Seasonic S12 II 520: Review | Test |Specs | CPU | Hashrate| Prose & Cons | Set-Up

Seasonic S12 II 520: Review | Test |Specs | CPU | Hashrate| Prose & Cons | Set-Up – It’s been a few months since I last got my hands on a diet from these gentlemen from Seasonic, it’s done today! After the excellent Snow Silent 750 (tested here) which is the crème de la crème of what we can find (for the moment) on the market, I will set about presenting the large entry-level model to you. brand public, I named the S12 II 520! The S12 series is not very young with its debut over 10 years ago, followed by version II a few years later, since the platform has changed very little, not that Seasonic has fallen asleep on its laurels but reliability being there there was no real need to touch the beast.

On the program a 520 Watts power supply, equipped with the 80Plus Bronze certification, non-modular and with a small update that arrived this year, namely a honeycomb grille and a fan supposed to be quieter than the old one. Offered at a price of around 70 € I have recommended it many times in the configurations requested on the forum, a little more expensive than competing entry-level power supplies (such as Hexa FSPs for example) but of a very different quality , let’s see what she has in her stomach!

The front of the box is rather sober, a photo of the block is present as well as the brand, the name of the model and a sticker of the power. There are also various logos, including the 800Plus Bronze certification.

At the back a listing of the different strengths of the beast, namely a high efficiency (thank you for the 80Plus Bronze certification), high-end Japanese 105 ° capacitors, a “FDB” bearing fan (which is the main modification of the latest revision) etc … Note that the warranty is 3 years on this model against 5 and 7 years for more high-end power supplies.

On the side we find on the one hand a sticker showing the power distribution table and on the other hand a listing of the protections in place and the available connectors.

When opening, we find ourselves facing the manual placed on a thick foam that contains the power supply unit, like 100% of the power supplies from Seasonic 🙂

The bundle is made up of:

• 1 x Seasonic S12 II 520 power supply
• 1 x 8-pin CPU extension cable
• 1 x power cord
• 1 x Seasonic sticker
• 1 x manual
• 8 x plastic cable ties
• 3 x Seasonic “scratch” cable ties
• 4 x screws

To be honest I did not expect such a bundle for the entry level from Seasonic, we really have everything you need, including an 8-pin CPU extension which will be very useful for those who have a spacious case.

Here is the beast! It is clear that nothing here is made for the flashy, the S12 II is all black with a honeycomb-shaped grille above the fan. Note also that the unit is really compact with its 14 cm length, this will be a plus for those who have a case in which space is limited. The build quality is there even if we are facing the entry level of the manufacturer.

Grid in the shape of a honeycomb, black fan, black casing, everything is done so that the beast blends into its environment: p Once again the build quality is there, nothing sticks out and everything looks solid .

What about the side opposite the fan? Not much to tell the truth, it’s black!

One side is devoid of any artifice while on the other a sticker is present showing the logos of use and a table of the distribution of power.

Power supply with fixed cables means there are no modular connectors here! There is only the S12 II logo and a small “Silent 12 cm Fan series”.

Ladies and gentlemen, sobriety has been violated here with the presence of a blue sticker and an agented Seasonic logo! Apart from that everything is classic here with a large grid in the shape of a honeycomb to evacuate the hot air from the bowels of the beast.

The now known and recognized design of the Seasonic S12 II which has been taken up by many different brands (Corsair, XFX and so on), quality Japanese capacitors and an excellent finish.

And here is the big change of the last revision, the “FDB” bearing fan, supposed to be quieter than the old ball bearing while keeping an excellent lifespan, well this is the same one as we find on the Snow Silent (but which is in white), the HA1225M12F-Z from Hong Hua running at a maximum speed of 2050 RPM for a given consumption of 5.4 Watts.

Cables

Specification: Seasonic S12 II 520

Non-modular power supply forces the whole thing to look like an octopus! The number of cables and connectors will be sufficient for almost all market configurations with 2 x PCIe 6 + 2-pin, 8 x Sata, 4 x Molex as well as of course the obligatory 24-pin and 4 + 4- pin, a floppy drive connector also slipped into the heap even though it hasn’t really been used for years now.

The length of the cables is more than correct and should be able to adapt to any type of case, the 4 + 4-pin CPU with its original 55 cm is a bit short but as I said Seasonic added a 20 cm extension in the bundle, so no problem on that side.

Hashrate: Seasonic S12 II 520

Another evolution with this new revision of the S12 II the cables (other than the 24-pin) are flat, so they will be easier to store in a configuration, although I prefer the look of sheathed cables, but it’s all a question of tastes!

Seasonic S12 II 520
Power	480 Watts for the + 12V 130 Watts for the + 3.3V and +5 V combined 9.6 Watts on the -12V 12.5 Watts on the + 5Vsb
Number of 12v rails	2 x 20A
Certification
Maximum yield	85% / 88% / 85% at 20% / 50% / 100% load
Fan	Hong Hua HA1225M12F-Z (FDB type bearing)
Sound level	Not disclosed
Modular	No
Protections	OPP, OVP, UVP, SCP
Dimensions	140 x 150 x 86 mm
Format	ATX
MTBF	150,000 hours at 25 °
Capacitors	Japanese
Guarantee	3 years
Price	~ 70 € incl.

