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BeQuiet! will be launching their new range of Dark Power Pro P10 power supplies in the middle of next month and the 550W model we reviewed today is a very capable design with no inherent weaknesses.
The BeQuiet Dark Power Pro P10 550W delivers stable load regulation and dealt well with our cross load stress test, maintaining stable delivery across all the output rails. Our testing also highlighted excellent efficiency results, peaking around 92 percent at 50 percent load.
The SilentWings 2 fans are a fantastic no compromise design, and we had a hard time measuring any noise from the dBa meter, even when the supply was placed under full load. We documented under 700 rpm from the SilentWings 2 fan even when the power supply was stressed to deliver a 550 watt load for 15 minutes.
Noise suppression is good, although not the best we have seen in recent months. We measured 45mW at full load from the +12V output which is well within the rated tolerance levels. +3.3V and +5V peaked around 20mV at full load.
The main selling point for us is the company focus on maintaining the lowest possible noise levels, at all times. Even with my ear close to the chassis, it was basically impossible to tell that the fan was running.
BeQuiet!'s proprietary fan design has always attracted a specialist audience who don't want to deal with irritating noise emissions. This means the power supply is suitable for HTPC fanatics and an audience building a new high specification 24/7 server for the home, or office environment.
Just before finishing the review, we slotted this power supply into a Z77 gaming system with overclocked 3770k and two HD7770 graphics cards in Crossfire. It was perfectly stable and silent throughout a gaming session over the course of an afternoon.
The BeQuiet Dark Power Pro P10 550W supply is not yet released, but you should be able to pick it up Mid June 2012 for around £100. Aria have it on pre-order now for £99.95. It is certainly not a low cost power supply, but it is a quality design from top to bottom.
Pros:
- almost silent.
- good efficiency.
- looks great.
- chassis has rubber mounts to stop vibration.
- modular design.
- solid power delivery.
Cons:
- At £100 there are more powerful supplies available.
Kitguru says: Another quality design from BeQuiet! Ideal for a high end media center or server system.
Their products always look great. This is a little costly for a 550W however, id be aiming to get 750W at this price, even without all those lovely extras.
Ideal for a media center, but again, its rather expensive for a 550W, even if its gold.
Heck of a bundle, but I dont think id buy a 550W anymore, id be aiming a few hundred watts more, just for some futureproofing.
Its a common mistake that people think every PC needs 800W+ a 550W can handle two graphics cards (not the high end power suckers obviously) and a decent system.
Excellent, love their fans too, have a few in my case which i swapped out to reduce noise.
THeir finishing is excellent, i love the grills and the attention to detail.
I have their 750W p9 in my server and its a fantastically quiet PSU. I had to dust it out, its been on now for 12 months 24/7