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High Performance Group (Hiper) was founded in the UK in 2001. They offer a number of products and components from turn-key media centers to single case fans. Hiper made a name for themselves among modders through the flashy modular “Type R” line of Hiper power supplies (they say the “R” stands for “Racing”). They have also shown they can produce decent enthusiast PSUs with their efficient “Type M” line (as we recently reviewed). But, Hiper has more than two lines of PSUs, and today we put a “Type R Mk. II” up on deck.
According to Hiper, the Type R Mk II series of PSUs are “dedicated to PC enthusiasts that value design just as much as almost unlimited power, high end quality, supersilent and extremely efficient performance.” These PSUs are flashy and bling packed to the gills - including an on board USB mobile phone charger. Oh they are pretty, but as Dale Earnhardt Jr. might tell you, pretty paint jobs don't get you around the track. It's time to take Hiper's 680 watt Type R Mk. II for a few laps.
Contents and Features
We said when we started reviewing power supplies with our new methods that we wouldn't consider packaging in our scoring (and we don't). That said, we feel we need to at least mention the spiffy plastic cases the Type R Mk. II line supplies come in. It's a pretty durable flip top plastic box with a parts tray inside. Not very useful after the PSU is installed, but very re-deployable as a lunch box or parts organizer. Marketing? Of course! But we like it anyway. This type of marketing shows a bit of independent thinking and pride in one's product. Hiper isn't "thinking outside the box" - they are changing the box itself.
Out of said box, the Type R Mk. II 680W (aka HPU-5K680) comes with what one might expect from a higher end PSU; an owner's manual, a (rather detailed) user's manual with warranty information, four mounting screws, main power cord, a specification plate on the PSU itself, a couple of Hiper case badges in different designs (did we mention Hiper's modder focused roots?) and five wiring extenders/adapters in a little mesh/nylon bag. Not a bad package, but as we so often find, zip ties were not included. Zip ties are so useful and so inexpensive that we feel they should just be default inclusions in any PSU package.
This power supply uses Hiper's mesh design; four sides of the PSU are partially stamped mesh. This makes for a very well ventilated PSU, but we suspect it also makes it difficult to control airflow. The unit itself (according to Hiper) is “glossy black”. We have to say that's an understatement. We would describe the finish more like “black chrome”. This is a very good looking piece of hardware and pictures can't do it justice. What many might find unique about this PSU is the inclusion of eight USB connectors on the back of the power supply. If you have a workstation or a system heavy on the USB peripherals, this is a feature you may want to consider. Topping it off, Hiper included an "always on" USB charging port for mobile devices. We suspect this is powered via the 5VSB rail. This also appears to be a power only connection, so not an option if you need to sync your device (you can use one of the eight other provided USB ports for that). While we could complain that the charging port is difficult to access, the fact that it's even included will keep us hush!
Cooling is achieved through the use of a single 140mm intake fan - much like Hiperis other PSUs. The fan is mounted on what will be the bottom of the unit after installation and nicely garnished in chrome with a Hiper badged chrome grill to top it off. When you first power up the unit, you will also find the fan is not only chromed, but sports a blue LED setup. This large single fan setup is a popular design for modern PSUs as, theoretically, it can cool better and quieter than using multiple smaller fans. The unit is not a modular cabled PSU and that will add to cable management issues upon installation. However, as we learned with Hiper's M630 unit, they have something up their sleeves (literally). We will look closer at this in the next section.
The specification panel numbers tell us that this 680 watt unit sports four 12V rails. As a nice feature, the included manual is very clear on which connector carries the power from which rail. This is a plus for folks like us who are testing the unit, but also good information for the end user to have. These 12V rails each claim 18A (216 watts). The combined 12V rail power is limited to 624W. The wattage limit placed on the 5V + 3.3V rails is 180W total. This is a typical power distribution for this size class of PSU.
