Rosewill Fortress Platinum 450W

Conclusion

In summary, Rosewill's new Fortress line of power supplies is well made and features good specs and performance. The ultra-high efficiency likely won't matter all that much to end users, as Silver or Gold certified units reach nearly the same levels as Platinum products, but Rosewill includes a lot of current technologies and the results are very good. The technology starts with the resonant converter that reduces power dissipation. Another nice feature is the DC-to-DC circuit that improves voltage regulation (during crossload). There are other brands with such solutions, but Rosewill included well chosen components as well.

ATNG is the ODM behind the Fortress line and there are many similarities to the Golden Green series from Super Flower, but there are some differences as well. ATNG (under the direction of Rosewill) implemented the important safety functions as well (except OCP). The 7-year warranty from Rosewill is another welcome feature, though manufactureres often offer 7-year warranties for such high-priced products. In terms of pricing, Newegg currently lists the 450W model at $90, with the 550W model going for $100, the 650W is at $110, and the 750W unit costs $130. It's nice to see reasonable steps up in output without a huge jump in price, though the 450W model should be enough for all but the most demanding users (e.g. dual or multiple GPUs with heavy overclocking).

The six SATA connectors via two cables and five Molex plugs on the Fortress 450W are good for the target market. There are more than enough connectors to build a PC with several HDDs/SSDs and other peripheral devices. There's also the standard 24-pin and a 4/8-pin connectors for the mainboard. Graphics cards can be powered by the two 8-pin connectors, both of which can be converted to 6-pin connectors. In addition the cable lengths are generally good and longer than many other lower wattage PSUs, which makes the Fortress a better fit for systems where the PSU is bottom-mounted. Finally you get the usual set of accessories (power cord, screws).

All the modern Rosewill PSUs we've tested have had no problems with ripple and noise, and that trend continues here. +12V is always below 50mV (120mV is the ATX limit) while the other rails are even lower. The voltage regulation is great too. In addition, the power factor is very high, even on 230VAC. Another advantage is the high efficiency even at 10% load. While the Fortress is audible at high loads, the fan isn't loud relative to other components. In a typical PC with a closed case, this PSU will be quieter than most CPU, GPU, and chipset fans. If you're after absolute silence, the Seasonic's X-400FL will be the better choice, but most users will be quite happy with this solution. Only the bearing type is a real point of criticism since we detected some side noises; we prefer FDB (Fluid Dynamic Bearing) fans.

The power supply certainly doesn't come cheap (at around $90 right now), but the Rosewill Fortress 450W is currently one of the most advanced consumer power supply available. It offers exceptional efficiency, voltage regulation, temperatures, and has a very good build quality. It doesn't necessarily surpass the competition in every area (ripple/noise is "just" average), but it's always at the top of the charts. We definitely look forward to seeing more Rosewill products like this in the future, as this PSU is perfect for gamers with moderate GPUs.

The Seasonic X-460FL is a viable alternative if you want a completely silent PSU, but $140 is a heavy price to pay. As usual, you'll have to decide which features are the most important. Antec is another strong competitor since they offer a Platinum PSU for roughly the same price (currently $10 more, though prices can easily fluctuate that much and more). Nevertheless they use fans made by Yate Loon and we don't welcome this decision. Overall we rate Rosewill's Fortress line slightly better than Antec's EarthWatts Platinum PSUs.

Despite all the good elements, in our view Rosewill's affordable Capstone Gold models still look like the best option. In some cases they even surpass the new Fortress series with lower ripple results, and prices are $20 to $30 less than the Fortress equivalents, with the option to get modular cables if you prefer. The extra 2% in efficiency just doesn't seem worth the price.