CES 2019: Liquid Cooled Power Supplies from FSP, up to 1200W
by Ian Cutress on January 9, 2019 10:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Cases/Cooling/PSUs
- 1200W
- FSP
- 850W
- Trade Shows
- Hydro PTM+
- CES 2019
A few years ago I remember visiting a company at the Computex trade show that was showing off a prototype liquid cooled power supply. At the time I said that the concept was a bit extreme, and the pricing they were thinking of doing it at was immense. Fast forward a few years and a different company, this time FSP, is making the splash with the concept. The FSP Hydro PTM+ 1200W is a water cooled 1200W power supply that is already on the market, and the company was showing off its new 850W model.
In each instance, a water block is built into the power supply, with the water block coming from BitsPower. With the larger 1200W unit, users get treated to a metallic shipping container, special cabling for the PCIe and 24-pin/8-pin connectors, and some tubing with fittings already included. This obviously contributes to the $699 cost. By contrast, the 850W unit comes in a standard box and is more cost effective at $399. The 850W unit will be available from the end of Q1.
These units from FSP also have a fan for air cooling. The reasoning behind this, according to FSP, is in case the water cooling loop fails or isn't built correctly. The fan automatically comes on at 50% load anyway, for what it's worth. We were also told that the 1200W and 850W ratings are in air cooled mode - when the system is liquid cooled, the power supplies are rated to 1400W and 1000W respectively.
FSP recommends installing its liquid cooled power supplies at the top of the case, because if the loop leaks, it won't fall in and break the power supply. That's their general suggestion for any water cooling build.
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FreckledTrout - Wednesday, January 9, 2019 - link
I have just one question. Why?austinsguitar - Wednesday, January 9, 2019 - link
^ there is zero reason to do this.Death666Angel - Wednesday, January 9, 2019 - link
Why are there sportscars with hundreds of kW of power? Because some peoples hobbies are different than yours and some like to go all the way.FreckledTrout - Wednesday, January 9, 2019 - link
I'm not knocking it in fact I have been building PC's about 25 years. I mean why watercool something that you make platinum to titanium level efficiency that runs perfectly cool. Why would anyone want to use water in a PSU?DanNeely - Wednesday, January 9, 2019 - link
To guarantee that when your loop fails you end up shorting the AC side of the power system for maximum damage potential.prophet001 - Wednesday, January 9, 2019 - link
lolStrangerGuy - Thursday, January 10, 2019 - link
Upgrade cycles are getting so long that every vendor is trying their darnest for new "ideas" to sell product regardless of how dumb they are.olde94 - Wednesday, January 9, 2019 - link
Most times when i see a liquid cooled setup i ask this question. Air is just as efficient for most things that are not extremePeachNCream - Wednesday, January 9, 2019 - link
Based on the fact that they left the fan grille in place, it looks very much like a cheap slap-together job that is designed to appeal to people who think they need to take everything to the next level under the weak justification that their hobby is to go all the way and will pay without stopping to think or ask questions. (*intentional zing*)yashsani49563 - Thursday, January 10, 2019 - link
Tragically, numerous PSUs leave their fans off a great deal of the time. In the event that there was some OK approach to, in view of upgrade (sensor readings), open and close off the circle to the PSU (a couple of solenoids among PSU and the parts of the circles that really require cooling), it may have a place in the market.All things considered, the PSU will dependably be above liquid temp, and consequently warm up your CPU and GPU pointlessly, while not decreasing commotion levels or giving any genuine advantage to execution.