Final Thoughts and Conclusions
Corsair’s two new smart PSUs, the AX860i Digital and AX760i Digital, incorporate an imbedded DSP, which when used with the Corsair Link software allows the end user to monitor and adjust several power supply parameters like performance, noise (fan speed), and Over Current Protection (OCP) settings. And many other Corsair products also support the Link technology (memory modules, case cooling fans and lighting subsystems, GPU Node for monitoring PCI-E current loads, etc.) so you can build a state-of-the-art, high-end gaming system with a built in DACS (Data Acquisition and Control System).
The Corsair AX860i Digital ATX power supply delivers very clean DC outputs, with excellent voltage regulation and efficiency. Under light loads the AX860i runs in silent, fanless mode (up to ~30% load) and continues to be very quiet under normal operating conditions. The AX860i Digital comes with a good assortment of all-modular cables that can support the latest CPUs and multiple, high-end video cards. And let’s not forget Corsair’s 7-year warranty!
The MSRP for the four new Corsair power supplies are as follows:
AX860i $249.99 USD Newegg.com – $229
AX760i $229.99 USD Newegg.com – $209
AX860 $219.99 USD Newegg.com – $199
AX760 $199.99 USD Newegg.com – $179
Strengths:
• Smart PSU incorporates Digital Signal Processor (DSP)
• Corsair Link software allows monitoring and adjusting PSU parameters
• Up to 860W DC output, rated at 50°C
• Excellent efficiency (80Plus Platinum certified)
• Very stable voltages with excellent voltage regulation
• Very clean DC outputs with low AC ripple
• Silent during low power operation (below ~30% output)
• Very good build quality with high quality components
• Built-in self-diagnostic test feature
• Universal AC input with Active PFC
• Single +12V output up to 71.6A (860 watts)
• Six PCI-E connectors for multiple graphic card support
• Backed by a 7-year warranty
Minor Weaknesses:
• Corsair Link USB dongle not supported in Win XP (Vista or Win7 please)
• Self Test feature only works if the DC output cables are disconnected from the PSU
Corsair AX860i Digital ATX Power Supply
I would like to thank our friends at Corsair for sending us the new AX860i Digital PSU to review – thank you!
I wonder if Ron Holt would
I wonder if Ron Holt would have ever imagine such awesomeness.
I wonder that nobody thought
I wonder that nobody thought of PSU monitoring software before this; after all, the least a computer should be able to do is monitor itself, and user control of the power supply is a no-brainer. Kudos to Corsair for taking this bold step, which is kind of a gamble given the price range and state of the world economy. I think the “i” series will be a runaway best seller, despite the high price tag. Same for the “i” series of liquid CPU coolers. Enthusiasts love anything that gives them more info, control, or both, and Corsair has been delivering nicely.
Gigabyte has thought of PSU
Gigabyte has thought of PSU monitoring software years ago, so did nVidia with ESA supportive PSU’s.
The “i” series won’t be the runaway best seller. How many people shell out $250 for a 860W unit like seriously?
Most people are after bang for the buck, which is what this unit definately is not.
WillRock
I have one on the
WillRock
I have one on the way to replace my Silverstone ST65ZF.
Silence and dual/tri SLI 680 will be awesome.
I bought one and it failed to
I bought one and it failed to self test. First time I’ve spent such an amount of a PSU thinking I was getting quality and all I’ve got is something they couldn’t be bothered to QC before leaving the factory. Very disappointed, not buying anything from Corsair ever again.
One thing “i” version is
One thing “i” version is worse at than non “i” version, is having lower quality fan. AX860 non “i” has San Ace fan – generally regarded as higher quality than Yate Loons. One can argue it doesn’t matter with semi passive mode in place, but it still looks out of place to have lower end fan on a supposedly premium unit.
The two murdered troopers,
The two murdered troopers, Power and Cahill, were men from good Irish families.
Not only does a digger realize that it’s very possible
he might discover a lots of gold with little or no
trouble, but, worse still, he knows he might work very, very
hard without getting any gold at all. Juni, als Bombenanschläge in
Kathmandu und anderen Städten Nepals acht Tote und 22 Verletzte forderten.
Does anyone know if you have
Does anyone know if you have to use Corsair Link in order for this PSU to work?
You probably do, and assuming
You probably do, and assuming they insist that you do (Ive never seen the fan spin up on its own) you also need to use this powersupply exclusively on a windows machine, or at least have a windows virtual machine in linux running the software with the USB attached to the virtual machine (most VM apps support this) and yes I did do this until the stupid connector broke, now I just want to figure out the pinouts and voltages (which they don’t release the spec for) to find out if it’s really PMBus like they claim:
if it is, my motherboard has a connector for it granted I will have to make my own because the PSU’s connector is missing a NC (no connection) “null” pin. This corsair link is the most idiotic thing I’ve ever seen and I expected to at least not get jacked for what I paid for my 1200i … nothing more or short of that was acceptable when I made the decision to purchase it, I really shouldn’t have to detail check things that are supposed to be standard.
This is wrong, this PSU works
This is wrong, this PSU works perfectly fine without CorsairLink.
This is a complete ripoff.
This is a complete ripoff. Supposedly its a USB to PMBus (SMbus) interface and they indicate that it’s pmbus, except every motherboard that supports pmbus is 5 pin at least, granted there is an NC pin. This power supply should be connected to mine, especially since the cheap cable broke and I never saw any advantage to this device (which is only supported in windows, so I had to attach it to a windows VM to do anything with it.) The ASMB4 management chip in my server does a decent job of managing the fan speeds and temp thresholds, and supposedly supports a conntected pmbus device, so I think I’ll wait (which I really dont want to wait because I just want to be done with this already) until I can get my volt meter out of storage and see if I can hook this psu up to the pmbus connector on my motherboard. I can’t think of any good reason why this wasn’t done right the first time, especially on a “high end” power supply like this one.
I reckon if despite my best efforts and intentions, I may just pour lighter fluid all over the $5,000 dollar computer and set it on fire like I did the Senn. HD380 pros when I couldn’t salvage the cable myself after 10 tries I could have just paid the 30 dollars, but no and I don’t think I’ll let this one go either.
mass produced crap is never worth what you pay for it: http://www.formfactors.org/developer%5Cspecs%5CATX_ATX12V_PS_1_1.pdf
It seems that Corsair has
It seems that Corsair has destroyed the value of the Link system by refusing to release the protocol used on it, so no one can do anything on Linux, or do anything on Windows for that matter other than through the GUI. Of course competitors will be motivated to reverse engineer the protocol, so the only one that Corsair is “protecting” itself from, are the army of eager software engineers that would write free software, boosting Corsair’s sales. Good thinking Corsair!