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adds about one-third more overall resistance to what is already there, which was negli-
gible to begin with.
If modular cables aren't much of a problem technically, why don't more PSU manufac-
turers include them? Well, besides the (negligible in my opinion) extra resistance, they
do add to the cost of making a power supply, and that is reflected in a higher final price.
They can also create clearance issues with other components in the system, depending on
exactly where the connectors attach to the PSU. In addition, modular cables can easily
become lost or misplaced. Think of opening a system to add another internal drive or up-
gradedvideocardseveralyearsafteritwasinitiallybuilt,findingthatthePSUusesmodu-
lar cables, and discovering the extra cables needed are nowhere to be found. One solution
to this problem is to place any unused cables inside the case when building a system. For
example, you could place them in a small plastic bag and tape them inside, so that if or
when you need them in the future, they are easy to find. Besides these issues, perhaps the
biggest drawback to modular cables is that modular PSU cables using standard connect-
ors are patented ( www.google.com/patents/about?id=w0ehAAAAEBAJ ) , and the patent
is owned by Systemax (aka TigerDirect and Ultra Products). There is another patent on
modularPSUsthatusenonstandardconnectorsatthePSUend( www.google.com/patents/
about?id=iOGqAAAAEBAJ ) . If there was no legal “baggage” against using them, I sus-
pect we would see more modular cable equipped PSUs on the market today.
Sources for Replacement Power Supplies
Literally hundreds of companies manufacture PC power supplies, and I certainly have not
tested them all. I can, however, recommend some companies whose products I have come
to know and trust.
Although other high-quality manufacturers exist, for industry standard ATX12V and
EPS12V units I currently recommend power supplies from PC Power and Cooling
( www.pcpower.com ) , Corsair ( www.corsair.com ) , and SeaSonic ( www.seasonic.com ) .
These companies offer PSUs that meet all the criteria I listed, and they are of excellent
quality.
I also recommend ATXPowerSupplies.com as a source for hard-to-find power supplies,
includingthoseusingproprietaryformfactorsaswellassomeofthelesspopularindustry-
standard designs.
Power-Protection Systems
Power-protection systems do just what the name implies: They protect your equipment
fromtheeffectsofpowersurgesandpowerfailures.Inparticular,powersurgesandspikes
can damage computer equipment, and a loss of power can result in lost data. In this sec-
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