A Detailed Look
The Riotoro Enigma 850W power supply enclosure is painted matte black and measures 160mm (6.3”) long. The back panel includes an AC receptacle and main power On-Off switch.
The power supply uses a 140mm, seven blade fan on the bottom for cooling. The Hong Hua fan (HA1425L12F-Z) is rated for 0.22A and 1800 rpm at 12 VDC and uses standard sleeve bearings for quiet operation as far as I can tell. Riotoro refers to the fan as having a “Hydro” bearing but it’s not clear what they mean by that.
The front panel on the Enigma 850W PSU incorporates six modular cable connectors nicely keyed and labelled to prevent inadvertently plugging a cable into the wrong connector.
All of the modular cables are flat ribbon-style cables. As we mentioned earlier, we like the semi-modular configuration but at this power level we would expect to see support for a second 4+4 pin EPS cable/connector and another pair of PCI-E connectors, preferably on dedicated cables.
Under the Hood
Here are a few pictures showing the layout and components inside the Riotoro Enigma 850W power supply. Riotoro is using Great Wall as their partner and OEM for their new power supplies.
The Enigma PSU uses DC-to-DC converters to generate the +3.3V and +5V outputs from the single +12V supply. The layout of components is clean while the soldering appears to be very good. The two primary electrolytic capacitors are Japanese made (Rubycon rated for 390uF, 400V and 85°C) but we were disappointed to see Riotoro opted to use 85°C rated caps instead of 105°C. However, many of the caps on the secondary side are rated for 105°C (mostly Teapo, made in Taiwan) with a mix of electrolytic and solid polymer capacitors.
Is there any PSU with fan(s)
Is there any PSU with fan(s) capable of evicting the heat equivalent of its nominal power?
Yes, most any enthusiast
Yes, most any enthusiast grade PSU uses a fan capable of exhausting the waste heat generated at 100% load. You might also want to consider how much noise is generated at that level and the quality of the fan. A cheap fan that fails early will most likely take the PSU with it.
Literal rip-off of the
Literal rip-off of the legendary AX 850 of Corsair’s (OEMed from SeaSonic), except this one’s worse because it’s not fully modular and probably has sub-par chokes.
As the reviewer pointed out,
As the reviewer pointed out, the Enigma 850W is made by the same OEM as The Corsair CS850M (not the AX850). And I would say that being semi modular is better than being fully modular. It’s not like those 24 pin ATX and 4 pin CPU cables are optional. Not having the extra connectors on the front of the power supply just eliminates potential problems (oxidation, extra voltage drop, etc.) and gives a little more flexibility to the cables for easier routing.
Really?
A “silver award” for
Really?
A “silver award” for a product that has competition at it’s price-point that is fully modular?
Then there is the “suspect quality” of some of the parts used in this device as noted by another more skillful reviewer on another web site.
Lee ought to retire before his “cream puff” reviews short him out.
Dude, who pissed in your
Dude, who pissed in your Wheaties? I have to agree with the Silver award. It seems this power supply has enough good things going for it to earn a little recognition, but not ready for Gold. And as the reader above pointed out being fully modular is not an advantage, it’s a disadvantage! I’ve been working in IT support for over 12 years so I know a little about PCs and power supplies.
The main reason manufacturers build fully modular power supplies is to save labor, which saves them money. It does not offer any advantage to the user. Modular connectors can be soldered on machines but fixed cables require hand soldering. A semi modular power supply offers the best combination of reliability and flexibility.
I for one appreciate the power supply reviews these guys provide and I hope they keep them coming for a long time.