Introduction

We would like to thank Xigmatek for supplying the review sample.



It has been a while since we last reviewed a Xigmatek product because the company has recently only released its Maverick line consisting of three mainstream PSUs with capacities ranging from 400-600 W. All of these meet 80 Plus Bronze efficiency requirements and feature a semi-modular cabling design and fiercely compact dimensions. Xigmatek apparently saw an opening in the PSU market for shallow units of which only Silverstone has a significant amount on offer, and while these units are compact, a Maverick S unit's most interesting asset is definitely its low price, which should net it a high price/performance score so long as it performs decently.

In today's review, we will evaluate the 500 W unit of the series, which, like its siblings, sports an interesting look because of its extraordinary fan grill and orange fan. Andyson manufactured the unit, and its official specifications say it to be able to reliably deliver its full power continuously at up to to 50°C, which is high for such a mainstream PSU. The Maverick S 500 is also ErP Lot 6 2013 ready since it consumes less than 0.5 W in standby and comes equipped with flat and black modular cables. These specifications look thrilling for a PSU that costs less than 40 bucks, and we are curious to see how it will perform.

Specifications

With such a low price, it would be insane to ask for more than 80 Plus Bronze efficiency. However, the manufacturer states that this unit can deliver its full power continuously at up to 50°C, which is amazing if true. Such budget PSUs usually only have a temperature rating of 25°C, but Xigmatek apparently chose to set the bar significantly higher. The PSU also has a semi-modular cabling design with flat cables and includes a full set of protections. The only downside so far is its horrible Haswell compliance test result; however, do note that we adhere to Intel's tough guidelines in these tests. And while the unit will be able to power a Haswell system with relative ease in most cases, we ought to follow Intel's testing procedures in order to cover all Haswell usage scenarios and not just most of them.

Xigmatek speaks of a fluid circulative bearing technology (FCB) fan, but the specifications we found say it to be nothing but a sleeve bearing fan with some minor modifications. Be that as it may, we didn't expect to find anything better inside of a budget unit. A good fan alone can easily cost more than 10 bucks, which would be 1/4th of this product's price. Only 12.5 cm long, this PSU is incredibly small as most PSUs of a similar capacity are usually 16 cm and at least 14 cm long. Such compact dimensions will make the Maverick fit into even the smallest of cases, which was obviously Xigmatek's intention from the start.

The +12V rail uses a group-regulation design, which will cause the unit to perform poorly with unbalanced loads on its rails. Still, the +12 V rail is strong enough for a mainstream system, and the same goes for the minor rails. The 5VSB rail is as strong as in other modern low capacity PSUs.

Cables & Connectors, Power Distribution

Only those cables that are absolutely necessary have been affixed to the unit, which will please most of you. Many would obviously prefer a fully modular design, but such is nigh impossible at this price point. There are two PCIe connectors with, strangely enough, only 6 pins. At least one of these would normally have 6+2 pins since 450 W on the +12V rail is enough to power a strong VGA. The number of SATA connectors is high enough, but we would like a couple more 4-pin Molex connectors. There are also no floppy connectors, which probably won't bother most users. However, Xigmatek could have at least provided an FDD adapter in case someone does need one.

All the cables are on the short side since the unit will most likely go into a small chassis. Yet we would have still liked longer SATA and peripheral cables.

Since this PSU features a single +12V rail, we do not have anything to comment on when it comes to its power distribution.

Packaging

This PSU comes in a small square box that looks nice enough. On its front are a capacity description and the series name, and many icons that describe its features can be found in the bottom-left corner. Next to these resides the 80 Plus Bronze badge.


The sides hold a useful description of all cables and the power specifications of all Maverick S models.


On the rear of the box is a multilingual features list.

Contents

The box doesn't protect the PSU and its internals all too well since there are no foam spacers or cardboard inserts.


The bundle includes an AC power cord, the modular cables, a Velcro strap, several zip ties, a set of screws, and the user's manual.