A.C. Ryan RyanPower2 450W PSU Review
Power Supplies by jmke @ 2005-03-27
What do you get when a company aimed at the modding community releases a Power Supply? Let?s take a closer look at the RyanPower2 which carries a nifty looking CableFREE badge.
Review
Intro & Specs
Intro & Specs
What do you get when a company aimed at the modding community releases a Power Supply? Let’s take a closer look at the A.C.Ryan’s RyanPower2.
The RyanPower2 comes in two different versions; you can go all out and buy the 550W or go for the more modest 450W edition. Each one features a CableFREE management system which allows you to plug in only the cables you need.
The cables are all sleeved and have a high quality feel. In the default configuration you’ll get:
1x 24-pin to ATX 20 pin extension cable
1x P4-12V to P4-12V extension cable
1x Molex 4 pin extension cable for Drives & Floppy (3x T-Molex, 1x Floppy)
2x Molex 4 pin extension cable for lights/ fans/ others (3x Molex)
1x Molex 4 pin to SATA extension cable (2x T-SATA)
1x Fan 3 pin Quad Splitter cable, (4x Fan 3 pin)
1x PCI-Express power cable
The case of the PSU is painted with a highly reflective black paint, A.C. Ryan even included a cloth so you wipe away smudges you’re bound to leave with your fingers.
When we pop the hood of the 450W version we can take a gander at the aluminum heatsinks which are bolted onto the hot parts of the PSU, and if we look from it sideways you can see that there are two 3-pin connectors for the fans, meaning you can swap them out if you feel the need.
But not that you have to, as it comes with two very silent fans, 80mm in the back and 92mm in the bottom.
The RyanPower2 is a completely mod-able unit; A.C.Ryan sells acryl covers for it, as well as UV reactive sleeved cables. What’s more, if you decide to mod it yourself you can send it pictures to them and win prizes.
When speaking about mod-able, we don’t only just mean the looks either, the cable management system allows you to swap connectors and upgrade them to newer standards, A.C. Ryan ensures us that it’s PCIe and BTX ready.
But what good is a shiny metal box with UV reactive cables if it doesn’t perform? Well, before we put it on our test bed let’s take a look at the specs:
The 3.3v and 5v lines offer plenty of power, even in this mid-way 460W version, the 26A 12v rail seems kind of low when compared to the 34A of the Coolermaster RealPower 450W, but don’t let it fool you all too soon.
Noise/Performance/Conclusive thoughts this way ->>
What do you get when a company aimed at the modding community releases a Power Supply? Let’s take a closer look at the A.C.Ryan’s RyanPower2.
The RyanPower2 comes in two different versions; you can go all out and buy the 550W or go for the more modest 450W edition. Each one features a CableFREE management system which allows you to plug in only the cables you need.
The cables are all sleeved and have a high quality feel. In the default configuration you’ll get:
The case of the PSU is painted with a highly reflective black paint, A.C. Ryan even included a cloth so you wipe away smudges you’re bound to leave with your fingers.
When we pop the hood of the 450W version we can take a gander at the aluminum heatsinks which are bolted onto the hot parts of the PSU, and if we look from it sideways you can see that there are two 3-pin connectors for the fans, meaning you can swap them out if you feel the need.
But not that you have to, as it comes with two very silent fans, 80mm in the back and 92mm in the bottom.
The RyanPower2 is a completely mod-able unit; A.C.Ryan sells acryl covers for it, as well as UV reactive sleeved cables. What’s more, if you decide to mod it yourself you can send it pictures to them and win prizes.
When speaking about mod-able, we don’t only just mean the looks either, the cable management system allows you to swap connectors and upgrade them to newer standards, A.C. Ryan ensures us that it’s PCIe and BTX ready.
But what good is a shiny metal box with UV reactive cables if it doesn’t perform? Well, before we put it on our test bed let’s take a look at the specs:
The 3.3v and 5v lines offer plenty of power, even in this mid-way 460W version, the 26A 12v rail seems kind of low when compared to the 34A of the Coolermaster RealPower 450W, but don’t let it fool you all too soon.
Noise/Performance/Conclusive thoughts this way ->>
Performance, Noise and Conclus
Noise and Performance
The power supply was installed in the system below:
A64 system in picture, imagine Asus P4C800 motherboard and Intel HSF
Using the latest version of SpeedFan 3.3v / 12v lines were monitored:
It turns out that the RyanPower2 is really quite good at supplying power, so it does not only looks good, but performs also. We do know that our test system is no the begin-all and end-all of stress testing setups, if you like to run a highly overclocked CPU with dual graphics cards, you might be better of with the higher powered 550W version, and don’t forget to order that 2nd PCIe power cable.
In the automotive world, having a loud growling engine can be a good thing, for a PC power supply the opposite is truer. So how does the RyanPower2 sound?
In order to test that we measured the noise production at different distances in a room which is quite silent to begin with: ~30dBA. And here are the results:
The SilentStorm from Sharkoon was quite silent already but the RyanPower2 gives the word a whole other meaning, even at a distance of 10cm (!) you’ll be wondering: is it running?
Update!: these noise measurements were taken without load on the PSU, this translates in lower values! When the PSU becomes hot the fans get louder, 44dBA @ 60cm. It's noticeable, but not very loud
Conclusive thoughts
As you’ve wrestled your way through the review you heard only positive things about this new PSU from the A.C. Ryan modding-stock. Aren’t there any pitfalls or drawbacks then?
Well for starters, the cables are a bit short, the longest being ~70cm (fans/floppy) and the shortest being less then 30cm. If you have a big tower case you’ll have some troubles getting everything hooked up, not only due to the lack of lengthy cables, but also the lack of certain type of connectors.