The Seasonic S12 II 520 is therefore equipped with the 80Plus Bronze certification ensuring a maximum efficiency of 88% at 50% load (certification for Europe), which should ensure low consumption and heat release, without necessarily achieving at the level of Gold or Platinum power supplies of course. As usual with the power supplies which are not “high end” the 12V does not fully reflect the power for which it is sold with a total of 480 Watts distributed over 2 rails of 20A each, nothing that is however abusive as we can see it in some competitors.
The ventilation is entrusted to a fan “FDB” from Hong Hua which should prove particularly silent (as long as it does not turn fully of course!).
Regarding the dimensions the S12 II 520 is very compact with only 14 cm of depth, which will be particularly suitable for boxes that do not have a lot of space available.
Offered at a price of around € 70 the entry-level Seasonic has something to do with it, but you have to see what this gives in practice, even if it should only be a formality given the number of times I have had deal with this architecture 😉

The test platform

The Seasonic S12 II 520 power supply has been tested on the configuration below:

• Processor : Intel Core i7 875K @ 3.2 Ghz
• Motherboard : Asus P7P55D
• Memory : Kingston HyperX 4 x 2 GB 1600Mhz
• Hard Drive: WD Raptor 150 GB
• Graphics card : Sapphire Toxic 5850

The test protocol

The core i7 875K has been slightly overclocked to 3.2Ghz. The load readings were taken at the outlet during an OCCT Power Supply test, the idle readings were taken after 15mins on the desk.

The power supply has been tested against:

• Antec Edge 650 (tested here)
• be quiet! Dark Power Pro 11 850 (tested here)
• be quiet! E9 580CM (tested here)
• be quiet! L8 Pure Power 500 (tested here)
• be quiet! Straight Power 10 500 CM (tested here)
• Cooler Master V550 (tested here)
• Corsair CS450M (tested here)
• Corsair RM550x (tested here)
• Corsair RM750i (tested here)
• Cyonix Au-650X (tested here)
• FSP Aurum PT 1200 (tested here)
• FSP Aurum S 500 (tested here)
• FSP Hyper M 500 (tested here)
• Seasonic S12 600 (from 2006)
• Seasonic G550 (tested here)
• Seasonic X650 (v1 of 2010)
• Seasonic X650 KM3 (tested here)
• Seasonic P660 (tested here)
• Seasonic Platinum 460FL (tested here)
• Seasonic Snow Silent 750 (tested here)
• Silverstone NightJar 520 (tested here)
• Silverstone SX500-LG (tested here)
• Silverstone SFX SX600-G (tested here)
• Silverstone Strider Essential 600 (tested here)
• Silverstone Strider Platinum 550 (tested here)
• Silverstone Strider Plus 600 (tested here)
• Silverstone Strider S 1500 (tested here)
• Silverstone SX-600 G (tested here)
• XFX TS-550 Bronze (tested here)
• XFX XTR 550 (tested here)

The consumption

Before starting, let’s take a look at the performance of the power supplies compared to the Seasonic S12 II 520, indeed the different 80Plus certifications will directly influence consumption, so this will be a good way to have concrete results. Only the S12 600 (this did not yet exist at the time of purchase (but the following versions of this power supply had the classic 80Plus certification, so 80% / 80% / 80% at respectively 20% / 50% / 100% of load)) and FSP Hyper M 500 do not have 80Plus certification.

As we can see the performance of the Seasonic S12 II 520 is clearly not bad, even very far from it! Indeed it almost tickles the 80Plus Gold power supplies under load with its 356 Watts as well as at rest with 78 Watts, it goes without saying that these results are very good for a power supply which has “only” an 80Plus Bronze certification. . As usual, the power supply is not pushed to its limits with the test configuration, but it represents what is done in a high-end configuration designed for games nowadays, so what 99% of users are likely to pull at the socket.
Note that the consumption was read at the plug and for the complete configuration, under load for example and on the 356 Watts “drawn” to the socket the components only consume between 320 and 330 Watts of the 520 Watts available.

The tensions

The Seasonic S12 II 520 does not react in the same way as the power supplies tested previously, in fact we are more used to seeing the values ​​drop between rest and load, but not here! The 12V follows the trend by going from 12.29V at rest to 12.20V in load while the 5V goes from 5.12V at rest to 5.16V in load and the 3.3V from 3.31V to 3.34V.
Of course we are not in the presence here of a high-end power supply which is worth 2 or 3 times the price of the Seasonic S12 II 520 so we should not expect tensions of foolproof stability but despite all the values ​​are very good and there really is not the slightest problem to be done.

Noise pollution

Warning: Part to be taken with a grain of salt, unfortunately not having access to the appropriate equipment and using an android application to take the readings the measurements below are only indicative! The readings were taken 15cm from the feed.

Here is the main change made by Seasonic, we must admit that the result is quite satisfactory! At rest, the power supply is inaudible, only a very slight rolling noise is heard with the ear glued to the fan (which disappears at 15 cm). Under load it is difficult to reach 33 dB, which will be clearly inaudible also locked in a box, it will be drowned out by the noise of the fans of the graphics card and the processor. Note however that the power supply is not pushed to its limits so that could change with a graphics card consuming more (of the type R9 290 / 290X for example).

Here we are at the end of this test, what to say about the Seasonic S12 II 520?
Seasonic, known for its excellent quality power supplies, does not only make very high-end products, the S12 II 520 is the perfect example! Despite the “entry-level” orientation, we are faced with a very well finished product, quality internal components, a good fan, stable as well as very good performance.
However, the deadlock has been made here on modular cables, it will be necessary to be satisfied with a bunch of non-removable cables.
Offered at a price of around 70 € it is clear that a person looking for a quality power supply, with a recognized internal design at a reasonable price will not be wrong in choosing the Seasonic S12 II 520, whether it is a game configuration or office automation, as long as we can do without modularity!

The +

• Build quality
• Silence
• Stability (for its category)
• Internal components

A big thank you to Sabine from Seasonic who allowed me to do this test.

Where to find the Seasonic S12 II 520?

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