The FSP Hydro G 750W Power Supply Review
by E. Fylladitakis on March 3, 2016 8:00 AM EST- Posted in
- PSUs
- Cases/Cooling/PSUs
- 750W
- FSP
- Modular
Cold Test Results
For our PSU testing we are using high precision electronic loads with a maximum power draw of 2700 Watts, a Rigol DS5042M 40 MHz oscilloscope, an Extech 380803 power analyzer, two high precision UNI-T UT-325 digital thermometers, an Extech HD600 SPL meter, a self-designed hotbox and various other bits and parts. For a thorough explanation of our testing methodology and more details on our equipment, please refer to our How We Test PSUs - 2014 Pipeline post.
The conversion efficiency of the FSP Hydro G 750W at room temperature is very good, with the PSU surpassing 92.1% at 50% load. It also has an average of 90.8% within the nominal load range (20% to 100% of the unit's capacity). The efficiency is relatively stable across the nominal load range and only degrades significantly when the PSU is very heavily loaded, but it always remains well within the 80Plus Gold certification limits.
FSP has designed the Hydro G to minimize the use of the active cooling in order to keep noise levels down, similar to zero fan speed idle features we've seen in other classes of PC components. As a result, PSU's fan will not spin at all when the load is very low, only finally spinning up when higher loads call for greater cooling. At room temperature, the fan of our sample started spinning when the load was exactly 300 Watts, albeit very slowly. The fan's speed did not increase significantly beyond that point either, with the Hydro G generating perceptible levels of noise only when fully loaded.
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MrSpadge - Thursday, March 3, 2016 - link
Because the PSU likes water spilled on it, I guess.Shadowmaster625 - Thursday, March 3, 2016 - link
Why have "Hydro" in the name if it doesnt have any liquid coolant in it?Murloc - Thursday, March 3, 2016 - link
because it sounds cool (pun intended)LiviuTM - Thursday, March 3, 2016 - link
more likely from the "Hydro Dynamic bearing", I guess.geniekid - Friday, March 4, 2016 - link
They should get into aftermarket cooling. "FSP Hydro Extreme - the ultimate air cooling solution."DanNeely - Thursday, March 3, 2016 - link
"The number of connectors per cable is a bit unusual though. For example, one cable has four SATA connectors, another has two SATA and two Molex connectors, and two of them have two SATA, one Molex and one floppy connector each. There is no cable with just Molex connectors on it. "It might be unconventional, but in principle I kinda like it; much better than every cable being identical. I was wiring up a new box a few days ago, and ended up using a cable with 4 or 5 sata connectors to power a single SSD and via a sata to molex adapter the case's built in fan controller; while having to stuff the rest out of sight in the very cramped space behind the mobo. I'd probably only have put molexes on 2 of the cables though because they're getting somewhat rare. Wiring a floppy connector in at all is rather surprising; virtually nothing has used them for years.
Also, that description adds up to 10 sata connections 4+2+2+2, not 12 as in the summary table.
nagi603 - Monday, March 7, 2016 - link
Other manufacturers have somewhat better mixes for their modular ones. My Seasonic X400 has shorter cables with only 2 sata connectors on it, and also one with 2 molex connectors. Either would have worked for you. The mixed ones of FPS are bad because in a high-power build, you plan to use a lot of sata connectors tipically, or a lot of molexes. Not both.rhysiam - Thursday, March 3, 2016 - link
Thanks for the review!Just a suggestion, could you chart the claimed 80 Plus standard on the "Energy Conversion Efficiency" charts? I know we can look it up and compare that way, but it would be much easier to have a unit's performance and 80 Plus (Gold in this case) standard on the chart for comparison. Thanks.
mauler1973 - Saturday, March 5, 2016 - link
When I click on the newegg link for the product it goes to toms hardware site address before going to newegg. What's the deal?Oxford Guy - Friday, March 11, 2016 - link
"Their designs are usually found in advanced mid-range units, such as the Be Quiet! Dark Power Pro 10 series"The Dark Power Pro 10 series had high-end units made by Seasonic in it, not just FSP models. They came with advanced features like a Lunpen filter and a premium fluid bearing fan. The series topped out at 1200 watts.