BeQuiet PSU (Seal sticker)

[Hellfire]

Hi,

quick favour, I think I may have been passed off a RMA/Refurb PSU as brand new, Can anyone with a legitimate BeQuiet PSU (ideally straight power 11) confirm if this is the seal sticker they use? (note the seal is broken in my PSU that's because I broke the seal

 

[Jacky_BEL]

Don't have the packaging anymore , but it looks OK.
I remember opening the box without damaging was tricky because the way the cardboard was sealed with the sticker.
So if you didn't see anything suspicious before opening, I think it was original.

 

[Hellfire]

Don't have the packaging anymore , but it looks OK.
I remember opening the box without damaging was tricky because the way the cardboard was sealed with the sticker.
So if you didn't see anything suspicious before opening, I think it was original.

Yeah the reason I am concerned is the PSU has blown on my within two hours of use and trips my entire electrics when I plug it in, also the retailer, upon investigating is very very suspect and other reports that they may be selling open box or returns as new products.

It also didn't come with a UK power lead, just a random one thrown in the box

 

[Jacky_BEL]

Powercables are normally folded neatly and held together with a twisted wire.

 

[Hellfire]

Powercables are normally folded neatly and held together with a twisted wire.

Yes inside the PSU box, this wasn't it was outside the main box and just inside the shipping box wrapped in bubble wrap

 

[Bill_Bright]

Where did you buy it from? That will likely be your best clue.

Many PSU manufacturers use more than one manufacturing factory and so may use different type of tamper indicators. They may use different types in the same factory with different production runs. No way of telling.

I suspect if you tried to peal that off, it would shred and not come off cleanly. So no way, IMO, did anyone peel off that sticker and re-apply it. And if there was a different sticker on there before, I suspect you could see evidence of that through residue from the old sticker, or marks indicating tampering.

It is important to note that until Man can create perfection 100% of the time, even the best models from the best makers will have a unit that does not meet specs, or fails prematurely. Call BeQuiet. They can check the serial number to see when made and if still under warranty - or if already registered by someone else.

The power cable may not indicate anything. That depends on where the distribution center was located. If in Germany, as an example, they were just doing you a favor by throwing in a UK cable WITHOUT actually opening the box. And that's a good thing.

 

[Jacky_BEL]

I don't know if BeQuiet has an option to select EU or UK powercables upon ordering.
Mayby there is a checkbox sticker on the box, marking what powercable is inside?

 

[Hellfire]

Where did you buy it from? That will likely be your best clue.

Many PSU manufacturers use more than one manufacturing factory and so may use different type of tamper indicators. They may use different types in the same factory with different production runs. No way of telling.

I suspect if you tried to peal that off, it would shred and not come off cleanly. So no way, IMO, did anyone peel off that sticker and re-apply it. And if there was a different sticker on there before, I suspect you could see evidence of that through residue from the old sticker, or marks indicating tampering.

It is important to note that until Man can create perfection 100% of the time, even the best models from the best makers will have a unit that does not meet specs, or fails prematurely. Call BeQuiet. They can check the serial number to see when made and if still under warranty - or if already registered by someone else.

The power cable may not indicate anything. That depends on where the distribution center was located. If in Germany, as an example, they were just doing you a favor by throwing in a UK cable WITHOUT actually opening the box. And that's a good thing.

Both very good points. Re warranty I'm already returning to the reseller for a full refund (UK law grants is that) but its been difficult and the reseller is trying to add on fees, didn't want to pay for return etc initially.


A lot of suspect information has come to light from this retailer due to this, whilst listed on sites like PCPartPicker they're not as big as they make out and the owner also owns a "refurb specialist" website which caused more suspicions and for me to be concerned

 

[Bill_Bright]

I don't know if BeQuiet has an option to select EU or UK powercables upon ordering.
Mayby there is a checkbox sticker on the box, marking what powercable is inside?

