Introduction

We would like to thank Super Flower for supplying the review sample.


It has been about two years since the release of the Leadex II line, and Super Flower has now decided that it is night time for its successor. Among others, Super Flower has vastly improved the performance of the 5VSB rail, making it much more efficient. It has also worked on the semi-passive operation, which now has two modes (0 and 1). However, with overall output noise nearly identical between the two, I didn't notice any significant differences between the two modes of operation.


Super Flower is one of only a few top OEMs with solid high-performance platforms, which are incidentally also key factors for EVGA's success in the PSU market. Thus far, Super Flower doesn't have a retail presence in the US because of a contract it made with EVGA, and given the recent tariffs and the fact that its factory is located in China, I don't see this changing any time soon.


The Leadex III models come in four capacities ranging from 550 W to 850 W. All are fully modular and 80 PLUS (Gold) certified. They are also Cybenetics ETA-A certified for efficiency and LAMBDA-A (20 - 25 dB[A]) certified for noise (for the newer revision which will go into mass production).

Specifications

The Leadex III units are a bit smaller in size than the previous generation, and the same goes for the fan, which is now 130 mm instead of 135 mm in diameter. This is the same fan as in EVGA's G3 models, which are also made by Super Flower.

Cables and Connectors

Two EPS and six PCIe connectors are more than enough for a 850 W power supply. The number of peripheral connectors is adequate, but I don't like the small distance between them. Super Flower should leave at least 150 mm between the SATA and the 4-pin Molex connectors. Finally, the ATX, EPS, and PCIe cables use in-line caps for better ripple suppression. Those caps might improve performance, but also make the cables bulkier, so most users don't like them.

Component Analysis

Super Flower changed the resonant and PWM controllers to achieve better performance and higher efficiency. Only in the 5VSB circuit uses the same PWM controller (but the secondary rectifier is different). The cooling fan's diameter has also been decreased to 130 mm.


Filtering capacitors in the secondary side are provided by Japanese manufacturers, but the KMG and the KRG Chemi-Con caps still have low lifetimes. The latter are installed on the modular PCB, so they won't cause any problems since this is a secondary ripple-filtering layer. Besides electrolytics, a number of polymer caps by Japanese and Taiwanese brands are also used.


Some soldering jobs don't look that great, but they won't affect the PSU's performance and reliability negatively.


The modular board hosts a number of polymer and electrolytic (KRG) caps.


The voltage regulators that handle the minor rails.


The Globe Fan cooling fan features a fluid dynamic bearing.