Ultra Power Supplies - BAD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Im on my second month with my x-connect psu.I might have a good one because its been running mint till now.

Solid rails and even running it off the 5v jumper on my DFI ultra board.

ill keep an eye on it.

system specs

dfi nf4 ultra
3200+ @250x9 2-2-2-5 1t ([email protected])
x700pro 256@470core 525mem
2 dvd burners
2 sata hd running in raid
4 case fans

23.6k best 3d01 score
 
cheap power supplies (other than budget fortron ones) != good. period.
i went from a 400W powmax PSU i got with a case a while ago to a 350W fortron (with 120mm fan, but not the LED fan) and the fortron is much better (surprise, surprise!)

with the powmax PSU, i'd have to unplug the 2 fans in the front of my case, or the sata disk i boot from would get errors (basically, it would act like it had click o' death) and not boot.

the fortron works flawlessly so far.

since ultras are apparently rebranded powmax PSUs, i'd assume it to be safe to say that they are overrated POSs. the wires on the powmax PSU were thinner than those of the 200W gateway PSU that was in my fileserver until i got an enermax 550W EPS power supply for it. (that appears to be rated too high, IMO, but... it needs it for the amount of disks in there now)

i'd tend to stay away from cheap PSUs if another option is at all viable. sounds like you learned that the hard way:)() at least your stuff is getting replaced, though.
 
Young Year not Powmax.....but there really isn't a lot of difference.
 
chilly_DoG said:
Unfortunately I am also an ultra ps victim

You did buy this before the warning flags went up right? And you have rectified the situation right?
:p
 
Well, all I can say is I posted this first a while back and really had reservations about the PSU as it took out my Asus mobo. Was able to RMA the mobo, returned the PSU and waged a campaign against Ultra. The entire time I took noted on ALL my phone conversations along with names. When it was time to elevate the issue I had alot of documentation and Ultra as a company really steped up to the plate good willing me a new PSU and a bunch of cables.

I really think they have a manufacturing problem and the design is a bit short on a few other things in my opinion but the PSU they sent me is now operating well in my OC system. Thankfully I do not have that much hardware to power.

Would I recommend the PSU, nope as there have been too many horror stories and unfortunatly most users do not thave the technical background or hardware behind them to speak on a technical level necessary to make a substantial argument.

All I can say is you catch more bees with honey then you do with vinegar :)
 
V0ltage said:
My friend has an X-connect 500W and the rails are incredibly stable, completely owns my friends 580W powmax.
I have a fork with a molex connector soldered on that would own the 580w powmax.
 
You want a good psu? Go PC Power and Cooling. Seriously, the best money I've ever spent on a computer component.
 
Dr. X said:
You want a good psu? Go PC Power and Cooling. Seriously, the best money I've ever spent on a computer component.
i'll dispute that.


if you want an EXCELLENT PSU, then you get a PCP&C.

for those who can't afford excellence, but still want a good PSU, fortron, antec and enermax are SOLID. OCZ is up and coming.
 
orkan said:
OCZ's modstream doesn't have adjustable rails, and is probably the most stable modular psu you will ever find.

The Antec NeoPower 480 would like a word with your post. :cool:
 
I picked up an ultra at a local store here in town a while back for my HTPC and it lasted less than 2 weeks. The system was on 24/7 but from the specs in my sig a would say it wasnt a really heavy load. Just came home one day to find my apartment smelling like burnt plastic and the psu was dead. Luckily didnt take anything with it and it gave me the excuse to get me Silverstone LC11 htpc case.
 
I have an Antec 380 TruePower, solid and stable. But, I have been down the road of crap PSUs.


I built 6 systems with the Ultra X Connect... all 6 died on the bench table before being shipped out. They were replaced with the Antec NeoPower PSUs, and have been going strong since.

Personally, my experiences with Antec PSUs have dictated I never use anything else.
 
