Photo Shoot 1

Photo Shoot 1

The BeQuiet StraightPower 700w. A very smart looking PSU. Quad 12v rails, Active PFC, quiet 120mm fan.

This PSU is very shiny with it's glossy finish and as such will show up finger prints very well. This isn't really a problem as a finger print obviously isn't going to affect performance and once it's installed in your case you won't see it anyway. For the more adventerous users amongst you, if you remove the cover and thus break the seal you will lose the right to your three year warranty.

Round the back of the unit we can see the venting grills along with the AC input & power switch. Europe, unlike North America, requires power supplies to feature some form of PFC (be it active or passive). Power Factor Correction simply ensures better energy efficiency from a power consumption point of view. This PSU features active PFC which uses a circuit to correct power factor. It also diminishes total harmonics and is capable of the full range of input voltage. The latter meaning you can use this PSU anywhere in the world, no matter what voltage the mains electricity is. It will auto-detect the input voltage and adjust accordingly.

With a brand name like BeQuiet you've got to expect a quiet fan and that's exactly what you get as the 120mm fan is rated at a very nice 20 dB(A). The fan will adjust it's RPM based on temperature but throughout testing always remained very quiet indeed.

The all important label on the side of the unit. The thing you are always told to check in our forums when you ask if your power supply will handle your new video card. Label says: 3.3V: 35A, 5V: 30A, 12V: 56A (12V1: 18A, 12V2: 18A, 12V3: 18A, 12V4: 18A).