XFX 1000W Pro Series 80 Plus Platinum

Conclusion

It's no surprise that XFX does well in our tests, as they build off of the core Seasonic design and the only major differences come in the realm of aesthetics. With a very high efficiency and low ripple during all loads, XFX delivers a high-end power supply without any noteworthy flaws. The unique case design may require some getting used to for some customers, but the thick-walled sides prevent electromagnetic interference and some customers will certainly like the bit of flare it adds in a windowed box. Our one minor complaint is with the plastic elements on the modular conncetors; the original from Seasonic is slightly better in this area.

XFX offers many connectors and the cable length is good. Beyond that the electronics consist of a well known Seasonic design. The XFX Pro Series might not be the best solution for bargain hunters, but without doubt it is suitable for any enthusiasts who wants to get the best quality money can buy. The internal design consists of a powerful variation on the efficient resonant converter that allows zero voltage switching. The manufacturer implements a silicon carbide diode without any (or negligible) reverse recovery charge. The PSU is very well equipped with a high-quality mains filter and further components for EMI filtering . As expected XFX uses expensive Japanese capacitors from Nippon Chemi-Con and the PCB consists of epoxy resin and fiberglass. Again Infineon MOSFETs are one reason why this PSU is so efficient, and the regulation circuit also received some improvements.

XFX didn't use many long cables to connect 12V with the modular PCB, even if their advertising slogans overdo things a little. There are still a few cables for the upper plug row. We also mentioned the low power output on the +3.3V and +5V rails, but this is not necessarily a disadvantage. As always, the required power depends on the system.

The voltage drops under high load are absolutely acceptable. These are a reflection of the sizing of all the components. This design is able to deliver much more than 1000W in a peak situation. +5V was at -1.84% during overload, and +3.3V demonstrated even better results. In addition there is hardly any voltage drop on +12V. A low output ripple and noise is very welcome as well. +12V was at about 25mV while +5V and +3.3V stay below 20mV.

Overall efficiency is slightly lower than the results we have saw from the smaller 860W Seasonic PSU. The 1KW design is able to barely surpass the 860W design at 5% load (though that's comparing 50W to 43W), but it's only a 0.18% difference. In all other cases the 860W PSU is a bit more efficient, especially at 10% load where it reaches 86.5% efficiency compared to 84.3%, but in general the differences are minor and within the margin of error. More importantly, both products perform very well, and unlike the Seasonic 860W we didn't hear any noise from the electronics this time.

A minor complaint is that the package contents aren't as extensive as some of the competition. We'd like to see a seperate bag for the modular cables as well as some cable ties. That's one reason to buy Seasonic if you care for such amenities. XFX offers exactly the same cables as Seasonic, and with six 6/8-pin GPU plugs and elven SATA connectors this PSU is very well equipped (though the Enermax Platimax 1000W does have one more SATA plug if such things matter to you). It's also nice to see the FDD connectors realized as an adapter, and like the Seasonic the option to have the fan run passively at <40% load is a nice feature if you don't need the airflow a PSU can provide. Overall the list of features is very good.

The direct 80 Plus Platinum alternatives come from Seasonic, SuperFlower and Enermax. If you prefer to shop at Newegg, the Platinum 1000W from Seasonic is more expensive than the version from XFX. For the difference ($17 USD) customers get a better fan, 7 years warranty and a few extras such as cable ties and a bag for the unused cables. The main decision will really be which case you find more appealing. The Kingwin LZP-1000 is the cheapest 1000W platinum solution (out of stock at Newegg as of this writing), but they have fewer Molex connectors and EMI filtering is slightly worse. The Enermax Platimax EPM1000EWT is by far the most expensive option and offers OCP—that's not to be taken for granted. Shopping elsewhere we can find the Seasonic 1000W, XFX 1000W, Kingwin 1000W all going for the same $230 while Enermax still tips the scales at $280. All in all XFX is able to provide a very good product that is nearly as good as the original from Seasonic. For the same price we'd still go for the Seasonic (for the better fan), but personal taste in design as well as pricing will likely be the deciding factor.