Superflower Leadex V Platinum Pro 1000W Review

Introduction

“Oh god this thing is cute!” Luke said while opening the box. At just 130mm depth, the Superflower Leadex V Pro is the second smallest unit I’ve had in my hands of this wattage, only behind the Silverstone SX1000. There definitely is something unreal about this small of a box holding this much power, but… how does it hold up? Let’s dive into the spiritual successor to the original Leadex platinum.

General Specifications

Brand	Superflower
Model	Leadex V Platinum Pro
Wattage	1000W
Introduction year	2021
Modularity	Full
Warranty	10 years

Power Specifications

3.3V	5V	12V	5VSB	-12V
20A	20A	83,3A	2,5A	0,5A
100W		999,6W	12,5W	6W

Cables

Cable type	Cable Quantity	Connector Per Cable	Gauge
ATX 24 pin	1	1	16-20AWG
EPS 4+4 pin	2	1	18AWG
PCIe Power 6+2 pin	4	2	18-20AWG
SATA Power	2	4	18AWG
SATA Power	2	2	18AWG
Peripheral 4 pin	1	4	18AWG

The Leadex V pro features Superflower’s patented “Super connector”. This is a universal 9-pin connector that’s used for everything but the motherboard connectors. This allows you to plug in the EPS, PCIe, SATA and peripheral connectors wherever you want in the unit. How useful this is in practice is subjective, but it’s definitely worth mentioning.

External

The back is full of… Yes please! Hexagons! I swear this is becoming an obsession at this point. Outside of a few closed spots for the power plug, power switch and semi-passive or “eco” switch, the unit is full of hexagon shaped cutouts at the back. This definitely looks like one of the most open designs I’ve seen, but this is likely required to achieve the compact dimensions of the unit.

Behind the silver grill, we find a 120mm that’s almost as big as the unit itself. This grill has the Superflower logo edged in, the only place you’ll find it on the unit itself.

On the front we see the earlier mentioned universal connectors, as well as two connectors for the motherboard cables. There’s a lot of plugs close together with three rows instead of the generally used 1-2 rows.

And again, as something that should just be a minor note, the unit uses hex screws… making my job ever so slightly easier. This isn’t the case for the internal PCB, but here Superflower is required to use Phillips heads by law either way.

Protections

This was… a bit tough and did require a few guesses here and there. While the fan controller and DC-DC controllers are known, the LLC resonant controller and APFC controllers are custom controllers that are by my own guesses made by Texas Intruments and Richtek and the only other IC related to it is an On-Semi/Texas Intruments op-amp I was… lost in this regard. While the review from Aris did show the protection circuit working, I won’t be making any kind of table here, nor will I speculate anything beyond what I can actually confirm.

Parts Breakdown+Internal

OEM	Superflower
Platform	Leadex V Platinum Pro
Input Voltage	100-240V
Primary Converter	APFC Half
Rectifier	Synchronous Rectification
Regulator	DC-DC
Fan	Globe Fan S1192312MP-4M
Bearing	Fluid Dynamic Bearing
PCB Type	Double Sided
Bulk Capacitor(s)	1x Nippon Chemicon KMW (400v, 560uf, 105c), 1x Rubycon UFM (400v, 380 uf, 105c)
Bridge Rectifiers	1x Unknown
APFC MOSFETs	3x Infineon IPA50R140CP (500V, 15A @ 100c), 1x Syncpower SPN5003 (500v, 20ma @ 70c)
APFC Boost Diode	1x CREE (Unknown)
APFC Controller	1x Superflower SF29603, 1x Superflower S9602
LLC Resonant Controller	Superflower AA9013
Main Switches	2x Infineon IPB60R099CP (600V, 19A @ 100c)
12v MOSFETs	6x Infineon BSC027N04LS (40V, 88A @ 100c)
DC-DC Converters	8x Alpha & Omega AON6516 (30V, 25A @ 100c)
DC-DC Controller	2x On Semi NCP1587A
Supervisor IC	Unknown
Op-Amp	ON-semi LM324ADG
Fan controller	STMicro STM8S003F3
Standby PWM Controller	Superflower SF29604

Only four hex screws later to take off the top of the unit, we can see the beautiful compact layout Superflower created here. While the SX1000 used a dual transformer design, here we only see a single one. It’s also interesting to see parts of the PCBs on the AC daughterboard and a separate PCB instead of the main PCB, contributing to making this unit more compact.

Because of the compact layout there were a few parts I needed to either guesstimate or base off public info about the unit. A lot of the APFC is hidden behind the AC plug PCB or behind a massive coil, Superflower uses multiple ICs that have either been rebranded or made custom by/for Superflower and have no public datasheets because of it. But… let’s talk about the stuff that is visible.

