Do I NEED a UPS?

T

TheEnglishJob

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Do I really need a UPS. I have a surge protector, but I just don't want to have to fork over $150 on a UPS. I'm using the corsair 650TX and if I understood the specifications correctly it has a build in surge protector as well. Let me know. I'm not worried about loosing any documents or anything, just about something happening and ruining my rig.
 
You don't need to spend $150 on a UPS. Only higher end consumer level ones cost that much.
 
Well, you don't "need" one, but ever since I've gotten mine, I have not had any problems with my computer crashing due to loosing power, and data. I have a GeekSquad UPS and it has saved the
day more than once.
 
TheEnglishJob said:
Do I really need a UPS. I have a surge protector, but I just don't want to have to fork over $150 on a UPS. I'm using the corsair 650TX and if I understood the specifications correctly it has a build in surge protector as well. Let me know. I'm not worried about loosing any documents or anything, just about something happening and ruining my rig.
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Where do you live?

How stable is the power grid?

If you live in FL you need one, if you live in LV you don't,
but a good one will help keep your system more stable & I believe it can increase the lifespan also.

Always Build with the Best,
Dave :)
 
Dan_D said:
If you have a computer, you need a UPS.
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and if u run raid 0 u really need an ups.

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An UPS is cheap insurance :)

I run my systems and servers 24/7 and to have a black-out wipe out everything, forcing me to restart everything, or worse, have a brown-out damage a PSU, would mean a serious waste of time and money.I do run a company, though :)
 
The answer to this question is always yes.

Do you have car insurance?
Do you have life insurance?

A UPS is just like that. Insurance. It also cleans out the electrical signal to your computer, theoretically expanding its lifespan.
 
just make sure it is a quality ups. just like a power supply, some are built and designed poorly.
 
davidhammock200 said:
I have used dozens of various APC models over the years & they are first class! Just make sure you the right type & size, there are dozens. :)
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Or make that hundreds :D

I'm using a Back-UPS CS 650 myself. There are a few dozen more product categories, each with a few dozen capacity rankings. Figuring out how much power and which features you need are crucial to make the right choice :)
 
lol i am going to get one too in a few days.

its been snowing here and with 2 second long power losses weve been having its been messing with my computer pretty bad.

after the second time i turned it off and unplugged the psu and im on my notebook right now. dont wanna mess up my raid 0.
 
I've been looking around for power supplies now and does anyone recommend any brands/models they felt were a good deal or had success with. Also, if I have a 650W power supply do I need at least 650W UPS or do I need substantively more?
 
soulesschild said:
The answer to this question is always yes.

Do you have car insurance?
Do you have life insurance?

A UPS is just like that. Insurance. It also cleans out the electrical signal to your computer, theoretically expanding its lifespan.
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not all UPS's clean the power i beleive.
 
TheEnglishJob said:
The APC selector tool didn't take into accound what graphics card I have...I would have thought that would be a major factor. It said my system would only draw 250W seems low considering my graphics card said I needed a minimum 500W PSU.
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You are very right!

Your UPS should have a WATTAGE, not VA, wattage rating equal to or greater than what your system actually uses.

How much battery back up time do you need/want?
 
davidhammock200 said:
How much battery back up time do you need/want?
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I only want enough time to be able to shut everything down and turn it off...minutes. here is my prospective build if it helps:

-CPU (AMD Phenom II X3 720 2.8GHz) $150.00
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103649
-Motherboard (GIGABYTE GA-MA770-UD3) $75.00
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128376
-Memory (G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) DDR2 1000) $50.00
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...AFC-hardOCP&cm_mmc=AFC-hardOCP-_-NA-_-NA-_-NA
-Hard Drive (Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB 7200 RPM 32MB) $80.00
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136319
-DVD/CD (BurnerLG Black 22X DVD R/RW) $26.00
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136153
-Graphics Card (EVGA GTX 260) $220.00
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130434
-Fan (Antec Tri-Cool 120mm Case Fan) $10.00
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835209005
-Heatsink & Fan (XIGMATEK HDT-RS1283 Red Scorpion) $33.00
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835233012
-Power Supply (CORSAIR CMPSU-650TX 650W) $100.00 *Purchased ($75 w/MRI)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139005
-OS (Vista Home 64bit) $100.00
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116488
-Case (Antec Three Hundred) $60.00
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129042&Tpk=antec 300
-Monitor (19"-21") ~$150.00-200.00
 
The short answer, to restate what's already been said here many times, is yes. A UPS will act as a power conditioner of sorts, extending the lifespan and stability of the components. I learned the hard way that I had dirty power in a house I was living in about 4 years ago, went through 3 $250 mobos in less than a month before I dropped the cash for a UPS and a 4th mobo and haven't had a single problem since. The constant noise of the UPS kicking in because the power dipped so often throughout the day was a pretty startling revelation o.o
 
With OUT OC'ing figure 300W for the system plus the monitor, say 400W to 500W tops.

System power consumption figures here, measured at the wall plug: http://www.anandtech.com/video/showdoc.aspx?i=3517&p=13

Good: http://www.apc.com/resource/include/techspec_index.cfm?base_sku=BE750G&total_watts=200

More Time: http://www.apc.com/resource/include/techspec_index.cfm?base_sku=BR800BLK&total_watts=200

Less Time, True Sine Wave: http://www.apc.com/resource/include/techspec_index.cfm?base_sku=SC620&total_watts=25

Best Time & True Sine Wave: http://www.apc.com/resource/include/techspec_index.cfm?base_sku=SC1000&total_watts=25

If you are going to run on battery power for an extended period of time, you really NEED the true sine wave output provided by the Smart BackUps.

