Corsair AX760 760W 80 PLUS Platinum Power Supply Review

Corsair brings more updates to the AX series of power supplies, this time without the DSP and Corsair Link integration.

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Manufacturer: Corsair
6 minutes & 39 seconds read time

Introduction, Specifications, Availability and Pricing

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Last month we took a look at the new AX860i power supply from Corsair. It featured the same digital signal processing, monitoring, and control to that saw in the recently reviewed AX1200i and performed just as well. The AXi series power supplies were not the only ones that Corsair recently introduced so we decided to see what the new AX series could do as well.

Today we are taking a look at the new AX760 power supply from Corsair. It offers 760W of power which is still more than enough to power a pair of video cards these days and plenty more. Corsair claims the new AX series power supplies to be very quiet and very efficient.

Corsair has been putting out awesome power supplies for quite some time now and we have high hopes for the AX760, so let's start digging into what it is all about.

Specifications, Availability and Pricing

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The Corsair AX760 features a single 12V rail that is rated for 63A or 756W. Both the 5.5V and 3.3V rails are rated for 25A each with a maximum combined wattage of 125W. The 5VSB rail is rated for 3A or 15W. Maximum combined output for the AX760 power supply is 760W.

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The Corsair AX760 power supply scores a full list of features when looking at our feature summary. All protections are present, including OTP. The power supply is entirely modular and all cables are either fully sleeved with black mesh or of the flat ribbon variety. The AX760 is rated for 80 PLUS Platinum efficiency and Corsair says the AX760 is capable for 100% continuous output at 50C.

The new AX760 comes to market with a price of $199.99. This puts it towards the more expensive end of the spectrum when looking at 700W-800W power supplies though there are a few that are higher. Corsair stated that the power supply is available, but there are many places that are still acquiring stock of the unit.

A quick search online proves this to be true as the power supply isn't available on Newegg, but is for sale at TigerDirect. TigerDirect obviously knows that there is a limited supply of them at the moment since they are listing the power supply for $219.99 at the time of writing this article. The AX760 features Corsair's impressive seven year warranty.

Packaging

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Corsair doesn't give you much to go with on the front of the box. A few bullet points tell you the unit is fully modular and quiet. Also present is the 80 PLUS Platinum logo in the lower right hand corner.

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Moving around to the back, we find several pieces of useful information here and in many languages, too. At the top we have a decent connector list, but it doesn't specify how many cables there are, just connector quantity and overall cable length.

Also pictured on the left side are two charts. One is for the efficiency of the unit while the other is for the fan. As you can see from the chart, this is one of the reasons that Corsair claims the power supply to be quiet since the fan doesn't even kick on till 70% load. Finally, we have the I/O specifications in the bottom right corner.

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Both sides and the top are blank other than the AX760 logo.

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The bottom gives us a few more pieces of information, including the dimensions. Also shown on the right side is quick overall comparison of all the Corsair power supplies.

Inside the Box

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Corsair packs the AX760 in tightly with a half inch of foam or more around it. Tucked in front of the power supply are the modular cables which make everything fit in very snug.

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You will find the I/O specification label on the top of the AX760.

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Both side of the AX760 feature the same label, but it is inverted on the other side.

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Turning towards the front, we find all of the modular connectors. Also shown here is a fan switch. This allows you to choose whether or not you want the fan on all the time, or only when the power supply needs the additional airflow.

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There is nothing special going on with the back of the power supply. It features the standard honeycomb mesh for hot exhaust air to vent out of.

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On the bottom we find the 120mm fan that cools the power supply with the standard round wire grill.

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All cables fully sleeved with nylon mesh or of the flat ribbon type.

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Paper documents included are the warranty guide and AX760 user manual.

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Rounding out the contents of our box are the case badge, mounting screws and cable ties.

Cabling Arrangement and A Look Inside

Cabling Arrangement

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Corsair provides you with the same set of cables that we saw with the AX860i and it is one of the best selections of cables and connectors that we have ever seen. This is made even better since the entire power supply is modular.