Globe fan is a manufacturer often used by the likes of HEC, Highpower and many times by Superflower in the past. A similar model 140mm fan is used in the Hela 850R we reviewed a while back. The fan is noted as a fluid dynamic fan, but I didn’t open the fan up to check if this is true. Fan manufacturers are known to put multiple bearings under the same name, making it possible for this fan to also be rifle bearing. However, both would do solid in a design like this.

Outside of a few visible patch-ups done by hand, the soldering looks pretty solid overall. No major complaints here, but also probably an early production unit where more staff is on the floor to supervise.

While you’d normally see one or two of the same bulk capacitors in PSUs, Superflower went with two different capacitors, one sourced from Nippon-Chemicon and the other from Rubycon. While I don’t know why they chose for this, the unit does hold up (literally) accordingly, so it works out fine. While it would be nice to see 450V capacitors instead of 400V, there’s a massive shortage on them.

All the capacitors I could identify on the board are made by Nippon-Chemicon or Rubycon, making Superflower’s claim of “100% Japanese capacitors” accurate. However, as these are produced in China either way, this shouldn’t matter much compared to a good capacitor from a Taiwanese or Chinese brand.

The 12V MOSFETs are on a separate daughterboard instead of the regular spot of the bottom of the unit. This again is likely done to make the unit more compact. While this is usually cooled by heatsinks on top and/or a thermal pad at the bottom to use the housing for it, the Leadex V Pro relies purely on airflow to keep the FETs cool. No issues to note with this approach, but it’s definitely a new one.

Overall, Superflower’s approach to make this unit as small as it is including a few very innovative layout changes compared to traditional PSUs of this wattage. The build quality is good, the part choice (as far as it can be identified) is solid and while a few things would be possible to improve, there’s no significant issues to note.

Electrical Performance

The following results are by third party PSU lab Cybenetics. The results shown are based off the Leadex V Pro Platinum (white) published on 29-9-2022

Test Equipment

Electronic Loads	Chroma 63601-5 x4
	Chroma 63600-2 x2
	Chroma 63640-80-80 x20
	Chroma 63610-80-20 x2
AC Sources	Chroma 6530
	Keysight AC6804B
Power Analyzers	N4L PPA1530 x2
Sound Analyzer	Bruel & Kjaer 2270 G4
Microphone	Bruel & Kjaer Type 4955-A
Data Loggers	Picoscope TC-08 x2
	Labjack U3-HV x2
Tachometer	UNI-T UT372 x2
Digital Multimeter	Keysight U1273AX
	Fluke 289
	Keithley 2015 - THD
UPS	CyberPower OLS3000E 3kVA x2
Transformer	3kVA x2

Overall (115v)

Average efficiency	89,703%
Efficiency at 2% load	69,448%
Average efficiency 5VSB	77,69%
Standby power consumption (W)	0,0655
Average PF	0,987
Average noise output	35.63 dB(A)
Efficiency rating (ETA)	Platinum
Noise rating (LAMBDA)	Standard+

Overall (230v)

Average efficiency	91,77%
Average efficiency 5VSB	76,05%
Standby power consumption (W)	0,104742
Average PF	0,945
Average noise output	36.00 dB(A)
Efficiency rating (ETA)	Platinum
Noise rating (LAMBDA)	Standard+

Efficiency (115v)

Load (115v)	Efficiency	AC (Watts)	DC (Watts)
20w load	68,351%	29,265	20,003
40w load	79,365%	50,401	40,001
60w load	83,889%	71,523	60
80w load	86,006%	92,969	79,959
10% load	87,439%	114,381	100,014
20% load	90,254%	221,564	199,971
30% load	91,379%	328,329	300,025
40% load	91,569%	436,591	399,783
50% load	91,248%	547,4	499,492
60% load	90,750%	661,203	600,042
70% load	90,075%	776,905	699,796
80% load	89,454%	894,135	799,843
90% load	88,623%	1015,124	899,638
100% load	87,778%	1139,663	1000,373
Crossload 1	83,434%	121,418	101,304
Crossload 2	82,801%	122,459	101,397
Crossload 3	77,503%	86,952	67,39
Crossload 4	88,798%	1126,27	1000,106

Efficiency (230v)

