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Here's our review of the Enermax Noisetaker 600w EG701A power supply, boasting ATX12V v2.0 specs with dual 12V rails and offering dual PCI-X connecters for SLI support. The power supply has more cabling and connecters than you'll know what to do with, rock-solid stability, and 600w of pure power.

Introduction
Until recent years, almost any power supply would run your computer with no problems. Although, modern components are now more power hungry than ever, demanding not just power, but clean stable power in order to keep them ticking over.
The PSU (power supply unit) is however, the most overlooked component in the majority of today’s computers, with many users using generic units that simply aren’t up to the job.

Enermax have kindly allowed us to review the latest PSU in their acclaimed Noisetaker series – the EG701AX-VE, offering a massive 600w, SLI support and ATX12V v2.0compatability.

Before we start, here is the huge feature list for the 600w Noisetaker:

• ATX12V v2.0 Compatible
• Separate 12V rails
• Smart Fan (continues to cool the PSU after you turn off your PC)
• Manual and Auto fan speed control
• Ring Core (EMI Shielding)
• Active PFC Function
• SATA connectors (4x)
• 6-pin PCI-X connectors for SLI (2x)
• Molex Connectors (7x)
• Floppy Connectors (2x)
• 20 + 4pin motherboard connector for universal compatability.
• Supplied with mounting screws and UK power lead.
• OCP, UVP, OVP, OLP, OTP and SCP protection circuits ensuring safety and reliability.
• 3 year warranty for complete peace of mind

The Noisetaker arrived in a very appealing glossy colour box with features, figures and support stickers plastered all over it. If I were to see this on the shelf in a store I would certainly want to take a look at it.

Upon opening the box I was yet again pleasantly surprised. Everything was very neatly packaged, and there’s even a box containing all of the extras (UK mains power lead, 4x fixing screws, and a nice little Enermax case sticker), and while this box of extras may only seem like minor things, many manufacturers still fail to supply them, so well done Enermax. The manual is fairly standard, but does have a glossy cover and explains all of the features in 7 different languages.

Unpacking & Installation
Unpacking the PSU from its protective bubble wrap bag you are confronted with a small but weighty unit with a massive wiring loom with fully sheathed motherboard power lead, and a beautiful metallic blue paint job which you really have to see up close to appreciate (the pictures don’t really do it justice, but it is really impressive to see shimmering in the light.)

The cable arrangement is longer than most other PSU’s and will quite happily power everything in a full-tower case with length to spare for tidying wires away behind drive bays. The assortment of connectors is more than sufficient for any configuration you’re ever likely to use.

The unit comes with dual fans, an 80mm exhaust fan on the rear, and a 90mm intake fan on the underside, both of which are manually and automatically controlled with a dial on the rear, minimizing noise whilst providing sufficient cooling.

OK, so on to the actual installation. I had previously removed the existing PSU from my computer, so all I had to do was screw the unit to the case chassis with the supplied fixing screws and connect up the motherboard and my drives. Easy as that. One thing to note is that with the generous provision of all of the connectors and the long wires you may struggle to find somewhere to route and/or hide them all if you use a smaller case, although it is far better to have this issue than not enough. Most of the connectors are actually labelled, so you shouldn’t ever have trouble locating the right plug, which I found to be a nice touch, appealing to the less computer literate out there.

Testing
Now here I will attempt to provide the best analysis I can, given the limited testing knowledge and tools I have. Using a digital multimeter I took idle and full load measurements of the voltages from the molex connectors. I carefully monitored the readings over a fifteen minute period for both the states, and recorded the ranges. I then calculated an adjusted average of the readings, all of which can be seen in the table.

The idle state was just with the computer turned on with Windows XP Pro booted up, and two 80mm and one 120mm fans spinning on 5V.

The load state is as idle, but with the fans at 12V, and a continuous sequence of Pioneer DVD reading, SONY DVD-R writing, 40Gb (assorted sizes) files copying from Seagate 80Gb SATA HDD to 200Gb Seagate SATA HDD, and SANDRA2004 burn-in wizard running continuously.

This is not the most scientific method of testing, but does provide a real world scenario that you may just experience once or twice, that puts a lot of stress on the entire system.

From what I could gather the voltages remained extremely stable, and although they did fluctuate very slightly, they remained well within the recommended limits and are amongst the best I’ve ever seen. This minimalization in fluctuation is exactly what you need for powering today’s increasingly more sensitive components.

Voltages do appear quite high at 0.2V above 5V and 12V although this is perfectly acceptable – It is always better to be slightly higher than lower anyway.

The PSU remained quiet (still audible though) throughout testing, and whilst it isn’t the quietest unit I’ve heard, it is quieter than most, and is acceptable to work with even if your case is on your desktop. I did try different settings for the fans, although not a great deal of difference can be noticed, as it is mainly auto controlled by the PSU itself, so I ended up just leaving it on the lowest setting.

Another pretty unique feature that the Noisetaker has is its Smart Fan. This keeps the fans running at low speed after you turn off your computer until the unit has cooled to below 40oC. This can take anywhere from 3 mins to 7mins. This clever feature actively prolongs the life of the power supply.

Conclusion
From first sight, right through to installation, the Enermax Noisetaker 600w is an absolute dream.

Everything you need is in the box, there are generously long wires, and more than enough connectors for most. The metallic paint finish is truly beautiful, and the performance is second to none.

One addition I would like to see with this power supply would be to have ALL of the cables individually mesh covered. Though this is purely for aesthetic reasons, it would help in tidying up the massive wiring loom, and would greatly complement the paint job.

Details
Reviewer: Mr Vince Cutting
Date: 23 March 2005
Manufacturer: Enermax (www.enermax.com.tw)
Review: Enermax Noisetaker EG701AX-VE 600w

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