SilverStone has announced new models for its Essential series of PSUs, which aim to bring quality to a lower pricing level than the more premium offerings, and allow SilverStone to cater to the high-volume market at the same time. These PSUs are Sirtec-made, and do cut some corners in order to address some aggressive pricing targets. Case in point: SilverStone rates these PSUs for 40ºC operation, a full 10ºC lower than the ATX specification defines, and includes only a few protections, namely Over Power, Over Voltage, and Short Circuit. The lacking OTP (Over Temperature Protection) would seem to be the best feature for such a model with a lower-rated operating temperature, but alas, this is what SilverStone offers.

The ET-550B, ET-650B are 80 Plus Bronze certified, and their +12V rails can deliver 504 and 600 W respectively. Their combined +3.3, +5V rating stands at 110 W for the 550B, and 120 W for the 650B. The cabling is fixed on both options, black-braided, and cooling is taken care of by tour average 120 mm Sleeve Bearing Fan. The PCIe connectors stand at 2x PCIe (1x 6+2 pin, 1x 6 pin) for the ET-550B, while the ET-650B doubles that amount to two of each. The dimensions stand at 150 mm (W) x 86 mm (H) x 140 mm (D). European pricing seems to be the sweet spot for these PSUs, with the 550B coming in at around 53,50€ and the 650B upping the ante to 60,60€ (prices excluding VAT, however.) In the US, I don't expect these to sell well if they keep their pricing, where the 650B currently retails for $90.