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Quality Power, But Is It Worth the Price?
Review Summary
The Seasonic Vertex GX-1200 is a high-quality, reliable PSU that handles demanding systems with ease. It’s fully modular, efficient, and operates quietly with a hybrid fan mode, making it a great choice for anyone looking to power a modern setup. The PSU is well-built with top-tier Japanese components, and the 10-year warranty adds peace of mind. It’s a solid performer, though its price might be a bit steep compared to some newer options on the market.
Hours Tested: 7
Overall
-
Performance - 9.6/10
9.6/10
-
Build Quality - 9/10
9/10
-
Efficiency - 9.5/10
9.5/10
-
Value - 8.5/10
8.5/10
Pros
- Very efficient design.
- Silent operation.
- Superb overall performance.
- 10 years of warranty.
Cons
- Expensive
There are still a few companies in the PC industry that have stayed true to their superior quality without getting diluted with all the extravagant features, marketing gimmicks, and bells & whistles that we get to see in almost every brand these days; Seasonic is surely the one among those.
Seasonic is also one of the handful of brands that designs and manufactures their own PSUs, unlike others who rely mainly on several different OEMs and their engineering.
Seasonic’s Vertex GX series is their first lineup that tackles the new and aggressive ATX 3.0/3.1 specifications for modern power-hungry CPUs & GPUs. Though Seasonic has now upgraded this exact series for ATX 3.1 specs because we received this unit quite a while back, our unit comes with slightly older ATX 3.0 specs listed on the box.
Key Takeaways
- The Seasonic Vertex GX-1200 is a great power supply that runs quietly, handles heavy loads well, and is built to last with solid quality and a long warranty
- You should buy the Vertex GX-1200 if you want a reliable power supply that will last you for several years to come without any performance hiccups.
- The only reason to avoid the Season Vertex GX-1200 is if you don’t want to spend big bucks on a gold-rated power supply. After all, there are some competitors that beat it in our tests.
Here are the specifications:
| Specification | Detail |
|---|---|
| 80 PLUS Efficiency | Gold |
| Modular | Fully |
| Cable Type | Braided Pattern |
| Total Power | 1200W |
| Input Voltage | 100-240V |
| Input Current | 15-7.5A |
| Input Frequency | 50-60Hz |
| Fan Size | 135mm |
| Operating Temperature | 0 – 50°C |
| MTBF | 100,000 hours |
| Protection | OPP, OVP, UVP, OCP, OTP, SCP |
| Dimension (D x W x H) | 160 × 150 × 86 mm |
Packaging & Unboxing
Unlike most other PSUs I have tested, the Vertex GX-1200’s box does not have the PSU’s picture on the front. Other than that, we get a good-looking black-gray theme with a big emphasis on 10 years warranty (rightly so). At the back, you’ll find an efficiency graph and some information about the key features like ATX 3.0 compatibility, voltage regulation, modular design, and its 135mm FDB fan.
Opening the box greets us with some documents. There is an installation manual, a 12VHPWR connector guide, and a flyer about entering a $50 Steam eGift competition. Apart from that, the power supply is protected with black foam, along with a nylon bag for the cables.
Design
The fan grill of the PSU is focused quite a lot on airflow with big cutouts around it. On the other side, we get our typical power connector and a hybrid mode switch. This gives you the option to either have the fan turned on at all times or have it only spin when the PSU load increases, meaning on idle, the PSU will be completely silent.
Alongside the Seasonic Vertex logos at the side, there is also a beautiful embossing. At the back, you can go through the power requirements and other specs of the power supply.
