UPS advice please

[Eric White]

Got bit tonight and lost power when a building switched over from line power to generator. That really got me to thinking about how many gigs I've had to deal with this kind of issue and really need a UPS.

What are you guys using. Here is what I am looking for -1000-1500va , 2u short (15" or less) ,true sine output, not modified sine and would also like the online type.. Any recommendations? This needs to fit in my host rack that is 17" deep.

Thanks for the advice.

-Eric

[cgrafx]

Got bit tonight and lost power when a building switched over from line power to generator. That really got me to thinking about how many gigs I've had to deal with this kind of issue and really need a UPS.

What are you guys using. Here is what I am looking for -1000-1500va , 2u short (15" or less) ,true sine output, not modified sine and would also like the online type.. Any recommendations? This needs to fit in my host rack that is 17" deep.

Thanks for the advice.

-Eric

You really don't need anything the size or specs your asking for.

You need to keep the computer running, not everything else.

Small power spikes/dips and short outages can easily be handled by a basic 400-450va small office grade UPS.

The computer system doesn't really care if its true sine wave power, or that its double buffered.

Bear in mind that even comparatively small higher grade units like an APC Smart-UPS 1500 RM 2U are not going to meet your space requirements. They are too deep 18" and weighs 60+ lbs. The APC unit also does not supply power until tripped (its not double buffered).

I don't think your going to find anything shorter than that, as these units are designed for Server Closet use, not small rack live audio road travel.

I have a small 425VA Cyberpower Unit that can easily power my SAC rig and monitor for 4-5 minutes without any problems. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16842102116

If the power is down for more than that, you don't have a show either way.

[Craig Allen]

I agree completely. I bought one of these:
http://www.amazon.com/CyberPower-OR5...=rackmount+ups
I've been bit a couple of times and it worked perfectly.

[Donnie Frank]

I agree with both these guys. I purchased a single rack space APC brand UPS and it'll run my computer, monitors and 3 ADA8K's for 4-5 minutes. The unit is no longer available but the spec's are typical of a single rack unit. This unit has saved my ass twice.

*Make sure your unit has a USB interface.* Both times without the screen warning I would not have known that I lost power. My UPS pops a warning up on the screen. I knew instantly that I had lost power. This was from a wall kick-out. I was able to go back and plug the plug back into the wall with plenty of time to spare.

[Eric White]

Thanks, I appreciate the time taken to respond. I literally have no experience with any UPS technology from the past 15 years.

My concerns were to provide enough power to keep my entire host alive long enough to notice it and get to the stage to fix the issue. I don't know if it is available, but it would be nice to have an alarm output to fire off a strobe beacon. Maybe I am wishing here. I really would like something rack mounted as I literally don't have the extra space in the rack for a brick looking device with outlets on top, out the side would be ok. The sine wave issue brings up memories of the old UPS devices that were basically an inverter with a big iron core transformer that spit out a noisy square wave. Seeing how the rest of the audio is dead, this wont matter.

[cgrafx]

Thanks, I appreciate the time taken to respond. I literally have no experience with any UPS technology from the past 15 years.

My concerns were to provide enough power to keep my entire host alive long enough to notice it and get to the stage to fix the issue. I don't know if it is available, but it would be nice to have an alarm output to fire off a strobe beacon. Maybe I am wishing here. I really would like something rack mounted as I literally don't have the extra space in the rack for a brick looking device with outlets on top, out the side would be ok. The sine wave issue brings up memories of the old UPS devices that were basically an inverter with a big iron core transformer that spit out a noisy square wave. Seeing how the rest of the audio is dead, this wont matter.

http://www.apc.com/products/resource..._sku=SC450RM1U

http://www.tripplite.com/en/products...xtModelID=2853

Both of these should provide enough power for at least 4-5 minutes of operation. (likely actually 5-10 minutes)

They are under 15.5 inches deep.

You'd would probably have to modify the unit to have them trigger a strobe, although there may be a way to do it through software.

They both have an audible alarm. I'd look at adapting the alarm to trigger the strobe.

[Mattseymour]

My understanding is that square wave ups plays very nicely with most switchmode psu but not so good with linear transformer psu. The best way to size a ups is to measure the power draw at the mains socket. Often even a fairly modest sized ups will run a real world system for plenty of time.

[Eric White]

You'd would probably have to modify the unit to have them trigger a strobe, although there may be a way to do it through software.

They both have an audible alarm. I'd look at adapting the alarm to trigger the strobe.

This would be very simple to do. Velleman, who makes a lot of small electronic kits , makes a nice little strobe. VERY inexpensive less than $10. Its nice and bright too.


The SMART500RT1U is exactly what I've been looking at. Can't beat the price/features they are going for.

My understanding is that square wave ups plays very nicely with most switchmode psu but not so good with linear transformer psu.

Yes, a square waved output would actually work better for the switch mode power supply because the wave is immediately rectified and stored in the the PSU capacitors. No intermediate transformer. The linear type needs a constantly fluctuating magnetic field ,that a sine wave offers, to transfer power from the primary to the secondary sides. A square wave to a transformer immediately wastes most of the power as thermal heat. Think what happens when a voice coil of a speaker sees a square wave...same idea.

[Jim]

I disagree with anyone that says the true sine wave is not important. Mostly the PCs will deal with it OK but there is no guarantee. Secondly, if you plug other small electronics in like wall worts for phantom power, stomp boxes and even external drives with external power supplies, you will eventually have problems. Most of the small, low power power supplies do not do well on simulated sine waves. They just can't smooth the choppy AC enough. I've killed more small devices with cheap generators/UPSs than I'd admit to. There is no reason not to get a true sine wave inverter UPS. Just look a little harder. I use a cyberpower UPS for my FOH rig, wireless router, stomp boxes and wireless devices (as much as i can). Most of the newer class D and H power amps don't give a crap about noisy AC because they have big capacitor banks that store power and filter at the same time. That's why you can run a 2KW audio amp on 6 amps from the wall.

The other KEY feature is AVR. Automatic voltage regulation. Many UPSs have this some don't. This is a beautiful thing. When the power in the room sags because a kitchen steam cleaner kicks on, the AVR will keep 120V going to your rig. No ups and downs all night.

Sadly, I often see/hear the UPS kick in even when no breakers trip. Voltage in bars is dirty, weak and all too often shared with house stuff.

[Donnie Frank]

Thanks, I appreciate the time taken to respond. I literally have no experience with any UPS technology from the past 15 years.

My concerns were to provide enough power to keep my entire host alive long enough to notice it and get to the stage to fix the issue. I don't know if it is available, but it would be nice to have an alarm output to fire off a strobe beacon. Maybe I am wishing here. I really would like something rack mounted as I literally don't have the extra space in the rack for a brick looking device with outlets on top, out the side would be ok. The sine wave issue brings up memories of the old UPS devices that were basically an inverter with a big iron core transformer that spit out a noisy square wave. Seeing how the rest of the audio is dead, this wont matter.

Dude...copied and pasted from the response below:

"*Make sure your unit has a USB interface.* Both times without the screen warning I would not have known that I lost power. My UPS pops a warning up on the screen. I knew instantly that I had lost power. This was from a wall kick-out. I was able to go back and plug the plug back into the wall with plenty of time to spare. "