Antec True Blue 480

Power supplies are one of the most overlooked part of a computer. Yet it is often the root for instability problems due to being to weak for all the power hugry stuff we put in our computers. Scott has reviewed the Antec True Blue 480 to see if it would fare better than the 350W power supply he had before.

Introduction

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Power supplies – everyone uses them but not many really care about them. We keep upgrading memory, buy new graphics cards, buy new DVD driver, buy new hard drives – but when was the last time you upgraded your power supply?

I would go so far to say that power supplies are one of the most overlooked parts of the PC. At the same time it is a very important part. With more and more items in the computer needing power using a no-name 350-450W power supply is pushing your luck. Even with a brand-name power supply you can get into troubles when putting more and more load in the system.

One good example is the way that this review was started. My main system has been a Falcon Northwest Mach V built around an Athlon 3000XP. The machine was shipped to me in the following configuration:

• Athlon XP 3000
• Asus A7N8X Deluxe Rev 2
• 2 x 512MB Corsair 2700DDR
• BFG 5900 Ultra
• 2x 80GB 120GXP 7200RPM
• Sony DRU-500AX DVD-RW/CD-RW Combo Drive
• Toshiba 16X DVD
• Promise TX 2000 RAID Controller
• Enermax 350 Watt Power Supply

As you can tell it is a pretty darn nice system. However, since I am using this as my main/review system I ‘had to’ tweak things in the systems. And this is where my problems with the power supply started.

I decided to first overclock the CPU by increasing the FSB to 200/400 from 166/333. This brought the CPU up to 3200. Since I knew this would stress the memory I replaced the 2 512 MB PC2700 sticks I used with 2 Corsair TwinX512-3200LLPT. I also bumped the memory voltage up to 2.7V from 2.6V as recommended by Corsair and Asus. To make sure my CPU had adequate cooling I replaced the included fan with TR2TT’s TR2-M4 X Blower heatsink/Fan.

Satisfied with the CPU I then put in a Maxtor Plus 9 HD for testing and review. While the system was stable during the time of the Maxtor review it started to get unstable after about 2 weeks. I had random reboots as well as frequent BSOD’s. Going through all the items in the computer and reseating them didn’t help. Since I had the Antec True Power 550 currently lying around I decided to see if using that helped. It did! So far the system has been stable for several weeks without a problem. It does look like I was pushing the poor Enermax 350W power supply to the limit with my overclocking and new HD.

This left me needing a new power supply for the machine. Since this is a Falcon Northwest with a killer NVIDIA paintjob I wondered if I could dress it up more for those dark evenings of gaming. While I didn’t want to cut the case for some fancy lightning I wanted something just enough to enhance the case. That is why I started to look at the Antec True Blue 480 Watt. This power supply not only delivers 480 Watt (duh) but also uses a blue led on the fan to make it a bit ‘cooler’. Antec was kind enough to not only supply me with a review unit but also throw in a few Blue 80mm fans to make the case even nicer.

My cool Falcon Northwest NVIDIA painted machine

FIND THE BEST PRICE FOR THE TRUE BLUE 480

Features and specifications

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Let’s see what Antec sent me:

Model	True Blue 480
Maximum Power	480W
Switches	ATX Logic on-off additional power rocker switch
Special Connectors	AUX PowerATX12V3-pin Fan Sensor Fan Only
Transient Response	+5V,+12V outputs return to within 5% in less than 1ms for 20% load change.
P. G. Signal	100-500ms
Over Voltage Protection recycle AC to reset	+5V trip point +3.3V trip point +12V trip point
Overload Protection Latching Protection	+5V @ +3.3V @ +12V @
Leakage Current

DIMENSIONS
Unit Size	5.9″(L) x 5.5″(W) x 3.4″(H) 15cm(L) x 14 cm(W) x 8.6 cm(H)
Net Weight	5lbs.2.3kg

INPUT
Input Voltage	115VAC/230VAC
Input Frequency Range	47Hz to 63Hz
Input Surge Current
Input Current	5.0A for 230VAC
Hold-up Time	>17ms at Full Load
Efficiency	> 68%
EMI/RFI	FCC Class B CISPR22 Class

OUTPUT	+5V	-5V	+12V	-12V	+3.3V	+5V SB
Max. Load	38A*	0.5A	22A	1.0A	30A*	2A
Min. Load	0A	0A	0.8A	0A	0A	0A
Load Reg	±3%	±5%	±3%	±5%	±3%	±5%
Ripple V(p-p)	50mV	50mV	120mV	120mV	50mV	50mV
* +5V, +3.3V & +12V maximum output 460 Watts max.

ENVIRONMENTAL
Operating Temp.	10 to 50ºC
Operating Alt. Sea Level	10,000 ft
Non-Operating Vibration	Operating:10-300 Hz, 0.5G, 3 axes, 1 hr. ea. axis Non-operating: 10-300 Hz, 2.0G, 3 axes, 1 hr. ea. axis
MTBF	80,000 hrs. @ 25ºC
Approvals	UL, TUV, CB, VDE, FCC CLASS B, DEMKO, NEMKO, SEMKO, FIMCO

And a little info on the fans:

• 3 Blue LEDs
• Size 80 x 80 x 25.4 mm
• Weight 71.5 gm
• Fan Speed 2,600 rpm (avg.)
• Volumetric Airflow 34 CFM
• Acoustic Noise 30 dBA (at average rpm

The box	The contents
The backside	The cat (not included, sold separately)

The test

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For testing I used my beat up but trusty Radio Shack Voltmeter and MBM by Alex Van Kaam.

Setting up dual screens on my PC I was able to run benchmarks of AquaMark, UT 2003 and 3DMark 2003 and watch the load on the power supply with MBM on the other monitor and comparing to the voltmeter.

I was happy to report that we never even went out of +/- of 2% of specs on any of the voltages. To stress the system more I replaced the 5900 from BFG with a NVIDIA reference 5950 and over-clocked the core to 550MHz from 475MHz and the RAM to 1.02GHz from the 950MHz it was running stock. Once again the power supply held steady and we did not move any higher than a +/- 2% difference.

On of the 80 mm fans	Power supply fan to the left, 80 mm fan to the right

Conclusion

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All I can say is that I am very impressed with the Antec True Blue 480. This power supply so far is even exceeding what Antec specs for the power supply. One reason that this could be is due to the fact that we currently do not have to run either the air condition or heating at my house (New Jersey). The power supply thus is not put on the stress of the HVAC unit coming on. However – previously Antec power supplies that we have looked at have always kept within Antecs specs even with this added stress so we have no reason to believe this power supply is any different. The True Blue 480 can be had for around 80$. Look for the best price here.

PRO:
• SATA Power Leads
• Nice Black Connectors
• Bright Fans
• Stayed Well Within Specifications

CON:
• Non as far as I am concerned

I award the Antec True Blue 480 the Golden Bear Award