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We’re already familiar with ASUS’ flagship 1200W Republic of Gamers (ROG) power supply. And today, we’re taking a look at the junior model in a pair of ROG’s top-performing 80 PLUS Platinum-certified 850W PSUs.
Like the more powerful flagship model, ROG’s junior platinum power supply features fully modular cabling, RGB support, a monochrome OLED screen, and a cooling system that is stronger than the original Seasonic platform. The most noticeable in the most literal sense, the difference between the ROG Thor 850P and its more powerful counterpart is the more modest size of the power supply.
⇡#Packaging, scope of delivery, appearance
The power supply comes in a thick matte cardboard box with glossy inserts and excellent printing. The design is similar to the older model of the series and is made in the traditional red and black shades for ROG series products.
Like the 1200-watt unit, the packaging is custom-designed with the ROG logo under the flip-top, and the contents are arranged in two separate boxes with a glossy geometric pattern on a matte black background. One of them contains the power supply itself, the other — replaceable cables and other elements of the delivery set.
The back of the box describes the main features of the model: the presence of an OLED screen that shows the current load, support for Aura Sync RGB lighting and braided cables on the outside, improved ROG heatsinks and a Wing Blade fan inside. Also, of course, 80 PLUS Platinum certification is mentioned.
The power supply is initially placed in a transparent bag, and the glossy parts are additionally covered with a protective film.
The shape of the case repeats the features familiar to us from a more powerful model: a diagonal ventilation grill, a bevel at the corner with an illuminated name of the Thor series, a cutout in the form of the ROG logo on the sidewall (also backlit), a monochrome OLED screen and a discreet, but quite appropriate, decor from broken white lines.
The second sidewall is simpler: the ROG logo is painted, there are no illuminated areas or a screen, and even the pattern of white lines is more modest.
The connectors for connecting cables are made in such a way that it is impossible to connect them incorrectly: even if the shape of the contact keys is the same (as, for example, for connectors for Molex / SATA cables and the left side of both connectors for connecting the main power cable), the protruding lock will not allow inserting the cable incorrectly. Additionally, the connection is facilitated by quite clear labels of the connectors.
Like the ROG Thor 1200W, the 850-watt model is intended primarily for installation in cases with a bottom-mounted power supply (which, however, are now the vast majority among middle-class and higher models), and without a newfangled casing that hides the PSU. The unit must be installed with the fan up, otherwise it will not be possible to fully appreciate the external advantages of the model.
At the bottom of the case there is a large sticker with the electrical parameters of the unit, emblems of certificates of conformity and a serial number.
The back panel with a ventilation grill contains a power cord input, a power switch and a button for switching the fan operation modes (active or semi-passive), and there is also a colorful “Republic of Gamers” label.
In addition to detachable cables, the delivery set includes a power cord, a set of mounting screws, a well-designed manual, a set of disposable and reusable cable ties, and a sticker with the series logo. In addition, there is a separate pack of custom-braided cable tie-down combs and a 20% discount coupon for Cablemod products.
In addition, the kit includes a pair of cables for controlling and synchronizing the backlight. It is possible to connect both to the RGB connector on the motherboard, and according to the “daisy chain” scheme to LED strips with addressable backlighting.
Replacement cables are stored in a fabric bag with the ROG logo.
⇡#Specifications
At 12 V, which accounts for the lion’s share of the load in modern systems, the entire output power of the unit can be transmitted — 852 W (this is even a little more than the power declared in the model index).
The permissible total load on the 3.3 and 5 V lines is 100 W, which significantly exceeds the needs of modern systems for these voltages.
The standby power supply supports a load of up to 3 A, which is quite a typical indicator for high-power power supply models.
| Manufacturer | ASUS |
| Model | ROG Thor 850W Platinum |
| Connecting cables | Fully modular |
| Maximum load power, W | 850 |
| 80 Plus Certified | Platinum |
| ATX Version | ATX12V 2.4 |
| Mains parameters | 100-240V, 15A, 50-60Hz |
| efficiency | >92% |
| PFC | Active |
| Load protection | OVP (Over Voltage Protection) |
| OPP (over power protection) | |
| SCP (short circuit protection) | |
| OCP (Over Current Protection) | |
| OTP (Over Temperature Protection) | |
| Dimensions, mm | 150×86×160 |
| Weight, kg | ND |
| Time between failures (MTBF), h | >100,000 |
| Warranty period, years | 10 (for PSU components), 3 (for RGB backlight and OLED screen) |
| Estimated cost, rub. (according to Yandex.Market data as of 07/16/2019) | from 17 590 |
The block is 160mm long, which, although slightly longer than the standard 140mm, is not so much that it causes assembly problems in most cases.
The manufacturer’s warranty is 10 years, but there are limitations: the serviceability of the OLED screen and RGB backlighting is guaranteed only for three years.
⇡#Cables
20+4-pin main power cable, 4+4-pin EPS connector cables, and 6+2-pin PCI-E 6+2-pin power connector cables with a single power connector have individual wire sheathing.
The cable with two PCI-E 6+2-pin power connectors up to the first connector has a common nylon sheath, and from the first to the second connector it has a “flat” design without a sheath.
The rest of the cables have a flat design along the entire length.
All wires on the main cables are 18 AWG, which is typical and sufficient.
Power connector set:
- 1 × 20+4 contacts;
- 2 × EPS12V (4+4 pins) — CPU power;
- 4 × 6+2 pins — additional power supply for PCIe cards;
- 12 x SATA;
- 4 × Molex;
- adapter from 1 × Molex to 1 × Floppy;
- adapter from 1 × Molex to 2 × SATA.
The cables are long enough to fit in the vast majority of cases: 61 cm for the main ATX power connector and 65 cm for the additional processor power connector.
In general, the cable system does not raise any complaints in terms of the range of connectors: they are quite enough for the declared 850 W of output power.
⇡#Construction, internal arrangement
The ventilation grille is a separate part and not a familiar part of the housing cover.
The internal components are cooled by a Power Logic PLA13525B12M 135mm double ball bearing fan. According to ASUS, with the noise (24.9 dBA) and airflow (50 CFM) parameters equal to the “normal fan”, it provides a significantly higher static pressure (1.14 mm of water column versus 0.87 mm). Obviously, this merit belongs to the shape of the impeller blades, which differs from the standard for Power Logic fans and is similar to other Wing-blade solutions from ASUS (for example, used on video cards).
In addition, the fan is claimed to be IP5X dust-proof (partial protection: the penetrating amount of dust does not interfere with the operation of the device), which should favorably affect the life of the fan.
The original manufacturer of the platform of the power supply in question, as already mentioned, is Seasonic. But if the PRIME Platinum platform served as the basis for the flagship 1200-watt device, then the model under consideration is based on the FOCUS Platinum platform, which is one step lower in the Seasonic line.
The cooling radiators are significantly larger and have a more dramatic finish compared to the original Seasonic cooling system.
Near one of the sidewalls there are additional daughter boards responsible for the functioning of the RGB backlight and the OLED screen.
At the input of the power cord there is a part of the input filter elements (a pair of capacitors CY and one CX).
Massive radiators make it difficult to accurately count the other components of the input filter, but in addition to the above elements, three more capacitors CY, two CX, a varistor and a pair of common mode chokes are clearly observed.
In front of the modular jack panel is a daughter board with DC-DC converters that convert 12V DC to 5V and 3.3V.
Of the main control microcircuits, only the Excelliance MOS EM8569C standby power controller is located on the surface of the printed circuit board. Other microcircuits are placed on its reverse side.
Like most modern high-efficiency power supplies, the ROG Thor 1200W uses a resonant half-bridge topology.
At the input and output of the block, in full accordance with the promises of the manufacturer, high-quality Japanese capacitors manufactured by Hitachi, Nippon Chemi-Con, Nichicon and Rubycon are installed. All capacitors are rated for an operating temperature of 105°C.
In general, the quality of construction, assembly and soldering does not cause the slightest criticism and can be considered a reference.
⇡#Test Methodology
The testing methodology adopted by 3DNews is described in a separate article, which is recommended reading to understand the design of computer power supplies and their most important characteristics. Refer to it to find out why a particular component mentioned in the review is needed and how it works, and how to interpret the test results.
⇡#Test results
The capabilities of our test bench did not allow us to load the block in full: measurements had to be stopped at 70% of the maximum power, since the load on the 12 V line is limited to 60 A. But even if the deviations increase slightly at higher loads, they are unlikely to can “fail” so much as to cross out the almost ideal parameters obtained at the capacities available to our stand.
The wattmeter we use somewhat underestimates the consumption “from the socket” at medium and high loads, and therefore the efficiency indicators are somewhat overestimated relative to reality. However, they are quite consistent with the results of other 80 PLUS Platinum-certified PSUs we have tested.
The unit’s own «electric meter», as in the case of the 1200-watt model, according to our observations, tends to somewhat overestimate the load.
According to the 80 PLUS report, at capacities of 10/20/50/100%, the efficiency of the unit in the 115 V network is 88.48/91.92/92.06/89.3%, respectively. In a 230 V network, you can count on a slightly higher (by about 1-2%) efficiency.
Acoustic comfort can be called very good. The fan in semi-passive mode turned on only at 40% of the nominal power, and a slight increase in very low initial speeds began only after reaching 70% of the maximum load. At full fan power, the impeller rotation speed only slightly exceeded 1000 rpm — if you want to hear the air noise, it is already possible, but it is not at all annoying.
Based on our own experience, we can note that ROG Thor 850W is absolutely silent at low loads, and almost completely at medium loads. At maximum loads on all components in a high-performance PC, there are almost certainly more serious sources of noise than a power supply fan.
The cross-load characteristics of the PSU look almost perfect: only on the 5 V line at high loads on this voltage can one see a deviation of more than 1% from the nominal value.
12 V bus, high frequency ripple
12 V bus, low frequency ripple
5 V rail, high frequency ripple
5 V rail, low frequency ripple
High-frequency ripples are practically absent, and the peak amplitude of low-frequency ripples does not even reach 25 mW with a tolerance of 50 mV for 5 and 3.3 V lines and 120 mV for 12 V voltage.
⇡#findings
The ROG Thor 850W Platinum power supply impresses with its build quality, electrical output and acoustic comfort. Ideal voltage stability, minimum ripple size, high efficiency, high-quality components and, of course, the most effective appearance for such a utilitarian device.
The only but very serious drawback of the model is the price: in most stores they ask for about $ 250 for it — despite the fact that even a 1200-watt model of the same series, which is not only significantly more powerful, but also based on a more advanced platform, can sometimes be found cheaper. However, the minimum price at the time of writing was $180. True, and this significantly exceeds the price of the Seasonic FOCUS Plus Platinum platform, which is available at a price of $130. With all the positive attitude to the improvements made to the design from ASUS, we hope that the price of the novelty will decrease over time. After all, the flagship 1200-watt model is more expensive than the original Seasonic analogue by only 15-20% that looks much more attractive in terms of price-quality ratio.
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