Thermaltake Toughpower GX1 600W 80PLUS Gold Power Supply Overview

Table of Contents

Introduction

Manufacturer: Thermaltake
Product Page: Toughpower GX1 600W
Purchase: £59.99 At the time of review

Following on from our review on their Commander C31, today we will be looking at one of the new editions to the Toughpower Series of Power Supplies. The GX1 Series is a non-modular PSU that features an 80PLUS Gold rating and today we will be taking a look at the 600W model. A good PSU is essential to any PC build whether you are building a brand new PC or using second-hand parts. However, the PSU can often be overlooked as it normally gets hidden out of the way. So while it may not look as important as other components in the build, it most certainly is. Thermaltake have properly stepped up their PSU game in the last couple of years and not only are they trustworthy, but they also have loads of different options available to fit any budget you may need while still being reliable!

Closer Look

Starting off with the box and we can see it features a similar design to a lot of other Thermaltake PSUs. On the front, we can see it has an 80PLUS Gold rating, Ultra Quiet fluid dynamic bearing fan, low ripple noise Japanese main capacitor and a 5-year warning! When it comes to power supplies and most any component, the longer the warranty, they better peace of mind you should have.

Over to the back and we can see the output specifications for this PSU and the connectors it includes. There is also an efficiency chart that shows levels at idle and full load. This information should be exactly what users need to help them decide on whether or not this will be a good PSU for them. Also, as most will do anyways, it never hurts to have a quick look on the internet to get some other opinions and even check a review or two.

Inside the box are the GX1 Power Supply itself, a couple of informative manuals and the power lead.

Getting our first up-close look at the GX1 and even though this is a non-modular PSU, it still looks rather nice. This a solid unit and shouldn’t look out of place in most any build!

On the backside of the PSU are the power button and mains cable connector. You will also notice this PSU is highly ventilated which should help aid in keeping the internal components cool.

Both sides feature the same text on them are if all goes well, should be right side up in your build so you can read it with ease.

The top of the PSU is where you can find all the technical details that are necessary to include on such a product. From the Part/Serial numbers to outputs and inputs, it’s all here! There used to be a time where companies stuck these on the side of the PSU and it would show in your build. Thankfully, we have moved on from that and it can now be hidden in 99% of PC Builds!

The power connectors included are the main 24-pin, ATX(EPS) 4+4 pin and dual PCI-E 6+2 pin. The way Thermaltake have made these connectors they should be able to power most standard builds with ease!

Alongside the all-important power connectors, there are several MOLEX and SATA connectors to help power the rest of your accessories from Hard drives and SSDs to fans and controllers!

Conclusion

Performance and Design

While we still don’t have a proper ATE Load Tester, we do still install all PSUs into a decent build and punish them as much as possible. We can’t measure for things like ripple in the lines but we can make sure the 12V/5.5V/3V reading are all within their given guidelines. In the case of the GX1, all readings were well within their respective areas running the system at both idle and full load. The GX1 also has more than enough connectors for most any standard build and can power dual GPUs and many hard drives and other accessories. While it is a non-modular PSU, Thermaltake has wrapped the cables in black sleeves and heat shrink so that you don’t have to see as much of those horrible red and yellow wires. While you can still see them by the connectors, it shouldn’t be enough to deter from the looks of the overall build.

Value

Coming in at around £60 from the folks over at SCAN, the GX1 offers great value for the money. Having a quick look and this is the average price +/- £5 or so here in the U.K. For the money, you are getting a trustworthy and reliable PSU that comes with one heck of a warranty! If you break it down to £60 for a 5-Year warranty that means you are paying £1/month for an 80PLUS Gold power supply for your PC. That’s also not considering the fact that in most cases, the PSUs life will easily surpass the 5-year mark meaning you are getting it for less than £1/month! We know that’s not quite how it works as you have to come up with the money upfront but when you think of it like that, it’s hard to argue the value for money that it has to offer!