BFG 800W Power Supply Review

Performance Tests

System Used

Processor: Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 @ 3.5Ghz (B3)
Memory: 4GB Corsair Dominator DDR3 @ 1600Mhz (Thanks to Corsair)
Motherboard: Asus Blitz Extreme
Graphics Cards: 2X Gigabyte HD2900XT 512MB
Disk Drive: Pioneer DVD Writer
Hard Drive: Seagate Barracuda 320GB SATAII
Fans: 5X Yate Loon 120mm @ 1200RPM
Monitor: LG Flatron L2000CN-BF (1600X1200)

For our complete power supply testing methodology, please go here: Hardware Canucks Power Supply Testing Methodology


Efficiency Testing



To tell you the truth I was quite surprised by the efficiency displayed by the BFG 800W. While it was not quite up to the standards set by the Antec Truepower Quattro, it did manager to beat out the much more expensive DA850. What I was most pleased by was the small amount of electricity it pulled from the mains when the computer was shut off. If you are someone who shuts of their computer for long periods of time, you should seriously consider this power supply.


Voltage Regulation

+5V Voltage Regulation



The +5V regulation present me with a bit of surprise. As the overall load increased, the +5V rail actually increased its voltage but it never went above the ATX specified maximum. This may be due to the fact that this power supply is group regulated.


+3.3V Voltage Regulation



The +3.3V regulation was very good but that is to be expected considering a modern computer system does not draw much from this rail.


+12V Regulation



In this test the BFG 800W did quite well though the drops it displayed were more than the other two units. On the other hand it stayed well within the limits and considering this unit is not approved for dual R600 operation, I think it did quite well.


+12V Ripple



Throughout the tests, the ripple exhibited by the BFG 800W power supply climbed quite a bit though it never hit anywhere near the 120mV max. Overall, I think this result is quite good even though it cannot compete with power supplies that are priced quite a bit higher (DA850 and TPQ 850). For a Topower-built unit, this is actually one of the better results I have seen.