Techspecsnepal Verdict
MSI has made a big splash with its first ATX 3.0 power supply which is MSI MEG Ai1300P. It’s very good, and it’s built to handle even more powerful enthusiast PC builds.
Pros
- Exceptionally good power delivery
- ATX v3.0 and PCIe 5.0
- Almost silent up to mid load
- Sleek modular design
- 10-year warranty
- Plenty of high-quality cables
Cons
- Pricey
- Audible noise at higher loads
MSI has a good selection of power supplies for various PC builds. whether you need something cheap that doesn’t have the best efficiency rating or power output, or you have enough money to go all-out for a PSU that can handle some serious overclocking. MSI is likely to have a unit that meets your requirements.
Most power supplies, as long as they’re from reputable manufacturers, can be expected to handle roughly the same. We’re still using the ATX 2 standard, but some ATX 3.0 power supplies are starting to appear. You might want to consider one if you’re looking at new AMD or Intel processors with the latest NVIDIA, AMD, or Intel GPUs.
Today’s review is of the MSI MEG Ai1300P, a 1300W ATX 3.0 power supply with an 80 Plus Platinum efficiency rating. Is this one of the best power supplies you can buy right now?
MSI MEG AI1300P: PRICE, SPECS, AND AVAILABILITY
The MEG Ai1300P is a fully modular power supply that meets ATX 3.0 specifications. In addition to the ATX12V v3.0 and EPS 2.92 certifications, MSI’s MEG PSU has an 80 Plus Platinum sticker, indicating that it should be capable of achieving at least 90% power efficiency when converting AC to DC at various load levels.
To keep the high-quality Japanese internals cool, a single 130mm blower is available. There are the standard cable connections found on many ATX power supplies, including a slew of PCIe. MSI also includes a 12VHPWR connector with a 600W throughput for the latest and greatest graphics cards.
MSI MEG Ai1300P
| Capacity | 1300W |
| Type | Modular |
| Standard | ATX12V v3.0, EPS 2.92 |
| Connections | 1x 24-pin ATX (600mm), 2x 4+4-pin EPS12V (710mm), 6x 6+2-pin PCIe (600mm), 1x 12+4-pin PCIe (610mm), 1x 6+2-pin PCIe (610mm + 150mm), 4x SATA (500mm + 150mm), 1x Peripherals (500mm + 150mm) |
| Temperatures | 0-50 C |
| Efficiency | 80 Plus Platinum |
| Cooling | 1x 120mm fan |
| Dimensions | 160 x 150 x 86mm |
| Warranty | 10 years |
| Manufacturer | Channel Well Technology |
| Materials | Steel, PCB, plastic |
Although MSI is a dependable brand when it comes to power supplies, the 10-year warranty is a nice touch that will give you extra peace of mind.
MSI MEG AI1300P: DESIGN AND FEATURES
The design of a power supply isn’t the most exciting aspect of the company because they all look the same. They’re a slab of metal that contains all the magic. We’ll have to take a look inside the MSI MEG Ai1300P to see what MSI has included.
This is one seriously capable unit, thanks to a power supply foundation from manufacturing partner Channel Well Technology. Channel Well Technology is well known in the power supply industry, and the MSI MEG Ai1300P contains a number of high-end, premium components that result in an impressive power conversion package.
The fan is a Powerlogic hydrodynamic bearing 120mm blower. Interestingly, there is room for MSI to use a larger fan, which would allow lower RPMs with comparable airflow. This is an issue when you really push the PSU hard and everything ramps up, including that 120mm fan, as we’ll discuss in the next section of this review.
The MSI MEG Ai1300P is a semi-digital power supply, which means that digital controllers handle some of the primary and secondary side conversions. This enables system-side manipulations such as fan speed changes.
The following components are included with the MSI MEG Ai1300P for connecting to the power supply:
- 1x 24-pin ATX (600mm)
- 2x 4+4-pin EPS12V (710mm)
- 6x 6+2-pin PCIe (600mm)
- 1x 12+4-pin PCIe (610mm)
- 1x 6+2-pin PCIe (610mm + 150mm)
- 4x SATA (500mm + 150mm)
- 1x Peripherals (500mm + 150mm)
MSI MEG AI1300P: PERFORMANCE
The components used in the construction of a power supply have a large impact on performance. The MSI MEG Ai1000P has high-quality internals, so we anticipate consistent performance across the board. We used a testbench with the AMD Ryzen 7950X CPU and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 GPU to put the PSU to the test.
