Seasonic Focus GX-850 V4 ATX v3.1 PSU Review

Epilogue

The new Seasonic Focus V4 line uses an interesting PCB design, allowing for lots of room between components, so airflow can be high without pushing the fan speed. Nevertheless, the PSU’s average noise output is not as low as I expected, and I suspect that the lack of proper heatsinks on vital parts plays a role here. Moreover, don’t forget the extended warranty for this product. An extended warranty means that the manufacturer has to play it “safe” with the fan speed profile, or else the elevated operating temperatures can bring trouble in the long run. This is why I no longer care for the provided warranty, as long as it exceeds 2-3 years. You buy a new car and get 2-5 years of warranty and a restricted number of miles or kilometers, while you buy a new PSU and get 10, 12, or even 15 years of warranty. I believe you see the paradox here! EVGA started this aggressive warranty marketing, offering a ten-year warranty for the first time to some of its PSU offerings. Look where EVGA is now with such decisions.

The average efficiency is satisfactory, but I cannot tell the same for efficiency under light loads. The new PCB design didn’t improve overall performance, with the previous GX-850 unit achieving a bit higher overall performance. The low starting voltage level of the 12V rail affecting its load regulation, the low power factor readings, the sky-high inrush currents, the increased vampire power at 230V, and the high voltage drops at 12V in the ATX v3.1 transient response tests are the main culprits behind the unit’s low overall performance. At least, similar to its 1000W sibling, ripple suppression is good, but it is still not competitive.

Seasonic should go after higher performance with this new PCB design and lower the unit’s overall noise, which is pretty high for this category’s standards. Unfortunately, not many brands focus on reducing the noise of their products because this is among the most challenging and expensive problems to deal with. Still, the number of users wanting silent IT products grows larger, and at some point, all brands should embrace their needs. There is already the Cybenetics LAMBDA noise standard, which can help them improve their designs and offer lower noise output.

The Seasonic GX-850 V4 is expensive at $140, but the NZXT C850 costs way less, at $120 at the time of the review, and offers notably better performance in most sections. On the other hand, the Corsair RM850x (ATX v3.1) is 10 dollars more expensive, but it also provides about 5% higher overall performance. The best-performing unit in this category is the Super Flower Leadex VII XG, which has a 7% performance gap with the GX-850 V4.

Before investing in a new power supply, read my Best ATX v3.x PSUs article to check all alternative PSU offerings. 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.