Corsair Professional Series HX850 Power Supply Review

Corsair HX850 Power Supply Review

Six years ago Corsair first entered
the PSU market with the HX520W and HX620W, both of which products were marked
as a great success for the company. Today the company offers six series of power supplies,
but the HX series remains alive. In fact, Corsair updated its highly respected Professional Series HX range in June 2012. The notable upgrades include 80 PLUS Gold certification, providing up to 90% energy-efficiency, and significantly lower noise levels. The new HX line also now features a silent fanless operation mode at low loads, so when your PC is in an idle state the power supply fan doesn’t need to run! The best part about all the improvements is that the updated Corsair HX PSUs are available at the same price points as the outgoing models.

Model	Watts	Price
Corsair HX650	650W	$99.99
Corsair HX750	750W	$134.99
Corsair HX850	850W	$154.99
Corsair HX1050	1050W	$194.99

The new Corsair Professional Series HX range began shipping in August and is available
in 650W, 750W, 850W and 1050W wattage ratings. Corsair designed the HX series for gaming rigs, overclocking systems, or any PC where rock-solid stability is essential. In this review we are taking a crack at testing the new HX850 power supply, which runs $154.99 after a $15 mail-in rebate.

Corsair has come a long way since their first HX unit in 2006 and even the specifications of the HX850 reflect that. Corsair is confident enough to offer their HX series unit with a 7 year
warranty, the great length of which alone reflects the company’s confidence on
their latest HX series products. In terms of quality, the warranty alone is
enough to reassure even the most skeptics of buyers. How about performance
though? We will find out in this review.

Corsair HX850W PSU Features:

• A dedicated single +12V rail offers
  simple configuration and maximum compatibility with the latest graphics cards
  and other components
• An ultra-quiet, 140mm double
  ball-bearing fan delivers excellent airflow with exceptionally low noise levels
  by varying fan speed in response to temperature
• 80 PLUS Gold certified, delivering
  up to 90% energy efficiency under real-world load conditions
• Active Power Factor Correction (PFC)
  with PF value of 0.99
• Universal AC input from 90~264V
• Over-voltage, under-voltage,
  over-current, and short circuit protection provide maximum safety for your
  critical system components
• Engineered to meet maximum power
  output at a server-grade 50C temperature rating.
• High-quality capacitors provide
  uncompromised performance and reliability
• A seven year warranty and lifetime
  access to Corsair’s legendary technical support and customer service
• Safety Approvals: cTUVus, CE, CB, FCC Class B, TV, CCC, C-tick

Corsair HX850W Specifications:

Warranty	Seven years
Dimension	150mm x 86mm x 200mm
Modular	Yes
Power	850 Watts
80 Plus	Gold
ATX Connector	1
EPS Connector	2
PCI-E Connector	6
4 Pin Peripheral Connector	12
SATA Connector	12
Floppy Connector	2
MTBF	100,000 hours

Let’s go on to the next page and see what comes with this power supply.