DeepCool PQ850M (850W) Power Supply Review

A Closer Look

Out of the box, the DeepCool PQ850M does have something of a basic feel about it. There’s nothing necessarily wrong with that as often less can be more, and particularly so when it comes to power supplies that, in many systems, remain completely hidden. In terms of branding and overall visual appearance, however, I do think that this doesn’t look like a particularly inspired creation.

With a nice weight feel in the hand, however, while it might be a little uninspiring on the outside, we daresay that there are still interesting things to look at. In terms of overall presentation though, while not an eye-sore, I can’t see this winning any GPU beauty pageants.

The top of the power supply provides the fan with plenty of ventilation. In fact, the gaps are surprisingly large and possibly a bit too big for their own good (while building a system, a mishandled screw could easily fall in here and vanish into the abyss). All going well though, this will help promote a strong airflow that will undoubtedly have a notable impact on the fans running speed and especially the ‘Zero RPM’ functionality.

The cable input bank is well organised with each section being clearly denoted for its usage. While it is a little cramped, that could possibly result in cable insertion/removal being a bit of a pain, on the whole, it’s a nice clean design that does offer a level of ‘foolproofing’ for the inexperienced user.

The exhaust section of the power supply is well represented which pretty much all of the space available being open and available for airflow. Given that this PSU does utilise a passive cooling functionality, this will definitely help that fan run as little as it has to which, by proxy, should allow noise levels to be at a bare minimum when that mode is selected. It does bear note, however, that the gaps to the vents do allow for a not entirely pleasant look a the colours inside to cover some of the components.

Cabling

The cabling comes in some nice flexible plastic sheathings, and with a decent length, should allow for strong levels of system management from the user. Each cable is also clearly denoted to specify its use, and, what end goes where. It’s a simple touch, but again, one that could really help the inexperienced user.

Internals – A Look Inside!

While getting inside the DeepCool PQ850M is simple enough (not that we’d recommend this to you as it will invalidate your 10-year warranty), the initial visuals are not great. And yes, it’s mostly due to that yellow wrapping used on many of the main components. We saw a hint of this through the rear exhaust panel and, on the whole, this not an attractive look.

A closer look at the fan reveals this to be a 120mm model from ‘Ong Hua’. While some will perhaps be disappointed to see a third party model used in this power supply, we have seen this utilised in many PSU models from other, and significantly more expensive, manufacturers. – The good news is that it’s excellent at its job. Hence why, we suspect, so many are using it at the moment.

So, we had to do it. Let’s take a closer look at that PCB. Sadly, it doesn’t get any more pleasant to look at than it did from afar. On the plus side, however, there are some definite positives to take away. Firstly, all of the components look well-spaced and with 3 banks of heatsinks located in good positions, this should help promote a solid bit of cooling and especially so when the fan is switched into, basically, ‘passive until absolutely needed’ mode.

That green PCB though. Let’s face it, both inside and out, this power supply isn’t much of a looker.

Ending on a hugely positive note, however, we can confirm that the DeepCool PQ850M does utilise Japanese capacitors with the main one coming from ‘Nippon Chemi-Con’. Rated to 105C, and coming from one of the world’s most reputable manufacturers, hopefully this will translate to some excellent performance in our testing.

Overall Thoughts!

On the whole, the DeepCool PQ850M isn’t, purely visually speaking, a good looking power supply. Both inside and out, there are definite signs that costs and compromises have been made in stopping this qualifying as a premium-level product. Don’t forget though, aesthetics are, by a huge margin, the least important aspect of a PSU. More so, this isn’t a premium-level product!

On the more positive side of things, we’ve definitely seen signs of some good quality components used and a definite thought being placed into the overall application of how this PSU will work. All going well, while this might not win any innovation awards, we suspect that everything might be set to come together here for some surprisingly potent results in our testing!