Review of the power supply 1STPLAYER NGDP ATX 3.1 GOLD 1000W (HA1000-BA4)

Last year we got acquainted with the NGDP HA-1000BA3 power supply under the rare 1STPLAYER brand. Few buyers know that the Chinese company Helly Technology, which owns this trademark, itself produces hardware platforms for computer power supplies, including for third-party vendors. The HA1000-BA4 NGDP ATX 3.1 GOLD series model, which we will review today, complies with the ATX 3.1 standard and has two 12V-2×6 connectors.

⇡#Technical characteristics, design, price

The 1STPLAYER power supply received 80 PLUS Gold certification, but this time without confirmation from the Cybenetics laboratory. But each copy of the HA1000-BA4 comes with a brochure with a QR code that leads to a page with an individual testing report.

The new product is assembled in a black case 140 mm deep with a 120 mm fan. Small dimensions allow the HA1000-BA4 to be used in compact systems. Just pay attention that the fan grille protrudes from the plane of the lid, so the power supply may not fit into any specific holder.

On the patch panel, two 12V-2×6 connectors are striking. Signal pins 0 and 1 in them are shorted to ground, which means that each connector can output 600 W of power (of course, within the total reserve of 996 W per 12 V line). In addition to 12V-2×6, the power supply has six regular 12-volt connectors. This means that in a computer with additional power supply to the motherboard, a video card with three eight-pin connectors can be connected to the power supply without a “daisy chain”.

The only pity is that for this the user will have to buy or make additional cables, because the HA1000-BA4 comes with only three old-style PCI-Express power cables, with one plug on each. There is only one 12V-2×6 cable, but it is unusually long – 72 cm.

The main cores of the 12V-2×6 cable are 16AWG, the rest are 18AWG. All cables are made of a soft sheath with an imitation of individual braiding. In the box with the device we also found several black combs for aesthetically pleasing cable management, zip ties and a device for testing the functionality of the power supply, which is put on the 24-pin connector and connects the PS_ON pin to ground.

During the period of work on the review, the HA1000-BA4 was available for a relatively small amount for its qualities – from 15,399 rubles. The manufacturer provides a 10-year warranty on the power supply.

⇡#Internal organization

The HA1000-BA4 is built on Helly Technology’s own platform, which has all the circuitry solutions typical of “golden” power supplies.

At the power supply input there is a comprehensive set of protective components: a cascade electromagnetic interference filter, a varistor, an inrush current limiter based on an NTC thermistor and a relay, as well as a fuse. The power factor correction circuit is, of course, active.

The primary converter has a half-bridge topology with LLC, and the secondary side uses synchronous rectifiers. Small 3.3 and 5 V lines are formed from the 12 V line using DC/DC converters.

All electrolytic capacitors are manufactured by Japanese companies Nichicon, Nippon Chemi-Con and Rubycon.

The PSU components are cooled by a Hong Hua fan on a hydrodynamic bearing, model HA1225M12F-Z.

⇡#Testing methodology

The testing methodology adopted in 3DNews is described in a separate article, which is recommended for reading to understand the design of computer power supplies and their most important characteristics. Refer to it to find out why it is needed and how this or that component mentioned in the review works, and how to interpret the test results.

⇡#Test results

In the available load stand power range of the main lines up to 840 W, the power supply exceeds the requirements of the “gold” category 80 PLUS by a margin. But provided that the priority load falls on the 12 V line. The small lines of 3.3 and 5 V have reached only the “bronze” level.

The 1STPLAYER product was surprising in that in the hybrid mode, which is active by default, the fan began to rotate only when the consumer power reached 800 W and small lines were connected to the load. In continuous cooling mode, the fan maintains speed below 600 rpm at up to 400 W and reaches 1,200 rpm at 800 W.

The regulation of the 12 V line in the HA1000-BA4 is flawless, and the 5 V voltage deviates from the standard by no more than 2%. The voltage of 3.3 V at high load on all lines fluctuates within a wider range, but remains within the ±5% corridor defined by the ATX standard.

The ripple range on the 12 and 5 V lines lies within 26 and 16 mV, respectively, with acceptable values ​​of 120 and 50 mV.

⇡#Conclusions

The kilowatt model NGDP ATX 3.1 GOLD from 1STPLAYER takes its rightful place among the “golden” power supplies of the new wave in terms of the main criteria of power quality – efficiency, voltage regulation and ripple range. But in addition to this, it boasts a number of unusual features.

The HA1000-BA4 has two 12V-2×6 connectors, which is currently only relevant for workstations, but in the future there will probably be gaming video cards that will have to be connected to the power supply with two 16+4 cables at once. The insulation of the supplied cables imitates individual braiding, and the power supply unit comes with combs for laying them out. Finally, the hero of the review was distinguished by a surprisingly high power threshold at which the fan starts (at least without load on small lines). This means that the HA1000-BA4 will most often operate silently, but it is better to turn off the semi-passive cooling mode out of harm’s way if the power supply is installed in a cramped case with poor ventilation.