Ultra X Connect 550W PS DOA?

[Harkonen]

Hello... new guy here. Under construction with my first from-the-ground-up PC build.

Last night I got several of my components installed, and decided to test the Power Supply before going further. I plugged the power supply into a live wall outlet, then connected only one of the Ultra Conect's modular cable to a Nexus temperature gauge (something I wouldn't get too upset over if it fried ).

Flip the switch: Nothing. No fan. No power to the Nexus device. Nothing. I verified it is set for U.S. power, reset the plug, and tried again. Nothing.

I'm sure this sounds stupid, but shouldn't the PS fan come on immediately at power up? I can't believe I would have such bad luck as to get a bad Power Supply on my first try!

Thanks in advance.

 

[Ike0069]

Ultra's don't exactly have a good reputation. In fact, you might just be very lucky.
Since it was DOA, it didn't take any of your hardware out with it. Now you can simply return it and get a quality PSU.

 

[rickn]

you have to plug in the 24pin ATX cable or shunt the green and black wire with a paper clip or what not. just be careful not to touch it

 

[GalvanizedYankee]

 

[Zepper]

You don't want to power on a PSU with that little a load on it. Newer models are supposed to be able to protect themselves from low/no load conditions, but one doesn't know about Ultra PSUs. As others have basically said, the power switch on the back does not turn the PSU on, it just connects the AC. You also have to turn it on with a paper clip (green to black momentarily) or remote power swich (front panel) when the PSU is plugged to a mobo. Same as all ATX. It probably works as well as it can. I'd also second (or third, fourth, etc. - whatever it's up to now) sending it back if at all possible and getting a decent PSU. Or maybe you could find some poor sucker to buy it on eBay.

..bh.

 

[thesurge]

Ultra PSUs are the greatest PSUs ever created.

 

[Harkonen]

Thanks....now I feel stupid (1 for buying the Ultra X in the first place, 2 for not knowing the Mobo had to be connected (or jumpered) to make it work).

So, the question is....what should I get? Antec?

My setup is:

Thermaltake Kandalf, Asus An832-sli, X2 4800, Zalman 9500 Cooler, 2 GB Corsair 3500LL, WD Raid array, 2 x nVidia 7800 GTX 512's in SLI....will do some mild OC'ing.

I figured 550 watts or so would be enough. Any guidance?

Thanks

 

[GalvanizedYankee]

 

[Zepper]

I recommend the Sparkle FSP550-60PLG or FSP550PLG-SLI (pretty much the same except for the complement of connectors) for around $85. + sh at ewiz via Froogle (price is a tiny bit better if you connect via Froogle for some reason). Best bang for your buck that I know of (you can get equal or more power for less money but they won't have active PFC and full range voltage compensation - some don't think those features are woth the extra cost - I do!). Other than that, there are many good higher-priced PSUs from Seasonic, Zippy PCP&C, Silverstone, etc... Plus, very few modular PSUs are designed properly to prevent the modular cables from falling out (as few of the connectors on the PSUs have latches) and for minimizing contact resistance which can cause melted connector shells/wire insulation. IOW, Danger, Wil Robinson! Danger!

.bh.

That's a hoot, Surge...

 

[mike3uz]

OCZ Powerstream 600 is nice and so is the Turbo Cool line of PSU's by PCP and C.

 

[thesurge]

400-550w PSU. From: Antec, Enermax, OCZ, Fortron (FSP), Sparkle, PCP&C, Seasonic....

 

[LED]

Harkonen don't beat yourself up for getting the Ultra X as it is a decent PSU esp when if you cab get them on sale with rebates...comes with a lifetime warranty and yes do read Johnny Guru's Review on it...I expect many will like to come in here and slam Utra's some more but if we lived in a perfect world then there would only be 1 PSU available and for less than $50...

 

[Zepper]

Yeah, the Ultra X-C is fine if you paid $40. or less for it. It was never worth it's original >$100. price (a classic "dazzle the marks" scam) - and it was never worth $50. either. It has sought its true value, which is under $40. If you thought you were getting a $40. PSU, then all is OK. If you thought you were getting a $100. PSU for $40., well think again...
. And the Ultra has a great warranty - riiight. Let's see you try to enforce it. The last I knew the warranty was handled thru Tiger Direct and you had to pay for a new one "until they had a chance to test your dead one" in order to get a decently quick turn-around. That's a worthless warranty to me...
. This is my last word on the X-C/Ultra/T-D/Systemax/Infotel and all their cohorts. If anyone wants to go ahead and continue to patronize them, they won't even have my sympathy. I just haven't the time to worry about them any more. I guess old PT was right...

.bh.

