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Why do you hate the Ultra X-Connect 500W PSU?

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Originally posted by: SniperWulf
I've been told that the X-Connect rails are pretty weak compaired to what they claim. I have the X-finity 600w. Its been a good PSU so far. The main reason I got it was because locally, it was fairly inexpensive and is on nvidia's certified for SLI list
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The 500 watt rated at 34A on the 12V has gotten NO less than 20 very positive reviews all over the net (to include strong readings on the 12V rail). When I bought mine back in March, there were only 4-5 reviews and they were all positive as well. The list of positive reviews has grown over time.

I don't know anything about any other Ultra PS cause I never was interested in any of them. I like the 34A on the 12V rail so I bought 2 and I researched only this PS.
 
Originally posted by: Budarow
Originally posted by: SniperWulf
I've been told that the X-Connect rails are pretty weak compaired to what they claim. I have the X-finity 600w. Its been a good PSU so far. The main reason I got it was because locally, it was fairly inexpensive and is on nvidia's certified for SLI list
Click to expand...

The 500 watt rated at 34A on the 12V has gotten NO less than 20 very positive reviews all over the net (to include strong readings on the 12V rail). When I bought mine back in March, there were only 4-5 reviews and they were all positive as well. The list of positive reviews has grown over time.

I don't know anything about any other Ultra PS cause I never was interested in any of them. I like the 34A on the 12V rail so I bought 2 and I researched only this PS.
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thats nice....but one of the big issues with PSu`s.....IMO is the failure rate or the rate that a certain companies PSU`s need returning for warranty work.
Its nice tio have a warranty don`t get me wrong.
But it is nicer NOT to have to ever need any work done.
 
cheap generic trying to pass itself off as something premium.
so its essentially a sham😛 the modular thing isn't so well done either, another point of failure and rather lousy cables. probably will be ok if you don't run it anywhere near its limit..most people don't. try getting to the limit and you'll probably be risking something. custom pc magazine had a nice psu review during december. testing loads at 50/75/100% and measuring efficiency and such. cheap ones just dont match their claims/become horribly hot and inefficient and sometimes just die. money is better spent on something decent. cheap components = higher failure rate= lower efficiency..more energy use..more heat more noise. its just out there to scam people who buy it based on how shiny it looks.
 
Originally posted by: MX2times
All show, no go.
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Not really. In the last 9 months they have hunkered down and hopefully turned the cornor
long term. Time will tell but at this point in time I'd have one of thier newer models over
any offered by Antec. Ultra is a for real company and should be with us long term, not fly
by night.

I'm not into bling but Ultra PSUs are now decent PSUs with flash, for those that want/need it.



...Galvanized

 
ive used this psu since last summer and im happy with it.

i have an ultra x-connect UV Blue 500W psu. it was like 20 bucks online or something after rebate.
 
Ok, from a technical perspective, this is like getting an ECS motherboard.

Sure they will last. They aren't going to die unless you stress them out.

But guess what. If you had another 500W supply like the Seasonic S12 adn you loaded 500W on both PSUs, I bet you the Ultra-X would crap out first (take 100 samples of each and I bet more Ultra-Xes will crap out).

I can't believe people buy crap like this. It's just not a good PSU. I did a trial on one system that had a Prescott 3.0, a GF 5200 and 500W should be more than enough. I did a voltage reading and I remember the 12V rail was sagging at 11.69 volts. I used a multimeter btw. Sure thsi is within ATX limits, but this is pretty crappy IMO. My Antec SmartPower gets 11.91 or so on my Athlon 1400, and my SEasonic S12 600 keeps at 11.98 volts on an Opteron.

I don't care if it's rated for 500W, and 32 amps on the 12V rail, it's just not meant to keep up with that as well as a better PSU. If you look at things like noise, voltage regulation, they will never match a good PSU like Seasonic or PC power & cooling.
 
Many people have had bad experiences with off brand power supplies. If someone mentions a power supply from a brand that is not name brand, people will immediately say that it is crap without giving it a chance. This is a good way of doing things also, as 99% of the time, an offbrand power supply will be crap.
 
If your willing to register the PSU with your name & address, you have a lifetime warrenty.

I run two Zippy/Emacs that will crush any similarly rated Seasonic but at less efficiency and more noise. Do I care....No. Seasonic is not some idol to be worshipped 😉

We just had two PCP&C 510s posted in the last month that crapped out. Yeah right! it's true.


...Galvanized
 
Originally posted by: 0roo0roo
custom pc magazine had a nice psu review during december.
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I read that. The Seasonic S12-500 and 600 came out top of the 'mid-range' and 'high-end' test IIRC. Great mag, I get it every month.
 
i dont buy ultra psu's cuz they're too flashy. remember.. everything on the market cost money, so you're paying half for the flashy part, maybe even more. i also dont buy it because they were going for $0 @ Hot Deals. lol would u use a psu that was $0. really now... waste of time? waste of money to front? i guess some people just have too much of both and like flashy lights on their comp
 
i've had mine for a year now, lasted with no issues through overclocking and having my computer on almost all the time. not a single hiccup, also survived a few brutal storms with no issue, i'd stand behind it
 
I've had both an Ultra X-Connect 500 and a 400 - both powering Dual AMD MP2200 motherboard based rigs running 24/7 with the CPUs at full load(TA Distributed Computing) with zero problems or issues.