Load (230v)	Efficiency	AC (Watts)	DC (Watts)
20w load	68,656%	29,546	20,285
40w load	79,504%	50,892	40,461
60w load	84,553%	70,964	60,002
80w load	87,011%	91,903	79,966
10% load	88,062%	113,58	100,021
20% load	91,935%	217,521	199,977
30% load	93,019%	322,553	300,036
40% load	93,347%	428,33	399,834
50% load	93,294%	535,441	499,534
60% load	92,992%	645,295	600,071
70% load	92,615%	755,641	699,838
80% load	92,198%	867,55	799,868
90% load	91,753%	980,506	899,648
100% load	91,195%	1096,976	1000,386
Crossload 1	84,330%	120,137	101,311
Crossload 2	83,692%	121,158	101,399
Crossload 3	78,241%	86,135	67,393
Crossload 4	91,985%	1087,307	1000,156

Voltage Regulation (115v)

Load (115v)	12V (voltage)	5V (voltage)	3.3V (voltage)	5VSB (voltage)
20w load	12.165V	5.041V	3.322V	5.076V
40w load	12.164V	5.041V	3.322V	5.072V
60w load	12.163V	5.04V	3.321V	5.069V
80w load	12.162V	5.04V	3.32V	5.064V
10% load	12.161V	5.039V	3.318V	5.051V
20% load	12.157V	5.038V	3.316V	5.039V
30% load	12.155V	5.037V	3.315V	5.027V
40% load	12.155V	5.035V	3.313V	5.016V
50% load	12.156V	5.034V	3.311V	5.004V
60% load	12.158V	5.033V	3.308V	4.991V
70% load	12.159V	5.032V	3.306V	4.978V
80% load	12.161V	5.03V	3.303V	4.967V
90% load	12.161V	5.029V	3.301V	4.957V
100% load	12.156V	5.027V	3.3V	4.948V
Crossload 1	12.156V	5.036V	3.293V	5.06V
Crossload 2	12.159V	5.029V	3.321V	5.07V
Crossload 3	12.157V	5.044V	3.274V	5.058V
Crossload 4	12.161V	5.031V	3.322V	5.024V

Voltage Regulation (230v)

Load (230v)	12V (voltage)	5V (voltage)	3.3V (voltage)	5VSB (voltage)
20w load	12.164V	5.041V	3.322V	5.076V
40w load	12.163V	5.04V	3.321V	5.072V
60w load	12.162V	5.04V	3.321V	5.067V
80w load	12.161V	5.039V	3.32V	5.063V
10% load	12.160V	5.039V	3.318V	5.051V
20% load	12.156V	5.037V	3.315V	5.039V
30% load	12.153V	5.036V	3.314V	5.027V
40% load	12.154V	5.035V	3.313V	5.015V
50% load	12.155V	5.034V	3.31V	5.003V
60% load	12.157V	5.033V	3.307V	4.991V
70% load	12.158V	5.031V	3.305V	4.977V
80% load	12.159V	5.03V	3.302V	4.967V
90% load	12.161V	5.028V	3.3V	4.957V
100% load	12.155V	5.027V	3.299V	4.948V
Crossload 1	12.155V	5.035V	3.292V	5.06V
Crossload 2	12.158V	5.028V	3.321V	5.07V
Crossload 3	12.156V	5.044V	3.273V	5.058V
Crossload 4	12.160V	5.031V	3.322V	5.023V

Ripple (115v)

Test	12V	5V	3.3V	5VSB	Pass/Fail
10% Load	5.7 mV	7.2 mV	7.8 mV	7.2 mV	Pass
20% Load	5.4 mV	8.1 mV	8.3 mV	7.4 mV	Pass
30% Load	5.7 mV	8.7 mV	9.5 mV	8.5 mV	Pass
40% Load	6.6 mV	8.8 mV	8.9 mV	8.4 mV	Pass
50% Load	7.3 mV	9.8 mV	11.1 mV	10.2 mV	Pass
60% Load	8.0 mV	9.3 mV	10.3 mV	40.4 mV	Pass
70% Load	10.7 mV	13.1 mV	11.7 mV	42.3 mV	Pass
80% Load	11.1 mV	12.8 mV	17.2 mV	39.9 mV	Pass
90% Load	11.5 mV	13.3 mV	18.7 mV	19.0 mV	Pass
100% Load	12.1 mV	14.4 mV	18.1 mV	14.2 mV	Pass
Crossload1	7.9 mV	10.5 mV	16.2 mV	42.2 mV	Pass
Crossload2	6.3 mV	7.9 mV	10.2 mV	39.0 mV	Pass
Crossload3	7.7 mV	7.8 mV	15.4 mV	37.6 mV	Pass
Crossload4	11.4 mV	13.1 mV	11.4 mV	44.9 mV	Pass

Ripple (230v)