 

[Harkonen]

Originally posted by: Zepper
Yeah, the Ultra X-C is fine if you paid $40. or less for it. It was never worth it's original >$100. price (a classic "dazzle the marks" scam) - and it was never worth $50. either. It has sought its true value, which is under $40. If you thought you were getting a $40. PSU, then all is OK. If you thought you were getting a $100. PSU for $40., well think again...
. And the Ultra has a great warranty - riiight. Let's see you try to enforce it. The last I knew the warranty was handled thru Tiger Direct and you had to pay for a new one "until they had a chance to test your dead one" in order to get a decently quick turn-around. That's a worthless warranty to me...
. This is my last word on the X-C/Ultra/T-D/Systemax/Infotel and all their cohorts. If anyone wants to go ahead and continue to patronize them, they won't even have my sympathy. I just haven't the time to worry about them any more. I guess old PT was right...

.bh.

Ha ha! Now I KNOW you guys are rubbing it in. For the record, I thought I was getting a $100.00 PSU for $100.00.

Thanks for the links...I will research them all now. I did endless hours of reading on my other components, then got lazy on the PSU. *rolls eyes*

 

[LED]

Yeah, the Ultra X-C is fine if you paid $40. or less for it. It was never worth it's original >$100. price (a classic "dazzle the marks" scam) - and it was never worth $50. either

Is that with or without Tax, shipping, and Handling? ...cause I know for a fact they lose the rebates sent to them :disgust:

 

[0roo0roo]

the ultra connects are generally 14-20 bucks after rebate at places like frys. they are essentially generics + bling so yea stay away.

better to go with something like seasonic. in recent custom pc magazine tests the s12 series remained at full 80~% efficiency at 100% load, while still being quiet. no bs.

 

[PrayForDeath]

I've been using an Ultra 500W on my PC for 3 months now and it's working perfectly fine for me. Though my PC is not exactly demanding (nowhere near your specs).

 

[t3h l337 n3wb]

Wow, if you're spending so much money on your rig, you might as well get a top-of-the line PSU like a Seasonic S12-600 or PC Power and Cooling 510W TurboCool.

 

[Allio]

Originally posted by: Harkonen
Thermaltake Kandalf, Asus An832-sli, X2 4800, Zalman 9500 Cooler, 2 GB Corsair 3500LL, WD Raid array, 2 x nVidia 7800 GTX 512's in SLI....will do some mild OC'ing.

On an Ultra?! Tell me you're joking. That's about the highest end system you can realistically get and you're trying to run it on a piece of crap $30 generic.

I don't say this often, but look at 600w Enermax, Fortron, Seasonic or PCP&C.

 

[Harkonen]

*lowers head in shame*

Yep..paid $99.0 + tax at Fry's.

It went something like this:

Fry's Salesman: "Here look at these by Ultra-connect, they are as popular as our Antec line, and very solid"

Me: "Ooooo...shiny"

Duh.


That puppy's goin' back tomorrow (saved the receipt!). I will take the advice of many here and invest in a better unit. I think I saw the Seasonic in stock there.

Thanks for the brutal truth gentlemen.

 

[t3h l337 n3wb]

You're probably going to get a much better deal on a Seasonic online than in stores.

 

[ElFenix]

has anyone been able to actually run 2 GTX 512s in SLI before?

 

[Ike0069]

Damn, I didn't even realize it was the 512's in SLI. If I was able to spend that much money on a rig, I'd definitely go with a Seasonic S12 600W or the PCP&C 510W SLI at a minium.
The S12 600W IS $130 AR at Newegg right now, and that is an excellent price for tha PSU.

 

[inthell]

Originally posted by: Ike0069
Ultra's don't exactly have a good reputation. In fact, you might just be very lucky.
Since it was DOA, it didn't take any of your hardware out with it. Now you can simply return it and get a quality PSU.

indeed and let me get this straight you can afford 2 512's but not a good PSU? or may be you just made a mistake with that puchase... either way i advise you to get a good PSU

ps Why do you need 2x 512 ?? just curious

for PSU brands stick with Seasonic, Coolermaster, Antec, OCZ something like that.

good luck

 

[Harkonen]

Originally posted by: inthell

Originally posted by: Ike0069
Ultra's don't exactly have a good reputation. In fact, you might just be very lucky.
Since it was DOA, it didn't take any of your hardware out with it. Now you can simply return it and get a quality PSU.

indeed and let me get this straight you can afford 2 512's but not a good PSU? or may be you just made a mistake with that puchase... either way i advise you to get a good PSU

ps Why do you need 2x 512 ?? just curious

for PSU brands stick with Seasonic, Coolermaster, Antec, OCZ something like that.

good luck

OK...for the record. I CAN afford a better PSU...I just made a mistake. Yikes!

I will not be starting with 2 x 512's. I will start with one, and add a second card down the road. As I understand it, there is not much out there right now that will tax a single 7800gtx 512, so why SLI that card now? HOWEVER, I want the OPTION to do it down the road when card prices fall, so I am building all the other components in my system in such fashion that it will be plug-and-play SLI when I add the second card... didn't mean to confuse anyone. I can't see the benefit in two 512's right now...but in a few months? Then I won't be tempted to buy the 8800gtx 1024 (or whatever it is by then) .