Silverstone Strider Gold S (SST-ST55F-G V2.0/ST55F-GS): High Power golden platform

Conclusion and evaluation

The Silverstone Strider Gold S 550 W (SST-ST55F-G V2.0 or SST-ST55F-GS) passed the combined and crossload testing in accordance with ATX specification so according to my evaluation methodology, it deserves its evaluation. The worst thing about the unit is the voltage regulation of the stand-by supply which uses somewhat cheaper components designed for lower power which is then solved by increasing the zero-load voltage so it does not fall under nominal with high-load. But then with no or very light load, the regulation is worse than 3.5 %, a poor result for a high-end unit. Also the −12 V rail performed worse than expected considering that it has linear −12 V regulator. Once again the origin is most likely the problem as it is some supplier I never heard about, branded silicon will surely be better.

The build quality, especially soldering, was also quite poor with so many solder balls I lost count during the search. This could be very dangerous, as the balls may come loose and short something. This is the consequence of thick layers of solder (for reinforcing the high-current paths) and insufficient cleaning.

On the other hand, ripple suppression was outstanding, with all rails under 20 mV and all positive rails even under 10 mV. That is how it should be done and High Power (Sirtec) shows here they are capable if they want to. Another great thing about this unit is that Silverstone opted for 100% quality capacitors so it should last much longer than the three years covered by warranty. The 80 PLUS Gold (@115 V) certification results in maximum efficiency over 92 % (with 230 V input). What is also worth mentioning is that High Power squeezed all this into a casing which is only 14 cm deep.

So we have an 80 PLUS Gold fully modular unit with high-quality caps, great ripple suppresion, somewhat worse voltage regulation and possibly bad soldering (which will most likely vary from piece to piece). I think this one is still worth buying when it is covered with three year warranty.

So the evaluation for the Silverstone Strider Gold S 550 W as high-end unit is as follows:

• components used: 4 p. (− for thinner wires, − for lack of thermistor)
• built quality: −10 p. (− for worse soldering)
• voltage regulation: −9 p. (− for combined loading, − for crossloading)
• ripple: 21 p. (+ for combined loading, + for crossloading)
• efficiency: 13 p. (+ for higher efficiency)
• price: 12 p. (+ for lower price per watt)
• others: 7.5 p. (+ for modular cabling, + for extra equipment, + for funny sticker, + for short casing)

Pros	+ high efficiency + high-quality capacitors + very good ripple suppression + fully-modular cabling + shorter casing + good price
Cons	− worse voltage regulation, esp. of the stand-by supply − bad soldering
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Thanks

I thank the Silverstone company for providing the Silverstone Strider Gold S 550 W.

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