Introduction
The inexorable rise in the parallel processing power of modern GPUs has
led to increasing power-draw that's not wholly mitigated by consistent
moves to smaller manufacturing processes. For example, the twin-GPU
GeForce 9800 GX2 and Radeon HD 3870 X2 cards consume around 200W when
running at full chat. Granted, they're high-end SKUs that appeal to a
limited market, but users can now install two and run four-GPU
multi-rendering.
NVIDIA and ATI's multi-card rendering also extends to three- and
four-way, bringing efficient, stable power-delivery very much to the
fore. Add to this the 125-130W TDP for the majority of quad-core
processors and soon, real soon, you're looking down the vents of an
800W+ PSU.
Let's be abundantly clear here. The majority of current midrange
systems, equipped with a single graphics card, make do with a
high-quality 500W PSU, but the requirement rises rather rapidly when
running esoteric multi-GPU subsystems, and that's why both NVIDIA and
ATI both have internal programs that certify various power supplies for
differing SLI and CrossFireX setups.
So you might not need a 1,000W PSU, or, for that matter, a 750W model,
yet having a higher capacity means that the supply isn't tasked
at working near its potential, day in, day out.
Savvy users and responsible S.I.s have cottoned-on to the fact that
quality begins at the source, and that's why we're seeing a greater
number of retail models crop up every month.
One man's 1,000W isn't necessarily the same as another's, so, today, we
put Corsair's flagship HX1000W up against the latest and greatest 1kW
wonder from AKASA. Read on to find out if you need something imbued
with this much capacity...
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