rami12
Hello;
I have been searching for a 550w-600w ups in the market, but now i am confused as to which brand is good. I have seen apc, best power, envo, appollo, and prolink. So the question is which brand to get?, what to look for in ups?
Also is there a better place to buy ups from like katranji or pc and parts ...etc.
Thanks in advance for any help you offer.
Regards.
AvoK95
APC, PCE, Triple light, and PCStar as a last resort. Avoid other brands.
In order to convert VA to wattage, multiply the value by 0.6 (If 650VA= 650VAx0.6=390W)
rami12
Hi Avo;
Thanks for your reply. Do you know good place to buy from?, i,ve heard in some places they swap original batteries with lower end ones, also is there special feature to look for in the ups like usb connect or anything else?, one last question if something went wrong with the ups, would it damage the pc?.
Sorry for the many questions!
Regards.
AvoK95
Buy from pcandparts.
Boxes should be sealed.
There are special features like USB connect you could look up, but they're not that obligatory to have them. Any UPS will do the same job.
UPS's damaging a PC is highly uncommon, because most UPS's connect the outputs directly to the plug you've plugged in through the wall (Unless it's an online UPS, which is not common and are very expensive), the UPS will have some sort of fuse inside to keep the volts stabilized when it's in backup mode. So no, there are very very low uncommon chances a UPS can damage a PC.
rami12
Hi Avo;
Thanks very much for your help man.
Regards.
DNA
AvoK95 wroteAPC, PCE, Triple light, and PCStar as a last resort. Avoid other brands.
In order to convert VA to wattage, multiply the value by 0.6 (If 650VA= 650VAx0.6=390W)
its tripplite not triple light, anyways pcstar is garbage and PCE is one of the worse UPSs i fixed one recently, although their circuit design is good they use cheap components.
the conversion from VA to watts is correct only in few cases so its not calculated like that for every UPS.
AvoK95 wroteBuy from pcandparts.
Boxes should be sealed.
There are special features like USB connect you could look up, but they're not that obligatory to have them. Any UPS will do the same job.
UPS's damaging a PC is highly uncommon, because most UPS's connect the outputs directly to the plug you've plugged in through the wall (Unless it's an online UPS, which is not common and are very expensive), the UPS will have some sort of fuse inside to keep the volts stabilized when it's in backup mode. So no, there are very very low uncommon chances a UPS can damage a PC.
This is absolutely wrong every branded UPS even if its not online doesn't connect the pc directly to the "wall", and when in backup mode there is no "fuse" that keeps the voltage stable. i only agree with you that chances are so slim for a ups to damage a PC.
AVOlio
I agree with DNA on the PCE part .
I had one from pcandparts, it got damaged and fried like 4 times .
By the way, DNA, since the last time they repaired it (like 4 months ago) the battery life decreased and lasted like to 3 minutes Max !
And even thought my warranty time is over, pcandparts accepted to re-change the batteries and the Protection controller too .
But lets see how this one will turn out , i think their replacing the batteries with non new ones.
Aly
I have a PCE 850 VA UPS (Vista Series) on my deskop PC (550W TR2 Thermaltake PSU, i5 2500, GTX 560 ti and all stock no overclocking) the UPS will last about 2-3 mins if I am browsing or doing any other casual computer work which is enough to save and shut down or enough till the generator is on, however if I am playing a game like Battlefield 3 the UPS backup power wont last 15 seconds.
AvoK95
@DNA, An offline UPS will use the wall outlet power to power the components when it's not in backup mode. That's the whole point of having an online UPS in the first place. (Show me proof if I'm wrong please) also, the internal workings of a UPS regularly has 2 or 3 fuses (at least the ones I've worked with) I just assumed they were used for that purpose.
you're correct, tripplite it is. I have one, it's been around the house since I was a baby, I just replace the battery every now and then.
I disagree about the PCE stuff you said. PCE has series, each series has its own price and its own quality. Tripplite 500VA UPS's cost $80 whereas most brands of a 650VA unit costs about 30 to 50 bucks. It's all about price.
