Testing
The Bad News
I initially received two products from Ultra — a 600 Watt standard PSU, and the 550 Watt modular unit. I installed the 600 Watt unit first, and the computer was extremely unstable under even a light load (it was being tested in a machine that had a 300 Watt power supply in it previously). The voltages were irregular and unstable, and the machine was so flaky that I could not even open Internet Explorer. Things were looking pretty bad at this point. I tried the 550 Watt unit, and it performed somewhat better — that is to say the system would at least function — but the voltages were still varying all over the place. Voltages were well outside of my +/-5% ratio. On the 12V rail, I saw low 11V jumping to 12.199V, and back down. The 5V rail was ranging anywhere from 4.75 to 5.2 volts. The variations in both rails are completely unacceptable. As a result, I promptly contacted Ultra Products, who then decided the units were defective, and sent a new 550 watt modular unit to try.
The Better News
The new unit was much better than the first two. The system was stable enough for me to poke around and see how things were working.
The voltages were much better, within approximately +/- 5% of their rated
levels. They also stayed steadier than the defective units, occasionally moving a little, but overall were acceptable.
The unit ran fairly cool, with the giant 120mm cooling fan that comes installed in it. It is quiet, and the modular style is also very nice to have — it does improve airflow and make the system look cleaner — and is very simple to use.
Final Thoughts
I liked having a less-cluttered case, and would have been ok with the power supply had it not been for the first two that were defective. It makes me wonder about the quality control methods that are used to make sure the PSUs coming out of the factory are in working order. Two out of three looks very bad — if I had paid money for these for use in an actual build, I would be demanding a refund. The unit looks very sleek, and I liked the fact that it came with more than enough cables for everyday uses, but pretty means nothing unless it is functional.
Please note that although this unit is said to be capable of supporting nVidia’s SLI technology, I did not have the hardware to test this, and if I did, I am not sure I would risk it with this unit, after the results on the first two power supplies. I will not risk losing hardware to test a sub-par power supply.
Conclusion
Overall, on a scale of 1-10 (with 10 being highest or best), I have to give the Ultra Products X-Connect series 550 Watt ATX modular power supply a rating of 6.5 because of the initial problems encountered (i.e. the fact that 2 out of 3 units were defective), and the variation of the voltages. The unit looks pretty, but if it doesn’t work, attractive appearance doesn’t matter. I would have to say that I would be very hesitant to use these in a system for my clients.
Pages: 1 2
Like what you read?
If so, please join over 28,000 people who receive our exclusive weekly newsletter and computer tips, and get FREE COPIES of 5 eBooks we created, as our gift to you for subscribing. Just enter your name and email below:
