Cooler Master V Platinum V2 1600 PSU Review

This review has been somewhat of a long drawn out ordeal. When I got the Cooler Master V Platinum V2 1600 sample months ago, I was told by Cooler Master to shelve it as the early sample I had was potentially faulty. The second sample took some additional weeks to arrive, and then some of my test equipment was throwing up weird results so I had to wait on replacement parts to verify.

When I checked online to get pricing for the V2 1600 late May, the Cooler Master store was showing it available for £247.00 – however check out could not be completed. After liaising with Cooler Master it appears this was a store issue and they were unable to ship to the United Kingdom. Clearly the CM system was applying a simple dollar to pound conversion based on exchange rates at the time.

Fast forward another week or two and Cooler Master confirmed UK pricing at £319.99 inc vat – £70 more than the store was initially showing to potential customers. Checking the CM store now (13th June 2024) with a UK IP via Google, it only shows a dollar value of $319.99 HERE. Cooler Master called me this morning to confirm UK availability will be forthcoming. Perhaps that page will update with options to ship inside the UK as well.

The physical dimensions of this power supply will appeal to a wide audience – at 160mm x 150 mm x 86 mm it is significantly smaller than the 210mm length of the Seasonic Prime TX-1600, for instance. This means the power supply will offer greater compatibility with smaller chassis designs.

Technically this unit is very capable and exhibits no major weaknesses. I found the fan didn't activate at lower loads, and in my environment it only became audible once load hit 700 Watts. In the last 10-20% of load, the fan would ramp up significantly to help ensure as much airflow as possible. This is a diminutive, densely populated power supply, so airflow is critical to maintain good PCB temperatures.

Load regulation is pretty strong across all rails, and ripple suppression falls well within industry rated parameters. Minor +3.3V and +5V rails peak at 15mV with the +12V rail hitting around 30mV at full load. It is not a class leading power supply by today's high end standards, but it did everything we threw at it without any complaints.

Overall this is a solid purchase, it is a fully modular power supply with high levels of efficiency, it is able to deliver the full 1600 Watts sustained without issues. Noise levels are well under control and the fan is able to push a lot of warm air away from the components inside. Obviously the high levels of efficiency being 80 Plus Platinum certified, help maintain good temperatures as well.

Pricing at the original CM store listing of £247.00 was extremely competitive – however at the updated, confirmed price of £319.99 it is slightly less appealing. By comparison, the Seasonic Prime TX-1600 Platinum is more expensive at £359.99 (HERE). While technically superior the Seasonic unit is also larger (210mm length versus the 160mm of this one), however unless you need a smaller form factor unit, this may not be that important to you.

Cooler Master are supporting this power supply with an comprehensive 12 year warranty which gives long-term peace of mind to a prospective customer.

Pros:

• Physically compact.
• High grade cabling.
• Fully modular.
• Low noise.
• Looks great.
• 105C-rated Japanese capacitors.
• Competitively priced.
• Good load regulation.
• Ripple suppression.

Cons:

• Does not appear to be currently available in the United Kingdom (13th June 2024).

KitGuru says: The Cooler Master V Platinum V2 1600 is a great power supply, and at the current price point offers decent value for money too.

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