The power supply is a very important component in any computer. It determines what power components can be installed in the computer. Many manufacturers produce quite interesting models. And the AeroCool VX-500 power supply is one of the most interesting instances. It is not very expensive, but it has a lot of advantages over competitors' products. Let's take a closer look at this block. But first, a few words about the manufacturer.
A little bit about the company
AeroCool was founded in 2001. The main industry of the manufacturer is the production of components necessary for the modification or self-assembly of a personal computer. The components manufactured by the company include power supplies, system unit housings, coolers and fans, water cooling systems and much more. The company is already quite firmly established in the first lines of the rating among its own kind and is not going to give in to the palm. Its products are chosen by advanced users along with such masters of the genre as Zalman and DeepCool. In this regard, products such as the AeroCool VX-500 power supply are very interesting. But do not forget about other products of the company. They are also very interesting and enjoy well-deserved popularity among gamers. However, we chatted a little and distracted from our today's hero. Let's look at the main technical characteristics of the power supply.
Specifications
So, let's move on to the boring numbers. The rated power of the AeroCool VX-500 power supply is about 500 watts. Maybe one hundredth more or less, but these are trifles. Such power is quite enough to build a home computer with fairly average specifications. The unit provides a current strength of 0.3 to 20 amperes. This is enough to power any component of the computer. The unit is equipped with one cooler with a blade diameter of 120 millimeters. With its power, such a cooling system is quite enough. The energy efficiency of the unit is also at a high level. It belongs to the type of "Gold". This means that the power supply provides good power with minimal power consumption. And in the current conditions (with the high cost of electricity) this is very important.
Appearance
The AeroCool Retail VX-500 500W power supply unit differs from competitors' products in an interesting appearance. Firstly, it is painted black. Secondly, lattices of an unusual form give it uniqueness. Thirdly, high-quality metal is used as the main material. This alone makes this unit much more interesting than its Chinese counterparts. In new versions, another type of grille is used, which makes the block look even more modern. Appearance is another plus of this product. The guys from "AeroKul" clearly worked on the design. For which they are deeply grateful to users, modders and geeks.
Contents of delivery
The AeroCool VX-500 power supply comes in a box made of recycled cardboard. On the front side is a colorful company logo with a corporate slogan and artistic performance of the block itself. On the back wall of the box and its side faces are the specifications of the device. Other languages include Russian. What can not but rejoice. The box contains the device itself, wrapped in a bubble bag, user manual, a package with mounting screws and a disk with additional software. Pure spartan set. The instruction is very interesting. It is available (and in normal Russian) describes the process of installing the device and connecting it to all the main components of the computer. The text is provided with illustrations. All this will allow you to correctly install the power supply even to those who have not encountered such a thing before.
Wires and Connectors
The ATX AeroCool VX-500 power supply is equipped with rather long wires in a fabric braid. This helps to avoid damage to the insulation and kinks. Such connecting elements will help the unit work as long as possible. As for the connectors, their impression is twofold. On the one hand, it’s good that they are so tough. The chance of a sudden shutdown of a component is minimized. But, on the other hand, if the user himself needs to disable a component, then problems may arise. The contact of the connector with the socket is so hard that often the wires break out of the clamps, and the connector itself remains in place. Unpleasant a bit.
Testing Behavior
The AeroCool VX-500 500W power supply proved to be quite good in tests. It easily provides power to all components of a computer of moderate power, it does not overheat and has special protection against voltage surges. A full-time fan does its job perfectly. True, it buzzes like a Ferrari afterburner, but it's bearable. In case of voltage drops, the unit successfully aligns it so that there is no short circuit in the components of the computer. This option is very useful. In general, the test results are excellent. And that’s good, considering the cost of the power supply. Typically, models at this price can not do anything.
How to choose the right power supply?
