Enermax Liberty DXX 500 Watt Modular Power Supply-SLi Edition

Enermax has been in the power supply business for a while now, and they've been keeping up with what users want and need in their computer systems.  They are also well known for creating some of the most reliable power supplies.  Today, we are going to look at the 500 Watt version of their Liberty series of PSU's. This power supply is equipped with the latest technology and connector support; including the updated PCI-Express 2.0 8-pin (6-pin + 2-pin) power connector.  The DXX stands for Direct X 10, meaning that this power supply is ready for the latest Direct X 10 graphics cards.  This 500 Watt version is also SLI ready.

Upon opening the box, you will find the manual, which features detailed test graphs and product descriptions; a pouch to store unused or extra cables, a power cable, unused modular connection covers ,screws, Enermax stickers, and an Enermax branded lanyard. 

Here are some of the main features and specifications from Enermax's website:

The Power Supply:

The power supply features a glossy black color, which looks professional.

-An Enermax Logo is on the side

Looking at the side of the power supply, there is an Enermax label which features the Enermax and Liberty logos and a condensed specification list.  Note that there are two +12v rails, each supplying up to 22 Amps, which is great for peripherals requiring lots of power. It is also RoHS compliant.

The rear (outside of case) features a large grille for exhausting air from the power supply via the 120 mm fan on the bottom of the power supply.  There is an on/off switch and AC Power Input.  This power supply offers a full range power circuit, so there is no need for a 110v / 240v switch. 

The Cables:

The modular connections on the Liberty DXX 500W

This power supply features the following cables:

-A 24-pin ATX power connector with removable 4 pin for backwards 20-pin compatibility.

-A 4-pin CPU ATX Power Connector, with a detachable 4-pin connector that allows for 8-pin EPS 12v compatibility

-1x  6-Pin PCI-Express Power Connector; 1x 6+2-Pin PCI-Express Power Connector.

-8x Molex and 8x Serial ATA Power Connectors.  Note that they are located on the same strand (s).

-2x Floppy Power Connectors

Cooling:

There is a large 120mm fan on the bottom of this power supply, it features clear blades. During testing, at idle speeds, this fan is almost silent, which is great for a quiet system.  With loads, the fan will rev up and stay at a medium speed. The gold Enermax emblem in the middle looks good.

Inside the Power Supply:

* Taking this power supply apart will void the warranty.

Inside the power supply, there are two golden heat sinks that offer densely packed fins to cool down the voltage rectifiers.  There are also two transformers, one large and one one smaller transformer in the middle.  A large copper coil can be seen in the bottom middle of the picture.  An average sized Rubycon branded capacitor is seen in the bottom left.

The fan inside is a Globe Fan B1202512M-3M, with a maximum draw of 0.30Amps.

Testing:

For this power supply, the test system consists of the following:

-Antec Nine Hundred Case

-AMD Opteron 165 Dual Core Socket 939 CPU @ 2.9 GHz (1.62v)

-ThermalTake Blue Orb II Heat Sink

-DFI LANParty nF4 SLI-D

-2GB of Corsair XMS Platinum PC3200 Memory

-320GB x 4 Western Digital 16MB Cache Hard Drives

-2x nVIDIA GeForce 8800GTS Video Card @ 625MHz Core / 1000 MHz Memory

-Sound Blaster Live! 5.1 Digital Sound Card

-Sony 16x DVD-RAM / 18x Samsung DVD-RAM Drives

-3x 120MM fans, 1x 200mm fan

-2x CCFL Lights

(Multimeter Results)

*For additional / larger pictures of the Liberty 500W, Click Here

Voltages are at 'Max Load', running 3DMark06 CPU Test 1 and 2 / Deep Freeze HDR test, and read with a Multi-Meter.

The results are good for this power supply. Everything ran fine during testing; the system was stable and performed the tests as expected.  During the tests, the fan speed climbed up to what I would call a medium speed and stayed there.  When the system is idle or doing simple tasks, the fan is nearly silent.  I was satisfied with the noise characteristics during the testing.  Installation of this power supply was easy and the Serial ATA and Molex cables on the same modular strand is great for attaching Serial ATA and Molex hard drives, without taking up another modular connection. 

Overall, the Liberty DXX 500W at around ~$110, is a good deal for what it offers.  It offers a next generation 6-pin+2pin PCI-Express power cable for the latest graphics cards.  This 500 Watt model is also offered with AMD's Crossfire Certification.

Pros +

-Good Power Delivery and Stability

-Modularized Cabling

-Ready for a next generation PCI-Express card (8-pin PCI-E)

-Carrying case for unused modular cables

-Quiet

Cons -

-A higher wattage may be needed by future CPU's and enthusiast Graphics Cards

Techaddicts.net would like to give this power supply a 9 out of 10 rating and the Techaddicts 'Recommended' Award for its quietness and good power delivery.

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