Nah! Power supplies in particular are packaged for the global market with only the most common connectors. This way they only have to keep in inventory, PSUs for the North America and EU, for example. From a logistics viewpoint, that is just 2 part numbers to inventory. Then, depending on the shipping address, if a different cable is needed, they just toss it in.

Otherwise, they have to keep inventory for dozens of different part numbers where the only difference is the cable. Those cable cost pennies to make. So much cheaper to have just a couple PSUs with dozens of cables. Remember, those same cables work for monitors, TVs and many other electronics too.

 

[Hellfire]

Nah! Power supplies in particular are packaged for the global market with only the most common connectors. This way they only have to keep in inventory, PSUs for the North America and EU, for example. From a logistics viewpoint, that is just 2 part numbers to inventory. Then, depending on the shipping address, if a different cable is needed, they just toss it in.

Otherwise, they have to keep inventory for dozens of different part numbers where the only difference is the cable. Those cable cost pennies to make. So much cheaper to have just a couple PSUs with dozens of cables. Remember, those same cables work for monitors, TVs and many other electronics too.

every PSU I order over here has a UK cable inside the box, was odd this one didn't

 

[Bill_Bright]

Like I said before, it depends on where the distribution center is. I note BeQuiet is a German company.

 

[thewan]

Like I said before, it depends on where the distribution center is. I note BeQuiet is a German company.

This person has shown multiple times that he has no idea what is he talking about and he just feels he has this "duty" to to reply regardless of whether the contents of his reply makes sense or not. Ignore him.

If you buy an electrical product intended to be sold in your region, instead of some grey import or whatever, it can be illegal depending local laws to put the wrong plug type in the box. Also yes when buying PSUs I have yet to see the wrong plug head in the box ever. And besides Mr Bright, no one else has cited the same problems as far as I can see. Maybe PSU manufacturers hate him. Unless on purpose you bought it from a distributor that imports it directly from another market with a different plug type. Or maybe like you said, its a sign of back-in-box/refurbishment where some of these shady companies bring them in from other markets to have some amount of consistent stock.

When you say there was no power lead, do you mean there was no power lead at all in the box? Or there was a power lead, but not the correct one for your country/region?

Briefly googling your particular model for reviews, both written reviews and some videos, confirms that they have the exact design of seal sticker as yours. Its not really hard to fake "original" seal stickers though.

 

[Bill_Bright]

This person has shown multiple times that he has no idea what is he talking about and he just feels he has this "duty" to to reply regardless of whether the contents of his reply makes sense or not. Ignore him.

Gee whiz. It is really sad when you see someone who has such low self-esteem that, in an attempt to make them look superior, join a thread to lash out at others with puerile personal insults. When someone poses a different opinion, or something they disagree with, it is sad they cannot just maturely debate the technical facts. Frankly, I pity them.

If what I said does not make sense to you, thewan, then I am sorry! It would seem you simply lack the experience to have seen it. That is not a criticism, just an observation. Just because you never saw something, that does not mean it is not true or does not exist.

@Hellfire - You can choose to believe who you want. I do not know exactly what happened. I can only offer a plausible explanation. BeQuiet! is a German company based in Germany. Assuming the PSU was not a returned "open box" or "refurbished" unit, it seems likely the retailer you ordered the supply from bought them from a German distributor or directly from BeQuiet! And that seller did the right thing by including the proper cable.

You can check the link in my sig to see if I might know a little about what I am talking about. I can only add that I used to live in Isleham and Mildenhall, East Anglia, UK where I worded as an electronics technician maintaining air traffic control radio systems. Over the years I also lived in Portugal and Germany, and spent many "temporary duty" months in several other countries, installing and maintaining various IS/IT systems.

We regularly ordered parts from Germany and the US and it was not uncommon to have to change connectors and input voltages for the local mains connectors - again - depending on the manufacturer's and/or distribution center's location.

it can be illegal depending local laws to put the wrong plug type in the box.