Well I got one of the X-connects the first week they were out to replace a 500w powermax which died. The x-connect was great - very stable and I was able to OC farther with it all the way up to 4.14 GHz on P4.

I also have a wattage meter which shows actual usage of the outlet the PC is in and it peaks at about 450W averaging about 320W. The X-Cconnect has been very stable for over 6 mo now and has had very little voltade drop on 3.3 rail...

So maybe they have shitty quality control, but mine works great... knock on wood...
 
orkan said:
BTW... I called ULTRA directly, and asked for a refund. Respose: "we only do exchanges."

I guess if I had a pile of crap, that I wanted to make a quick buck from... I would carry the same policy.

... bastards.

On the other side of the coin... I purchased the PSU with my U2-UFO case from mountainmods.com. The guys at mountain mods are very professional and were very sympathetic to my little disaster. They said to send it back, and they will give me a full refund, and handle the RMA themselves. Classy bunch of people.
yep good guys i got me the brushes aluminum with all the windows from them nice case :) as my stupid move of buying a ultra is killed my FX51 and SK8N !still on RMA
 
ScHpAnKy said:
Wasn't OCZ the very company that screwed over enthusiasts by offering them terrible re-badged memory about two years ago that 90% of the time didn't even run?

After that incident, I will never give my money to a company that allows such travesty to occur.

That is correct. Yet almost everybody seems to have forgotten.
 
Viperoni said:
That is correct. Yet almost everybody seems to have forgotten.
not QUITE everyone. a friend of my got just that memory, and that is how mushkin gained me as a customer, when i went shopping for overclocking memory.
 
actually the company was bought
why the new owners didnt change the name at that point I dont know

consider these points
1. Dr Micheal Schuette (Lost Circuits) is the Director of Technology Development @ OCZ

2. OCZ doesnt make PSUs, those are all Topower P6 series supplies, with a few choices from the options list
as such they are some of the best supplies around
(though not the equal of PCP&C 510s)

3. When the first batch of (defective) 600Watt ATX12V v2.0 supplies started to fry vidcards left and right
OCZ replaced all of em

I have a very long memory
I also assign blame where appropriate
OCZ isnt the same folks as back when
and they have demonstrated they have some of the best customer service around

then casting dispersions on a supply made by a well known manufacturer
just because its rebranded by someone you dont like, when they where in fact someone else

well......

:p
 
ice czar:

for those of us who do not just go out and buy a "whatever" powersupply because it looks nice, or is cheap, the selection of a PSU is based largely on trust of the company that it is branded by.

trust that the PSU will work as advertised, won't blow up and kill other hardware, and if it does, the company will pay reasonable damages in a timely manner.

the company builds trust by getting good reviews, and putting out solid product that they stand behind. word of mouth reccomendations count for even more, when the product is solid and the support is good.

an incident like OCZ putting out all of that crummy memory makes buyers loose trust in the company as a whole, and so they stop buying.

the same word of mouth that speaks so well for a good product can really put buyers off the company that made the product.

once a company has lost trust, then it takes time to get it back.

that may not be fair to the company, if they start putting out good product, and getting good reviews right after whatever made customers loose trust, but that is the way that my friends and i opperate.

as it stands, one of my friends got shafted by OCZ on some memory, a while back. the DDR boster scares the piss out of me and i don't like the idea of a PSU that might or might not come out of the box properly calibrated, bacasue the end users can calibrate it themselves.

only with time, continued good product, and continued good warrenty service will OCZ earn my business.
 
akwok said:
The Seasonic S12 PSUs are by far the best I've used. The S12-430 is the quietest fanned PSU on the market (SPCR agrees), and has a 80%+ efficiency.

I am using the Seasonic S12-600. Got to say it is the best psu I have ever owned. Its really quiet and has dead on voltages. I replaced a couple of Antec Truepowers with the Seasonic and it made a noticable difference in my electricity amount. Active PFC + 80% efficiency = awsome PSU. :)
 
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