Antec TruePower PSU...same as ChannelWell?

[CougTek]

I'm pretty sure of my hit on this one and I'm merely seeking confirmation.

On my pricelists appeared a few power supply units from ChannelWell with similar power ratings as those in the Antec TruePower series. ChannelWell is a name I have heard before, so I thought I was up for something here. A look to the specifications of their 430W unit compared to the specifications of the Antec TruePower 430W revealed that they both share almost the exact same numbers (with the exception of the hold up time, which is greater for the ChannelWell).

If my memory is good, that ChannelWell name (more widely known as CWT : ChannelWell Technologies) I think I've heard about was because someone wrote that they were those who really manufacture the Antec TruePower series.

Why am I so interested to know the answer? Because I can get the 430W ChannelWell for 86$CDN while the Antec TruePower 430W costs 128$CDN.

So, is CWT the one behind Antec's TruePower PSUs or is my coffee too strong this evening?

 

[blakerwry]

here's the inside of the channel Well 420

http://www.mikhailtech.com/articles/psu/cwt420/cwt420-05.jpg

http://www.mikhailtech.com/articles/psu/cwt420/cwt420-06.jpg

http://www.mikhailtech.com/articles/psu/cwt420/cwt420-07.jpg


The wires are bundled in rubber bands exactly the same as how my last two antecs have been bundled...


The rear fan looks *almost* exactly like my SL300 and 350... and the opposite side with the intec vents is a dead ringer for an antec SL series (maybe also the truepower)

The fact that this PSU supports under and overvoltage correction is the kicker that leads me to believe that this could be a clone of an Antec truepower.

 

[CougTek]

Thanks for the link. The 420W is a different model than the 430W, but I see the thread. CWT must be one of Antec's suppliers for their PSU units.

The 86$ 430W ChannelWell, even in case it wouldn't be the same as the TruePower, probably is a very high quality PSU nonetheless and surely worthes every penny I'll spend for it.

 

[CityK]

Coug,

It hasn't always been like this situation. When I saw the Mikhailtech articles last year I looked around for a CWT Truepower analog, but at that time none of their supplies appeared to be the same (both visually and spec wise). Also, CWT's web page went down shortly afterwards, and was down every time I checked back...up until a couple of months ago, when a "site being redesigned" message was given. Anyways, upon reading your post, today was the first time I've seen their new product page. Indeed, it does look like the two are the same. It could very well be that Antec had the supply contract stipulate that CWT couldn't sell the PSU under their own label for ~1yr or so.

On another note, I don't think CWT is the exclusive PSU supplier for Antec. Take a look at this thread...reparations mentions TTGI, and I have heard about this connection before too.

CK

 

[CougTek]

I remember having read that post from Reparation too.I never wrote that CWT was the only supplier of Antec's PSU (I wrote "one of"). The SX lineup Reparation mentioned isn't sold anymore AFAIK. The current two main series of Antec PSU are the Solution Series and the TruePower Series. There are others (I think), but the two main are those I mentioned.

Have you visited TTGI's web site lately? They aren't on my pricelists, but I'm curious.

The only Sparkle I can get are old models, mostly without dual fan designs (and therefore not compliant with AMD's recommended PSU design).

 

[CityK]

Have you visited TTGI's web site lately?

Not lately...or at least not until you mentioned it

Same scenario as CWT - site is different from when I viewed it previously. I don't remember seeing all the models that they now have showing ( http://www.ttgitech.com/Products.htm ). What I recall were strictly PP-xxx type derivatives (much like the Sunny/CWT that NCIX has listed). Its hard to tell anything from the new pictures (not close enough, and it also looks like the images got squeezed a bit) but there does seem to be a passing resemblance to the Antecs. Too bad they don't seem to have posted the specs, or at least they didn't work for me. I did note that the PS-420ATX model has "double balls"


There are a few shops that carry the Sparkles here, but I've never really looked at them that closely to see what models they were....I do know that they were priced quite high - at least the ones I saw, but I think that may have been more to do with the actual stores themselves then anything else....still, I was kind of surprised considering the reputation FSP's have for being inexpensive.

CK

 

[CityK]

This Underwriters Laboratories page would tend to confirm that CWT is indeed the manufacturer for both True Power and Solution series (not that its a big secret anymore or anything).

UL mignt be a good resource for checking on these kind of things, just like that TCO Development site, only I can't figure out (within a reasonable short period of time) how to do a product search on UL's site (the CWT search I linked above I just copied from a thread on another board).

Speaking of figuring things out, try to find Channel Well Technologies home page on the internet. Piece of cake right.

Strike one.

Okay, how about if I told you that its address contained "www.cwt.com" ?

Strike two....You suck. Your grandma could search better then you.

(So, after enraging you now with my childish taunt, you had better make this last attempt count.)

Ahhh, you got lucky.

Now really, who would have thought it would take so long to find www.cwt.com.tw ?

 

[i]

Umm ... not these people.

Isn't it amazing how Google has made other search engines fade from memory?

AltaVista also gets you a much better site (www.cwtusa.com) than that Taiwanese one. At least at first glance.

What were you saying about your grandma? :wink:

 

[NRG = mc²]

To confirm, all recent Antecs I've seen (both truepower and smartpower) have been CWT designs with CWT clearly visible on the transformers. The CWT PSUs are significantly cheaper than the Antec ones, I've got a pricelist for a CWT 550W dual fan, boxed which appears spec wise identical to the TruePower 550 (though it lacks the rear molex plug and perhaps more), it costs £59 in qty 1 at wholesale price whereas the Antec 550 retails in the shops for £100 (no idea about wholesale price).

 

[Clocker]

I have a 420W TTGI that I'm now using in my spare machine (my new case came with a decent Antec 350W which is all I need and I'm too lazy to change it.

The 420W TTGI is a great PSU and I assume the rest of their supplies are of the same quality. It has adjustable pots and the variable speed fan is very quiet. I used that PSU with my dual 1900+ system and it worked like a charm.

TTGI is good stuff, especially if you can get a good deal on them (based on my sample of one).

C