The stepped wave "modified sine wave" can kill PSU efficiency & over heat your PSU in an hour or less.

You can find prices much cheaper than on the APC website, also buying a "Refurbed" unit with new batteries is often the smartest way to go!

Good Luck,
Dave :)
 
I can't count how many times my UPS saved my computer from a brownout. I would never connect a computer to power without a good UPS.
 
davidhammock200 said:
The stepped wave "modified sine wave" can kill PSU efficiency & over heat your PSU in an hour or less.
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That's something I hear a lot of people say, yet I have read articles which seem to suggest that it is completely harmless to a PSU and actually beneficial for an SMPS, as a square wave will have more 'power' after the rectification stage. While I'm not an EE (no formal education, just self-taught) I'm having trouble seeing how exactly a square wave would damage a PSU.
 
It's no PSU per say but the conflict b/n stepped wave and Active PFC component in the PSU that may lead to a various PSU failures. If your PSU does not have Active PFC feature, you are safe with any UPS.
 
Ah yes, that would make a lot more sense :)
 
TehQuick said:
It's no PSU per say but the conflict b/n stepped wave and Active PFC component in the PSU that may lead to a various PSU failures. If your PSU does not have Active PFC feature, you are safe with any UPS.
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Exactly, of course all EU have APFC by law & I have not seen a "high-end" PSU that doesn't have it, in a long time.
 
Elledan said:
That's something I hear a lot of people say, yet I have read articles which seem to suggest that it is completely harmless to a PSU and actually beneficial for an SMPS, as a square wave will have more 'power' after the rectification stage. While I'm not an EE (no formal education, just self-taught) I'm having trouble seeing how exactly a square wave would damage a PSU.
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Most non-sinewave UPS units are still "stepped sine wave" or "modified sine wave", they are not simply 120V peak-to-peak square waves. That would kill everything.

I think Active PFC PSUs are particularly more sensitive to non-sinewave inputs.

Any step functions come with lots of harmonics and high frequency noise, this is why you don't put a surge suppressor down the line - it'll go nuts trying to clamp this stuff to ground thereby stressing the UPS, the suppressor, and wasting power. A suppressor will not make a true sine wave out of stepped wave either, before someone asks.

In the frequency domain (think like a spectrum analyzer), a theoretical step function is actually continuous noise from DC-to-infinity. This is part of why lightning strikes cause audible noise on every radio frequency you might tune to (shortwave, longwave, TV, aircraft comms, AM broadcast). The same is true of any spark, like spark plug noise from cars without resistive wires. The first "radios" were spark gap transmitters, and effectively transmitted on all frequencies, IIRC.

If you're [H] about everything else, get a true sinewave UPS...
 
APC, we order them here for all our engineers so they don't lose their data incase of a power outage. They are good because the help in case of power surges and also power outages, and brown outs. That is when you don't get a steady stream of power. If you lose your steady stream it could damage components. just threw that tid bit in there for anyone who didn't know that
 
If you are going to plug your computer into an electrical socket, you need a UPS. That is, if you give a shit about your data, or your hardware.
 
After reading through this thread, I have learned: Do I NEED a UPS? No. I've ran without a UPS for many years without a major component dying on me (only had Mobos die on me, and 1 cheapo PSU I guess). However, SHOULD I get a UPS? Would it be worth a ~ $150 investment? Most likely yes.

Certainly, if you are handling any sensitive or critical data that you can't or absolutely don't want to you, you should invest in a UPS.

Look at it this way, especially if you live in a cheaper or older building (such as my old fraternity house or the slum-lord run apartment building I'm living in now), a UPS would be a very good investment. $150 for an APC UPS that would cover my machine, and protect near $800 worth of components, seems worth it.

After reading this thread, I am seriously considering getting a UPS, and recommending my friends to get one too.
 
Dan_D said:
If you are going to plug your computer into an electrical socket, you need a UPS. That is, if you give a shit about your data, or your hardware.
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Cmon Dan, don't be so rough. I've had several computers over the last 20 years and have never used a UPS. My power has gone out many times and it's never caused an issue yet.:D
 
I don't like walking on the wild, unprotected side.

The first time I was working on something important and the power was cut, killed or failed... and my APC was there to pick me up, I was extremely glad.

Also, to the person who had the wakeup when they heard their APC unit kicking on for brownouts... I'm right there with you.

@OP: APC UPSes are the best, and you can't go wrong. I have one on my main pc, and one for my htpc/big screen tv. I know that the one on my htpc is the 750BB, picked up from sams club... and the main one is an APC 1250 NS with the little display on it.
 
JustPyro said:
After reading through this thread, I have learned: Do I NEED a UPS? No. I've ran without a UPS for many years without a major component dying on me (only had Mobos die on me, and 1 cheapo PSU I guess). However, SHOULD I get a UPS? Would it be worth a ~ $150 investment? Most likely yes.

Certainly, if you are handling any sensitive or critical data that you can't or absolutely don't want to you, you should invest in a UPS.

Look at it this way, especially if you live in a cheaper or older building (such as my old fraternity house or the slum-lord run apartment building I'm living in now), a UPS would be a very good investment. $150 for an APC UPS that would cover my machine, and protect near $800 worth of components, seems worth it.

After reading this thread, I am seriously considering getting a UPS, and recommending my friends to get one too.
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I think that's my final conclusion too....and I'm living in the exact same living condition. lol
 
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