OT: Recommended UPS/backup unit?

I see Tripp Lite get top marks by techies that actually take them apart and look at what you get for each price point.

I'm not sure if they make UPS systems or just conditioner and surge protection but I'd give them a look see.

best regards,
mike

Susan, the one you picke out looks fine. APC or Tripp-Lite are fine brands for UPS. Spec-wise, you may also want to know how long they can put out their rated VA rating... that's how long you have to either sail throught he power outage, and/or to gracefully shut down your machine.

Along the same OT, I also highly recommend the Tripp-Lite ISO-BAR power strips. They have very good line filtering, with separate filters on each pair of outlets (so they're actually filtered from each other, right in the same power strip).

Speaking of noise, you will want to keep any sensitive audio lines (and especially any equipment that uses audio transformers) away from one of these puppies... UPS's put out a lot of EMI.

Geez, Frank... that's scary. Glad to know you and yours made it through that ok.

My current UPC came from APC's online outlet store (it's a refurb - with warranty), and is doing fine. I paid about 60% off list.

ORIGINAL: JJones74

I've got the same APC.. no problems yet.. I got a really good deal on mine though, I got it for under 100.00 (I know someone that works for Best buy).. ;)
I agree with Frank.. Definitely disconnect this when not in use as your bill will rise!!!

Yeah.. it would be nice for those who really need one if it had a shut down mode where it would not try to charge or anything. A ture "off" position. I don't of any that have that. In fact I'd like to have a real power switch or relay that cuts the line. The way I would design it is that switch would be the "test" swtich in the "online" mode so you could confirm the switchover to battery would go without a glitch. And if you had the unit in "offline" mode it would just be a power switch for the entire unit so it wouldn't be using any power.

APC or tripp-lite is a good choice. i know people who swear by tripp-lite but i've had a ton of APCs and they all last several years on one battery. i have my entertainment system (it's decent sized but not audio-phile or anything) plugged into one and it does just fine during tennessee lightning storms.

I never let the UPC speak to my system.

And in fact I was holding off saying it until Frank mentioned it but the UPS I used was retired FOR GOOD the day it smoldered and then burst into open flames as I was walking it out of my studio.

I felt like I must of overworked it but the failure mode was way not cool.

Now that systems like WinXP aren't trashed by cold reboots I hardly care about a UPS. I just don't see a need.


best regards,
mike

+1
Mine isn't speaking to my PC either..

ORIGINAL: WaveScape

I looked in the owners manual for my PC's power supply and it says that it is not compatible with "simulated sine wave" UPS units.

Of course they are usually less money.

True sine wave UPS is bigger $$$.....

Another good reason to avoid them... go big or don't bother. Also, be glad your computer has good taste, it doesn't like bad sound quality either. Even if it's just listening to a single low note (60hz) it still doesn't want a distorted low sample rate mess, it wants to hear a nice smooth wave. LOL !!

ORIGINAL: Beagle

How many of you who use battery back up units use the software and connection

I see no need for software to turn my machine off for me. My new UPS has any info I need right on the display on the UPS.

ORIGINAL: Susan G

Maybe I'm asking the wrong question. Is there something that specifically protects against "zaps" like these

Some surge and spike protectors have ports for all the connections between your PC and the outside world. If on a tight budget, they are better than nothing. Keep in mind if the lightning is close enough, nothing short disconnecting everything from the PC is going to protect it. Even then, under the right circumstances lighting can do some pretty amazing stuff.

ORIGINAL: mwd

ORIGINAL: mike_mccue ~ Now that systems like WinXP aren't trashed by cold reboots I hardly care about a UPS. I just don't see a need.

I'm sitting here looking at a WD1200 disk that has pix of my grandkids and a whole flurry of music that is now a paperweight due to 2 abrupt power outs.

I've got one of those! With a YEAR'S worth of my sonar files that I did not have backed up!

Some surge and spike protectors have ports for all the connections between your PC and the outside world. If on a tight budget, they are better than nothing. Keep in mind if the lightning is close enough, nothing short disconnecting everything from the PC is going to protect it. Even then, under the right circumstances lighting can do some pretty amazing stuff.

I think Steve is saying this as well here, but really the only way to protect your equipment from lightning strikes is to unplug it from the power completely. Even if you don't have your computer or whatever turned on, if lightning runs thru your electrical wiring in your house, you will very likely suffer loss. the UPS systems (which actually for home use is kind of an oxymoron since it's NOT really UNINTERUPTABLE, but that's a different rant) and surge protectors will help with some spikes, but they can't always stop lightning, especially if it's a direct strike. The MAIN function of a battery backup system is to allow you to shut down safely in the event of a power outage.

