High Performance Gaming on a Budget: Building a Value PC with Cooler Master’s Silent Pro 600 M

Specifications and Packaging

Our Cooler Master Silent Pro 600 M arrived in this box with a Cooler Master business card and with these instructions in several languages on both paper and on CD to accompany the cables, screws and the PSU itself:

Here is the other side of the instructions, the warranty and also warranty information printed on the back of the card in English only.  I am a little disappointed with the minimal instructions and the poor English translation but it is sufficient to be understandable and it does cover the basics of PSU installation.

Here is the label in its entirety which surrounds the box.  The Silent Pro Series features and specifications are detailed right on the box.  Silent Pro Series – M500/M600/M700, For more information, please visit our website: http://www.coolermaster.com – is repeated in 16 languages besides English, which is a little strange but conveys an international feeling.

Here are the specifications, right off the box and also in an easy-to-read chart:

Here is what is included to make connections with your PC as shown on Cooler Master’s own web site.  The cables are of a flat design which is becoming popular as they can restrict less airflow if laid out properly inside the case.

Cooler Master’s Silent Pro 600 is a handsome all-black unit that appears well put together.  The specifications are right on the unit as shown:

PCIe cabling allows for the most modern 6-pin plus 2-pin connectors for two videocards.

Here is where you connect your PC to the Silent Pro 600 M.  The modular design makes it impossible to mix up connections.  The 6-pin gray sockets are for the PCIe connectors and the black 5-inline connectors are for the peripheral PC connector cables.

As you can see, the modular design allows you to use only what you need.

And here is the tangle of cables before they are neatly installed and routed behind the motherboard:

Here are the same cables after they are organized a bit with a single HD 4870-X2 installed:

Cooler Master’s Silent Pro 600 M features 20 amps each on the 3.3 volt and 5 volt rail as well as 40 amps on the single 12 volt rail. It is rated for a total of 600 watts at 85% (plus) percent efficiency.   It is rated by a company,“80 Plus” which tests (for a fee) power supplies from many vendors to certify that the submitted PSUs are actually over 80% efficient at 20%, 50% and 100% loads as claimed. 80 Plus has expanded their testing to include bronze (82%), silver (85%) and gold (87%) certifications for power supplies.  The Silent Pro series at 85% efficiency by Cooler Master is rated only 2% lower in efficiency than their Ultimate series.

Efficiency is the ratio between the useful output of a PSU and the input. For example, if your computer actually uses 600W but draws 800W from the outlet, then the PSU’s efficiency is 600W/800W, or 75%.  It also means in this example, that 200W of AC power is not converted into DC and is wasted, usually in the form of extra heat dumped into your room.  Older or generic computer PSUs are typically 75% or less efficient.

The more efficient your power supply is, the less your computer will waste power. Since any AC power that isn’t converted into DC is exhausted as heat into your room, a more efficient power supply unit will run cooler and your air conditioner will also not have have to work as hard.

Take a look at the 135 MM fan used to cool the Silent Pro 600M. Because of the excellent efficiency of the PSU, it allows Cooler Master to use a slower and quieter fan to cool it.

Let’s now look at the cable and the installation of our Silent Pro 600 M.