Illegal? Nonsense! Almost all, if not all computer PSUs sold today are "universal". That is, they support input voltages from 100VAC up to 240VAC and 50 or 60Hz (many with automatic selection). Plus, they have detachable power cords just so they can make one supply for the whole world, then just provide the necessary cord for the intended market. The OP was provided the correct cord.

It would only be illegal is a product was marketed for a specific region, but intentionally omitted the necessary cables with the intent of forcing the consumer to pay more for the correct cables. That did not happen here.

 

[caroline!]

I had the 700W and the box had stickers and also a plastic wrap around. If it didn't come with the wrap and the stickers were broken then the PSU was used. If it was refurbished then the box would still have the stickers fine because the service centers have them.

It also didn't come with a UK power lead, just a random one thrown in the box

American? also this shouldn't matter because the PSU is full range, works in any country.

A lot of suspect information has come to light from this retailer due to this, whilst listed on sites like PCPartPicker they're not as big as they make out and the owner also owns a "refurb specialist" website which caused more suspicions and for me to be concerned

My theory? PSU was used and damaged already, probably from mining, before you got it. The shady seller cleaned it and put it back in the box without caring for the stickers, and in his greed tossed in a random power cable just so he could sell the original that came with the PSU. If you go to the store check if he has power cables for sale, if it's a shady small business then they're probably just all together in a box or hanging from a nail.
I know them too well in my country.

the PSU has blown on my within two hours of use and trips my entire electrics when I plug it in

One thing I'm interested in. When you plug it in, does the fuse on the plug burn? or are you using a 13 amp? if the breaker trips and the fuse is intact then its rating is incorrect, aka too "big". For a PSU like that the fuse should be 5 or 7 amps.

 

[Hellfire]

Gee whiz. It is really sad when you see someone who has such low self-esteem that, in an attempt to make them look superior, join a thread to lash out at others with puerile personal insults. When someone poses a different opinion, or something they disagree with, it is sad they cannot just maturely debate the technical facts. Frankly, I pity them.

If what I said does not make sense to you, thewan, then I am sorry! It would seem you simply lack the experience to have seen it. That is not a criticism, just an observation. Just because you never saw something, that does not mean it is not true or does not exist.

@Hellfire - You can choose to believe who you want. I do not know exactly what happened. I can only offer a plausible explanation. BeQuiet! is a German company based in Germany. Assuming the PSU was not a returned "open box" or "refurbished" unit, it seems likely the retailer you ordered the supply from bought them from a German distributor or directly from BeQuiet! And that seller did the right thing by including the proper cable.

You can check the link in my sig to see if I might know a little about what I am talking about. I can only add that I used to live in Isleham and Mildenhall, East Anglia, UK where I worded as an electronics technician maintaining air traffic control radio systems. Over the years I also lived in Portugal and Germany, and spent many "temporary duty" months in several other countries, installing and maintaining various IS/IT systems.

We regularly ordered parts from Germany and the US and it was not uncommon to have to change connectors and input voltages for the local mains connectors - again - depending on the manufacturer's and/or distribution center's location.


Illegal? Nonsense! Almost all, if not all computer PSUs sold today are "universal". That is, they support input voltages from 100VAC up to 240VAC and 50 or 60Hz (many with automatic selection). Plus, they have detachable power cords just so they can make one supply for the whole world, then just provide the necessary cord for the intended market. The OP was provided the correct cord.

It would only be illegal is a product was marketed for a specific region, but intentionally omitted the necessary cables with the intent of forcing the consumer to pay more for the correct cables. That did not happen here.

Hey Bill, Don't worry I do appreciate your replies. I work in IT too so I understand where you're coming from, I was working so rushed some replies so I will clarify a few things.

I imagine the PSU may have come from the German distributor directly, Possibly, But given information I've discovered (not mentioned here) I had reasons to doubt the authenticity of the brand new PSU, I am a little dubious still.