Now, it is true that I've not taxed either power supply with lots of hard drives or anything because it's not important to DC, but they've run wonderfully. 🙂
 
a) Especially in the past, Ultra power supplies crapped out a lot. Even if this isn't the case now, many people still remember it

b) They look cheesy/cheap

c) Most products with an "X" in them suck
 
there's simply better reliable psu's for the price. sometimes there good sometimes there bad too I've heard okay stories and terrible stories.
 
their V (value) series are what most people here are probably referring to when they are bashing these psu's.

FYI, they're not cheap or cheesy feeling at all. and for <$10 for a 350w psu of this quality, it's a steal. these are far superior to a bottom feeder company like deer, powmax, aspire etc. how can you say "there are simply better reliable psu's for the price" when these are under $10 and the 500w are $20.

take a look at a review of the V series
 
Ok... Before Googer gets in here.... I've worked for Ultra over the last couple months. That said.....

Originally posted by: Ike0069

I would disagree. I believe they have a reliability in the bottom 25% of PSU makers, but I have no personaly way to verify that.
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Actually, I've looked at the return rates and they are in about the 50%. With Aspire, MGE (not XG,) etc. Not bad, but not good.

Bottom 25% is stuff like Deer, Powmax, BCC/Okia, etc.

Originally posted by: Ike0069
But I do think that the reason they are so cheap AR is because people started realizing that they were not worth anywhere near the price tag they had intially, so the rebates had to be offered to speed up sales on backed up inventory.
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Actually, the thing people don't realize is that this power supply is OVER a year old. And that's actually a BIG PART of the problem.


Ultra has always been a company of good intentions. We carried them at TCWO and my friend Joe went to work for them in 2004 as well as aquaintances Kirby and John. Never had a problem.... until.....

The X-Connect was a good product. Great idea too. First modular power supply. Smart enough to patent (when they'll act on that, who knows?) but they couldn't get anyone to manufacture it.

Ultra had been using Wintech, but Wintech wasn't going to make it for them. So they went to Youngyear.

Youngyear is a funny company. I've met the guy that owns the company. Nice enough guy, but what does that mean in dollars and cents? They remind me a lot of GM. They have the potential to make a good product, but bottom line is always in the forefront of everything they do ao it screws things up in the end.

They initially made the X-Connect for Ultra, and they sold THOUSANDS. Then everyone and their cousin had a modular power supply and sales dropped. So it was assumed that this was because of price. Youngyear was given an ultimatum: Better price or no more power supplies.

They gave them a better price, but they cut corners to do it! And Ultra had nobody in the US in any kind of "QC" capacity to keep an eye on things. Essentially: The units reflected the price.

Thousands more were ordered and warehouses were soon overstocked. The product was discontinued and rebates had to be used to help liquidate. I know of 2000 year old units that flowed through MicroCenter LAST MONTH ALONE!!!

Needless to say, Youngyear is on the Ultra sh!t list because a reputation has been established that's hard to recover from. So an X-Connect experience is going to be VERY binary: It is either a very good PSU or it sucks rocks!

FYI: EU units (230V only, APFC) are actually made by Wintech and are identical to X-Finity 500W units. These are rock solid and easily stand up to anything twice their price. Recently, Ultra bought back a bunch of 230V units from the EU and had them converted to 115V (removed PFC and added voltage doubler), so if you see a 115V only (no 115/230V switch) X-Connect and can get it for a good price... jump on it. 😉

Otherwise, keep in mind that you're buying a two year old PSU that was discontinued a year ago. Have low expectations. 😉

Oh... and for the rumors I've read in other forums: They switched factories, they went to Korea, etc... They're all B.S.

What I find really funny is the "there's so many negative accounts, blah blah blah.." You have to realize that the number of units of X-Connect 500W units alone sold are easily five digit.
 
Originally posted by: Fullmetal Chocobo
Because I can't stand "look at me, look at me" crap. If their performance was better, then sure, I'd consider them.
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I typically agree. But it's a double edged sword.

I've been working with Andyson on the next 800W Ultra. I was told, "Cool, but we need it with FlexForce cables." Ok.... That's practical enough, but that's it.

When the EE in Taiwan caught wind that we were working on this, he starts working with Wintech on an 800W that can be cooled with a 120MM (my Andyson requires a pair of 80's.)

When the powers that be find out about the 800W Wintech, they want to make it the 3rd gen X-Connect (because it doesn't need an 80MM on the inside, it can utilize a modular interface) and try to get it out within the next couple months (what about my 800W?!?!)

So it's like, you can have a good PSU.. the engineers will make sure of that... but by the time it gets to the marketing guys, they slather on all of the bling that I KNOW FOR A FACT turn OFF a lot of people. But with so many PSU's on the market, you pretty much have to do SOMETHING to set yourself apart. I guess I can't really blame them.

