The Corsair TX750M power supply unit we have tested today was impressive for a mid range PSU. Powering an Intel's latest and greatest setup in an overclocked condition along with AMD's most powerful graphics card is no mean feat yet the PSU did so with breathing space to spare. There are however plus and minus points to owning the PSU so before we get to the good, we'll serve up the bad news first.
If I had to pick one major gripe with the PSU it would be the amount of flexibility it offers. While it is advertised as modular it is far from 100% modular. I can forgive the 20+4 pin and a PCIe cable being pre attached as everyone will need these regardless of the setup used (assuming you prefer ad-hoc GPU's to on-board of course). What is less easy to live with is that there's both SATA and Molex cables also fixed in place. SATA I can understand but many people now have no need for Molex so that is one cable that will be required to hide. To compound the flexibility problem there is a distinct lack of additional cables which may prohibit what cables you attach and what you don't . IF Corsair were worried about the number of devices being attached, we would have preferred fewer connections on a cable but more cables which in turn would enhance the flexibility of the TX750M.
The cables themselves were of average length (24pin = 55cm, 4+4pin = 62CM, PCIe = 60cm) but sadly many of the cables were not fully braided to the plug which leaves the unsightly coloured cables on-show. The braiding itself is not dense weave either and while this is not unusual for a PSU, it is an area that could be improved. If I am being particularly choosy, the blue plugs do nothing for the aesthetics of the unit being that it is mainly an orange and black affair so the choice of blue for some of the connections seems an odd one to make. It would have been nice to see Corsair incorporate a diagnostic LED with their units too. While this feature is one most often seen on the high end Enermax PSU's it is an invaluable indication, especially when a fault occurs which in turn allows the user to decipher if it is a PSU issue or a fault elsewhere. At this price point though it is understandable one wasn't included.
Now for the good: The packaging and presentation of the Corsair TX750M was very good and perhaps akin to a product costing significantly more than the £84 asking price. Aesthetically, the power unit is pleasing to both the eye and the touch. While I have criticised the braiding of the cables above, the main unit is attractive enough with its matt dark grey appearance and glossy black fan grill. The Yate Loon fan hardly raised a murmur under load and could not be heard over the system fans under load conditions. Better still, at idle it was silent. I do like the approach Corsair take with (some of) the cables being black, specifically the wires. These are easy to hide and are also more flexible than braided cables making cable tidying/hiding much easier. I particularly liked the idea of separate floppy/Molex adaptors which I hope is copied by all PSU manufacturers, these too made use of black wires to match the unit. Of course, looks are nothing without the performance of the PSU and here's where the unit impressed most.
The Corsair unit coped with a huge amount of load from what we would describe as a high end system and it did so quietly with no issue at all. The voltages did drop ever so slightly under extreme load conditions but were always well within ATX specification. Clearly the unit is not built for quad GPU monster folding systems but for a mid range system, multi GPI configurations would still be within the performance remit of this PSU. While the PSU is a classed as a modular unit, I would tend to consider it as a unit with fixed cables that offers some modular capability. The ultimate in flexibility it is not but if you are in the market for a mid-range PSU which will power mid-high end system then the TX750M is certainly worthy of consideration. Sure it has its faults but if you can live with them then you have a very capable unit. Sadly though, other than the floppy-Molex adaptors there is nothing here which makes the PSU stand head and shoulders above the competition in what is a very highly contested market segment. I was therefore stuck on whether to give the TX750M our stamp of approval or the bronze award. After careful consideration I'm going to award it both as despite its drawbacks it does what it claims to do and does it very well.
Click here for an explanation of our awards at Vortez.net. Thanks to Corsair for providing today’s review sample.
If I had to pick one major gripe with the PSU it would be the amount of flexibility it offers. While it is advertised as modular it is far from 100% modular. I can forgive the 20+4 pin and a PCIe cable being pre attached as everyone will need these regardless of the setup used (assuming you prefer ad-hoc GPU's to on-board of course). What is less easy to live with is that there's both SATA and Molex cables also fixed in place. SATA I can understand but many people now have no need for Molex so that is one cable that will be required to hide. To compound the flexibility problem there is a distinct lack of additional cables which may prohibit what cables you attach and what you don't . IF Corsair were worried about the number of devices being attached, we would have preferred fewer connections on a cable but more cables which in turn would enhance the flexibility of the TX750M.
The cables themselves were of average length (24pin = 55cm, 4+4pin = 62CM, PCIe = 60cm) but sadly many of the cables were not fully braided to the plug which leaves the unsightly coloured cables on-show. The braiding itself is not dense weave either and while this is not unusual for a PSU, it is an area that could be improved. If I am being particularly choosy, the blue plugs do nothing for the aesthetics of the unit being that it is mainly an orange and black affair so the choice of blue for some of the connections seems an odd one to make. It would have been nice to see Corsair incorporate a diagnostic LED with their units too. While this feature is one most often seen on the high end Enermax PSU's it is an invaluable indication, especially when a fault occurs which in turn allows the user to decipher if it is a PSU issue or a fault elsewhere. At this price point though it is understandable one wasn't included.
Now for the good: The packaging and presentation of the Corsair TX750M was very good and perhaps akin to a product costing significantly more than the £84 asking price. Aesthetically, the power unit is pleasing to both the eye and the touch. While I have criticised the braiding of the cables above, the main unit is attractive enough with its matt dark grey appearance and glossy black fan grill. The Yate Loon fan hardly raised a murmur under load and could not be heard over the system fans under load conditions. Better still, at idle it was silent. I do like the approach Corsair take with (some of) the cables being black, specifically the wires. These are easy to hide and are also more flexible than braided cables making cable tidying/hiding much easier. I particularly liked the idea of separate floppy/Molex adaptors which I hope is copied by all PSU manufacturers, these too made use of black wires to match the unit. Of course, looks are nothing without the performance of the PSU and here's where the unit impressed most.
The Corsair unit coped with a huge amount of load from what we would describe as a high end system and it did so quietly with no issue at all. The voltages did drop ever so slightly under extreme load conditions but were always well within ATX specification. Clearly the unit is not built for quad GPU monster folding systems but for a mid range system, multi GPI configurations would still be within the performance remit of this PSU. While the PSU is a classed as a modular unit, I would tend to consider it as a unit with fixed cables that offers some modular capability. The ultimate in flexibility it is not but if you are in the market for a mid-range PSU which will power mid-high end system then the TX750M is certainly worthy of consideration. Sure it has its faults but if you can live with them then you have a very capable unit. Sadly though, other than the floppy-Molex adaptors there is nothing here which makes the PSU stand head and shoulders above the competition in what is a very highly contested market segment. I was therefore stuck on whether to give the TX750M our stamp of approval or the bronze award. After careful consideration I'm going to award it both as despite its drawbacks it does what it claims to do and does it very well.
Pros
+ Good packaging
+ Quiet
+ Good performance
+ 5 Year Warranty
+ Reasonable Price
Cons
- Barely 'modular'
- Cables not fully braided
+ Good packaging
+ Quiet
+ Good performance
+ 5 Year Warranty
+ Reasonable Price
Cons
- Barely 'modular'
- Cables not fully braided
Click here for an explanation of our awards at Vortez.net. Thanks to Corsair for providing today’s review sample.