MSI MEG Ai1300P
| Primary | Row 0 – Cell 1 |
| Transient Filter | 6x Y caps, 2x X caps, 2x CM chokes, 1x MOV |
| Inrush Protection | NTC Thermistor & Relay |
| Bridge Rectifier(s) | 2x GBJ2506 (600V, 25A @ 100C) |
| APFC MOSFETs | 2x Infineon IPA60R099P6 (600V, 24A @ 100C,) |
| Row 5 – Cell 0 | 1x SYNC Power SPN5003 |
| APFC Boost Diode | 2x Infineon IDH08G65C6 (650V, 8A @ 145C) |
| Bulk Cap(s) | 1x Nichicon (400V, 680uF, 2,000h @ 105C, GL) |
| Row 8 – Cell 0 | 1x Nichicon (400V, 560uF, 2,000h @ 105C, GG) |
| Main Switchers | 4x Alpha & Omega AOTF29S50 (500V, 18A @ 100C) |
| IC Drivers | 2x Novosense NSi6602 |
| Row 11 – Cell 0 | 1x Infineon 2EDN752x |
| Digital APFC Controller | Texas Instruments UCD3138A |
| Digital Resonant Controller | Texas Instruments UCD3138A |
| Topology | Semi-Digital, Interleaved PFC, Full-Bridge & LLC converter |
| Secondary | Row 15 – Cell 1 |
| +12V MOSFETs | 6x Infineon BSC014N06NS (60V, 152A @ 100C) |
| 5V & 3.3V | DC-DC Converters: 6x FETs |
| Filtering Capacitors | Electrolytic: 5x Nippon Chemi-Con (105°C, W), 1x Nichicon (2-5,000h @ 105°C, HD), 4x Nippon Chemi-Con (4-10,000h @ 105°C, KY), 1x Nippon Chemi-Con (2-5,000h @ 105°C, KZE), 3x Rubycon (4-10,000h @ 105°C, YXJ), 3x Rubycon (4-10,000h @ 105C, YXF) |
| Row 19 – Cell 0 | Polymer: 11x Nippon Chemi-Con, 15x FPCAP, 5x NIC |
| Supervisor IC | Weltrend WT7502R (OVP, UVP, SCP, PG) |
| MCU & Fan Controller | Microchip PIC32MM0064GPM036 |
| Topology | Synchronous Rectification & DC-DC converters |
| 5VSB Circuit | Row 23 – Cell 1 |
| Rectifier | 1x PS1045L SBR (45V, 10A) |
| Standby PWM Controller | On Bright OB2365T |
The above table shows that the MSI MEG Ai1300P has everything you need for a powerful PC build. We don’t have the tools to measure ripple and other variations in power conversion, but we can monitor efficiency and how the power supply performs when connected to a computer.
Power loads
Running the Ryzen 9 7950X and RTX 4090 requires a lot of power output. The MEG Ai1300P can deliver up to 1300W in total, with 600W available via the 12VHPWR connection. Even for overclocking, it’s more than enough. With this PSU, you will have no problems running the best hardware.
At lower loads, this power supply may not be as efficient as others, but when pushed hard, it earns the 80 Plus Platinum rating. The fan kicks in around 50-60% of the time and becomes louder as you approach full load. MSI, like other high-end power supplies, includes a variety of safety protocols:
MSI MEG Ai1300P
| OCP (Cold @ 26°C) | 12V: 102.2A (122.64%), 11.927V |
| Row 1 – Cell 0 | 5V: 29A (131.82%), 5.046V |
| Row 2 – Cell 0 | 3.3V: 28.4A (129.09%), 3.311V |
| Row 3 – Cell 0 | 5VSB: 4.8A (160%), 4.993V |
| OCP (Hot @ 44°C) | 12V: 101.4A (121.68%), 11.906V |
| Row 5 – Cell 0 | 5V: 28.8A (130.91%), 5.057V |
| Row 6 – Cell 0 | 3.3V: 27.4A (124.55%), 3.324V |
| Row 7 – Cell 0 | 5VSB: 4.7A (156.67%), 4.989V |
| OPP (Cold @ 28°C) | 1223.42W (122.34%) |
| OPP (Hot @ 43°C) | 1223.42W (122.34%) |
| OTP | ✓ (168°C @ 12V Heat Sink) |
| SCP | 12V to Earth: ✓ |
| Row 12 – Cell 0 | 5V to Earth: ✓ |
| Row 13 – Cell 0 | 3.3V to Earth: ✓ |
| Row 14 – Cell 0 | 5VSB to Earth: ✓ |
| Row 15 – Cell 0 | -12V to Earth: ✓ |
| PWR_OK | Proper operation |
| NLO | ✓ |
| SIP | Surge: MOV |
| Row 19 – Cell 0 | Inrush: NTC Thermistor & Bypass relay |
While under heavy load (90%), fan noise was measured to be around 42 dB. This is significantly more expensive than other premium power supplies on the market, and while this is a more advanced unit with the ATX 3.0 standard, a larger cooling fan would have been beneficial.
MSI MEG AI1300P: COMPETITION
The ATX 3.0 power supply standard is still relatively new, with only a few examples available to the general public. The SilverStone HELA R series is available from SilverStone. In terms of available power for delivery and specifications, it’s very similar to this MSI PSU. ASUS and Thermaltake are two other companies that have released their own units.
Thermaltake offers the Toughpower GEN 5 GF3, which, like other ATX 3.0-rated power supplies, can deliver serious power. The ASUS ROG Loki SFX-L is an intriguing ATX 3.0 power supply because of its SFX-L form factor, which allows it to be installed in smaller cases where a standard ATX-sized unit may not be compatible.
Unfortunately, as recent Gigabyte mishaps have demonstrated, one cannot simply choose a reliable brand and expect the best experience when it comes to power supplies. Still, we stand by our recommendations from ASUS, so keep quiet! (We love the be quiet! Dark Power Pro), SilverStone, MSI, and Seasonic, to name a few.
MSI MEG AI1300P: SHOULD YOU BUY IT?
You should buy this if …
- You intend to use (and overclock) a PC with a high-end CPU and GPU.
- You want one of the most efficient power supplies available.
- You don’t mind paying more than $250 for a power supply.
You shouldn’t buy this if …
- You don’t want to spend so much money on a power supply.
- You will not use nearly as much power.
Since the introduction of the ATX 2.0 standard in 2003, power supplies have largely remained the same. We’ve seen iterations over the years, but the jump to 3.0 is the first in nearly two decades. It’s appropriate given that we’re using far more power with newly released processors and graphics cards. The MSI MEG Ai1300P is about as good as it gets without breaking the bank.
Having 1300W of available power output is a significant benefit for those looking to pair 13th Gen Intel or AMD Ryzen 7000 processors with an NVIDIA RTX 40 series GPU. When you factor in the power required by the motherboard as well as everything else connected to the PSU, it all adds up quickly. Being certified as 80 Plus Platinum is just the icing on the cake.
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