We decided to disassemble this power supply to see if it internally is really different from generic power supplies. Please read our Anatomy of Switching Power Supplies tutorial to understand how a power supply works and to compare this power supply to a generic one.
In this page, we will have an overall look, while in the next page we will discuss in details the quality and rating of the components used.
We can point out several differences between this power supply and a low-end (a.k.a. “generic”) one: the construction quality of the printed circuit board (PCB); the use of more components on the transient filtering stage; the active PFC circuitry; the use of a thermal sensor on the power diodes heatsink for controlling the fan speed and for shutting down the power supply in case of overheating; the power rating of all components; the design; etcetera.
In Figure 6 you can have an overall look this power supply from inside.
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Figure 6: Inside Cooler Master iGreen Power 430 W.
On Figure 7 you have a better shot of the 120 mm fan used on this power supply, and on Figure 8 the circuit used to control it. As mentioned, the fan speed is controlled according to the power supply inner temperature and load.
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Figure 7: Fan.
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Figure 8: Fan control circuit.
In the next page we will have a more detailed discussion of the components used in the iGreen Power 430 W.
