battleangel Posted November 4, 2010 Share Posted November 4, 2010 I got a CX430 for a project last week and I'm getting some strange readings from my "kill-a-watt" meter. In standby, either installed in the system or unplugged (fan not spinning), the PSU draws 25 W. Stranger still, when you flip the switch on the back powering it off, the PSU still consumes about 15 W (fluctuating between 13 and 16 actually). The kill-a-watt meter seems quite accurate on other PSUs, bulbs, monitors and what have you. I have an older HX520 PSU that consumes 9 W installed and in standby on a reasonably beefy system even. Any ideas? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corsair Employees RAM GUY Posted November 5, 2010 Corsair Employees Share Posted November 5, 2010 If you have the switch on the back of the PSU pressed down on the "0" side and you are still drawing power then something is not right. I would try it on a different circuit in your home just to rule out any outside factors and if it still does the same thing, then lets get the unit replaced! Request an RMA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
battleangel Posted November 8, 2010 Author Share Posted November 8, 2010 Actually, I asked the same question in another forum and they quickly dismissed it as a problem with measuring active PFC PSUs using kill-a-watts. This is certainly the first I ever heard of it. Tested a new VX550 and the results were equally or more erratic. 15 W switched off. 0 - 3 W powered on. The conclusion has to be that at least this kill-a-watt meter is useless for measuring modern APFC PSUs. Case closed I think :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corsair Employees RAM GUY Posted November 13, 2010 Corsair Employees Share Posted November 13, 2010 I am pretty sure I remember someone else using the same Kill-a-watt device that showed some power being drawn even when completely shut off, so it may just be an issue with that wattage meter and the APFC, like you mentioned. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rikkivety Posted November 29, 2010 Share Posted November 29, 2010 I think that your Kill-a-watt is ok. I have exactly the same problem and I'm not using Kill-a-watt. My powermeter shows that my Corsair VX550W takes 18W in off-mode and 3W in on-mode. So, there's something wrong. I've also Corsair CX400W which gives 4W in off-mode and 11W in on-mode. There are no difference if they are connected to the mobo or not. Both PSUs also gave strange power consumptions in the first day use. Their consumption run between 20-100 watts but nowadays they are stable. I'm still gonna sent those PSUs back for a check as I'm sure their off-mode consumption is still somewhat strange. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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