The Be Quiet! Dark Power Pro 13 1300W ATX 3.0 PSU Review: Flagship Quality, Flagship Price

Cold Test Results (~26°C Ambient)

For the testing of PSUs, 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.

Be Quiet! managed to improve the overall efficiency of the new Dark Power Pro 13 series significantly. Although it does not reach the 80Plus Titanium certification requirements when the input voltage is 230 VAC, it easily met the certification requirements with an input voltage of 115 VAC (manufacturers commonly target their designs to meet the 80Plus certification requirements with an input voltage of 115 VAC due to the lower certification thresholds). The average nominal load range (20% to 100% of the unit's capacity) efficiency is 93.7% when powered from a 230 VAC source, which drops down to 93.3% with an input voltage of 115 VAC. The design of the Dark Power Pro 13 also makes it a little more efficient at low loads with a lower input voltage, but the tables turn when the load is greater than 600 Watts.

This design does not feature any complex semi-passive thermal design. Instead, Be Quiet! opted for a simplistic and reliable temperature/load driven speed controller. The fan does start immediately when the unit is powered on, regardless of the load, but the noise figures while the load is less than 800 Watts are extremely low. Only when the load goes beyond 1000 Watts will the fan speed up sharply, reaching figures that would be easily audible in a common room.