Ultra X2 Extreme Edition 750w Power Supply @ [H]

This comes as no surprise to me. I had an Ultra X 500W smoke my SKT 754 3400+ CPU and Board and Hitachi HD back in the day.
 
Mohonri said:
Am I the only one who enjoys the reviews of bad products more than the reviews of good products? Considering that Ultra supply you with the review units, I'm sure they're aware of your testing methods. And I'm sure that if they knew the unit was so weak, they wouldn't have supplied it to you. I think Wintech may be getting a rather nasty phone call soon...

Minor nitpick: you used "beg the question" incorrectly in the last paragraph of the review. I think the right phrase is "raises the question" or "prompts the question" or something similar. "Begging the question" has an entirely different meaning.
Click to expand...

Actually I enjoy really excellent reviews of products and reviews of the horrible ones. The former because I enjoy hearing and reading about good products that are worth my attention and I enjoy reading about the latter because such reviews are often humerous. Everything in the middle is just that. Niether amusing or particularly enjoyable to read about.
 
I had one of the orginal X-Connect 500W modular PS's and I must have had the only good one they made. That sucker lasted through 3 builds, going from agp-pcie, and socket-a to s939. I've also overclocked many many cpus with it also. And the whole time, I've been reading horrendous reviews of the model and wondering what made me so special.

It finally started to die after i bought my 8800GT. I replaced it with a 600w Coolmaxx in my sig and couldn't be happier. With all that said, I will never touch another Ultra product again. I will be sticking with the top 3 again as the only reason I initially bought the X-Connect was cause it was like the only modular PS out then. Now everyone got a modular model, so that competitive advantage is gone.
 
Paul_Johnson said:
Oh yeah they know. Actually all of our Ultra samples have come from Ultra (including the X3 600w/X-Pro 600w EE that didn't do the best), they are by far the most willing to have their products reviewed so far which is why we have done 6. The only one we had to ask for was the X3 1600w and that one rocked.
Click to expand...

I don't recall reading the 1600watt Ultra PSU review. I'll have to check that out.
 
Great review guys. As usual [H] are on the ball and not pulling any punches.

Seems to me like Ultra are another case of a company focusing more on it's high-end products, and simply not giving a crap about the products which should be it's bread and butter. At the end of the day, not everyone who builds their own PC is an enthusiast, or is putting together a top of the line rig. Not everyone is going to need a 1300W power supply.

As for the SLI certificiation, do Nvidia not own copyright or patent or whatever for the logo? If not, then why not? Surely that would stop companies like Ultra from basically completely flat out lying to people. I know it's completely different here in the UK, and basically Ultra would be coming very close to breaking quite a few of our consumer laws with this unit.
 
Considering this is the first Ultra review I've read on [H]ard, I have to ask why everyone is surprised? After the nightmare that was ConnectX PSU's, I completely wrote the company off. Honestly, I wasn't even aware that Ultra's reputation had improved over the years. One thing consumers always risk with a company that begins by selling a sub-standard product is that they are capable of doing it again. Mind you, I'm talking about taking deliberate corners and shortcuts to gain market share, not simply the misfortune of a flawed product or two. Anyway, it looks like Ultra PSU's will stay on my blacklist for clients and friends. Thanks for the heads up!

- James
 
James54321 said:
Considering this is the first Ultra review I've read on [H]ard, I have to ask why everyone is surprised?
Click to expand...

Because of the rest of the reviews that you haven't read, they have made a number of very good units.
 
Can I request that [H] review the X3 800? I've seen a few people say good things about them here (Paul Johnson in this thread, jonnyGURU in another thread), but I haven't seen too many reviews of it. I'd like to see how one stands up to the [H]'s tests.
 
CaptNumbNutz said:
I wonder how Ultra can claim the first modular PSU in their marketing. Enthusiasts have been doing that for years before they did it with the X2.
Click to expand...

And Ultra was doing it before the X2 as well. That's why it's called X2.
 
Dan_D said:
It is.

Last time I went shooting I shot up two complete computers (a compaq and an Athlon XP) as well as a couple complete cases. I shot some power supplies and some drives.

I've got a pretty good size arsenal so I've got many choices for implements of destruction. Two I haven't tried yet:

Remington 700 chambered in 7mm Magnum
Desert Eagle Mark XIX chambered in .50AE.

I've shot them, but I've not used them to kill computer hardware yet. Both are quite powerful and it should prove to be fun during my next outing.
Click to expand...


So I guess when [H] has a product shootout...it really is a product shootout...
 
I have owned one PSU from them in my life, and what a disappointment.

The moment I put an x1900xt in it, the PSU shut down and I thought I had fried my golden DFI SLI-DR NF4 LP board, which I still love and use.

My OCZ 450w Modstream ran this config perfectly. The funny thing was that this Ultra was a 500w X-Connect running my huge power sucker X2 4200 CPU at stock with one measly hard disk.

I afterward held on to this POS to use as my 360 backup PSU with a custom Talismoon cable (that allows PSUs to run a 360). My 500w subwoofer almost brought the house down from the electrical noise that started the second I hit the "on" switch on this trash.

The Ultra is sitting in my garage stewing in mouse droppings and piss. Good thing I only paid $39.99 after rebate for it. Ultra Hazardous Waste is a more fitting name. Isn't even heavy enough to use as a door stop. So some of you are lucky.

UltraProducts.com still has the "SLI certified" logo on this steaming pile infused with crack hair "PSU" from the review. I guess they "forgot" to remove it.

Nice review and a fun read.

10e
 
I like some of their later products. Have 5x X-Finity 500Ws and 2x V 500Ws deployed on non-demanding overclocked E4300 setups.

Been running fine 24/7/365 for the last year.
 
