Fractal Design ION+ Platinum 660 and 860W PSU review Introduction
Fractal Design ION+ Platinum 660 and 860W PSU review Introduction
We’re putting the new Fractal Design ION+ Platinum power supply on our test bench today. It’s a fresh series in the offer of this Swedish company, as it was introduced at the end of July this year. As the name suggests, it does have 80 Plus Platinum Certification, which means that it’s 92% efficient at 50% load @ 115 V, and even 94% efficient @ 230 V. This is important because the energy consumed does not go to waste (at least not in a significant amount), and that affects your energy bill. The Fractal ION+ Platinum is an ATX power supply.It’s a fully modular PSU, so even motherboard connectors are not attached permanently to the housing (but you still have to use them, right?). This feature is not really necessary, as an increasing number of cases are now fitted with a power supply shroud (at least ATX-sized ones), but it’s still easier to manage cables this way. The fan has a user-selectable Zero RPM mode, allowing either silent and passive operation in low load situations, or continuous low-speed fan operation for additional cooling. The fan size is 140 mm, and it’s a custom-tailored Fractal Design Dynamic Series product. The fan uses true long-life FBD bearings. The Ion+ Platinum is built with Premium 100% Japanese 105℃ capacitors that provide enhanced reliability and durability.
Features that make this product stand out from the crowd include its size, because it’s only 150 mm long (even the 860 W variant), and Fractal Design’s UltraFlex? DC cabling. An extremely high strand count with specially formulated insulation made it possible to reduce the wires to just 0.08 mm in diameter – half the thickness of competitor products – without losing efficiency or current capacity. The UltraFlex? cable bends and twists effortlessly, eliminating the inherent hassles of traditional rigid power supply wiring to make installation and cable-routing a breeze.
Last but not least, here’s the list of the available variants:
We’ve received the 660 and 860 W versions. The range should cover most user systems with a typical setup.
Fractal’s ION+ Platinum is backed by a 10-year warranty. This is a great offer, event though Seasonic provides as many twelve years of warranty for their Prime series. Still, Fractal is on par with Corsair’s offer here. MSRP ranges from 106.99 to 139.99 EUR. Ok, let’s check out this PSU from Fractal, shall we?\
Energy efficiency certification
Fractal Design markets the Ion+ Platinum series as their (yes, you’ve guessed it right!) 80 Plus Platinum power supplies. Certification is performed by an organization called 80 PLUS. But what does this mean “on paper”? It’s a program that was introduced in 2004 and intended to promote efficient energy use in computer power supply units (PSUs). Only products that offer more than 80% efficiency at 20, 50, and 100% load, and a power factor of 0.9 or more, are eligible. This means that the PSU will waste 20% or less electric energy as heat, reducing power consumption and bills as compared with less efficient designs.
As you can see above, there are 80 Plus, Bronze, Silver, Gold (these three are from 2008), Platinum (2009), and Titanium (2012) certificates. Nowadays most computers with a single GPU don’t need more than a 600-650 W PSU, as power consumption has dropped over the years. The PSUs tested today are the most efficient at 50% load (330/430 W respectively), but the differences above and under this threshold are not significant. You don’t need to keep it exactly at half load, but for better noise performance, longevity, etc., it’s better to stay below the maximum wattage. The reviewed sample is 80 PLUS Platinum certified – up to 90~92% efficiency @ 115 V (at 20~100% loads) and has active PFC with a power factor of up to 0.99. It consumes < 0.3 W in its off-mode, complying with the ERP standard.
The main features are listed below:
Fractal Design UltraFlex? DC wires have game-changing flexibility for effortless cable-routing and connectors that twist and bend to fit your installation — not fight it
Equipped with a custom-tailored Fractal Design Dynamic Series 140 mm fan with exceptionally low minimum speed and true long-life FDB bearing
80 PLUS? Platinum Efficiency for optimized electrical performance and reduced heat generation
User selectable Zero RPM mode allows for either silent, passive operation in low load situations or continuous low speed fan operation for additional cooling
Outstanding output quality with tight voltage regulation and extremely low ripple and noise
Fully modular design for reduced clutter and maximum ease of installation
Premium Japanese 105°C capacitors provide enhanced reliability and durability
Compact 150 mm depth easily fits compact spaces with extra headroom for cable management
Over Power Protection, Over Voltage Protection, Short Circuit Protection, Under Voltage Protection, Over Current Protection and Over Temperature Protection
Extra-long 600 mm 24-pin ATX cable and 700 mm 4+4 pin cable