Test	12V	5V	3.3V	5VSB	Pass/Fail
10% Load	5.4 mV	7.2 mV	7.6 mV	7.7 mV	Pass
20% Load	5.8 mV	7.9 mV	7.8 mV	7.7 mV	Pass
30% Load	5.6 mV	8.7 mV	9.1 mV	8.0 mV	Pass
40% Load	6.6 mV	8.8 mV	8.6 mV	8.0 mV	Pass
50% Load	7.3 mV	9.3 mV	9.0 mV	10.5 mV	Pass
60% Load	7.6 mV	9.4 mV	10.1 mV	9.7 mV	Pass
70% Load	10.5 mV	13.1 mV	11.8 mV	30.6 mV	Pass
80% Load	10.4 mV	13.1 mV	16.6 mV	31.2 mV	Pass
90% Load	10.5 mV	14.2 mV	16.8 mV	16.4 mV	Pass
100% Load	11.7 mV	15.0 mV	19.9 mV	11.0 mV	Pass
Crossload1	7.6 mV	9.8 mV	16.4 mV	37.7 mV	Pass
Crossload2	6.2 mV	7.8 mV	10.9 mV	39.2 mV	Pass
Crossload3	7.7 mV	8.1 mV	16.2 mV	40.6 mV	Pass
Crossload4	10.6 mV	13.3 mV	11.4 mV	44.8 mV	Pass

Fan Speed/Noise (115v)

Load (115v)	RPM	Noise (DBa)	Temperature in	Temperature out
20w load	483	<6	37.37°C	40.8°C
40w load	482	<6	37.48°C	40.96°C
60w load	510	<6	38.85°C	42.62°C
80w load	541	7,9	39.26°C	43.2°C
10% load	615	12,4	40.3°C	44.4°C
20% load	704	18,4	41.23°C	45.63°C
30% load	816	22,4	41.5°C	46.25°C
40% load	1002	28	41.86°C	46.89°C
50% load	1214	33,8	42.96°C	48.75°C
60% load	1389	37,3	49.16°C	43.21°C
70% load	1569	40,3	50.78°C	43.94°C
80% load	1736	42,7	51.46°C	44.22°C
90% load	1905	44,4	53.59°C	45.22°C
100% load	2073	45,9	56.58°C	46.17°C
Crossload 1	1205	33,7	46.74°C	41.21°C
Crossload 2	1008	28,1	40.5°C	48.22°C
Crossload 3	921	25,8	40.73°C	49.89°C
Crossload 4	1896	44,3	46.85°C	57.03°C

Fan Speed/Noise (230v)

Load (230v)	RPM	Noise (DBa)	Temperature in	Temperature out
20w load	540	<6	36.87°C	39.95°C
40w load	490	7,9	37.42°C	40.83°C
60w load	540	7,9	38.11°C	41.88°C
80w load	585	12,4	39.42°C	43.5°C
10% load	646	13,9	40.45°C	44.7°C
20% load	701	18,1	40.7°C	45.03°C
30% load	814	22,4	41.82°C	46.45°C
40% load	1008	28,1	42.35°C	47.09°C
50% load	1172	32,8	42.83°C	48.03°C
60% load	1350	36,5	48.56°C	43.04°C
70% load	1521	39,4	49.6°C	43.08°C
80% load	1704	42,1	50.73°C	43.37°C
90% load	1855	43,8	52.7°C	44.49°C
100% load	2060	45,8	56.44°C	46.97°C
Crossload 1	1308	35,7	50.04°C	44.5°C
Crossload 2	1146	32,1	43.1°C	49.56°C
Crossload 3	1119	31,5	41.6°C	48.99°C
Crossload 4	1888	44,2	42.63°C	52.38°C

Hold-up Time (230v)

Hold-up time (ms)	22,4
AC loss to PWR-OK hold up time (ms)	16,7
PWR_OK inactive to DC loss delay (ms)	5,7

Conclusion

The Superflower Leadex V Pro has shown off several innovative layout changes to achieve its incredible 130mm depth, including moving many components on their own PCB or even using the AC plug PCB for it. It was an interesting, even if at times confusing unit to review.

But… because of its compact size, the fan has to compensate for it, it’s not the kind of tank the original Leadex platinum was in build quality and if you don’t need a unit this compact, there are similarly priced units that offer a lower noise level at the compromise of a bigger footprint. It’s also disappointing to see the use of 20 AWG wires and the low OCP not even allowing to load the unit to 110% while most units have it set around 120-130% these days.

If you’re specifically after a compact PSU for something like an SFF rig, the Leadex V pro should be on your list of considerations… but it had to make a few compromises to achieve it. I’ll leave a few alternatives below, featuring both compact units and more quiet PSUs at a larger footprint.