The PSU DID come with a EU lead in the box, the UK lead was external, Completely agree it's the correct thing to do but this is the first PSU I've purchased that hasn't included the UK lead in the box ranging from MSI, Seasonic, XFX, Aerocool, Corsair and more, heck I purchased a BeQuiet Straightpower 9 for my sons new rig last week and the UK Lead came inside the box. so this was odd,

Re the legalities, it is a legal requirement to include a UK lead or adapter with any electronic sold in the UK (The Plugs and Sockets etc. (Safety) Regulations 1994) BUT the retailer in this case did comply with the law as he included a UK lead with the package, the retailer do anything wrong here, however, the absence of the cord along with other things pointed to concerns about the status of the PSU, the other being is the retailer also runs a refurbished parts business from the same address.

 

[Bill_Bright]

but this is the first PSU I've purchased that hasn't included the UK lead in the box ranging from MSI, Seasonic, XFX, Aerocool, Corsair and more, heck I purchased a BeQuiet Straightpower 9 for my sons new rig last week and the UK Lead came inside the box. so this was odd,

I admit it is odd. It is not like the UK is a tiny market. Blame it COVID. It seems anything having to do with availability of products gets blamed on COVID any way. Or maybe it's a BREXIT/EU thing.

Since this could be an issue with the retailer giving you a returned/refurbished thing - check your receipt and order invoice and make sure you did pay for a "new" supply. If you did, and still suspect you got an open box, you may need to contact that retailer - or even file a complaint with BeQuiet themselves - since they don't want the bad publicity especially if not their fault.

That said, many returned products were returned simply because they were the wrong color or wrong size and not due to any defect.

 

[Hellfire]

I had the 700W and the box had stickers and also a plastic wrap around. If it didn't come with the wrap and the stickers were broken then the PSU was used. If it was refurbished then the box would still have the stickers fine because the service centers have them.

No shrink wrap, and the label was intact, but it also looks like a generic label which concerned me, ie non branded.

American? also this shouldn't matter because the PSU is full range, works in any country.

No EU plug inside the box, no UK 3 pin plug, which is rare for the UK. Of course I understand the PSU is fine power wise, it runs 100-240v so no issues using a US psu in the UK ect.

My theory? PSU was used and damaged already, probably from mining, before you got it. The shady seller cleaned it and put it back in the box without caring for the stickers, and in his greed tossed in a random power cable just so he could sell the original that came with the PSU. If you go to the store check if he has power cables for sale, if it's a shady small business then they're probably just all together in a box or hanging from a nail.
I know them too well in my country.

My theory was this too, Other people have complained of dirty, broken/used products from this retailer, he also operates a refurbished parts business from the same address.

One thing I'm interested in. When you plug it in, does the fuse on the plug burn? or are you using a 13 amp? if the breaker trips and the fuse is intact then its rating is incorrect, aka too "big". For a PSU like that the fuse should be 5 or 7 amps.

No the 13amp socket from the cable it came with, plus the 13amp in the spares I have do not blow. they're fine. I've also tried on several different power supplies ie different electrical circuits and through a UPS, each time the PSU is turned on (even when empty with no cables in) you flip the switch on the rear of the PSU the PSU pops (OCP I am guessing) and the main circuit breaker on the house (or the circuit breaker on the UPS) trips and needs resetting.

It's funny as the main fuses in the house fuse box are 24amp and the UPS has 20amp rating, these pop but the cable fuses don't blow (multiple cables used)

I admit it is odd. It is not like the UK is a tiny market. Blame it COVID. It seems anything having to do with availability of products gets blamed on COVID any way. Or maybe it's a BREXIT/EU thing.

Since this could be an issue with the retailer giving you a returned/refurbished thing - check your receipt and order invoice and make sure you did pay for a "new" supply. If you did, and still suspect you got an open box, you may need to contact that retailer - or even file a complaint with BeQuiet themselves - since they don't want the bad publicity especially if not their fault.

That said, many returned products were returned simply because they were the wrong color or wrong size and not due to any defect.

