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UPS question

T

thejavabuddha

n00b
Joined
Dec 19, 2006
Messages
62
I live in an appartment with questionable power quality (the lights are always blinking and "browning out") so obviously I'm looking into a UPS.

I'm building the following:
EVGA 680i mobo
e6600 psu
G.skills 2x512 DDR2 800 memory
160 GB western digital sata HDD
Sound card (not sure which)
GIGABYTE GeForce 7600GT 256MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16
CORSAIR ATX12V v2.2 and EPS12V 2.91 520W Power Supply
Scythe 120mm Case Fan (x2or3)

All I really want is power protection/filtering and don't care too much about back-up power time etc. What do I need to look at as far as how much UPS do I need and what kind?

Thanks,
Bill
 
I would say that the only thing you need to figure out is what your power draw is and get something that can handle that for about 5 minute so you can shut down your computer.
 
Spectre said:
How much are you looking to spend?
Click to expand...

All of my money is going into this system right now so I don't have any extra to spend, but I'll spend as much as I have to to prevent any damage from dirty power. Definitely less that $100.00, preferably less than $50.00

Ladicius said:
I would say that the only thing you need to figure out is what your power draw is and get something that can handle that for about 5 minute so you can shut down your computer.
Click to expand...

Yeah, about that. I've used the calculators but I don't know if everything is correct. Seems like some of my components aren't listed and I don't know if I'm missing anything. I would appreciate some advice from anyone more knowledgeable.

videomasterz said:
i have been using this from cyberpower

http://www.cyberpowersystems.com/CPS700AVR.asp

it can hold a tower, just a tower... dont hook up your lcd to it.. it can power my tower for a good 25 minutes... so if a power outage does occur you can push the power button on your tower to shut it down...
Click to expand...

That looks cool, and fairly inexpensive. My tower is all I want to protect, maybe when I get a better monitor that may change but for now...

So what do you have in your tower? Does it compare to mine that I'm building? Well, I noticed your specs at the bottom of your post and looks like it is even more than mine. Maybe I'll look further into that one.

Thank you all for your advice,
Bill
 
Actually when I said "fairley inexpensive" I was actually looking at replacement batteries. Still, I'll pay $100.00 if I have to...
 
thejavabuddha said:
Actually when I said "fairley inexpensive" I was actually looking at replacement batteries. Still, I'll pay $100.00 if I have to...
Click to expand...

Unless you catch a killer deal you are going to be looking at spending right about $80-$100 for a line-interactive UPS with AVR.

Something like the Tripplite Omni LCD's or the Powercom blacknight's.
 
Does the wattage really count all that much? What happens if I get a UPS that's too small for my system?
 
jk it will just die very quickly and not give backup time.. i bought 2 off ebay for 25$ shiped each belkin model of some sorts. it lasts 20+ mins on my old p4 havnt tested it out with anything else.. i use one for my cordless phone/modem/routers also
 
thejavabuddha said:
Does the wattage really count all that much? What happens if I get a UPS that's too small for my system?
Click to expand...

With your system it shouldn't be a problem. But the heavier a UPS is loaded the shorteer time it will run. When they give you a full draw wattage they are rated at that wattage for a set amount of time...most consumer UPS's rate at between 5-15 minutes or so.
 
So a lower wattage won't affect the power the computer is getting under normal circumstances, just how long the computer will run when the power is out?

What about other specs like the one mention above. What is 1000VA?

Sorry about all the questions but I haven't seen a good guide anywhere and this is the one area of computers that I have NEVER looked into.

Thanks
Bill
 
thejavabuddha said:
So a lower wattage won't affect the power the computer is getting under normal circumstances, just how long the computer will run when the power is out?

What about other specs like the one mention above. What is 1000VA?
Click to expand...

VA is the amount of apparent power in A/C circuits that is roughly equal to 1 amp at 1 volt.

Sorry about all the questions but I haven't seen a good guide anywhere and this is the one area of computers that I have NEVER looked into.

Thanks
Bill
Click to expand...

http://www.hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1052508
 
Spectre said:
VA is the amount of apparent power in A/C circuits that is roughly equal to 1 amp at 1 volt.

http://www.hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1052508
Click to expand...

Wow, thanks. I had seen this post before and had read through some of it (the amount of information is rather overwhelming), but after asking a couple of questions here and reading all of your helpful replies I knew what to look for to get answers. Thanks!

Now I have another question, using the APC's UPS sizing tool, I get the following recomendations:

Low end: $59.00
APC BACK-UPS ES 8 Outlet 500VA 120V
http://www.apcc.com/products/config...&totalwatts=92&&fnl=4605,2&fnl_basket=4605,3c

Higher end: $79.00
APC BACK-UPS ES 8 Outlet 650VA 120V
http://www.apcc.com/products/config...&totalwatts=92&&fnl=4605,2&fnl_basket=4605,3c

Both of these mention "power conditioning". Is this the same thing as AVR? And what do you guys think of these recomendations?

Bill
 
Jump on eBay. I got a 1000va smart UPS that is old, but has new batteries for under $200. It'll run my C2D, cable modem, 2 17" LCD's, gigabit switch and wireless router for ~25 minutes...and it has a network card for monitoring.
 
thejavabuddha said:
Wow, thanks. I had seen this post before and had read through some of it (the amount of information is rather overwhelming), but after asking a couple of questions here and reading all of your helpful replies I knew what to look for to get answers. Thanks!

Now I have another question, using the APC's UPS sizing tool, I get the following recomendations:

Low end: $59.00
APC BACK-UPS ES 8 Outlet 500VA 120V
http://www.apcc.com/products/config...&totalwatts=92&&fnl=4605,2&fnl_basket=4605,3c

Higher end: $79.00
APC BACK-UPS ES 8 Outlet 650VA 120V
http://www.apcc.com/products/config...&totalwatts=92&&fnl=4605,2&fnl_basket=4605,3c

Both of these mention "power conditioning". Is this the same thing as AVR? And what do you guys think of these recomendations?

Bill
Click to expand...

Unfortunately both are Standby without AVR.
 
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