Cable & Connectors
The braided cables feel both premium and durable. All cables are of adequate length, and there shouldn’t be any installation problems, but I have to give a shout-out to the four SATA cables. At 950mm (95cm), these cables are very long. It is good to see Seasonic has included a PSU jumper, this way, you don’t have to connect the power supply to a PC (for testing).
| Connector | Details |
|---|---|
| Motherboard 24 (20+4) pin | 1x 610mm |
| CPU 4+4 Pin | 2x 650mm |
| 12V-2×6 12+4 pin | 1x 700mm |
| PCIe 6+2 pin | 3x 750mm |
| SATA | 4x 950mm |
| SATA 3.3V | 1x 550mm |
| 4P Molex | 1x 690mm |
As stated in the beginning, our review unit is ATX 3.0 compliant, and now there’s a new intel ATX spec in town, ATX 3.1. This new spec is kind of confusing as it’s a slightly downgraded version of the previous ATX 3.0 specifications because intel now allows for a minor decrease in hold-up time, which now allows manufacturers to use less expensive bulk capacitors which eventually reduces the final cost of the unit (for them at least). This way, all the ATX 3.0 compliant PSUs can automatically be ATX 3.1 ready.
The only major difference in the newer ATX 3.1 specifications is the use of an improved 12VHPWR connector, which is now referred to as a 12V-2×6 connector (maybe this way, people will forget all those burnt 12VHPWR connector/cable issues). Our review unit, being of an older spec, comes with an older 12VHPWR connector, but the new version of the Vertex GX series now comes with an improved 12V-2×6 connector. We highly recommend our viewers get this PSU with this new connector by ensuring that ATX 3.1 & PCIe 5.1 tags are on the box.
Teardown & Component Analysis
When you see a PCB in its famous green color and a clean layout accommodated by shiny aluminum heatsinks separated for each primary and secondary section, you have probably spotted a Seasonal platform.
In 2024 when there’s a massive change in PSU specs (in the form of ATX 3.X specs) and where every major brand is now trying to compete in this market with every possible minor innovation, especially for improved efficiency and superior performance gains, we have been seeing a few leading OEMs adopting to advanced topologies like Interleaved PFC and even Totem-Pole Bridgeless topology, Seasonic seems to lack in this innovation and still relying on quite an older design, not only for their Gold rated PSUs, but also for their Platinum ones.
I was disappointed with this, especially considering the high price tag of Seasonic GX-1200, but I still have decent enough hopes for its actual performance.
Traditional design/topology aside (APFC, Full-Bridge, LLC & DC-DC), Seasonic uses top-tier components throughout this platform, justifying its 10 years of warranty claim (but still not justifying its high price tag). From the APFC’s MOSFETs & Boost Diode to the main transformer switching MOSFETs and the secondary side’s 12V MOSFETs, all are from reputable and industry-leading manufacturers.
The platform utilizes separate and more than adequate aluminum heatsinks for the Primary and Secondary side components, making the use of Hybrid Fan Mode much easier to achieve. 12V rail MOSFETs are all mounted on the top layer of the PCB, and a small but well-spread aluminum heatsink soaks up their heat.
Using top of the line Japanese Electrolytic as well as Polymer capacitors from brands like Nippon-Chemicon, Nichicon & Rubycon make Vertex GX-1200 a “buy once and forget the rest” kind of investment for the PC enthusiasts.
Just like its superior performance, Seasonic is also known for its silent operation, hence why Vertex GX-1200 comes with a Hybrid Fan Mode which in our testing, made the fan spin when the load exceeded 400W.
Thanks to a 135 mm Fluid Dynamic Bearing fan from Hong Hua, this PSU will run absolutely silent even when running a decent load.
PSU Load Testing
Voltage Regulation
| Load in % | 12V | 5V | 3.3V |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20% | 12.16V | 5.07V | 3.34V |
| 50% | 12.11V | 5.07V | 3.33V |
| 70% | 12.09V | 5.07V | 3.33V |
| 90% | 12.10V | 5.07V | 3.33V |
| 100% | 12.07V | 5.06V | 3.33V |
Voltage regulation is superb even when the load is dialed all the way to the max 1200W! If we hadn’t seen test results of the current offerings from other PSU brands or OEMs then we would have certainly been amazed seeing these numbers.