As for Avolio, man.. Get your electricity checked up, you always seem to have electrical problems. Also, you always seem to judge a product based on your experience. A bad experience of a product, where everyone else is satisfied with doesn't mean it's bad. It just means you have bad luck. It just means that out of those million units which were sold 1 was a bad seed.
Also, to all of you, a UPS lasts depending on how much load it has on it. The more the loud, the more it will last.
@Aly, your UPS has a maximum load of 510W. 510W to power your PC, monitor and everything connected to it. At gaming, your PC would use about 480 (I'm exaggerating), plus your monitor which will be about 80W, that's 560W (I'm still exaggerating) this leaves your UPS to Be too weak to power the PC at full load. When buying a UPS, you have to consider lots of headroom just like a PSU. And also, I would never recommend someone to keep gaming while the UPS is on backup mode, I would pause and minimize the game, to conserve power.
I use 850VA units on 400W PC's..
I'm not that that well experienced nor familiar with UPS's. I always recommend getting a new one, because I mostly deal with low end units and they're so cheap that, diagnosing and replacing batteries aren't worth it, especially when a brand new unit with warranty costs 15-20 dollars more. Link me to some articles and I'll be happy to improve the stuff I know. I am going to start studying for A+ exams and I need all the knowledge and accurate information I can get.
shant
my current ups is "intex", it is 1500va and ive been using it somewhere between 4 or 5 years, its awesome but it lacks a usb port, first the batteries lasted like 15 minutes or so, then i changed batteries from 2x9amp (original) to 2x7 amp unbranded one, it used to last around 2-3 minutes, i changed the batteries around 6 months ago to a PCE branded one and the batteries were around 6 month old but it started lasting around 30 minutes, comparing to that i always thought PCE brand was good (although never tried the hardware myself),anyway id like some input on ups knowledge too! give me all you've got guys!
DNA
AvoK95 wrote@DNA, An offline UPS will use the wall outlet power to power the components when it's not in backup mode. That's the whole point of having an online UPS in the first place. (Show me proof if I'm wrong please) also, the internal workings of a UPS regularly has 2 or 3 fuses (at least the ones I've worked with) I just assumed they were used for that purpose.
you're correct, tripplite it is. I have one, it's been around the house since I was a baby, I just replace the battery every now and then.
I disagree about the PCE stuff you said. PCE has series, each series has its own price and its own quality. Tripplite 500VA UPS's cost $80 whereas most brands of a 650VA unit costs about 30 to 50 bucks. It's all about price.
An offline ups uses mains electricity to power your PC when not in backup mode, but this electricity passes through several stages before being fed to your hardware for example AVR boost or trim to compensate for under or over-voltage (that's what branded offline ups does), Dude an online UPS provides complete isolation from the mains it's always running in backup mode but if the electricity is available it powers the inverter's mosfets and transformer from a rectifier circuit which also charges the batteries at the same time, anyways without going deep in details the only proof for what i am saying is to take my words as is because i am the pro in these matters :p or google if you like.
the PCE ups i recently worked on is a 2000VA XPL series with external 24v supply, as i told you they install the cheapest components in there so they fail a lot especially their transistors.
ohh i almost forgot i still can't understand what do you mean by a "fuse"??
from my poor knowledge ;) a fuse has nothing to do with voltage regulation its just there for protection from over-current can you post a pic or a link for this magical fuse?
@avolio they are not replacing your batteries at all, maybe they are only replacing your fried mosfets.
just go buy your self new batteries and install them its fairly easy to do
AvoK95
DNA wroteAvoK95 wrote@DNA, An offline UPS will use the wall outlet power to power the components when it's not in backup mode. That's the whole point of having an online UPS in the first place. (Show me proof if I'm wrong please) also, the internal workings of a UPS regularly has 2 or 3 fuses (at least the ones I've worked with) I just assumed they were used for that purpose.
you're correct, tripplite it is. I have one, it's been around the house since I was a baby, I just replace the battery every now and then.