Oh I am already going through the returns process with the retailer due to being faulty goods, I will get a full refund, (Although I initially had resistance from the retailer) I will get the money refunded to me. I also have photos of the PSU S/N boxes/ condition and videos of it popping.

 

[Bill_Bright]

No shrink wrap

That would be the telltale sign for me (and something that would have been good to know from your first post! ).

 

[Hellfire]

That would be the telltale sign for me (and something that would have been good to know from your first post! ).

Honestly, I didn't even think of it, I've had many PSU's come without shrinkwrapping before so didn't bat an eyelid and didn't even think of it at the time

 

[GerKNG]

beQuiet! uses these stickers on their PSU boxes up to the Dark Power (it's a completely different box in that line without any seals)
looks legit to me (had a couple PSUs so far and they all looked like this)

 

[Bill_Bright]

Honestly, I didn't even think of it, I've had many PSU's come without shrinkwrapping before

Yeah, I might have spoken too soon there. If there is a tamper indication seal on the box, there may not be any shrink wrap. I cannot remember. We have unopened 3 EVGA PSUs here, all shrinkwrapped so I might have jumped to wrong conclusion. I note with some other products I've even advertise they don't use shrinkwrap to help cut down on plastic waste and pollution. Sorry.

 

[Hellfire]

Yeah, I might have spoken too soon there. If there is a tamper indication seal on the box, there may not be any shrink wrap. I cannot remember. We have unopened 3 EVGA PSUs here, all shrinkwrapped so I might have jumped to wrong conclusion. I note with some other products I've even advertise they don't use shrinkwrap to help cut down on plastic waste and pollution. Sorry.

I popped a message to BeQuiet they did say it should be shrink wrapped. I've seldom purchased BQ stuff though I tend to stick with Seasonic

 

[Chrispy_]

I suspect this is a Brexit thing too. I'm seeing poor availability of PSUs compared to normal from all the usual suppliers

Ebuyer and Amazon are the highest volume and both are very thin on popular models of PSUs. Amazon looks healthy until you realise that it's all coming from Amazon EU and won't be with you for 8 days.
OCUK and SCAN are lower volume, there are a lot of PSUs out of stock right now.

It could also be a COVID thing as shipments from China dry up due to production issues over there again, and the EU being a bigger market simply has more inventory - but insiders on these forums say that production over there is healthy.

Either way, your BeQuiet! seal sticker looks legit:

be quiet! Pure Power 11 FM 850 W Review

The be quiet! Pure Power 11 FM 850 W is a good PSU, but the competition is tough. Some changes are required to increase performance and more effectively meet the competition from Corsair, EVGA, ASUS, and Seasonic. A price drop would also help, especially in the US.

www.techpowerup.com

 

[Hellfire]

I suspect this is a Brexit thing too. I'm seeing poor availability of PSUs compared to normal from all the usual suppliers

Ebuyer and Amazon are the highest volume and both are very thin on popular models of PSUs. Amazon looks healthy until you realise that it's all coming from Amazon EU and won't be with you for 8 days.
OCUK and SCAN are lower volume, there are a lot of PSUs out of stock right now.

It could also be a COVID thing as shipments from China dry up due to production issues over there again, and the EU being a bigger market simply has more inventory - but insiders on these forums say that production over there is healthy.

Either way, your BeQuiet! seal sticker looks legit:

be quiet! Pure Power 11 FM 850 W Review

The be quiet! Pure Power 11 FM 850 W is a good PSU, but the competition is tough. Some changes are required to increase performance and more effectively meet the competition from Corsair, EVGA, ASUS, and Seasonic. A price drop would also help, especially in the US.

www.techpowerup.com

View attachment 277598 View attachment 277599

Thanks buddy

 

[Hellfire]

FYI this is why I was concerned re the labels and seal

Pretty blues. Given it happens with the flick of the intake switch I imagine the fault is with the 240v intake side