PSU Efficiency
| Load in % | Efficiency | Power Factor |
|---|---|---|
| 20% | 91.67% | 0.927 |
| 50% | 93.53% | 0.961 |
| 70% | 93.33% | 0.97 |
| 90% | 92.07% | 0.975 |
| 100% | 91.53% | 0.977 |
Seasonic Vertex GX-1200 is a very efficient PSU that even slightly exceeds Gold efficiency numbers.
Voltage Ripple Performance
| Load in % | 12V Max Ripple |
|---|---|
| 20% | 17.6mV |
| 50% | 10.4mV |
| 70% | 12.8mV |
| 90% | 13mV |
| 100% | 15.2mV |
Voltage ripple performance has been really good throughout our tests. Because of the in-house engineering, Seasonic has had a stronghold in this test for years, but now many OEMs have caught up and improved their design so well that it has become hard for us to get impressed with even 17.6mV of voltage ripple.
Now these numbers are still pretty impressive and can easily handle OCing of the highest-end CPU & GPU combos, but with such a high price tag, competitors seem to be getting a better advantage.
Temperatures
Thanks to Seasonic’s unique and wider fan grill design, which not only allows unhindered airflow when the fan is spinning but also helps keep the PSU cool when the PSU is in Hybrid Fan Mode. We still saw a massive temperature rise on the back of the PSU (where the 12V rail MOSFETs are present), reaching 66.4C! Though it does come under a concerning level considering the fact that Seasonic has a thermal pad layer underneath, which helps in soaking up the heat of all those 12V rail MOSFETs to the PSU chassis, it doesn’t sound that bad then.
Should You Buy it?
Buy It If
✅You believe in the name Seasonic. Seasonic is considered the most prestigious PSU brand, and you can always count on it when it comes to reliability.
✅Better Future-Proofing: Seasonic Vertex GX-1200 will be suitable for the most high-end Gaming PCs of the current and future generations, even when you dial the OC to the max.
✅10 Years of Warranty: When a brand that has existed for several decades boasts such warranty numbers, trusting them blindly is pretty much a common drill at this point.
Don’t Buy It If
❌Expensive for Gold rating: Being only a Gold-rated PSU with its performance matching or even getting beaten by similar spec PSUs that cost less, we find Seasonic Vertex GX-1200 to be a rather expensive pick.
My Thoughts
Seasonic, which has been a dominant PSU brand in the PC industry for decades, now enters the latest ATX 3.0/3.1 spec PSU market with its improved Vertex GX series and with the tough competition from other competing brands/OEMs, surprisingly found themselves in a very tough and not that impressive position.
Seasonic must consider the fact that other competing brands have all caught up with the advancement in PSU design and now are adapting to new technologies & topologies, Seasonic has got to do the same and make use of their super capable engineering resources.
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[Errors Troubleshooting Expert]
Arsalan Shakil (aka GuyThatDoesEverything on YouTube) is a PC Tech Enthusiast and Electronic Geek. With over 10+ years of experience in Electronics, he then decided to explore Software Engineering to design embedded products and automate existing hardware solutions.
When he started tearing down old cameras to understand how they worked, he was shocked (literally, when he got zapped by a flash discharge capacitor), giving him the power (debatable) to fall in love with videography/photography. He also started making some fun videos that later became YouTube tech reviews.
Skills:
- 10+ years of experience in Electronics design, embedded solutions, and prototyping
- Majored in Software Engineering
- Research paper publication in IEEE for Embedded Military Uniform & LoRa WAN wireless technology
- Specialized in IoT Solutions
- PC Enthusiast & PC Modder
In his local region, he’s known to expose cheap PSU brands, often claiming fake certification or false claims on the box. He’s a true nerd and needed some friends in his life. Then he met some guys who work at Tech4Gamers, and they also came out to be equal nerds who suggested he join Tech4Gamers as a Hardware Expert.
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