I wonder if Ultra has any comment on the review. I'd be curious to hear what they have to say for themselves.
 
What's patented is the actual modular interface, not the concept of modularity. Modular PSU's do pre-date Ultra's X-Connect, but those were nothing more than cables cut short with extenders added as needed. The X-Connect was the first to interface the cables at the housing.
 
not that i'm in the market for a psu,but am very glad to see an honest review.
 
supergrover said:
So I guess when [H] has a product shootout...it really is a product shootout...
Click to expand...

Well those are shootouts of mine and aren't affiliated with [H] in any way. No [H] staff have ever gone with me to shoot stuff.
 
I got the Ultra X3 ULT40064 1000-Watt Power Supply before the holidays for $220. Thought it was a good price for a 1000 Watt. I haven't installed as of yet. Did I make a mistake with this purchase?
 
crazyhorsejohnny said:
I got the Ultra X3 ULT40064 1000-Watt Power Supply before the holidays for $220. Thought it was a good price for a 1000 Watt. I haven't installed as of yet. Did I make a mistake with this purchase?
Click to expand...

By most accounts the Andyson-built X3's (800W +) are very good power supplies. For a 1000W power supply it is a fine choice. Here was [H]'s review on that particular unit:

http://enthusiast.hardocp.com/article.html?art=MTMxNywxLCxoZW50aHVzaWFzdA==

Because a lot of these companies are actually outsourcing the production of the power supplies to other companies the quality can vary on line to line. The particular one you purchased should be a good one. The particular one reviewed here well, was not.
 
I would be interested in knowing:
1) What NVIDIA does about this disaster of a product?
2) What happens to product already in distribution as "SLI Ready"?
3) If there is a product recall w/refunds?
4) What possessed Ultra to submit this product for review to anyone, let alone [H}?
4a) Just how stupid is Ultra?
5) Whois going to pay for equipment powered by this thing that is damaged or will not work properly?
 
tombew said:
I would be interested in knowing:
1) What NVIDIA does about this disaster of a product?
2) What happens to product already in distribution as "SLI Ready"?
3) If there is a product recall w/refunds?
4) What possessed Ultra to submit this product for review to anyone, let alone [H}?
4a) Just how stupid is Ultra?
5) Whois going to pay for equipment powered by this thing that is damaged or will not work properly?
Click to expand...

1.) They have already asked Ultra to remove the SLI certification logo.
2.) I have no idea, but if NVIDIA asked Ultra to knock that off then I imagine Ultra needs to do something or face NVIDIA's wrath.
3.) Product recalls where actual refunds are issued are rare.
4.) That's something I wondered myself.
5.) That is not the problem of the manufacturer. I always see people asking questions like this. If you read any of the documentation that comes with virtually all hardware you'll see that each company protects themselves from such liabilities. Basically when you build machines yourself you do all of these things at your own risk.
 
thats how you legaly get into the sli party w/o being invited...certified means nvidia endorses it... ready means yeah it can do that too supposably
 
Nvidia SLI is still a trademark.

NVIDIA® SLI™ Ready

If I where them I would do everything possible to get my trademark of this product.
 
Buntz said:
I did not read every post, so someone else might of said something already,but went on the Ultra web site. This is the power supply you tested? It still says it is Nvidia SLI Ready. The picture is so small it hard to see what it says.

http://www.ultraproducts.com/category.php?cPath=61

On this page if you scroll all the way to the bottom you will see it says that it is ready ,not certified.

http://www.ultraproducts.com/product_details.php?cPath=61&pPath=666&productID=666
Click to expand...

Well that is something between NVIDIA and Ultra to work out.
 
crazyhorsejohnny said:
I got the Ultra X3 ULT40064 1000-Watt Power Supply before the holidays for $220. Thought it was a good price for a 1000 Watt. I haven't installed as of yet. Did I make a mistake with this purchase?
Click to expand...

I have it and its awesome. Very good PSU.
 
Buntz said:
On this page if you scroll all the way to the bottom you will see it says that it is ready ,not certified.
Click to expand...

SLI READY is SLI Certified. There is no Nvidia logo that says "SLI Certified." That's ATI that does that ("ATI Certified")
 
its buyer beware you want somethen certified by nvidia ask nvidia what to buy..... you want somethen that may work with it for a little less..... then by all means thats your right... just remember when you pay low prices for parts you normally get low quality. there are the exceptions to that rule but in general you get what you pay for.... thats why ultra's good psu's are in the normal price range for a good psu ($150-$250 and up) and the crap 750w psu is under $100 us



edited out my assumptions on nvidia logo's .... my bad
 
jonnyGURU said:
SLI READY is SLI Certified. There is no Nvidia logo that says "SLI Certified." That's ATI that does that ("ATI Certified")
Click to expand...

lol didnt see that i was assuming there was a certified logo AND a ready logo open mouth insert foot :p
 
Dan_D said:
1.)
5.) That is not the problem of the manufacturer. I always see people asking questions like this. If you read any of the documentation that comes with virtually all hardware you'll see that each company protects themselves from such liabilities. Basically when you build machines yourself you do all of these things at your own risk.
Click to expand...

is this true even in cases of fraud? if you bought the psu based on the sli certification, and the implied level of performance and quality it brings, does ultra really not owe you anything? this isn't "misleading marketing speak" - the product boasts credentials it doesn't have
 
dualblade said:
is this true even in cases of fraud? if you bought the psu based on the sli certification, and the implied level of performance and quality it brings, does ultra really not owe you anything? this isn't "misleading marketing speak" - the product boasts credentials it doesn't have
Click to expand...

You bring up a good point. That would be something for lawyers to get involved in if something like that happened.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top