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Design & Features
I have looked at many great looking power
supplies in the past, but none quite like this one. Let's start with the
fan and grill.
**click to enlarge**
The fan and grill on this PSU is quite stunning
indeed. It consists of a chrome angled grill with the Ultra logo and
black steel mesh surrounding it. The fan is clear and appears to
be of high quality as well.
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**click to enlarge** |
**click to enlarge** |
Now, the most impressive feature that sets this
unit apart from all the rest, is its unique x-connect cables and modular
connections. This will allow you to connect only the cables you need and
eliminate unnecessary cable clutter. The unit comes very well packaged
and the connectors come protected with rubber inserts.
**click to enlarge**
The rear sports another high quality clear fan
but with a standard silver fan grill. The rocker switch for power is
massive and much larger than any of the power supplies I've looked at in the
past.
**click to enlarge**
The Ultra X-Connect comes with a variety of high
quality rounded cables featuring the X-Connect connectors. The
motherboard cable is very thick and not as flexible as the rest of them.
They include: one 20-pin main power cable, one 6-pin auxiliary power cable,
one 4-pin 12V P4 cable, six 4-pin peripheral cables and one floppy cable.
The only cables not included with this unit are the SATA cables. It is
rumored that Ultra Products has or will have an optional cable kit that will
included them. I've also read that Ultra Products will provide SATA
cables free of charge to those who need them. I could not confirm this
as I did not get a call back from Ultra Products regarding this matter.
Another nice touch with the cables is that they are all UV reactive and are designed
to look good under a black light.
Below is a sample shot of the cables under a
black light (UV):
**click to enlarge**
Installation
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**click to enlarge** |
**click to enlarge** |
Installation is a breeze thanks to the unique
connectors. Just plug the ones you need and you're ready to go.
For testing purposes though, I ran this unit with one hard drive, two
optical storage drives and one floppy drive to get a feel on how well it
performs when connected to numerous peripherals and fans.
Performance
The Ultra X-Connect PSU is designed to provide
500W of continuous power. To measure its performance, I recorded
voltages both idle and under load. Sisoftware's Sandra 2004 Burn-In
Wizard was used to load the system.
**Idle**
**Load**
When idle, voltages were all slightly above
specification. There were no significant changes when loading the
system. The +3.3V and +5V line remained within specifications and only
a very slight fluctuation in the +12V line was apparent. This power
supply was completely stable during operation. |
