Home > Consumer Reviews > Ultra X3 600-Watt Energy Efficient Modular Power Supply (ULT40073)

I just built a beast of a PC for my wife's video editing and despite some negative discussion from some of the geek forums, I read reviews about this product and decided to buy it. Here's why:

This PSU is highly reviewed on tigerdirect.com because it features high amps to all the necessary rails, unlike some PSUs that might sound more powerful (like 1000Watt) but don't give a strong, quality supply of power. Strong, even, ripple free power is essential to ensure that your components work in a stable manner and this supply delivers.

I like the large fan arrangement as her previous PC overheated like crazy, but this PSU is both cool and quiet, even under load.

But the best part about it is the fact that it's modular. That means that inside your PC, you only plug in the cables that you need to power components. The forum geeks told me that I would end up using them all anyway, but with video card, 3 hard drives, optical drives, a bunch of fans etc, there are still a whole lot of cables I didn't use and which don't clutter up the box, restricting airflow and keeping things hot. With the modular set up, the inside of the case is clear of unnecessary wires and airflow is great as a result.

Finally, the forum geeks told me that if you have sockets and plugs at the PSU end, that these could be future failure points, so they'd prefer not to use modular PSUs. This is crazy, as this PSU uses heavy duty Molex plugs. These same plugs are used on race cars, which are subject to far higher heat, stress and movement. Unless you're driving your PC around the track, those connectors will stay solidly connected.

Finally, it looks good. It's kind of a black chrome (not black and white like it looks in photos) and the cables are all low profile and black. Plus, they are of significant enough gauge wire that they stay where you bend them, making cable management easy and attractive.

I'm very happy so far. I think you will be too.

Have this running for a couple of month now. Very quiet, very slick design (like it matters when it's inside the case :))

The main reason I got this product was the modular design. Works great. Although I had some fears, 600W provides more than enough juice for a bunch of components I ended up installing - 2HD's, 3 CD/DVD drives, hungry video card, several PCI cards, Quad CPU, 3GB RAM and a whole bunch of USB devices.

If u can pay it, don't hesitate to own it. It's awesome, very quiet and well designed. Modular cables save a lot space and make your cpu seems neat. I fall in love with PSU, it was a smart choice.

I know fit and finish are automotive criteria but this piece is beautiful and the ease of installation and the number and type of connectors make it a joy to install.

This is my third one. OK, I know what you are thinking, 3, they must not last very long. But actually, that's only partly true.

The first one I purchased was the X-Connect series. This one is still operational. I was forced to upgrade the Power Supply when I upgraded the Motherboard to an Intel Core 2 Duo. This Power Supply only had the 2x20 connector. Intel needed the 2x24.

The second Power Supply I purchased was the XVS series. This one failed after 1 1/2 years. I am currently following through with trying to get it covered under the standard warranty. If I had registered the product then there should not have been any problem, for they offer a lifetime warranty with registration. This one had the motherboard supply (2x20 +4) as non-modular while all other cables were modular. But that model had few cables.

Now this being the third Power Supply, I was very aware of how the modular designed worked.

The wires are of a ribbon style (on the first unit they were round which was my favorite design). The motherboard supply is modular, but it is 2x24 (not the 2x20 +4). So, it can only be used with boards that require 2x24.

When I started installing the unit, it felt like I had too many cables. Almost like a mistake was made and a double batch was stuffed in the box. I started looking over the box to see if more was there than there should have been. There was no paperwork in the box and nothing written on the box as to what should be in the box. The only way I could check, was to go on-line to their website. But with the power supply removed from the machine, well, no internet.

When I was able to check what cables I should have had, I do see more than there should have been. But they are also different. For example, the Ultra website says that you should get 2 five pin cables that allow 3 SATA drives. I would have liked to have had just one of these. I did get the 2 five pin cables that allowed 2 SATA drives, so now I have a plug hanging around open. I also got 2 four pin to 1 SATA cables which were not supposed to be included at all. I just didn't want to use a Molex to SATA when there are the five pin connectors for SATA.

The modular concept is to "use only the cables you need" and reduce clutter in the case. This would work better if they supply various lengths of cables. The 21.5 inches for the SATA cable is about 15 inches more than I need. The rest gets bunched up and wire tied out of the way. This increases clutter (and reduces airflow) with each wire I attach.

When I first contacted Ultra Products about the unit, I inquired about being able to replace the box without the need to replace the cables. Now with this third unit, I have more cables than I could ever need. They stated that the previous power supply units were at their "end of life and they no longer carried them". They also stated that the cables for the X3 design were not the same as the previous units and I would need the new cables. However, by viewing these cables I can not "see" any difference. They have the same Molex modular plugs for most of the cables. If they are different, it must be at the metal wire level. The SATA do have new five pin plugs. And the PCI-e plugs are not in use, yet.

I purchased this unit from Amazon (not one of their third party companies). They had it listed under a different page than this one. And on that page they had a wrong image. It was shown as being much longer than the unit actually is. As of this writing the picture shown is correct. If you want to be sure about it, visit the Ultra website.

Update: The process to collect on a warranty is not very good. You must pay for a new unit and have it shipped to you. Then package your old unit and return it to them. They won't do it any other way. IF they determine that the unit is defective from manufacturer, then they refund your purchase. So, IF they determine you are not eligible for warranty, then you will have paid for a unit when you could have been better off to not be a returning customer. In my case, since I required a newer design, I now have ended up with a non-modular replacement that I don't need for a modular PS (that was at "end of life"). Their warranty leaves a lot to be desired. This process started on 11/6/2008, and I had my return unit and refund issued on 11/17/2008.

Conclusion: If you want a modular PS, these are good. But don't expect much if the unit goes bad. Count it as a throw away item. For myself, I will have to think about being a return customer in the future, just based on warranty. If the item last as long as the first one, I will be very likely to return. But if it fails in the 1 1/2 years like the second unit, I will be looking for a new maker.