Cooler Master GX III 1050W ATX v3.0 PSU Review

Epilogue

The Cooler Master GX III 1050W achieves decent performance, focusing more at 230V, and with a tighter load regulation overall and a bit better ripple suppression at 12V, it would be higher in the overall performance scores. With normal loads, the transient response is good at 12V, but the same level of performance is not achieved at higher loads, as required by the ATX v3.x spec. The PSU still passes all required tests but doesn’t register competitive performance, with its 12V dropping low. On the other hand, this platform’s APFC converter is a reference for the other manufacturers, achieving top performance at 115V and 230V. Usually, manufacturers don’t care for PF performance at 230V, which is a huge mistake, given that this voltage level is used by most countries and people. Simply put, China uses 220V, and India 240V, two of the largest population countries in the world, so all manufacturers should also focus on the PF performance at 230V, which could save a lot of energy.

The good aspects of this platform include a long hold-up time and zero inrush currents. As in the 1250W unit, I tried hard to make it deliver something notable from inrush currents, but I failed in any scenario. In the protection features section, which is among the most important, it is nice to see appropriately set OCP triggering points on the minor rails and conservatively set OCP at 12V and OPP triggering points. My only complaint is that OCP at 12V under hot conditions should be lower than the equivalent under cold conditions.

Overall, the GX III 1050W performs better than the GX III 1250W in its category. I couldn’t find a price tag for it at the time of the review, but given that the 1250W model costs $242, I expect the 1050W unit to be sold at around $200 or lower. This is still too high, given that Thermaltake Toughpower GF A3 1050W, which achieves higher overall performance and much lower overall noise output, goes for $133! Cooler Master should revise its pricing scheme and probably avoid expensive OEMs like Lite-On, focusing on offering higher performance per-price products.

To check all alternative PSU offerings, read my Best ATX v3.x PSUs article before investing in a new power supply. You help me a lot by using my affiliate links, which don’t increase the product’s price. I get a commission from Amazon every time you do it, which can make a difference for me, especially now that I am on my own, working exclusively for my media and not for someone else.