MODTHEBOX.COM - Canada's Premier Case Modding Source - Reviews

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Once the Aspire Aluminum ATX-AS500W PSU is powered consumers are in for a visual treat. The two 80mm Blue UV LED fans light up the entire interior of this unit and are balanced by the acrylic see through panel. The brightness of the UV fans is determined by the fan control speed setting on the back. At full speed the fans light up the brightest and at lowest setting the illumination is cut in half for a subtle dimming effect.

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One of the highlights of the Aspire Aluminum ATX-AS500W PSU is that all the Molex connectors and switches are UV reactant. Under UV cold cathode lighting, you really get a beautiful effect that would be great to display in a windowed case. This PSU is also complimentary to those individuals who use UV based dyes in their water cooling systems and can complete a whole nuclear or alien type case theme.

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MBM Dashboard results

The Aspire Aluminum ATX-AS500W PSU configured to run on a standard Micron Client Pro workstation. Voltage "low" and "high" readings were recorded using Motherboard Monitor 5.3.4.0 for over a 60 minute period and later confirmed using a digital multimeter. In this testing scenario due to the underpowered testing equipment no overclocking performance results were taken. For the most part the +3.3 volt lines were steady at 3.28 volts and there were no major voltage differences on the 5+ and 12+ volt lines. Most standard PSU units allow at least a 5% tolerance level in terms of operation and stability. If you plan on installing power hungry components it is strongly recommended that you compensate by moving towards a PSU unit, which provides more wattage to meet your system requirements.

Conclusion:
The Aspire Aluminum ATX-AS500W PSU is an excellent unit, which combines great aesthetics with functionality. The anodized aluminum chassis construction adds several benefits in terms of acting as an additional heatsink and supporting two well-placed 80mm Blue UV LED fans. The unit by default is feature rich with built-in functions for Short Circuit Protection, Over Voltage and Over Current Protection. Users concerned with associated fan noise will appreciate the fan speed knob at the back of the unit which can adjust the RPM and voltage speed of the fans. The acrylic see though shell complimented by UV sensitive features offers case modders all the necessary eye candy for a modified case. While Aspire has done an admirable job at cable sleeving the 20-pin ATX connector cable, I would have loved to have seen this function extended to the remainder of the PSU cables in order to keep cable management down to a minimum. It would have also been nice to see this unit offer an additional AC plug which seems to be a standard feature on rival units for those individuals who like to power external AC devices. Overall stability was good and I am fully confident that this will be one of the PSU units to top when it comes to a full featured product. Overall, I’m rating the Aspire Aluminum ATX-AS500W PSU MTB's Seal of Approval and a final rating of 9.5 out of 10. If you have any questions regarding this review be sure to visit the Aspire website for more information or discuss them in our forums.

MTB Award

Pros:

Anodized aluminum chassis (5 different colours)
Dual Blue UV LED 80mm fans
Acrylic see though top panel
Adjustable fan speed control
UV reactant
Great aesthetics for case modders
Certified for the AMD and Intel platform
Built-in functionality (Short Circuit Protection, Over Voltage and Over Current Protection)
Cons:

Additional cable sleeving to all PSU wires would enhance this product
Additional AC plug would be nice for powering external products