XG Vortec 600W

Introduction

XG, or Xtreme Gamer, is a subsidiary of the MGE company. XG’s products are tailored for gamers and possess distinct looks that would be sure to stand out at a LAN. MGE stays on the edge and brings a bold set of stylings to each product they manufacture. Their product line includes cases, power supplies, heatsinks, an array of mod accessories, and even speakers. Today we test their strongest power supply, the Vortec 600 watt power supply. Will this 600 watt power supply be a power house, a flash in the pan, or just flashy? We’ll see if the Vortec 600w can “push the limits of your system”, as XG describes it.

XG Vortec 600W

The Vortec comes packaged very nicely. There is a detailed box along with an image of the power supply itself. The power supply itself comes with an ATX to BTX converter, or 20 pin to 24 pin cable. With the new BTX standard, power supplies require additional 12 volt, 5v, and 3.3v lines, along with another grounding. This improves stability for many of the power hungry components. The manual includes information on MGE and XG, their return policy, warranty, trouble shooting tips, and setup instructions. They’ve also included all the misspellings we’ve become accustomed to in computer hardware manuals.

The Vortec is just gorgeous. There is detail around the entire unit, whether it be the 120mm fan guard that covers the intake, or the 80mm guard which covers the exhaust. The Vortec has two rectangular windows, one on each side, that allow you to peer into the unit to see the capacitors and other components. There are horizontal impressions along the entire unit. The fans are manually controlled by the fan speed knob. The fans are not particularly loud at even the highest setting. Both the 80mm and 120mm fans have red LED’s that give the unit a fantastic glow. Both the power cable cover and power switch are UV reactive.

This PSU was definitely made to be in a windowed case.

XG Vortec 600W Continued

The Vortec cabling includes 8 Molex connections, 2 floppy connections, 2 serial ATA connections, the P4/four pin 12v connection, and the ATX connection. The PSU does not have connections for PCI express, nor does it include a Molex to PCI-E adapter. All cables are completely sleeved and have heat shrink to insure they don’t become unraveled. XG really put a good amount of effort into making this power supply visually appealing.

The Vortec is not heavy. Most of the time, this is not a good thing when speaking of power supplies. After looking at the internals of the unit, you’ll see why. The heatsinks are very small. Sure, the Vortec has a 120mm fan blowing directly over the top of them, but more air flow does not mean better cooling efficiency. There does not seem to be any potentiometers in the PSU, so there is no way to adjust the voltages without modding it.

Specifications:

With a power rating of 600 watts, you would normally see the amperage of the 12 volt rail split among two separate 12 volt rails. This is not the case with the Vortec. The Vortec has a gigantic 37 amps on the 12v rail, 36a on the 5v rail, and 34a on the 3.3v rail. MGE does not specify if the Vortec has PFC support, or power factor correction, so we’ll assume that it does not.

Test Setup and Results

Test Setup and Methods:

• AMD Athlon64 3200+ Winchester
• DFI Lan Party NForce4 Ultra-D
• Power Color Radeon X850XTPE
• 2x512MB OCZ PC3200 Plat. Rev.2
• Seagate 160GB 7200RPM SATA
• Lite-On DVD/CD-RW combo drive
• Floppy drive
• Vantec fan controller
• 92mm Vantec Tornado @ 7v
• 2x 120mm Delta EHE @ 7v

Running stock

• AMD Athlon64 3200+ Winchester @ 2.0ghz 1.4v
• Power Color Radeon X850XTPE @ 540/590
• 2x512MB OCZ @ 200mhz 1:1 2.7v

Running overclocked

• AMD Athlon64 3200+ Winchester @ 2.55ghz 1.5v
• Power Color Radeon X850XTPE @ 630/615
• 2x512MB OCZ @ 255mhz 1:1 2.7v

Testing the power supply is a tedious task. Like cooling products, the “proper” testing method is long and strenuous. It involves high end equipment and testing materials that we simply cannot get our hands on. A simple proper testing method would be to test the wattage draw from the AC outlet, voltage rail fluctuations, wattage fluctuations under high operating temperatures, power efficiency, and the power supply’s reaction to low input voltage. But because this site is dedicated more to overclocking, we’ll check for voltage fluctuations in an overclocked environment. Tests were done with the 20-pin to 24-pin adapter and a Molex to PCI-E adapter attached.

Results:

Voltages were measured by a digital multimeter on each of the 12v, 5v, and 3.3v lines on the ATX connection. Idle voltage readings were done with the system at desktop with no programs running. Load voltages were read with the system running Prime95 torture test blend and the test Nature from 3DMark2001SE.

Conclusion and Thoughts

The XG Vortec 600 watt’s 12 volt rail was a massive 12.4 volts at Idle. To see that high of a voltage, you’ll normally need to manually adjust the rail by a potentiometer inside the unit or modify your power supply. The 5 and 3.3 volt rails stayed very stable under load, when the system was at stock and when it was overclocked. The Vortec took a large hit under load when the system was overclocked, dropping nearly .3 volts. However, it still stayed above 12v and does not create much worry. The overall look of the Vortec is fantastic, from its windowed sides to its perfect sleeving, it’s truly a treat to look at. I really would like to have seen native 24-pin BTX and PCI-E connections on this unit. Larger heatsinks would also help its efficiency. With a price point below $100, this is a great power supply for the money. The XG Vortec 600w has a great set of features and will receive Insanetek’s “Recommended” award.

John’s Additions:

MGE’s line of XG caters mainly towards gaming enthusiasts and it’s no surprise that the Vortec provides great looks with decent performance. The Vortec 600W also looks great. It provides a high 600W rating to power all your latest high-end hardware. There are some main factors that are missing, though. With gaming systems moving to the PCI-E platform, a 6pin 12v connector is now a necessity for power supplies, as well as the 24pin ATX connector. The small heatsinks inside the power supply are a big turnoff for me. Although cooling is sufficient with fans, large heatsinks do help dissipate heat better and prolong life expectancy. One major thing that I didn’t like was the wasted space inside the power supply. That empty space should be used wisely, perhaps by increasing the PCB and adding more components or heatsinks. Overall, the Vortec 600W does do a decent job of providing power and style for the gaming enthusiasts. Just don’t expect a whole lot with the missing 6pin PCI-E and 24pin ATX connectors. In my opinion, gamers with SLI systems should look at the Thermaltake PurePower 680W.

We would like to thank XG for providing us the sample. If you have any questions or comments, feel free to hit us up in the forums. You can also check out more of our latest reviews on the front page.