Performance:::...

Internal Features

Internal Features

Internal Features

The fan in the ST46 is an ADDA unit which according to the part number is a 12V, 120mm. high speed, sleeve bearing, 7-blade DC low noise fan with a depth of 25mm.

The Fan

It was actually noisier than many of the 80mm fan cooled units I've tested in the past couple of months which came as rather a surprise, but I still wouldn't classify it as loud by any means. In fact I doubt most users would hear the fan operating over the din of a regular case fan turning.

If you saw the last PSU review I wrote you'll know that the rather crude but ultimately extremely effective test system I now use consists of an array of six 50watt Halogen spots, each with a Molex connector attached.

By plugging them in one at a time I can increase the load on the critical 12V line to 6x50watts, that's 300 watts in total. More importantly that gives me up to 24 Amps on the 12V rail, with the option to increase or decrease it if I like.

If a power supply won't allow the test system to power on when an extra bulb is added, it is removed, the system is started then the bulb is plugged in while the power supply is running. In these cases the table will show no boot with the load connected but a voltage reading will still be given taken after the additional load is added while running.

Low-Tech Test Rig

Not only would it not boot with 12.51 Amps of load on the 12V line, it wouldn't even allow it to come online once the system was running without tripping. This pretty much rules it out for all but the most basic uses.

When compared to our 420 watt Tagan iX-eye you can see just how mediocre the ST46's performance really is.

Conclusion

The We "Dual Conclusions Concept" Explained: After discussing this concept with users as well as companies and vendors we work with, We have decided that where necessary we shall aim to introduce our 'Dual Conclusions Concept' to sum up our thoughts and impressions on the hardware we review. As the needs of the more experienced users and enthusiasts have increased, it has become more difficult to factor in all the aspects that such a user would find important, while also being fair to products that may lack these high end "bonus" capabilities but which still represent a very good buy for the more traditional and more prevalent mainstream user. The two categories we've used are:

The Mainstream User ~ The mainstream user is likely to put price, stock performance, value for money, reliability and/or warranty terms ahead of the need for hardware that operates beyond its design specifications. The mainstream user may be a PC novice or may be an experienced user, however their needs are clearly very different to those of the enthusiast, in that they want to buy products that operate efficiently and reliably within their advertised parameters.

The Enthusiast ~ The enthusiast cares about all the things that the mainstream user cares about but is more likely to accept a weakness in one or more of these things in exchange for some measure of performance or functionality beyond its design brief. For example, a high priced motherboard may be tolerated in exchange for unusually high levels of overclocking ability or alternatively an unusually large heat sink with a very poor fixing mechanism may be considered acceptable if it offers significantly superior cooling in return.

The Mainstream User ~

I have a lot of respect for Silverstone's products generally, but poor availability I can't find one listed anywhere) and even poorer performance unfortunately relegate this particular offering to the ranks of the ordinary.

It's not an awful power supply, in fact the voltages were quite steady under moderate load, but it simply doesn't live up to its billing as a high performance 460 Watt unit.

If you can find one cheap enough it will almost certainly beat the pants off just about any power supply you'll find bundled with a budget case, but that's hardly a glowing commendation.

While I accept I may have a bad example, or it may have been damaged in transit, I can only comment on what I've seen and on that bases I'd probably be tempted to pass on this one if I were you.

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The Enthusiast ~

All I can suggest is you look elsewhere for additional reviews on the ST46, because if the unit I have here is typical, it's a fairly unspectacular performer, that's if you can even find one for sale anywhere.

Its inability to handle even a moderate 12 Amp load doesn't bode well for powering tricked out gaming machines, and its looks aren't likely to persuade you to take a chance on it just for the bling factor.

I'd save your coin and look elsewhere on this occasion.

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We're always looking for ways to make our reviews fairer. A Right To Reply gives the manufacturer or supplier of the product being reviewed a chance to make public comments on what we've said. They can explain perhaps why they've done the things we were unhappy with or blow their own trumpet over the things we loved. It's easy for us to pick a product apart but sometimes things are done a certain way for very specific reasons.

Should SilverStone decide to exercise their "Right To Reply", we'll publish their comments below: