Ultra Grid Mid-Tower Case w/ 700W XVS PSU

The Ultra Grid ATX Mid-Tower case with 700W XVS PSU is the latest case and power supply combo from a familiar name for do-it-yourself PC builders --- Ultra Products. With the huge number of PC cases available in the market today, it is hard for any manufacturer to really stick out from the crowd. To differentiate itself from the vast number of other cases in the market, the Grid features solid steel construction, a high-gloss mirror finish, a clear acrylic window on one side, and a 700 watt power supply with Flex-Force modular power cabling. Let's take a close look at the Ultra Grid Mid-Tower case to see how much value, style, expandability and functionality it provides for your hard-earned dollar.

Design - External

The Grid is a highly polished black colored case made of solid steel. In terms of weight, this does make the case heavier than some other cases made of lighter materials but it also provides a much more rugged and sturdy frame. The first feature that jumps out at you is the clear window on the left side of the case. The side panel has two air vents - one near the top of the case with a CPU duct and one near the bottom with only a chrome covering. The CPU duct comes adorned with the Ultra logo on it and is also decorated in bright, shiny chrome.

The right side of the case, as well as the top, is covered with a high-gloss black finish that gives the case a mirror-like appearance. Light is reflected off the case quite easily, as evidenced by the photos below. This is a nice touch that gives the case a very nice, clean appearance. The front audio input jacks, as well as two USB 2.0 ports, are also located on the right side of the case.

The front of the case is a full mesh bezel that swings out to reveal the drive bays, power button and reset buttons and the power and HDD activity lights. It also reveals the 120mm intake fan that supplies fresh air to all of the internal case components. One nifty feature of the front bezel is that there are no latches that need to be opened or closed in order to swing the door open - but rather small magnets are used to keep the door closed. A small tug on the door is all that is needed to swing the front bezel open and allow access to the lower drive bays or power / reset buttons. Even with the front bezel closed, however, you are still able to access one of the 5.25" drive bays.

Ultra Grid packaged up	Ultra Grid empty	Box contents

Design - Internal

Taking a closer look at the inside of the Grid reveals that the exhaust duties are handled by a rear-mounted 120 mm fan. The fan uses a standard three pin lead, and an additional three pin lead is also used for the front 120mm fan . The drive bays use a tool-less locking mechanism to secure the drives in place, and there is ample room for installing hard drives, CD / DVD drives, etc. There are four available 5.25" drive bays, two 3.5" drive bays with external access and five 3.5" drive bays with internal access only.

One feature that is missing is a removable motherboard tray, although this is not a huge omission. As you can see from the photos, all of the metal edges are rounded to help prevent cutting your fingers during installation - a small point but it is nice to see that Ultra has paid attention to the details. Overall, the internal design is roomy and has a standard layout similar to most other PC cases.

Clear side panel	Ultra Grid USB / audio connections	Ultra Grid power light

Power Supply

The included 700 watt XVS (X-Connect V-Series) modular power supply with FlexForce cables is definitely a nice addition to the package. The modular cabling system allows you to only use power connector cables that you need with your system in order to minimize the clutter inside your case. The FlexForce cabling is designed to reduce airflow restrictions in the case while allowing easy flexibility to route the cabling however you see fit. With an all black color design (including the FlexForce cables), the power supply matches well with the design of the case. Although it is not labeled as an SLI-certified power supply, it does have two PCI-E power connectors for use in an SLI system. A lower power 500 watt , non-modular V-Series version of the power supply is also available as a choice for the Grid / PSU combo package.

Specifications

Power Supply Connections

1 - 20/24 Pin Motherboard Connector 1 - 4 Pin +12V Motherboard Connector 1 - 8 Pin EPS Connector 2 - 6 Pin PCI-Express Connectors 1 - 5 Pin SATA Power Cable (2 Devices) 2 - 4 Pin Power Cable (2 Devices) 1 - 4 Pin Power Cable (2 Devices + 1 Floppy)
	Ultra XVS modular power supply