Powerful SilverStone SX1000 – 1000W Fully Modular

Around the past several of years, many of the larger PSU makers introduced small SFX and SFX-L PSUs that were made to match up the power standards of effective video gaming systems. Along with power output scores reaching 700 Watts or far more, some of them could actually power flagship-level PC gaming systems. This was quite the feat considering that finding a quality SFX PSU even for a popular gaming system was a very difficult mission until a couple of years ago.

However, for some buyers, even 700 Watts is not going to be adequate. Specifically as you begin mixing up over into the high-end workstation space – think numerous Radeon Pro workstation cards here – even a lot more power is necessary. So to complete that task SilverStone has rolled out a 1000 Watt SFX-L form factor PSU, the SX1000.
Currently well-known for products and solutions like their SFX design-pushing SX800-LTI 800W PSU, the company has gone back to the drawing panel in an attempt do one much better. We did not expect that the company would very easily handle to squeeze even more power out of an SFX PSU, and yet close to three years after the launch of the SX800, here we are: SilverStone has an SFX-L PSU with the shocking output of 1 kW. This right now is the most powerful SFX-L PSU on the market place, so of course we need to take a look at it to see exactly how it stacks up.
The SilverStone SX1000 is a fully modular power supply, which means that every single cable can be unattached, together with the 24-pin ATX cable. Building the 24-pin ATX cable detachable generally does not make any functional sense, but it does in this case: allowing the user can change the short 12” ATX cable with a longer variant if the PSU is going to be installed inside of an ATX case. Without any exclusion, all of the cables are “flat” type cables, with black wires and black connectors.The SilverStone SX1000 is an SFX-L model, meaning that it is primarily based on the SFX standard but it is 30 mm deeper. Its case measures 125 (W) × 63.5 (H) × 130 (D) mm (4.92 x 2.5 x 5.12 inches), which does reduce the match ups of the power supply, as several SFX-compliant cases do not provide that type of clearance. Even so, cases meant to hold SFX PSUs and multiple(extra-large) video cards should all be supplying good enough clearance for an SFX-L PSU.
SilverStone is definitely not a company that designs aesthetically luxury products and the SX1000 stays to that tradition, with the designer sticking to a classic all-black design. The chassis is sprayed with satin black paint but most of its surface is covered by stickers. The stickers on the sides of the unit only display the company and product logos, whereas the sticker that covers the whole of the unit’s top side hosts the standard electrical specs and certifications of the unit. At the bottom part of the unit, we can see the black fan and the finger guard, with a metallic crest presenting the company’s logo covering the fan’s engine.
Despite the quite cramped space requirements, the designer continue to managed to fit an on/off button next to the AC receptacle. The front side of the unit is covered by a lot of cable connectors, together with a sticker label that hosts a basic legend. All of the cable connectors except those of the ATX cable are protected with plastic-type material protective caps.
A main advantage of the SFX-L form factor is that it allows for 120 mm fans to be mounted, a requirement for the cooling needs of this kind of a powerful unit. Globe supplies the low profile 120 mm fan, which is a dual ball bearing model with a max speed of 2400 RPM at 12 Volts. This is a unusual option by SilverStone, as the company generally prefers to use sleeve bearing fans because of their lower noise output, even for their top-tier items.The filtering level of the SX1000 is a little bit beefed up, as it begins at the rear of the AC receptacle and continues onto the main PCB, with four Y capacitors, four X capacitors, and two filtering inductors. There are 2 APFC capacitors, provided by Rubycon, rated at 400 V / 470 μF each. A big filtering inductor is located right next to them. The heatsinks are fairly standard for a PSU with that kind of output, with relatively minimal mass and surface area. We would not expect to see this sort of heatsinks in ATX units rated over 600 Watts, yet the limited space in the SX1000 needs certain sacrifices. That does not mean that the temperature ranges of the components have to escalate but does hint the use of special very low loss parts that will generate minimal amounts of heat – which also are relatively expensive.

SilverStone states that the cooling fan they used on the SX1000 Platinum is a quiet functioning fan with an innovative semi-fanless operation. This will mean that the fans will stop during idle to light load conditions. And during these occasions, the PSU is dead silent. We did not notice any whistling, static sound, or coil whine during regular desktop process.
The SilverStone SX1000 is the most powerful small form factor PSU on the marketplace nowadays, and in fact, it is way more powerful than its document specifications since we forced it up 1480W. This is 148% over its nominal total capacity. Enhance, the OEM right behind this platform provided a reliable device to SilverStone, with pretty fine build quality and top notch components.

The 12V load regulation of the SilverStone SX1000 is quite tight, but the minor rails don’t meet the same standard, and there is room for improvement in ripple suppression at 12V. Adding more filtering capacitors would help reduce ripple, but the current PCB size limits that option. Incorporating in-cable capacitors could enhance performance in this aspect. With improved ripple suppression at 12V, the SX1000 would outperform various other PSUs.

The overall DC Output Quality of the SX1000 is deemed satisfactory. The peak trace amplitude on the 12V rail is approximately 70mV, while the 5V and 3.3V rails measure around 25mV. The 12V rail reaches just above 50% of the ATX12v specification limit, and the minor rails hit 50% precisely.

Despite these sacrifices in cramming so much power into a small package, the SX1000 remains within specification limits and poses no significant issues in that regard.

The hold-up time of over 17ms is commendable, considering the restricted space in high-power density PSUs. Inrush currents are at normal levels.