I'm sitting here looking at a WD1200 disk that has pix of my grandkids and a whole flurry of music that is now a paperweight due to 2 abrupt power outs.

At least you have your backup. Right? Right?

ORIGINAL: Susan G

Hi-

I need to get a UPS and am only familiar with APC units since that's what my company uses. There's one at Amazon here, but I don't really know what I'm looking for/at.

All suggestions welcome!

Thanks-

-Susan

That is similar to the APC model I have and it works fine. I've had mine for about a year now and it has already paid for itself. I've had a few blackouts here (had another one about a week ago) and was able to shut down with time to spare. You don't need anything more than this for a simple PC/monitor DAW setup. I went through a few different models from Best Buy/Circuit City before getting this one (at least one unit was defective right out of the box).

I didn't notice an increase in my electricity bill but I wasn't really paying that close attention. Seems like our energy costs have gone up for reasons not related to the purchase of a UPS.

Wow, no UPS fires here (knock on wood!). Something that may help is to test your UPS more or less regularly (say, once a month). Just pull the UPS plug from the wall / turn off the outlet, and let it do its thing. If it works and it's not getting warm, then it's probably OK. If not, then it's time to replace the battery and/or the whole UPS.

I had an old Belkin UPS that would not hold a charge. The battery would just get hot, and then on power-out it would just die. On a lark, I looked up the battery for it online, and when I found a replacement for $16, I figured "What the heck?" I got it, just to see if changing the battery would fix it. It did, just like new (again, knock on wood). It's currently pulling duty as backup power for my internet phone modem.

Hi, Susan,

Interesting thread, and lots of good, informative answers.

One more thing I'd like to add is that if you (or your dad--or anyone else reading this) live in an area where the power goes out regularly, it can really shorten the life of the batteries in your UPS. I live in the boonies and I'm on a rural electric co-op. The power in my area goes off many times during the year, especially during the winter, when snow downs the power lines, etc.. The outages can last from a minute or less to several hours and even a day. If the power happens to go out in the middle of the night while you're asleep (which it does frequently here), and you can't hear the buzzer in the UPS going off, it'll run until the battery simply dies out. Between my wife and I, we've replaced a whole lot of UPS batteries over the years which gets expensive after awhile. Turning off the PC every time you walk away is helpful, of course, but that gets old, too. ;>) And, no, I don't use the software that came with my UPS units.

But, one thing that I haven't seen mentioned in this thread (except peripherally by WaveScape) is that some UPS's provide regulated power. This is a worthwhile feature if you (or your dad) live in an area where power outages/fluctuations are common. Where there are outages, there are usually large power fluctuations, too. Giving your PC regulated power does extend it's life under these conditions. And, WaveScape is right: You really should have sine wave power regulation, not "simulated sine wave". This means a much more expensive UPS, of course.

If you're simply looking for good spike suppression, there's tons of devices available that will accomplish that. The higher the Joule rating, the better, as someone else has already mentioned. But, even with good spike suppression, a close lightening strike will probably take out any electronics that are plugged into a wall socket. I've lost two TV's and a variety of other electronic devices over the years to nearby lightening strikes (one hit the power pole between my neighbor's house and my house as I stood looking out the window. Quite, um, spectacular----and scary). As for me, nowadays I just go around the house and unplug any and all electronic equipment that is plugged into a wall socket at the first sign of T-storms. Even this isn't fool-proof, as others have said, but it's the safest thing I've found so far. ;>)

Best regards,
Bill

ORIGINAL: bapu ~ At least you have your backup. Right? Right?

Nope. This was the drive that made a backup nerd out of me. I now design backup systems for our company. It was actually a MFT corruption due to hard outs. The reason I'm always looking at it is I am slowly recovering the files onto another disk. (grandkids... 4 billion photos ya' know and a zillion songs from my CD collection).

I bought a commercial APC UPS from a hospital in Canada on eBay. Cost more for shipping than the unit. 35 bucks plus 70 bucks shipping. Originally this APC cost 1800 bucks when it came out. Spent another 75.00 on new batteries. This unit goes into one grounded wall plug and chains into every device in my studio. This powers 2 computers, one with dual monitors, Tascam DAW, triple pre-amps, 2 effects boxes, headphone system, powered monitors, dual mixers, a drum machine, TV and 2 printers... one being laser.

The load phase hardly budges until my sweetheart would power on the laser printer then it would a little bit.

We have lost power and not missed a beat. Didn't have to rush to shut stuff down. I estimate I can comfortably shut stuff down and then operate the computer alone for 30 minutes or so.

Point being this was a 180.00 solution that has operated without a glitch for 5 years. Ever 2 years I spend 75 bucks for new batteries. My studio voltage is rock solid, and signal chain is dead silent and if a storm comes up I unplug one plug.