Specifications

The unit peaks at 1050 W, which is 50 W higher than its nominal capacity. Peak power should, for all of you that may not know, only be applied for short periods of time because it could damage the PSU in a way that is not the PSU's or manufacturer's fault. You had better buy a stronger PSU if you need one instead of putting such a hefty load on your current unit.

The Power Zone 1000 W is Bronze certified, although its topology (two Active Clamp Reset Forward power switches) can easily reach even Gold efficiency. be quiet! was rather conservative in this matter for their own reasons. Thankfully, they were not as conservative with the unit's other features since it is fully modular and, due to its design, Haswell compatible. The unit can also output its full power continuously at up to 50°C ambient, which is as the ATX spec recommends.

All popular protection features equip this PSU, including OTP (Over Temperature Protection), and the cooling fan is of incredibly high quality since it uses Fluid Dynamic Bearings, which are the best fan bearings available. However, be quiet! chose a powerful and rather noisy fan running high speeds, and we think a slower fan would do just fine without compromising the PSU's stability or longevity.

The PSU is a little larger than normal since it is 17.5 cm long, which any modern ATX case can accommodate. The compatibility section tells us that it supports the latest ATX spec (v2.4), and the unit comes with a five year warranty, a period usually reserved for high-end products. The Power Zone 1000 W's efficiency may make it look like an entry level model, but take a look at its other features and its high price and you will probably start to wonder what is going on. At 190$ MSRP, it definitely plays ball in the high-end region, against Gold and even Platinum competitors. Things then don't look so good for be quiet's product on paper, but we won't criticize its admittedly high price tag before finishing all test sessions for a ton of solid data we can gauge it by.

Like every PSU utilizing a modern platform, this unit can deliver its full power at +12V alone. With 83 A maximum current output, the aforementioned rail is pretty strong, and the same applies to the minor rails which can deliver up to 170 W power combined. The 5VSB rail could be a little stronger, but 3 A current output should be enough to cover most needs.

Cables & Connectors, Power Distribution

There are enough connectors for the capacity of this unit, but more and more 1 kW PSUs are lately equipped with eight PCIe connectors, though we think six PCIe connectors adequate for this particular PSU because of its target audience. Cable length is adequate and distance among connectors is pretty long, but some might prefer SATA connectors that are a little closer to one another.

The 24-pin ATX connector is mostly equipped with 18AWG wires, though we spotted some 20AWG and very few 22AWG wires. The latter are used for voltage sense purposes, hence their smaller thickness. The EPS and PCIe connectors use thicker 16AWG gauges, while all others use standard 18AWG wires.

Since this PSU features a single +12V rail, we have nothing to comment on when it comes to its power distribution.