EDIT: I sort of won this battle with my Andyson, BTW. They're going to make it in two versions. X-Finity (with FlexForce) and "Server" (with regular sleeved cables) W00t!
 
Originally posted by: jonnyGURU
Actually, I've looked at the return rates and they are in about the 50%. With Aspire, MGE (not XG,) etc. Not bad, but not good.

Bottom 25% is stuff like Deer, Powmax, BCC/Okia, etc.
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Man, idk sure a Youngyear (X-Connect) is better then a Powmax or deer but what exactly is that saying? You might as well light a stick of dynamite and put that where the PSU belongs for all the good a Deer or Powmax is going to do you.

Any company that outsourcers to a manufacture like Youngyear is permanently on my sh!t list.

Originally posted by: jonnyGURU
What I find really funny is the "there's so many negative accounts, blah blah blah.." You have to realize that the number of units of X-Connect 500W units alone sold are easily five digit.
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Sure they've moved a ton of units but they also have an alarming number of failures for a supposedly high-end PSU if these forums are any indication, more then any one brand that I can think of.
 
Originally posted by: Operandi

Sure they've moved a ton of units but they also have an alarming number of failures for a supposedly high-end PSU if these forums are any indication, more then any one brand that I can think of.
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My point exactly. There's a lot of bitching and moaning (most are NOT first hand accounts) but in the grand scheme of things, not that big of a percentage in the forums and reality (looking at the CRM to see RMA's vs. sales.)

If I got to Hardforums, for example, I can actually find more PCP&C failures (and they sell less units) and more Antec failures (they sell about the same.)

But I do agree with you on Youngyear. Wouldn't have been my first.. second... third.. choice. But they were the only ones to step up to the task. Even Antec was approached to do a sub-contract job since Wintech was the only PSU people Ultra knew (Andyson is a cousin of Wintech, but they're not on good terms) and they turned it down WAY before the Neo came out.

They were good for starters. Unfortunately, they were incapable of looking into the long term.

As far as "quality" goes; take a look at this Youngyear build X-Connect vs. Wintech built unit:

Xconn.jpg

Youngyear left, Wintech right. Pretty big diff for both being 550W PSU's IMHO!
 
Originally posted by: jonnyGURU
Originally posted by: Operandi

Sure they've moved a ton of units but they also have an alarming number of failures for a supposedly high-end PSU if these forums are any indication, more then any one brand that I can think of.
Click to expand...

My point exactly. There's a lot of bitching and moaning (most are NOT first hand accounts) but in the grand scheme of things, not that big of a percentage in the forums and reality (looking at the CRM to see RMA's vs. sales.)

If I got to Hardforums, for example, I can actually find more PCP&C failures (and they sell less units) and more Antec failures (they sell about the same.)

But I do agree with you on Youngyear. Wouldn't have been my first.. second... third.. choice. But they were the only ones to step up to the task. Even Antec was approached to do a sub-contract job since Wintech was the only PSU people Ultra knew (Andyson is a cousin of Wintech, but they're not on good terms) and they turned it down WAY before the Neo came out.

They were good for starters. Unfortunately, they were incapable of looking into the long term.

As far as "quality" goes; take a look at this Youngyear build X-Connect vs. Wintech built unit:

Xconn.jpg

Youngyear left, Wintech right. Pretty big diff for both being 550W PSU's IMHO!
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I guess that?s why I tend get my PSU's from the manufacture rather then a 3rd party marketing company. At least you know what you?re getting.

Even if Ultra's weren?t exploding left and right there are certainly better options, weren't they originally selling for well over the $100 price range?
 
Originally posted by: Operandi

Even if Ultra's weren?t exploding left and right there are certainly better options, weren't they originally selling for well over the $100 price range?
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Yep. Something like $129 if I remember correctly.

I'm surprised how few companies release their own product to the US Market.

Seasonic, FSP, Zippy/Emacs, Enhance...

That's about it, right? 😉

Truth is, the guys in Asia really aren'y MOTIVATED to produce anything either high wattage or "innovative."

I went to a number of computer stores in Taiwan last week and could only find a handful of PSU brands:

Seasonic, and only the 430W...

Seventeam at a maximum of 500W (not available as Seventeam in the US, but is available as a Cooler Master 600W)...

and the Enermax 485W (but NONE of the Liberty's.)

Think about it.... ALL power supplies are made overseas. You get a US company to import your product and what does that mean for you? You don't have to handle development, R&D, QC, logistics, marketing...... you'd be a FOOL to attempt to sell your own product.

Enhance is a huge exception to the rule, but they're damaging Silverstone in the process. Let Silverstone "bring the product in" to the U.S., market it, etc. and then Enhance moves in with the same product under their own name because all of the grunt work is done.

And most companies over there are like that. One in particular want a commitment of 5K units a month for an exclusive. That's a lot of power supplies. One other company is using that platform and an exclusive would mean no more for them. Of course, if you can't commit to 5K a month, they can pretty much come in 6 months from now and sell it under their own name after the product has been well established as an acceptable piece of equipment.

Sad really. That's why I say, "Never trust an Asian." 😉
 
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