Meet the ATX 3.0 compatible power supply
Today, we’re putting the new Seasonic Prime Titanium – a 1600W power supply on our test bench. It’s not the first ATX 3.0 compatible unit we looked at from that company because we checked the Vertex GX-1000 last year. We also had a chance to review the non-ATX 3.0 edition with 1300 W. The PSUs are not the only products from Seasonic (because we checked the chassis -> Q704 and Q503), but they’re the most important in the offer. TX-1600 has ATX 3.0 and PCIe Gen 5.0 compatibility. What does it mean in practice? Mainly, it’s the implementation of the PCI-Express 5.0 generation’s power connector. These new power supplies carry the latest 12VHPWR power connector designed to deliver up to 600W of raw, unhindered power to the graphics card. Compared to ATX 2.X, which supports high load peaks but does not define a maximum above the nominal power of the power supply, ATX 3.0 represents clear target values - specifically, the PCIe connection for the graphics card must allow load changes of up to three times the power consumption.
This time, it’s a 1600 Watt model (in black) with an 80 PLUS® Titanium certificate, which means that it’s 94% efficient at 50% load @ 115 V and 96% efficient @ 230 V. It is crucial because less consumed energy goes to waste (at least not in a significant amount), and that should affect your energy bill. It is essential in these wicked times, where energy prices skyrocketed recently. Speaking of the fan – it’s 135 mm with PWM control that allows lower noise and keeps thermals in check. It’s possible to turn off the fanless mode.
SEASONIC PRIME TITANIUM TX-1600 is a fully modular PSU; even though the motherboard connectors are not permanently attached to the housing, you still have to use most of them. Nearly all cases now have a power supply shroud (at least ATX-sized ones do), so the unit and the cables will be hidden in most scenarios. There are no color variants; the only one available is black, but that’s typical for this kind of product. We can agree that there’s nothing left to be desired in the wattage department. The 1300 Watts available in the reviewed unit should be enough for most users; even an i9 13900K combined with the Geforce RTX 4090 shouldn’t be a problem. The SEASONIC PRIME TITANIUM TX-1600 is built with 100% Japanese capacitors and other premium components to achieve 80 Plus Titanium Certification; thus, that provides enhanced reliability and durability. Okay, let’s check out this PSU from Seasonic, shall we? The unit is not compact, measuring 210 mm x 150 mm x 86 mm. The retail price is about 530 USD. A 12-year warranty backs SEASONIC PRIME TITANIUM TX-1600.
