A Closer Look (Cont’d)
Here are a few pictures showing the layout and components inside the S12 II 500W power supply. The overall layout and build quality appears to be very good, which is just what we would expect from Seasonic.
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Seasonic has an excellent reputation in the industry for producing high quality power supplies and the S12 II is no exception. One of the unique features of the new S12 II is the use a conductive polymer aluminum solid capacitor in the +12V output stage instead of a traditional electrolytic capacitor. From the literature you might assume Seasonic used all solid caps in the S12 II series but it appears there is just one (all the others are standard electrolytic capacitors).
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The conductive polymer aluminum solid capacitor (solid cap) is the small silver can in the picture above. Gigabyte was one of the first manufacturers to use solid caps on their motherboards. Solid capacitors provide lower impedance at higher frequencies, are more stable, and have a much longer life span than electrolytic capacitors (especially at higher temperatures). At 65°C, the average lifespan for a solid capacitor is more than six times greater than electrolytic capacitors.
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The primary side of the S12 II features a single, high-quality Rubycon electrolytic capacitor rated for 85°C. Except for the single solid cap, the secondary side uses all Nippon Chemicon caps rated for 105°C.
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If liquid capacitors are well
If liquid capacitors are well made, then there is nothing to worry about; wikipedia says that seasonic uses the best electrolitic capacitors for their power supplies.