Corsair recently updated its Gaming Series line of non-modular power supplies. The GS line, which used to consist of four units rated at 500, 600, 700, and 800 watts, now includes three units—the GS600, GS700,
and GS800. All are 80 PLUS Bronze certified, so they’re up to 85% efficient, and each comes with some nice cosmetic touches that gamers looking to spruce up the inside of their cases will appreciate.
We took a look at the top of the GS line, the GS800. This PSU has a single 12V rail, is rated for operation up to 40 degrees Celsius, and comes with all the standard safety features you’d expect (overvoltage protection, undervoltage protection, short-circuit protection, and so on). In addition, it has a nice fanless mode that kicks in during low-load usage to keep things as quiet as possible. Its 140mm double ball bearing fan is fairly quiet even when running, so one way or the other the GS800 will help you keep your system’s ambient noise levels low.
The GS800 handled our tests with aplomb, posting a power factor of .98 at 647 watts, which means that it does a great job of efficiently converting the incoming alternating current to the direct current your rig’s components need. Its fixed cable bundle includes everything you’ll need for most PC configs, including four PCI-E connectors (6+2-pin), so you’re covered if you have or plan on getting an SLI or CrossFire setup. (We tested the GS800 with a pair of GeForce GTX 580s).
Corsair retained the original GS800’s tri-color LED illumination; as before, a button on the rear panel next to the power switch lets you cycle through the power supply’s red, white, and blue lighting settings, or turn them off as you see fit. In addition, though, the new model comes with a blue plastic accent ring that runs around the top panel and own into the front and rear ends of the unit. Corsair tells us that plans are in the works to offer a color accessory pack that will include interchangeable red and white color accent rings (and possibly other colors, as well) along with matching side decals, but at press time no pricing information or dates were available.
Given its power, efficiency, and adaptability to multiple color schemes, Corsair’s Gaming Series GS800 is a considerable bargain at its asking price of $129.99.
Gaming Series GS800
$129.99
Corsair
www.corsair.com
Test system specs
CPU: Intel Core i7-3770K; Motherboard: GIGABYTE GA-Z77X-UD5H WiFi; RAM: 16GB G.Skill Ripjaws DDR3-1600; GPU: GeForce GTX 580 (2x, SLI); Storage: 128GB Crucial RealSSD C300.
