Build Quality
As we already know the SilverStone SX1000 a single 120mm fan design that is a bit unusual. Typically, in SFX and even some SFX-L units, we see other brands using an 80mm or 92mm cooling solution. The major downside to those fan designs is that to move a sufficient volume of air to cool a high output power supply it must spin very fast resulting in elevated noise levels.
Today though, every inch of this unit’s housing space is being used to get a 120mm fan included which was the original size included in ATX12v/EPS units when they moved away from rear-mounted 80mm fans in order to quiet them down. So, this should be a good match for this unit today. That said, the key criteria in our evaluation are whether or not the cooling solution is sufficient, not necessary its sound level or form factor, and our comments on such later are not absolute decibel values.
External Build Quality
The exterior of the SilverStone SX1000 is almost identical in design (not size) to the SX750 we most recently saw. Cosmetically, the side of this unit features that new SilverStone, and unit-specific, branding. The modular interface is well labeled but lacks the pair of blue housing side connectors for the PCIe cables we have seen on other models. Rounding things out, the unit has a durable black finish and an overhead 120mm fan.
The SilverStone SX1000 comes in at a total length of ~5 inches while the cables come in at a length of ~12″ to 16″ to the first or only connector. Additionally, the cables are all FlexForce style cables which is excellent and this unit is fully modular.
Internal Build Quality
Once we open the top of the SilverStone SX1000, we see a rather cramped unit that generally looks like other SFX units we have seen from SilverStone from a high-level perspective even though it is a new model and form factor. However, that is to be expected from high-powered SFX and SFX-L units as there are only so many ways to arrange things in such a small space.
The topology features a full bridge resonant LLC primary with a synchronous rectification secondary and DC-DC VRM’s for the minor rails. The fan cooling this unit today is a double ball bearing Globe Fan fan rated at 0.45A at 12v and it is paired with three large(ish) heatsinks and one very small heatsink. Lastly, the soldering is generally neat.
The SX1000 input filtering begins upon the housing itself where we find some Y capacitors. The balance of the input filtering is found on the back edge of the main PCB. There is then a bridge rectifier next in line attached to a large heatsink on one side and what looks like a small plate on the other obscuring its markings. The APFC power components are next attached to a heatsink and they are followed by the APFC coil (on its side). Behind these, we find the main switchers attached to another substantial heatsink. Speaking of this heatsink, the main input capacitors are right next to it and they are provided by Rubycon with a rating of 400v 470uF 85C.
The secondary side of this unit looks crowded once more, but what do you expect from a 1000W SFX-L unit? In the middle of this area, we find the main transformers (yes plural). This is a bit interesting as we have not seen a lot of dual transformer designs in the last few years as components have scaled. However, back in the early days of 1000W+ units, this design philosophy was more common. The reason for this here is probably due to height restrictions in the SFX-L form factor and the use of two smaller transformers actually makes this much power in this small package possible because of the way they can be oriented.
Moving on, the MOSFETs on the back of the main PCB use the case as a heatsink rather than having their own dedicated ones here on the main PCB. Next to this, we find the DC-DC VRMs housed on their own PCB (populated by Unicon solid capacitors) up against the modular PCB and edge of the main PCB. In front of these PCBs, we find a few electrolytics provided by Rubycon. The modular PCB construction looks very nice and there are Unicon solid capacitors found here as well.
Build Quality Summary
Today’s SilverStone SX1000 is the first SFX-L power supply we have seen from SilverStone and it seems to follow the general formula of the SFX units we have seen before; only bigger. The build quality looks very nice/excellent but this unit is, obviously, very small so it is a bit cramped. The exterior is almost identical to what we got with the SX750 as SilverStone has taken a shot at putting some branding in place today along with the FlexForce style cables.
The integration seems to be very well done and the component selection is excellent as we see Rubycon standard capacitors as well as Unicon solid capacitors. We also see a dual ball-bearing Globe Fan fan used in this unit. All in all, the SilverStone SX1000, like the previous smaller SFX units from SilverStone. While it is not the most visually striking unit we have seen it does seem to be well built where it matters. Let’s move on now to the load tests and see how this unit performs!