In search of a fanless PSU

Hi there,

I'm currently without a PSU for my audioserver. I'm searching for a fanless power supply unit. Wattage is not the major problem (the system is very frugal when it comes to power consumption - I doubt it's more than 150W under heavy load).

Criteria for the PSU:
- fanless (I repeat: no fans, no semi-passive, no ultra-quiet ones with fan)
- Wattage somewhere around 300W

What I don't need:
- SATA connectors (the system doesn't have SATA drives)
- high ATX version (like 2.01) - the board to be powered is a Abit KT7-RAID

I had a Sharkoon MuTech (300W) that is in process of dying. The problem was always there, but has increased in the past time. Now it suffices to knock softly against the PSU -> the system freezes. Instability doesn't have anything to do with system load. Even under 100% load (burnK7) the system sometimes works for hours. Then it suddenly freezes; knocking always produces this result. I tried a cheap noname 250V PSU -> system rockstable under 100% load for entire 4 days (I shut it down after that). (note: the stability issue with the Sharkoon seems to be a general problem, that is reported by many people - some can't even get their system through POST)

Last words: No discussion about fan-powered PSUs, this thread is only about fanless PSUs.

Thanks,
liquid

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I used newegg's less than simple search to get the answer you're looking for. Out of the three I'd only recommend Antec's Phantom PSU. Yes, I know it's basically outside of what you're looking for but it is fanless. And I know it works =).

I'll take a longer look around later (after work) though I'm fairly confident that will be your best choice when it comes to a stable power supply.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

I think the Antec was tested by THG and it failed the stress test. It simply shut down. The Fortron one was already recommended to me (I'm still reading tests and reviews). But I have to check if I can get it from an online-shop in Germany. I don't want to make an international order just for the PSU.

And thanks for your help!

Note:
I also think it's better to have a PSU with lower wattage than 500W. Reason is that AC-DC conversion efficiency increases when the load on the PSU is increased. So it's better to have a 300W PSU at 50% load than a 600W PSU at 25%. The 600W PSU will generate more heat because below the 50% load level conversion effieciency is in general worse.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

See how much wattage your system actually draws. If it is indeed under 150w, just get a 150w or 180w PicoPSU. If it's above 150 or 180 watts, there are other DC PSUs that go up to 200w, but it's a little harder to find 200w AC adapters without fans. If your system draws over 200 watts, get the Silverstone ST30NF (300w).

I don't mean to go off topic, but why are you so opposed to having a fan in the PSU? I'm not trying to change your mind, I'm just curious. Also, what is the configuration of fans in your system?

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

Originally Posted by Radical

See how much wattage your system actually draws. If it is indeed under 150w, just get a 150w or 180w PicoPSU.

Good idea, I'm going to check this.

Originally Posted by Radical

If it's above 150 or 180 watts, there are other DC PSUs that go up to 200w, but it's a little harder to find 200w AC adapters without fans. If your system draws over 200 watts, get the Silverstone ST30NF (300w).

The Silverstone was also reviewed by THG -> same result, it shut down on heavy load.

Originally Posted by Radical

I don't mean to go off topic, but why are you so opposed to having a fan in the PSU? I'm not trying to change your mind, I'm just curious. Also, what is the configuration of fans in your system?

I have only one fan, a case fan, 120mm size to cool the entire system. CPU heatsink is a Sonic Tower.
The system is working as a HTPC, doing only music playback (it need it because of Ogg Vorbis, Musepack, FLAC support). I'm very sensitive to fan noise and noise in general. The system was build with absolut silence in mind. That did mean only one fan or no fan at all. No fan doesn't work (I already check this) because auto-convection is not doing enough heat transfer out of the case. The system works for hours but does heat up more and more (very very slowly, but it does) and ends up locking up when the CPU reaches an external temperature of 60 degree celsius (+20 degree and we get 80 degree core temp, the max temp the core was designed for). Installation of a 120mm fan running on 7V eliminated this problem. System cool and rockstable for days.

The PSU will not be installed inside the case (I don't want another heat source inside the case). Autoconvection did work for the Sharkoon, it was barely above room temperature.

Thanks,
liquid

I was speaking idiomatically.

If that's all you use your system for, have you looked into mini ITX? The boards are fairly cheap, and most of them are designed to run fanless.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

I already have this system, I won't buy a new mainboard, new CPU, new RAM to get the features I already have. This is out of discussion.

FELIPE NO