The answer to this question is not as simple as it seems at first glance. To choose the "right" block you need to know quite a lot. First of all, you need to calculate the total power consumption of all components of the computer. These include: motherboard, processor, RAM, hard drive, disk drive, video card, sound card, network card. Only by knowing the power consumption of each component individually and putting them together, you can understand what power supply you need to choose. It should be noted right away that for powerful gaming computers you need to build on a 750-800 Watt figure. You also need to consider the possible procedure for upgrading (improving) the PC components. More powerful components require more energy. Now about energy efficiency. It is better to purchase blocks marked "Platinum". With a large specific power, they consume very little electricity. Gold-marked blocks are also pretty good.
And what is the AeroCool VX-500 power supply capable of? Its power is only 500 watts. This means that it cannot be put on all gaming machines. With its power density, only office PCs and medium-power computers can do it. But under the latter, you also need to carefully calculate the power consumption of the components. But for not particularly loaded office machines, this unit is ideal. There will also be room for an upgrade. As a result, a weak PC can be turned into a good multimedia center. This block also has the Gold marking. This, of course, is slightly worse than Platinum, but its energy efficiency is at a fairly high level. So for those who do not need extraordinary power, this power supply is ideal.
Reviews of the owners of this unit
If you need to find out how the product behaves in real conditions, it is better to refer to the reviews of those who have already managed to purchase a device. Exactly the same situation with such a thing as the AeroCool VX-500 power supply. Reviews of this product, oddly enough, are both positive and negative. Moreover, comments with a plus sign are about the same amount as with a minus sign. In order to get the full picture, you need to disassemble them all. Let's start with the positive.
Positive reviews
So, what do those who managed to purchase an AeroCool VX-500 power supply say? The black version, by the way, is much more popular than all other colors. that is why almost all the reviews are just about the product with this color scheme. The vast majority of users note that the unit copes with its duties perfectly. It provides accurate and uninterrupted power to all components of the computer. And this is his main task. Also, many people like that the block is heavy, impressive and made of high-quality metal. Separate praise was given to the wire in a special braid. Now there is no need to bend standard wires in an inconceivable way to stick them where it should. Some owners note that the built-in voltage regulator saved their computer from a disaster a couple of times. For which they are very grateful to the manufacturer of this miracle. Also laudatory odes are pronounced to the connectors of the connection wires. Stuck and forgot. Which, of course, cannot but rejoice.
Negative reviews
Oddly enough, there are those who absolutely did not like the AeroCool VX-500 power supply, the characteristics of which we just disassembled. For the most part, these comments were left by those who hoped to get an unrealistically powerful block for little money. Unfortunately, this option did not work out. So they decided to enchant this product. But there are inadequate and quite constructive comments among this sea. For example, some owners of this miracle complain about the unrealistically loud hum of the cooling system of the power supply. And it is true. This is one of the main disadvantages of the device. And nothing can be done with it. If you install another, quieter cooler, then it is not a fact that it will cope with the cooling of all components of the unit.
Some users complain that the wires are too short. But this can cause problems only for those who are not standard, but more advanced - Big-Tower - system units. Then, there really may not be enough wires to supply power to some components. This, of course, is unpleasant, but I had to somehow try on before buying. This can not be written down. The user saw what he was buying. And I had to understand that for the case of his PC you need to select the appropriate BP option. Here, in principle, are all the shortcomings of this power supply. As you can see, there are very few of them. That is, there are a lot of negative reviews, but there are very few constructive ones.
Conclusion
So, we disassembled the AeroCool VX-500 power supply. The review is complete and comprehensive. From it it is clear that we have a mid-range device that is ideal for budget office computers and not very powerful home machines. The power supply has several advantages that distinguish it from competitors. And the main advantage is the presence of a voltage stabilizer. It will not allow computer components to burn from sudden power surges. Special braided wires are also good. Thanks to her, the connecting elements will last much longer than the prescribed time. The pluses include the price of the device. For the money, it’s almost impossible to find a quality product from another manufacturer. And against the background of all these advantages, there is only one negative feature: the cooler is very noisy. But you can put up with such a nuisance for that kind of money. All in all, this power supply is a great budget solution for a home computer.