IN-WIN Commander 1500W Power Supply Unit

The commander series PSUs are offered in 5 varying outputs ranging from 650W – 1500W to suite different consumer needs. Lets take a look at the features this PSU offers. (Mind you the IN-WIN Commander 1500W packs a load of features)

Features

I was quite happy to see that IN-WIN sent us their retail version of the Commander 1500W PSU. The outer packaging was quite intriguing and certainly would capture the eyes of potential buyers. As you would have guessed the theme of the commander series goes inline with the military which is reminiscent through the camouflage styling on the box. The box is clearly labelled with the specs of the PSU and credit goes to IN-WIN for not going overboard and keeping the design simple as possible whilst allowing potential buyers to make a sound buying decision.

Opening up the box I was very impressed with the level of packaging the PSU was protected with, which shows the distance a company is willing to go to ensure customer satisfaction.

Taking out the total contents you’re offered with the following as shown in the image below:

I’m not sure why exactly IN-WIN decided to include an anti static cloth bag with their retail packaging (Left most item), however in the event you wish to carry your PSU you could use the given bag.

What I like about the Commander 1500W PSU is that IN-WIN seems to have paid meticulous detail to their product. Firstly they have adopted a modular design and also fully covered the wiring to ensure good airflow inside the casing. You may not clearly see but there are only 3 wires directly connected to the PSU; namely the 8 pin CPU, 4+4 pin CPU plug and the 24-pin ATX connector. The rest of the cables can be connected as per your own requirement.

The balance cables are neatly packed in a separate package and the power cord and screws are supplied in a separate box as well. A user manual is also provided however I doubt anyone would really need to read a PSU manual.

Taking a look at the front of the PSU you’ll see the modular plugs which are color coded as well for easier setup. The color coding of the modular plugs is something we haven’t seen before and it’s certainly one of those features that are good to have.

The Commander 1500W PSU offers four +12V rails with rails 12V1 and 12V2 providing 20A each and rails 12V3 and 12V4 providing 40A each. This is certainly a mini power house capable of handling any high-end device out there. Furthermore the Commander 1500W is an auto-switching model meaning that the 12v rails will combine if one becomes overloaded. Both the +3.3V and +5V are rated at 30A which gives users great flexibility.

As far as cabling is concerned here’s a run down of what the Commander 1500W includes:

3x PCI-E6
3x PCI-E6+2
10x SATA,
8x Molex
2x FDD.

FDD’s are almost non existent at present; nevertheless it’s good that IN-WIN decided to be backward compatible. The cables are quite lengthy and can reach the furthest most device with ease even on a high tower casing.

Looking at the underside of the PSU you will notice the 140mm cooling fan. IN-WIN seems to have gone for a bigger solution as this generally provides more air with less sound. The fan has a thermal controller so it’ll automatically increase in speed as the PSU heats up. Unlike the OCZ PSU we reviewed a few months back, the Commander 1500W does not have any fancy lighting effects; IN-WIN has kept the design simple giving it a more authentic military feeling.

If you’d pay attention to the color of the PSU you’d notice that IN-WIN has decided to go with a military style olive green color, quite appropriately to be in line with their main theme.

That pretty much covers the design and overall looks of the IN-WIN Commander 1500W PSU, so lets see how well it performs in real life.

A point to note is that the Commander 1500W PSU boasts an efficiency rating of over 80% under full load to be in line with nVIDIA SLI standard. Furthermore it supports the following capabilities to ensure good protection for internal components it’s powering.

OVP: Over Voltage Protection
OCP: Over Current Protection
OPP: Overpower (overload) protection
UVP: Under voltage protection
SCP: Short Circuit Protection