Platinum series. The design is using an enhanced version of the Active Clamp Reset Forward (ACRF) technology we first saw in the FSP Aurum Gold units.



The primary capacitor is a commercial grade CapXon product, rated for 390uF/420V at 85°C. While their products are not considered to be of as high quality as their Nippon Chemi-Con and Rubycon counterparts, CapXon is a proven supplier of high quality electronics. The secondary side capacitors are a mix of Rubycon, Nippon Chemi-Con and CapXon products.



The filtering stage of this power supply overcomes the recommended standards, with Antec having installed four Y type capacitors, two X type capacitors, two filtering coils and a MOV. It is rather surprising to see a MOV inside a FSP design since the company claims that their units have no need for it, yet it appears that Antec preferred to be safe than sorry.



There is only one word which could describe the heatsinks of the Earthwatts Platinum; tiny. Even though almost every part is attached to a heatsink, only the primary side heatsink has any noteworthy mass. The primary rectifier is attached to a very thin and small heatsink, as are the secondary side components. It would appear that this power supply hardly dissipates any heat at all, with most of it coming from its primary side.

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In order to provide you with the most professional and accurate reviews, we are using the following equipment to test the performance of power supplies:

• Modified SECC steel case with thermal generation and control components installed
• Custom USB controlled DC load, 2.2KW maximum power drain
• 3KVA VARIAC
• Lutron DW-6091 Power Analyzer
• USB Instruments Stingray Oscilloscope
• SL-5868P digital sound level meter
• CompuLAB interface
• MyPClab thermal interface
• Labjack U3-HV interface
• Custom calibration box
• Custom software

More information about our testing equipment and methodology can be found in this article.



The Antec Earthwatts 650W Platinum unit successfully completed all of our tests without any operational and/or performance problems. Although this power supply is not capable of competing with premium range units engineered for maximum electrical performance, our voltage ripple and regulation results were definitely good, with the unit displaying ripple of less than 50mV under load on the 12V line and regulation of less than 1.9%. The regulation of the smaller 3.3V/5V is worse, with the former reaching a figure of 4%; however, they still remain well within the specification limits.



As any enthusiasts would have come to expect from an 80Plus Platinum certified unit, the efficiency of the new Antec Earthwatts 650W power supply is simply stellar, reaching 94.5% under nominal load when powered from a 230VAC power source. What is even more strange however is while the power supply is powered from an 110VAC power source, it is more efficient when lightly loaded. This is the first product we have ever encountered capable of delivering higher efficiency when powered from an 110VAC source at any point of the load range.



It is only natural that with so high an efficiency, the thermal performance of the Antec Earthwatts unit is exceptional as well. Let us not forget that the very heatsinks of the unit are miniscule, releasing very little amounts of thermal energy to the air. The power supply only wastes 61.15W of heat under maximum stress; a figure negligible by today’s efficiency standards, considering an equivalent 80Plus Bronze certified unit would have to dissipate about 150W under the same operational conditions.



The very high efficiency and excellent thermal performance of the Antec Earthwatts 650W unit complement its acoustics performance as well. The power supply remained virtually silent until it was heavily loaded; only beyond 90% load the cooling fan does become audible and even then only barely

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Quality (30% of the total score)

Quality is probably the one thing a reviewer can rarely ever complain about when examining an Antec product. The Earthwatts Platinum 650W unit is no exception to that rule; not that it is perfect but it certainly is very satisfactory even by enthusiast standards. Externally, simple as it may be, the power supply is exceptionally finished and without any flaws which would (at the very least) compromise the aesthetics of the product. Inside the power supply, Antec took a proven FSP design and enhanced it, reaching 80Plus Platinum levels and superior electrical performance and reliability. True enough, we would have liked to find components (mainly capacitors) from more well known manufacturers or of higher specs inside the Earthwatts Platinum, although no one can claim that the ones Antec went with are in any way a bad selection.

Quality Score 9.5/10



Performance (40% of the total score)

When it comes to performance, the Antec Earthwatts Platinum 650W unit has left us with mixed feelings. The electrical performance of the power supply is just above average considering the class and price range of the unit, with relatively high ripple and regulation figures. On the other hand, the electrical efficiency of the power supply is stellar, as the company (and the 80Plus Platinum certification) promises; however, the very high electrical efficiency also yields outstanding thermal and acoustics performance, a by-product of the minimal energy wasted as heat. Units of this power range capable of delivering such efficiency, acoustics and thermal figures are scarce, which creates a vast market for Antec’s new product.

Performance Score 9.0/10



Value (20% of the total score)

Value is a little tricky subject for Antec’s latest Earthwatts unit. The new power supply retails for about 120 USD (150 SGD at the time of this review), a price only 30-40$ USD higher than 80Plus Bronze units with equivalent power characteristics. Assuming that the power supply will run at 50% load for 4 hours every single day, it would save 56.2kWh per year in comparison with an 80Plus Bronze unit. On the other hand however, each kWh costs about 0.112 USD in the US, leading to savings of a mere 6.3 USD per year. In Germany, the country with the 2nd highest domestic electricity price in Europe, the price per kWh is 0.365 USD, which would still lead to savings of only 20.5 USD per year. The payback period of such an investment just for energy savings would most likely be well over 2 years for most users. On the other hand however, the high efficiency also brings exceptional acoustics and thermal performance, which we believe most users would be more than content with paying a slightly elevated price for.

Value Score 8.0/10



Aesthetics (10% of the total score)

Aesthetics are a subjective matter and the Antec Earthwatts Platinum 650W unit is no exception. The unit is very well made and finished, with a serious all-black theme. We believe that some users, most likely the younger audience, will think of the unit’s dark design as mundane and scout for something more colorful or complex. On the other hand, people who value simplicity and elegance would be more than content with the Earthwatts unit appearance. We believe that it simply is a matter of taste; considering the price range of the power supply, a partially modular design would not hurt though.

Aesthetics Score 8.5/10