Thortech Thunderbolt Plus 1000 W Review 0

Thortech Thunderbolt Plus 1000 W Review

Ripple Measurements »

Advanced Transient Response Tests

In these tests we monitor the response of the PSU in two different scenarios. First a transient load (11A at +12V, 5A at 5V, 6A at 3.3V and 0.5A at 5VSB) is applied for 50 ms to the PSU, while the latter is working at a 20% load state. In the second scenario the PSU, while working with 50% load, is hit by the same transient load. In both tests, we measure the voltage drops that the transient load causes, using our oscilloscope. In any case voltages should remain within the regulation limits specified by the ATX specification. We must stress here, that the above tests are crucial, since they simulate transient loads that a PSU is very likely to handle (e.g. starting of a RAID array, an instant 100% load of CPU/VGAs etc.) We call these tests “Advanced Transient Response Tests” and they are designed to be very tough to master, especially for PSUs with capacities lower than 500W.

Advanced Transient Response 20%
VoltageBeforeAfterChangePass/Fail
12 V12.125V12.014V0.92%Pass
5 V5.129V5.003V2.46%Pass
3.3 V3.354V3.237V3.49%Pass
5VSB5.118V5.049V1.35%Pass


Advanced Transient Response 50%
VoltageBeforeAfterChangePass/Fail
12 V12.035V11.923V0.93%Pass
5 V5.082V4.968V2.24%Pass
3.3 V3.300V3.183V3.55%Pass
5VSB5.091V5.023V1.33%Pass


In all tests voltage drops are low, so the registered variations are away from the 5% limit. The +12V rail, the most important of all and the one that will have to handle the heaviest dynamic loads in a system, registered under 1% deviation at both tests. This is not the lowest we have seen of course, by a high capacity unit, but still is good enough.


Below you will find the oscilloscope screenshots that we took during Advanced Transient Response Testing.

Transient Response at 20% Load



Transient Response at 50% Load




Turn-On Transient Tests

In the next set of tests we measure the response of the PSU in simpler scenarios of transient loads, during the turn on phase of the PSU. In the first test we turn off the PSU, dial 2A load at 5VSB and then switch on the PSU. In the second test, while the PSU is in standby, we dial the maximum load that +12V can handle and we start the PSU. In the last test, while the PSU is completely switched off (we cut off power or switch off the PSU's On/Off switch), we dial the maximum load that +12V can handle and then we switch on the PSU from the loader and we restore power. The ATX specification states that recorded spikes on all rails should not exceed 10% of their nominal values (e.g. +10% for 12V is 13.2V and for 5V is 5.5V).


In these tests some noticeable voltage overshoots were recorded, but thankfully these were not close to the corresponding limits. At 5VSB the spike reached 5.3V while on the +12V rail, in worst case scenario, it reached 12.6V, a high reading but still far away from the limit (13.2V). Overall we can't say that the unit impressed us with its performance here since we expected much smaller or no spikes, a scenario that was usually the case for most of the high-end units we have reviewed in the past.
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Aug 29th, 2024 23:25 EDT change timezone

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