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TEST RESULTS
For a complete rundown of testing equipment and procedures, please refer to the
article
SPCR's Revised PSU Testing System. It is a close simulation of a
moderate airflow mid-tower PC optimized for low noise.
In the test rig, the ambient temperature of the PSU varies proportionately with
its actual output load, which is exactly the way it is in a real PC
environment. But there is the added benefit of a precise high power load tester
which allows incremental load testing all the way to full power for any
non-industrial PC power supply. Both fan noise and voltage are measured at
various loads. It is, in general, a very demanding test, as the operating
ambient temperature of the PSU often reaches 40°C or more at full power.
This is impossible to achieve with an open test bench setup.
SPCR's new high fidelity sound recording system was used to create MP3 sound files of this PSU -- our first of a power supply. As with the setup for recording fans, the position of the mic was 3" from the exhaust vent at a 45° angle, outside the airflow turbulence area. The photo below shows the setup. All noise sources in the room other than the PSU were turned off while making the sound recordings.
Ambient conditions during testing were 22°C and 18 dBA, with input of 119.5 VAC / 60 Hz
measured at the AC outlet.
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Ultra X-Connect 500W TEST RESULTS
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DC Output (W)
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65
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90
|
150
|
200
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300
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400
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500
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AC Input (W)
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96
|
129
|
206
|
261
|
390
|
538
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685
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Efficiency
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68%
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70%
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73%
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77%
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77%
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74%
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73%
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Intake Temp (°C)
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27
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27
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30
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34
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36
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39
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42
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PSU Exhaust (°C)
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29
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29
|
33
|
38
|
42
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46
|
51
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Fan Voltage
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5.8
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5.8
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5.8
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6.1
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9.5
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11.4
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11.6
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Noise (dBA/1m)
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33
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33
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33
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35
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42
|
47
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47
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| MP3 recordings* |
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Ultra X-Connect PSU at 200W (35 dBA/1m) |
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Power Factor
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0.6
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0.61
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0.63
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0.64
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0.67
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0.68
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0.69
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NOTE: The ambient room temperature during testing varies a few
degrees from review to review. Please take this into account when comparing PSU
test data.
* There are only sound clips for 65W and 200W because the
noise was roughly the same for the entire power range. After 200W, the SPL
jumps to a level that isn't worth listening to: It is simply too loud.
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1. VOLTAGE REGULATION was fairly good, with the exception of
the 12V line being consistently high. The 12V rail typically provides power to
the motherboard (for the CPU), disk drives, fans, and cooling devices, so proper operation is very important.
Although it may just be this particular sample and not a common trend of the
X-Connect, it is a bit troubling. Throughout the range of test power output
levels, the range was as follows:
-
+12V: 12.25 ~ 12.49V
-
+5V: 4.86~ 5.13V
-
+3.3V: 3.1 ~ 3.38V
2. AC-to-DC Conversion EFFICIENCY was good. It was average
at the <100W output loads, but improved to 73~77% above 150W output. As many desktop
system will rarely draw even 150W in DC, we have to say that the efficiency in normal
use will only be average at best. The efficiency of the unit around ~250W is
very good, but the odds of anyone consistently drawing that sort of wattage are
slim to none.
3. POWER OUTPUT: The unit ran with good stability at all output
levels. The maximum power output test was limited to five minutes instead of the usual 15~30 minutes at the other power levels.
4. POWER FACTOR was poor, ranging from 0.6~0.69 depending upon the load.
In simple terms, PF tells us how much AC power is lost to harmonics
(unnecessary electromagnetic energy) while driving the PSU. While PF is not
significant in terms of noise, heat or performance of the PC, it is relevant to
electricity consumption and energy conservation. The aforementioned results
indicates that the X-Connect is using passive PFC or no PFC at all. This results
in greater electricity consumption than a unit with Active PFC. Given the cost
of this unit, we'd like to see an Active PFC employed here, since there are
cheaper units on the market that have Active PFC.
5. FAN VOLTAGE / NOISE : We generally consider 30 dBA/1m to be the
maximum sound pressure a computer should emit before it is no longer "quiet."
Unfortunately, the lowest sound pressure the X-Connect achieved was a rather
dismal 33 dBA/1m. The
good news is that if one were so inclined, a fan swap could result in a pretty
quiet unit, but the stock X-Connect simply isn't very quiet at all. Below are
sound recordings of the X-Connect, and also recordings of the Seasonic Tornado 400 Rev.A3 (a SPCR overachiever by any
means) for reference:
The Ultra X-Connect at 65W is clearly much louder than the Seasonic Tornado, and has quite a bit more clatter and roughness to the overall sound.
While the Tornado is a smooth, constant pfffff sound, the
X-Connect has an unpleasant mechanical intensity. Overall, the
Tornado is much smoother and more subdued. We didn't include sound clips for
the X-Connect at 90W and 150W levels, as they're almost identical to the 65W
clip. At 200W, the Ultra X-Connect gets significantly louder still, but it's really beside the
point since it has already crossed the noise threshold we consider to be
acceptable for a quiet computer.
CONCLUSIONS
While the Ultra X-Connect 500W PSU is certainly competent in its ability to deliver power, it
doesn't really fit SPCR's critera for a quiet component. The overall
performance of the sample is more than adequate from a power delivery perspective, but leaves
much to be desired from an acoustic perspective. Even at low power loads
(65-100W), the power supply measured well above 30 dBA/1m in our sound tests.
The
efficiency of the unit was fairly good, but far below that of some recent
PSUs to pass through our rigorous testing procedure. Active PFC is
increasingly seen on higher priced PSUs; its absence here is a bit disappointing.
The modular cabling system is an excellent, well executed feature. We'd love to see more PSUs come with similar implementations to
help prevent case clutter and facilitate efficient airflow. It should also be
said that with a bit of modding, this PSU could be quite good acoustically -- swapping out the
stock fans with Panaflos is a move some quiet-oriented but bling-driven modders might consider. Lastly, if you're looking for looks -- snazzy fan grill,
UV-reactive cables, and high-gloss paint finish -- along with high power, then the Ultra
X-Connect is certainly worthy of your consideration.
Much thanks to
Ultra Products for this Ultra X-Connect 500
sample.
* * *
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