I disagree about the PCE stuff you said. PCE has series, each series has its own price and its own quality. Tripplite 500VA UPS's cost $80 whereas most brands of a 650VA unit costs about 30 to 50 bucks. It's all about price.
An offline ups uses mains electricity to power your PC when not in backup mode, but this electricity passes through several stages before being fed to your hardware for example AVR boost or trim to compensate for under or over-voltage (that's what branded offline ups does), Dude an online UPS provides complete isolation from the mains it's always running in backup mode but if the electricity is available it powers the inverter's mosfets and transformer from a rectifier circuit which also charges the batteries at the same time, anyways without going deep in details the only proof for what i am saying is to take my words as is because i am the pro in these matters :p or google if you like.
the PCE ups i recently worked on is a 2000VA XPL series with external 24v supply, as i told you they install the cheapest components in there so they fail a lot especially their transistors.
ohh i almost forgot i still can't understand what do you mean by a "fuse"??
from my poor knowledge ;) a fuse has nothing to do with voltage regulation its just there for protection from over-current can you post a pic or a link for this magical fuse?
@avolio they are not replacing your batteries at all, maybe they are only replacing your fried mosfets.
just go buy your self new batteries and install them its fairly easy to do
Thanks for the info dude, I guess I gotta start learning stuff on this field. It's more complicated than I thought it would be, oh well..
AVOlio
DNA wrote@avolio they are not replacing your batteries at all, maybe they are only replacing your fried mosfets.
just go buy your self new batteries and install them its fairly easy to do
But, they clearly said, Batteries were found dead and have been both replaced.
Also the protection controller replaced with a new one.
Is it possible that they are lying?
ILIA_93
AVOlio wroteIs it possible that they are lying?
This is highly unlikely!
But anyway, if you want a longer backup time, getting better new branded batteries will surely help.
DNA
@AvoK95 yes the electronics field is very complicated but its very nice to learn, something interesting about electronics is that the further you learn the harder things get and the more you'll start to know how amazing things are i am a guy who fixes everything from cars to computer motherboards and i love every second when i am working on it, anyway you are really good when it comes to computer hardware but try to learn more about computer architecture and how stuff you know like cpus, motherboards, gpus really work believe me you'll find amazing things!
@avolio yea as ilia_93 said maybe they replaced your batteries but they used cheap ones, so its better to buy branded batteries yourself and have someone install them for you if you don't know this way you'll get much better backup time.
MMM1999
Okay guys, but still, What's the best UPS brand?Avo says the PCStar and PCE are okay, DNA says they're not. Can we can a mutual agreement on a brand? From what I know, Tripplite is pretty good. ( Have one at home like Avo ) becayse I want to get one for my future gaming PC, too.
khatib1
Just buy PCE UPS and buy a new one every 4 years (it would be cheaper than the other expensive UPS). I personally have used 4 PCE UPS and haven't had any problem with them. After 4 years it will start to last 2-3 minutes, so buying a new one is recommended. Also, an important thing is to always buy a UPS with higher VA than what you need unlike @Aly did. Don't blame the UPS if your UPS has a lower rating than what you need.
yasamoka
khatib1 wroteJust buy PCE UPS and buy a new one every 4 years (it would be cheaper than the other expensive UPS). I personally have used 4 PCE UPS and haven't had any problem with them. After 4 years it will start to last 2-3 minutes, so buying a new one is recommended. Also, an important thing is to always buy a UPS with higher VA than what you need unlike @Aly did. Don't blame the UPS if your UPS has a lower rating than what you need.
Why not change batteries??
DNA
@MMM1999 it all depends on your budget i didn't say PCE is that bad i just said it uses cheap components when compared to high quality branded ups, but its definitely wayyyy better than any other chinese ups out there. If you want to go cheap pcstar or intex are a good choice want to pay some more PCE is better , need the best i think tripplite and APC are great.
shant
dna, can you give us the locations of the resellers of each brand if they are available?