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Xilence XQ LinearPower 850W
| Manufacturer: | ||
| Price: | £150 inc VAT | |
| Reviewer: | James Gorbold | |
| Review Date: | Oct 2007 | |
| Stability | 55/55 | 100% |
| Features | 20/25 | 80% |
| Value | 13/20 | 65% |
| Overall | 88% | |
Verdict: A better match for an iPod than a quiet PC.
Despite the IT industry being driven by a plethora of incredibly clever engineers capable of making small and complex devices, it also has a large share of illiterate people, such as those who came up with the name Xilence.
This is the first Xilence PSU we've tested, but it's made by Key Mouse Electronic Enterprise, a large Taiwanese manufacturer. Encased in a medium-sized white case, the LinearPower is distinctive, and will fit in any ATX case. This model is rated at 850W, although 1kW and 1.2kW models will soon be available.
In addition to the usual 3.3V, 5V, -12V and 5VSB rails, the Xilence has six 12V rails. Four of these are rated at 18A, while two, 12V3 and 12V4, are each rated at 28A. These two rails are much more powerful than the others because they supply power to the two hard-wired 6+2-pin PCI-E cables for your graphics card(s). The configuration of the other 12V rails is fairly straightforward, with 12V1 powering the motherboard and half of the CPU, 12V2 the other half of the CPU, 12V5 the first modular 6+2-pin PCI-E socket and three of the disk drive modular sockets, while 12V6 powers the second modular 6+2-pin PCI-E socket and the three remaining disk drive modular sockets. Each of the six disk drive modular sockets can support up to four Molex or S-ATA drives, so the LinearPower could potentially power a massive number of drives.
The inner workings of the LinearPower are kept cool by a 135mm intake fan. The LinearPower proved to be 100 per cent stable, even with all ten rails at full pelt. It's also very efficient, although it isn't 90 per cent efficient as Xilence claims. It averaged between 84 and 85 per cent at full load in our tests but was loud throughout testing.
Conclusion
The LinearPower is pricey compared with the £110 modular Antec Quattro 850 but it's stable and efficient (although no more so than the Antec). It's noisier too, with the fan audible at even low load levels. Xilence hasn't kept up with the strong competition at this wattage.
