ESA Certified Power Supplies from PC Power & Cooling

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PC Power & Cooling and Enthusiast System Architecture (ESA)

As the premier power management company, PC Power & Cooling was one of the earliest manufacturers to design and deliver power supplies will fully integrated Enthusiast System Architecture (ESA). Working closely with NVIDIA® and undergoing an extensive R&D process, PC Power helped make ESA a reality for power management. The first ESA unit available was the Turbo-Cool 1200 ESA, solidifying PC Power's industry leadership and continuous effort to enrich its longtime connection with the enthusiast community. Along with developing, and respectively defining, the industry's first SLI™-Certified PSU, PC Power & Cooling continues to be a strong partner of NVIDIA and remains at the forefront of computing technology with the launch of ESA-based power supplies.

November 2007 Press Release:
PC Power & Cooling Adopts Enthusiast System Architecture (ESA)

What is ESA?

ESA (Enthusiast System Architecture) is an open industry standard that enables PC components (chassis, power supplies, and water cooling systems) to communicate their status in real-time. This revolutionary standard makes it possible for enthusiasts to supervise system characteristics that are not otherwise accessible.

Currently, PC Power & Cooling ESA power supplies support temperature, current, and voltage monitoring, allowing enthusiasts and power users to diagnose component-specific issues without the need for trial and error. ESA guards against the risks associated with overclocking by monitoring your system's functionality and inner environment. Because ESA-certified PSUs communicate crucial information with the motherboard, it also acts as a diagnostics tool that can help identify the cause of system malfunction and inevitability save the end-user and manufacturer time and money.

Select PC Power PSUs will integrate exclusive ESA-enabling hardware, including a USB 2.0 cable to interface with the management software. All power supplies with ESA from PC Power & Cooling will be optimized to work with NVIDIA nForce® SLI™ platforms.

What ESA means to the PC Power customer

Determined to help define and offer next generation power management technology, Doug Dodson, founder of PCP&C and CTO for the OCZ Technology Group, took NVIDIA's exciting initiative to enable PC components to communicate operational information to the next level. This new open standard was set into motion to make erroneous RMAs a thing of the past and newfound awareness over performance, thermal, and acoustic operation a thing of the future.

How is an ESA power supply different from a non-ESA unit? Doug: An ESA supply gives the user valuable performance data that a non-ESA doesn't. Voltage readings are direct from the PSU, so they're more accurate than motherboard monitoring software. Current and wattage are monitored to make sure the PSU is properly sized for a specific system. And by monitoring heat sink temperature, problems with the fan and fan speed control can be determined before damage occurs. Externally it is difficult to tell an ESA unit from a non-ESA unit except for the red USB 2.0 Cable that is added to the wiring harness. Inside the PSU is a proprietary daughterboard, engineered and manufactured by PC Power, that provides the ESA functionality.

Who will benefit the most from ESA right now? Doug: Overclockers and gamers have dreamt of getting this type of feedback from their system. They can monitor the power usage ramp up and down as the CPU and video cards are exercised. System builders and integrators can make the most of this technology, configuring a complete ESA system for users who want next generation capabilities.

What does ESA mean for the future of PSUs and Systems? Doug: Ultimately, ESA means better quality power supplies, less diagnostic work, greater reliability, and tighter tolerances. With the performance data now available to the consumer rather than hidden, manufacturers will be more accountable. PC Power was selected as an NVIDIA launch partner because we have always produced top quality, high-performance power supplies and have a reputation for the best engineering staff in the industry.

Helpful Links:

Nvidia's ESA site can be found here

The link to the ESA download can be found here.