On the bench next to the plain-Jane X-Finity 500W, we have this little monster. Choosing not to stop at just the addition of APFC, Ultra has also gone to town re-designing the cooling subsystem and casing on this supply. Featuring a fully matte black aluminum casing, broken only by a 140MM hole for a true beast of a cooling fan adorned with a black grille, this unit was exactly what I was told about - how it would be the SR-71 of Ultra's family. To be truthful with you, I had to look at this supply for a good long time before I could even believe it didn't come out of the labs of the people at PC Power & Cooling, or Silverstone.
Okay, okay, so maybe it wasn't so long, considering the unique bunch of Flexforce cabling sprouting from the rear. Attached to this bundle are the exact same connectors as found on the Non-APFC model, which are listed below, to remedy the off case that you either forgot, or hopped over the last page.
- 20/24 Pin "Break Apart" Style ATX Connector
- 4 Pin (2x2) Auxiliary P4 Power Connector
- 8 Pin (2x4) EPS Power Connector
- 2x 6 Pin (2x3) PCI-Express Power Connector
- 8x Molex Connector (4 on each strand)
- 2x Mini Molex "Floppy" Connector (1 on each strand)
- 4x SATA Connector (2 on each strand)
Oddly enough, the amount of connections wasn't the only thing shared between these siblings, as the ratings for output, efficiency, and division of the rails are for all intents and purposes, the same. Once we actually opened up the unit, the reason for this became clear as the daylight streaming down from above - inside that silky smooth, stealthy exterior was the same PCB as the regular X-Finity, with slightly larger heatsinks, in order to ensure more cool and stable operation. Perhaps the only other difference that could be found internally (apart from the given of layout), was the additional PCB tucked in behind the main one, sporting a small golden fortress of its own. This small PCB receives a feed from mains power; grabbing the incoming current and scrubbing it clean before sending the power on its merry way to the rest of the innards. For what it's worth, the only power supply we've tested so far with APFC, Enermax's Liberty, beat the pants off of the competition, undoubtedly with the assistance of this technology. That means, that the advantage - the one above all, that justifies the minor price hike between units, is the potential for this 500W unit to hold down beautifully stable rails, thanks to the removal of outside ripples as a source of conflict. Couple this with a sleek exterior, gigantic fan, and generally more efficient operation and you've got yourself an evolution on the X-Connect line.
Now, bearing in mind that this is essentially a pre-production unit, it's no short wonder that the casing is free of all the ratings and safety stickers that adorn the chrome shell brethren. Whether or not Ultra will add these stickers is still in question, as though they do provide valuable information to the end user, they essentially ruin the appearance of the unit. Perhaps allowing the end user to apply it if they so wish would be the best solution. Making our way inside of this dark aluminum fortress was simpler than usual, due to the design of the casing allowing us to remove the top half of the case, without having to fight it to get it back down later. Smooth. Almost as smooth as the unbroken back, and the cut out front, replaced by a plastic speaker mesh, which glistens with the same paint that christens our Aluminus case. These two are a match made in heaven. Now if only they offered this supply in silver and blue. To those who've read the reason above, we've also again given the ratings table, which remains unchanged between supplies.
| Max Output Current |
115V/230V 10A/6A 60/50Hz |
| Max Output Current |
+5V |
+3.3V |
+12V1 |
+12V2 |
-12V |
+5VSB |
| 30A |
30A |
16A |
18A |
0.6A |
2.5A |
| Max Combined Wattage |
160W |
384W |
7.2W |
12.5W |
| 481W |
19.7W |
| 500W |