You see, there is only one floppy connector included, this means that if you have video-card, multi-purpose 5.25” bay or any other devices besides your floppy-drive which takes power from that small 4-pin connector, you’re out of luck.
Speaking of cables, the sleeving, however good it looks, comes of quite easily, especially on the large ATX power cable, without twisting it in weird ways it just came off:
So while the RyanPower2 does very good at providing stable and ample power to your system, it disappoints a bit in the areas it should be standing out in. Its main selling point also becomes it major drawback as the CableFREE system showed some flaws.
Pro:
Steady voltage rails under high load
Plug and Play installation
Flashy black look
Very silent
Good descriptive manual
CableFREE
Contra:
CableFREE: cables too short
CableFREE: not enough connectors
CableFREE: sleeving might come loose
The RyanPower2 is a step in the right direction for A.C.Ryan, it’s very silent, provides enough juice to keep your system stable and features a handy (slightly flawed) cabling system. If they can work out the small kinks in the cable we’d recommend it straight away, but as it stands we have some reservations about the CableFREE quality and implementation.
Questions/Comments: forum thread
Feedback from the manufacturer :
CableFREE: cables too short:
We have made the "50cm set" (ATX cable 50cm and the rest relative to this type of tower) as standard included cables as most users have towers that fit this length. The idea is to get the cables to fit nicely without being too long and hanging everywhere. For longer cables, there is a "70cm set" as an MODoption designed for the larger towers. More colors, lengths of cables will also be available in April / May.
CableFREE: not enough connectors:
Are there devices that use this floppy power connector? We didnt find any! Only floppy drives and these are beginning to disappear from computers. The idea is not to have uneccessary unused connectors in the system. If there is indeed more devices using this floppy power connector, we will include cables with more such connectors in the next production (that's the advantage of the CableFREE system that we can deliver a power supply + cabling system that suits users' needs and respond to the market fast).
CableFREE: sleeving might come loose:
You can be assured we have improved this! We noted the comments on the CableFREE quality and implementation - the great thing about the CableFREE system is that we can and have improved it very quickly and immediately :)
The power supply was installed in the system below:
JMke's Intel Test Setup | |
| CPU | Intel P4 2.4 @ 3.2Ghz |
| Mainboard | Asus P4C800 |
| Cooling | Stock Intel Heatsink and Fan |
| Memory | 1*512Mb PC3200 |
| Video | nVidia Geforce FX 5900XT |
| Extra | |
A64 system in picture, imagine Asus P4C800 motherboard and Intel HSF
Using the latest version of SpeedFan 3.3v / 12v lines were monitored:
It turns out that the RyanPower2 is really quite good at supplying power, so it does not only looks good, but performs also. We do know that our test system is no the begin-all and end-all of stress testing setups, if you like to run a highly overclocked CPU with dual graphics cards, you might be better of with the higher powered 550W version, and don’t forget to order that 2nd PCIe power cable.
In the automotive world, having a loud growling engine can be a good thing, for a PC power supply the opposite is truer. So how does the RyanPower2 sound?
In order to test that we measured the noise production at different distances in a room which is quite silent to begin with: ~30dBA. And here are the results:
Update!: these noise measurements were taken without load on the PSU, this translates in lower values! When the PSU becomes hot the fans get louder, 44dBA @ 60cm. It's noticeable, but not very loud
Conclusive thoughts
As you’ve wrestled your way through the review you heard only positive things about this new PSU from the A.C. Ryan modding-stock. Aren’t there any pitfalls or drawbacks then?
Well for starters, the cables are a bit short, the longest being ~70cm (fans/floppy) and the shortest being less then 30cm. If you have a big tower case you’ll have some troubles getting everything hooked up, not only due to the lack of lengthy cables, but also the lack of certain type of connectors.
You see, there is only one floppy connector included, this means that if you have video-card, multi-purpose 5.25” bay or any other devices besides your floppy-drive which takes power from that small 4-pin connector, you’re out of luck.
Speaking of cables, the sleeving, however good it looks, comes of quite easily, especially on the large ATX power cable, without twisting it in weird ways it just came off:
So while the RyanPower2 does very good at providing stable and ample power to your system, it disappoints a bit in the areas it should be standing out in. Its main selling point also becomes it major drawback as the CableFREE system showed some flaws.
Pro:
Contra:
The RyanPower2 is a step in the right direction for A.C.Ryan, it’s very silent, provides enough juice to keep your system stable and features a handy (slightly flawed) cabling system. If they can work out the small kinks in the cable we’d recommend it straight away, but as it stands we have some reservations about the CableFREE quality and implementation.
Questions/Comments: forum thread
Feedback from the manufacturer :
We have made the "50cm set" (ATX cable 50cm and the rest relative to this type of tower) as standard included cables as most users have towers that fit this length. The idea is to get the cables to fit nicely without being too long and hanging everywhere. For longer cables, there is a "70cm set" as an MODoption designed for the larger towers. More colors, lengths of cables will also be available in April / May.
Are there devices that use this floppy power connector? We didnt find any! Only floppy drives and these are beginning to disappear from computers. The idea is not to have uneccessary unused connectors in the system. If there is indeed more devices using this floppy power connector, we will include cables with more such connectors in the next production (that's the advantage of the CableFREE system that we can deliver a power supply + cabling system that suits users' needs and respond to the market fast).
You can be assured we have improved this! We noted the comments on the CableFREE quality and implementation - the great thing about the CableFREE system is that we can and have improved it very quickly and immediately :)
Mike@ACRyan.com