Power Supply Matchup: PlayStation 3 Vs. the Quadfather

Sony's PlayStation 3 has been beaten up since its launch last fall, but since that time we've begun to take notice of some of the console's finer attributes. While I have complained about the frequent system updates and the formerly cumbersome method of engaging in same, I've begun to appreciate other aspects of the PS3 and its hardware design that are impressive, to say the least.

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For example, we decided to compare and contrast the power supply units and energy usage of the PS3 and a high end gaming system. For the purposes of this comparison, we used a rather potent gaming rig known as the Quadfather from Vigor Gaming. The Quadfather, if you hadn't already guessed, is an AMD quad-core system featuring two AMD Athlon 64 FX-74 3.0 GHz processors, two SLI-enabled Nvidia GeForce 8800 GTX cards, 2 GB of RAM, an AsusTek motherboard, a 500 GB Western Digital hard drive, and 300 GB of RAID. The system, which runs Windows XP, also boasts the Enermax Galaxy 1000W power supply. Several readers had indicated an interest in the PSU of the Quadfather after a recent post on the TwitchGuru blog, so a special thanks goes out to them for the inspiration.

The Quadfather gaming rig from Vigor Gaming, an AMD quad-core system with dual Nvidia 8800 GTX cards

I decided to first test the power consumption of our 60 GB PS3, with the help of THG lab manager Shelton Romhanyi. Prior to the launch of Sony's new console, several reports emerged about the PS3's 380 W power supply and the console's consumption. Many felt the PS3 was an energy hog that used far too much power for a video game console. However, many on the Web seemed to misinterpret the console's specs after reading that the PS3 had a 380 W power supply, thinking that the system uses 380 watts - it doesn't. They compared it unfavorably to the PlayStation 2, which at its height uses just 45 watts, and the Xbox 360, which uses about 160 watts.

As it turns out, the latest PlayStation uses less energy than previously reported. We connected the PS3 and a Gateway HD FPD2485W flat panel monitor to the Extech power analyzer. With the PS3 at idle and no games being played, the console and monitor drew 280 watts. With the monitor and its speaker unplugged, the PS3 itself drew approximately 184 watts (meaning that the Gateway display drew around 100 watts).

After turning the monitor and speakers back on, Shelton and I engaged in some multiplayer action on Resistance: Fall of Man (Shelton owned me, as I'm not very good at console shooters). The maximum draw during the two-player multiplayer mode came to 284 watts. So it seems that, sans the Gateway HD display, the PS3's power consumption isn't that far off from the Xbox 360's maximum use.

What about the playing Resistance online? Shelton fired up a 40-player death match in the game on the PlayStation Network, and the draw actually fell slightly to 277 watts. Even better, we initiated a system update in the background while continuing to play an online 40-player death match, and the maximum draw crept up to just 284 watts. We tried our best to get over the 300 W hump, but to no avail. As a result, the console doesn't even come close to approaching the PSU's 380 W limit.

So, while the PS3's power consumption greatly exceeds that of the PlayStation 2, it isn't too far above what the Xbox 360 consumes with similar hardware. But what about when the PS3 is compared to a top of the line quad core PC rig?

The PlayStation 3 PSU has a 380 W limit, but the console's maximum draw doesn't even come close to approaching it.