The dual ATX 4+4 cables are always nice to see on anything above 700W. Corsair includes two types of PCI-E cables so that you're not left with extra connectors hanging randomly in your case. The first pair of PCI-E cables feature dual PCI-E connectors on the, one chained off the other. The second pair of PCI-E cables features just a single PCI-E connector in case you have a lower end card that requires a single PCI-E connector or something like the recently reviewed PowerColor DEVIL13 Radeon HD 7990 that requires 3-PCI-E connectors.

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The Corsair AX760 features a single 12V rail so there isn't much to talk about here.

A Look Inside

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This top down shot gives us a good glimpse at the inside of the power supply. There isn't much in the way of passive cooling, but what is here is more than sufficient. One of the benefits of increased efficiency is reduced heat output.

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A single Nippon Chemi-Con capacitor sits on the primary side of the AX760 power supply.

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More Nippon Chemi-Con capacitors are soldered in on the secondary side.

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Corsair utilizes the 120mm San Ace fan manufactured by Sanyo Denki to actively cool the AX760.

Test Results and Final Thoughts

Test Results

Our load tests utilize a couple of FAST ATE active load testers and a variety of other equipment such as an oscilloscope, power conditioner, temperature probe and a power consumption meter. You can read more about our standard testing approach here.

The tests performed are based around six conceivable setups that are out there and progressively load down the PSU up to the power supply's limits or 1000W, whichever comes first. Since our test equipment's limits are higher than that of the Corsair AX760 power supply, we can test it to the maximum.

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The above tests represent typical loads that we have measured from various systems and are meant to give a rough idea of where your computer might fall in line with our tests. Please keep in mind that each system is different and actual loads can vary greatly even with similar hardware.

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As usual, we start by taking a look at the voltages to see how well the unit performed during testing. Looking at the 12V rail, we see that the voltage stayed within 1% throughout all the tests with a total voltage drop of .06. The 5V rail managed to do just the same, staying within 1% and having a total voltage drop of .03 from start to finish. Rounding out the voltage regulation tests, we find that the 3.3V rail was within 2% of specifications and had a total voltage drop of .03V

DC Output quality for the Corsair AX760 was great and well within specification. During Test 1, we saw 19mV of noise on our scope. When we increased the loads in Test 3, the ripple climbed to 24mV at a little overhalf load. During Test 5 under a load of 760W, the oscilloscope showed a maximum of 31mv on noise on the 12V rail.

The Corsair AX760 is rated for 80 PLUS Platinum efficiency. This means that the power supply must perform at 90%/92%/89% efficiency at 20%/50%/100% loads respectively. As you can see, the AX760 passed on our bench and wasn't close to failing at any point.

The fan also performed just as Corsair said it would. The power supply operated in fanless mode until the power supply was at a load of about 530W and then it kicked on. Once it was operational, the fan was not audible over the rest of the test equipment.

Final Thoughts

It is very clear that Corsair knows exactly what enthusiasts want and need in a power supply. Their AXi series power supplies are a testament to this, but they don't stop there. Their attention to quality and detail carry over into other products and the new AX760 is a direct result of that quality and detail.

The AX760 power supply performed superbly through everything that we put it through. The voltage regulation offered is nothing short of spectacular, especially since things were so close to being within 1% of specification across the board.

The results for the DC output quality weren't quite as good as I had hope for, but are still excellent results, coming in with just over 30mV on the 12V rail. The AX760 is every bit of efficient as they claim it to be as well.

Add in the seven year warranty and you've got one heck of a package that is going to be hard to beat, and it is going to take a lower price point to do so. The price is also the one drawback to the Corsair AX760. At an MSRP of $199.99, it is quite pricey for a 700W-800W power supply, especially considering there are several other power supplies on the market with similar build quality and performance characteristics.

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Zac provides professional IT support by day, but plays the role of enthusiast by night. He's been building high-end custom computer for the nearly fifteen years and writing PC hardware reviews for the better part of a decade. Aside from computers, he also dabbles in quite a bit of home A/V equipment. Throughout the years, Zac has picked up an extensive knowledge of power circuitry and leverages this to provide the PSU reviews. When not found testing or writing, you can often find him speeding through the winding countryside on his motorcycle.

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