Conclusion
The Cougar BXM 700 is the first power supply we have seen here at TheFPSReview from Cougar. However, Cougar has been marketing power supplies for a while and their parent company is one of the older OEMs in the business. So, there is certainly a long history there. Now, the key today is, will that long history produce a good mainstream power supply in the form of the BXM 700? Let’s see.
Build Quality
Today’s Cougar BXM 700 starts things off with a build quality that is very good for its market position. The exterior gives us a very attractive package that sports great branding and excellent finish. The unit is semi-modular, which is not quite as nice in some people’s minds as fully modular, and the cables are all well sleeved in standard wire loom or are the flat FlexForce style. The integration is generally clean on the interior, though the soldering at times could be better. The component selection features Teapo standard and solid electrolytics paired with a FDB fan (which will be of interest to our quiet cooling enthusiasts out there). The documentation with this unit is not good at all and the unit only has a 3-year warranty. So, there is that.
Load Testing
Today’s Cougar BXM 700 started off testing in decent shape. We saw voltage regulation of up to 0.16v on the 12v rail, 0.11v on the 5v rail, and 0.04v on the 3.3v rail. In addition to that, we saw efficiency that ranged from 85.01% to 88.58% efficient at 120v AC input and 82.87% to 87.15% at 100v AC input. These numbers are good, but certainly not great. This unit did have in specification voltage regulation, but we see similar numbers from much more handicapped SFX units. On the flip side, the efficiency values were good relative to their advertising (though certainly a bit behind what the best units will do). However, this unit is a more mainstream offering, so these values get a bit of a bump because of the more value nature of this product. Overall then, the BXM 700 did live up to the billing in these aspects of our testing.
When we look at the Transient Load Tests results for the Cougar BXM 700, we see that the results are a bit mixed. When directly loaded, the 12v rail showed a peak change of ~380mV, and the 5v rail had a peak change of ~45mV. During the 12v load, the unloaded 5v rail saw a peak change of ~40mV. In absolute terms, these results are in specification, but the 12v results are not nearly as good as the 5v results. As this is, again, a more mainstream offering and it is “just” 700W unit these Transient Loads are nothing to sneeze at. However, the 12v rail is still seeming a bit weaker than we would hope given what we have seen from SFX units in this capacity range.
DC Output Quality
The DC Output Quality results for the Cougar BXM 700 is, again, a bit mixed. During testing, we saw peak ripple/noise values of just ~85mV of ripple/noise on the 12v rail, ~15mV on the 5v rail, and ~20mV on the 3.3v rail during our regular load tests. These values are well within specification limits and that means, at a minimum, good in absolute terms. In relative terms, these results are probably pushing very good only for the 5v rail. The 12v rail is, certainly, starting to show quite a lot of ripple/noise. However, while that is the case, the 12v rail does stay in the specification at all times so the unit should function fine.
Noise
Today’s Cougar BXM 700 is not a tiny capacity unit, but it is also not a huge capacity unit either. On top of that, this unit also features an FDB fan, which quiet cooling enthusiasts just go ga-ga over. However, one of the more limiting factors today may well be this unit’s efficiency level which is “only” 80 Plus Bronze. So, how did things go? Well, decently well. It was not until the 75%, Torture, and 100% load tests that it was apparent that the unit was adding noise to our load testing environment. Even then, the noise was a low-frequency one, so it was not annoying to my ear. Now, at all other load levels, the fan was very mild. So, this unit seems to be decently well behaved, though I might not recommend it for the most discerning of quiet cooling enthusiast on a budget.
Final Points
The Cougar BXM 700 is a good unit in the mainstream marketplace. The BXM 700 gave us very good build quality, very good voltage regulation, passing DC Output Quality, and decent Transient Load results while also being quiet. Certainly, there is a bit of caveat on the DC Output Quality and Transient Load Tests there but, in the end, the unit was still in the specification. So, what is the unit going to cost us?
Today, we find that, like all units, this guy is hard to come by. Right now, the best in-stock price we can find is $97.90 at Amazon which makes this unit an attractive option. Otherwise, Newegg has the unit listed at $99.99 when it is in stock. With this unit being a mainstream product and giving us mainstream performance levels, there is no way to justify paying a premium for this product. So, with the Cougar BXM 700 remaining under $100 in-stock then it is a good option for a mainstream build. It isn’t something we’d spend over $100 on if it is out of stock at the popular places. It’s not an award-winner today, but it is definitely good enough and passes our tests.