Cooler Master Elite Nex N700: a good and cheap 700W power supply (Review)

Finding a good power supply is not always as easy as it seems. Although the Power Supply Units (PSU) market has developed in recent years, finding a good and cheap model and, above all, offering quality power delivery is quite complicated.

Recently, I had the opportunity to test the 700 W power supply Cooler Master Elite Nex N700 sent by Cooler Master. Although it is a simple model, the source has the power to handle complex installations and a three-year warranty, but it still shows that it is an entry-level product.

Design and construction

This whole discussion about being an input source is very clear from the board’s perspective. The model works with the most simplified visual language of the Elite Nex series, with its metal construction, honeycomb vents and 120mm fan.

The dimensions of the standard ATX format are 140 mm (L) x 150 mm (W) x 86 mm (H). This makes the model a suitable size to fit into basically any cabinet and you will not have any problems with installation.

Since the power supply is from Cooler Master, a company already well-known in this segment, there is nothing in the Elite Nex N700 outside the standards of a good power supply. What worried me most about the model was the quality of the fan under high loads, but the PSU worked with a fairly acceptable noise level and was very similar to my case fans – also from Cooler Master.

Cables

The Cooler Master Elite Nex N700 makes it clear that it is a low-cost source when showing the connection cables. Naturally, the power supply comes with cables for the motherboard, processor, SATA, PCIe for the graphics card, molex, etc.

Since the PSU is a non-modular type, all these cables are connected to the component. However, there is a slightly annoying problem here, as the cables are colored and do not even have black paint or a sheathing coating to improve the appearance.

It’s hard to ask for too much of an entry-level product, even if the part is 700W, but it’s precisely because of this that the model could have nicer cables. This helps give a more pleasing aesthetic tone to any setup and also generally results in better quality cables.

What comes in the Elite Nex N700 box?

• Elite Nex N700 power supply;
• Three-pin power cable;
• Guides;
• Fastening screws.

Power and efficiency

Of course, we can’t comment on a power supply without mentioning its main characteristics: power and efficiency. The 700W offered by the Elite Nex N700 supports most mid-range cards and even some high-end cards, but all that power is not absolutely necessary.

But for people like me who like to have a wattage margin for reasons of greater safety or longevity, this is interesting. In all my tests with the GeForce RTX 4070 Asus Dual and the Intel Core i9-13900K, the PSU worked extremely smoothly without any fear.

This is entirely to be expected for this power supply, which handles cards ranging from the regular RTX 4070, RTX 4070 Ti Super, and even the Radeon RX 7900 and its sibling the 7900 XT just fine. However, Cooler Master has not certified this power supply with the 80 Plus or Cybernetics seal.

Perhaps this puts a flea behind the ears of many buyers, as these seals are usually a good indicator of quality. But certification alone is of no importance and the manufacturer promises a minimum of 75% efficiency for this product, but it reaches up to 80% without difficulty.

In other words, the Cooler Master Elite Nex N700 combines high power with reasonable efficiency, and it does what it promises. It’s certainly not the most efficient power supply you can find on the market, but it’s a solid model built for cards up to the mid-range segment.

Heat

A more sensitive point for the Elite Nex N700 is its temperature, which can easily exceed 100 ° C. This is not technically a big problem considering the model’s input conditions, but since its 700W power is high, putting too much stress on this GPU could pose risks.

Therefore, the most advisable thing is to keep the machine with GPUs suitable for this capacity in terms of watts and stay away from more complex operations.

Is Cooler Master Elite Nex N700 worth buying?

Cooler Master’s Elite Nex N700 delivers on what it promises on the box and is available on the Brazilian market for between R$ 400 and R$ 450. For that price and 700W of power, it’s an interesting investment, but only if you have a system that requires that much juice.

There were no faults or problems with the PSU, but the lack of any certification that would give it a little more credibility could put off potential buyers, even if it’s not an obstacle. Another thing to note is the cables, which are of standard quality and have an ugly design.

Overall, the Cooler Master Nex N700 is a good cost-benefit power supply for those who want a lot of wattage and spend little.