Efficiency is high under normal and super-light loads, but it could be improved for light loads. The 5VSB rail achieves top efficiency scores. Vampire power is low with 115V input, but it would be better to achieve below 0.1W with 230V input.

The transient response at 12V is among the best in this form factor category, even comparing favorably with larger PSUs of similar capacity. The other rails also exhibit good transient response.

It is impressive to see an SFX-L PSU deliver close to 1500W. However, for safety reasons, it would be better if the +12V OCP and OPP triggering points were set more conservatively, at around 130%. Over temperature protection and other protections operate fine according to test results.

The average noise output exceeds 35 dBA due to increased fan noise under high loads. Achieving a quiet operation under such high loads would be extremely challenging, if not impossible, for such a high power density PSU.

Can the SilverStone SX1000 PSU handle intense gaming demands?

The SilverStone SX1000 is a powerful PSU with a high output capacity, capable of delivering close to 1500W. In terms of raw power, it should be sufficient for most gaming setups, including those with high-end graphics cards and other demanding components.

However, whether it’s “enough” for hard gaming depends on the specific hardware configuration and power requirements of your gaming system. To determine if the SX1000 is suitable for your gaming needs, consider the following factors:

• Power requirements of your components: High-performance gaming systems often feature power-hungry components, such as high-end graphics cards, powerful CPUs, multiple storage drives, and additional RGB lighting. Ensure that the total power draw of your components falls comfortably within the capacity of the PSU. It’s a good idea to use an online PSU calculator to estimate your system’s power requirements.
• Overclocking: If you plan to overclock your CPU and GPU for better gaming performance, the power consumption of your system will increase. Make sure the PSU can handle the additional load.
• Future upgrades: If you anticipate upgrading your gaming system in the future with even more power-hungry components, you should consider whether the SX1000 will still be sufficient.
• Efficiency: The SX1000 boasts high efficiency under normal and super-light loads, which can help reduce energy waste and operating costs during less demanding tasks or idle periods.
• Noise: Keep in mind that the average noise output of the PSU can be higher under high loads. If you prioritize a quieter gaming experience, you may want to consider a PSU with a lower noise profile.

The SilverStone SX1000 should be more than enough for most hard gaming scenarios. However, always check your system’s power requirements and consider potential future upgrades to ensure the PSU meets your specific gaming needs. It’s generally a good idea to have some headroom in terms of power capacity to ensure stable and efficient operation, especially during intense gaming sessions.

This is also demonstrated by the given manufacturer’s warranty, which at 5 years is really long, granted this unit’s insane power density rating. In other words, the SilverStone SX1000 is a little, just in dimensions, power factory, capable to support almost everything you throw at it. With some minor enhancements, it can be way significantly better. We would like to see a effectively working over-temperature protection, much better ripple at 12V, lower turn-on voltage at 5VSB, and a lower Power-On time.
The competition in this 1000W small form factor class is non-existent since, so far, the SX1000 is the only power supply of its type. We are not sure if more manufacturers will follow SilverStone’s way and launch this sort of powerful SFX-L units, something that could make Enhance Electronics satisfied since, so far, it looks to be the only one having these types of strong small form factor platforms.

High quality construction with all Japanese capacitors
The electrical effectiveness of the SilverStone SX1000 power supply is very good and within our expectations for an Enhance platform. Line filtering could use some enhancement, as the voltage ripple figures are reasonably high, with our tools recording a max of 78 mV, 34 mV, and 26 mV on the 12V, 5V, and 3.3V lines respectively. These figures are enough, but top tier units very easily halve these values. Meanwhile line regulation is drastically better, with the 12V line maintaining a regulation factor of 0.9%. The regulation of the 3.3V and 5V lines is a little greater than 2%, which is good enough for a modern design.  Video: SilverStone-YouTubeThe electrical functionality of the SilverStone SX1000 power supply is certainly not bad at all – it does meet all 80Plus Platinum certification and quality requirements with ease – it is just a minimal worse than its less powerful predecessors. It as well struggles to maintain reasonable noise and temperature levels when the load is very high, even when the operating conditions is relatively cool. However, due to the possibility of high internal temperatures, the designer is using very high-quality components so that they will not be thermally stressed. This bodes well for the quality and long life of the SilverStone SX1000, as these components will perform very reliably under typical operating conditions. Photo: SilverStone
The development of a highly effective gaming small form factor PERSONAL COMPUTER for the living room is the true desire of every single serious game player. Still, few are determined enough to be capable to justify an aesthetically elegant and compact gaming PC with a flagship graphics card in it. However, SilverStone’s latest power supply is created to specifically focus on that small, yet existent, segment of the current market. More pragmatically, possibly, it could also be used to power systems with a single high-end graphics card while working close to its half potential, offering top performance and reliability. However, the quite high retail price of $366 at this writing significantly limits the marketplace potential of the SX1000, as only consumers who do not care about having a price range when building a PC would buy it.

The SilverStone SX1000 is an impressive PSU that delivers an astounding amount of power from a compact package. The build quality is very good, voltage regulation is excellent, DC Output Quality is good, and Transient Load results are very good. Enhance, the OEM behind this platform, has provided SilverStone with a solid unit featuring top-notch parts. The only drawback is the limited space for filtering caps, resulting in less than ideal ripple at 12V. To enhance ripple suppression, SilverStone could consider using in-cable caps, which may make installation more challenging for some users but would contribute to improved system reliability and longevity.