Cables, Connections, Dimensions
As we mentioned above, this is not a modular PSU. However, Hiper saw fit to minimize tangles by separating the harnesses at the PSU into five separate bundles, eliminating what we refer to as “the Medusa” that results from having all harnesses exit a unit from a single spot. This is a big plus for cable management.
The Type R Mk. II 680W sports ten (or eleven if you count the USB header plug) cable harness, all sleeved in black mesh from tip to toe, including between multiple connectors on harnesses that have them. This is a welcome feature that helps in both cable management and cooling. Two additional rubber sleeved USB communication wires exit from the main hole on the supply to a single USB header plug. Since both wires go to the same plug, it would have been nice if Hiper had just sleeved them as well. It's a nit-pick, but details count.
| Harness | Connectors and Lengths |
| 1 | ATX 24 Pin (only) mainboard connector. 22.5" long. |
| 2 | SATA power cable with connectors at 19” and 24”. |
| 3 | SATA power cable with connectors at 19” and 24”. |
| 4 | Peripheral power cable with 4 pin molex connector at 13”. |
| 5 | Peripheral power cable with 4 pin molex connector at 17”. |
| 6 | Peripheral power cable with 4 pin molex connector at 24.5”. |
| 7 | EPS/12V 8 pin CPU power cable. 23.5” long. |
| 8 | 12V/P4 cable with 4 pin connector at 23.5” long. |
| 9 | PCI-E 6 pin connector. 21" long |
| 10 | PCI-E 8 pin connector. 17.5" long |
| 11 | USB header plug, 24" long |
| Harness | Extender / Adapter Connectors and Lengths |
| 1 | Peripheral power cable extender with 4 pin molex connector at 5.5”. |
| 2 | Peripheral power cable extender with 4 pin molex connector at 5.5”. |
| 3 | Peripheral power cable extender / adapter with 4 pin molex connector at 5.5” and a floppy connector at 11”. |
| 4 | Peripheral power cable extender / adapter with 4 pin molex connector at 5.5” and a floppy connector at 11”. |
| 5 | PCI-E 8 pin to 6 pin adapter at 3" long. |
Cable lengths are adequate, although some of the peripheral connectors are at short lengths. There is a method to this madness in that, with the included extenders, you should be able to configure a setup for about any modern system. By using this “extender” type system (Hiper has trademarked it as "ExTender"), Hiper was able to minimize multiple connectors on peripheral harnesses. This allows the end user to add only what is needed - another cable management plus! Like Hiper's smaller and plainer M630 unit, this supply includes instructions on proper extender use so that the end user can avoid current overloading on a particular harness (overloading wiring harness with too many amps = not good). Kicking it up yet another notch, Hiper saw fit to sleeve all of the extenders and adapters (save for one 3” eight pin to six pin PCI-E adapter). Hiper's extender system is a good compromise between modular and non-modular approaches to PSUs.
We do have a gripe though. Like other Hiper supplies, the 24 pin mainboard connector doesn't “break away” to allow for connection to a 20 pin board. If you need a 20 pin hookup you would have to “mod it” or shell out $10+ USD for an adapter. Although we have to admit that it's less likely this unit will find its way into an older system than some smaller ones, the few pennies it would have cost Hiper to include the part should have been spent.
Hiper claims this unit meets the ATX12V v2.2 form factor. The dimensions of the 680 watt Type R Mk. II are 5.9” wide, 3.4” tall, and 7.1” inches long. The ATX12V specification calls for a max length of 5.75” (as we find ourselves saying over and over). An end user using a smaller ATX case and housing optical drives in the tops bays may find this PSU will not fit once the wiring harnesses are taken into consideration. Hiper is not the only well known PSU supplier to make the ATX12V form factor claim - only to put out a larger physical unit. Measure your case before purchasing any PSU. You may find you just don't have the room for some of the so called ATX12V form factor supplies. Hiper publishes dimension information on their site, and in the case of this unit, the information is also on the box.