14 DAY TRIAL // Power supply units come in many sizes, wattages and efficiency ratings, though they tend to stick to certain conventions when it comes to cable loadouts. It's kind of hard to offer something truly new because of that. Be Quiet has still managed it though.
The company has formally introduced the Straight Power 10 (E10-CM) line of mid-range, semi-modular PSUs. And we do mean mid-range. As in, the sort that don't cost an arm and a leg.
Power supply units, like everything else in a capitalistic society, cost more the better and more sophisticated they are.
So, while the Be Quiet Straight Power 10 aren't the most advanced PSUs in the world, they do deserve a second glance, especially since they are, in fact, a lot cheaper than their sort usually are.
You see, PSU makers tend not to bother making PSUs modular, unless they also give those PSUs a high efficiency, and maybe a strong wattage and some more protections than normal.
This all boils down to one thing: modular, even semi-modular PSUs (where not all cables can be detached from the thing) are expensive. More than $100-200 / €100-200 on average.
Be Quiet has managed to release a line of power supply units that sell for less than $100 / €100 though, while boasting semi-modular design and 80 Plus Gold efficiency rating.
That, in case you didn't know, means that the PSUs have an efficiency of up to 87% at 20% load, 90% at 50% load, and 87% at 100% load.
Well, perhaps describing the whole product line this way is a bit of a stretch, since Be Quiet hasn't detailed all the power supplies in the Straight Power 10 collection. Instead, it has only brought out the one with 500W capacity.
It's still a cheap semi-modular PSU though, as far as these things go, and it has a pretty good cable loadout as well, including four 8-pin PCI Express power connectors. Kind of many for just 500W, but we suppose the 80 Plus Gold efficiency makes them worthwhile.
On the flip side, the 500W PSU is supposed to fuel a computer with a single PCI Express graphics card. Maybe Be Quiet was thinking of other, non-graphics add-in-boards when it included those cables, or maybe two are just there as spares.
On that note, the Be Quiet Straight Power 10 PSUs also benefit from a 24-pin ATX, 8-pin EPS and a bunch of SATA cables, plus Molex and Berg connectors, just in case you have some older hardware or need to wire an extra fan to something.