Help choosing UPS

[Dre]

First time buying a UPS. I'm looking at APC, probably this model:
APC UPS Link

It's a APC Back-UPS CS 500VA 300watts. Regarding APC, does anyone know what the difference between the APC Back-UPS and APC Back-UPS CS is? The only difference I can find is that they look different, with the CS looking nicer.


Before I make my final decision, what important things should I be looking for when buying a UPS? The UPS's seem to be rated in Va and watts. What does Va stand for? I have a 350watt power supply, does that mean the UPS I buy needs to be at least 350watts? I know that the 350watt rating on my power supply is the maximum it can draw and that it does not always use it all, but is it always best to make sure your UPS can cover the maximum that your powersupply can draw? Thanks for the help!


One more thing, are APC's good or am I better off with another brand?


Here are my system specs in case:
midtower
350watt enermax
p4 1.6a at 2.2ghz
120GB western digital HD
DVD-ROM
CD-RW Drive
1 Case Fan
NIC
SoundCard - audigy
geforce2 gts

 

[MWink]

<< Regarding APC, does anyone know what the difference between the APC Back-UPS and APC Back-UPS CS is? >>



There may be no difference but I strongly suspect the older ones (non CS) are built better.



<< The only difference I can find is that they look different, with the CS looking nicer. >>



Seek professional help!



<< what important things should I be looking for when buying a UPS? >>



IMO quality of the UPS and it's voltage regulation are the most important. Note, the Back-UPS and Back-UPS CS have basically no voltage regulation (I recommend the Back-UPS Pro).



<< What does Va stand for? >>



It stands for Volt Amps. It is calculated the same exact way you calculate Watts. The UPS manufacturers just pulled this term out of their @$$. Note, the VA/W ratio will vary by UPS manufacturer.



<< I have a 350watt power supply, does that mean the UPS I buy needs to be at least 350watts? I know that the 350watt rating on my power supply is the maximum it can draw and that it does not always use it all, but is it always best to make sure your UPS can cover the maximum that your powersupply can draw? >>



No, I have a 431W PS and it only pulls about 120W. (Your system looks like it would use slightly less power than mine)



<< One more thing, are APC's good or am I better off with another brand? >>



APC used to be by far the best. In recent years they have changed tactics and I *THINK* their quality has degraded a bit. Overall I would still trust them more than anyone else.

 

[Dre]

MWink, Thanks for the insight.


Regarding the AVR (Automatic Voltage Regulation), I just looked through APC's website and the Pro line is the only one that has this feature. Looks like I'll have to reevaluate that model I want.

 

[MWink]

<< Regarding the AVR (Automatic Voltage Regulation), I just looked through APC's website and the Pro line is the only one that has this feature. Looks like I'll have to reevaluate that model I want. >>



Well not exactly. The Pro is the only Back-UPS that has AVR. All the higher end models from APC have AVR. Also, I think the Back-UPS LS has it but it is the same as a Pro (I think).

 

[Jman13]

Well, I have a 700VA Cyberpower UPS with AVR, and according to the monitoring utility, I am at 60% load with the system in my sig and my 19" CRT. It provides about 9 minutes of full backup. It's a good UPS from what I can tell, and it was only $100. It prevented a shutdown once already, when the power flashed for about 3 seconds. It was cool to see the machine stay up through the short outage, and I've tested its shutdown capabilities too, and it does shut the machine down if the power stays off for 30 seconds or longer. (I can set it to be more, but why take chances?)

Jman

 

[RPB]

i have a back-ups 500 and for the setup i have its only good for 4min which gives me enough time to shut down without crashing.

printer and scanner off everything else on.

System Specs

Chenbro 4u rackmout case with two 92mm intake fans
Enermax 350 watt ps
P4 1.6A (stock heatsink+fan) (not overclocked)
512 mb DDR PC-2100 (Generic with Samsung chips)
Asus Tusl2-c
Ipanel basic
Matrox G-450 DH agp
Sblive Audigy Xgamer
Linksys LNE100TX
ATI TV Wonder VE
Maxtor 60 GB hard drive
sony 3.5" floppy
Plextor 12/10/32
Aopen 12X DVD
IBM ps2 keyboard
MS Intelimouse Explorer
Zoom 56k external modem
Acer 640bu scanner
Epsonstylus color 777
Altec Lansing ACS-45 speakers
NEC Multisync FP950
NEC Multisync FE950
XP pro

should be using the 1400 but thats more than i want to spend.

 

[MWink]

<< Well, I have a 700VA Cyberpower UPS with AVR, and according to the monitoring utility, I am at 60% load with the system in my sig and my 19" CRT. It provides about 9 minutes of full backup. >>



See, that's what I'm talking about. Different companies determine VA ratings differently. My APC Back-UPS Pro 650VA is at 60% (with the system in sig) load and it provides over 20 minutes of backup.

 

[Jman13]

From what I understand, the VA rating doesn't neccessarily correspond to the time it stays on, just the maximum power the thing can output. I also realized I'm only at 52% load. Either way, it works...we had a 45 second power outage while I was using the machine last night. Everything stayed up and running, which was great. My mouse stopped working for a few seconds since my USB hubs are not powered by the UPS, but everything else was cool. It was neat to see it in action, still looking at my machine while on. Of course, I was on mIRC at the time, and I lost my connection because the cable modem shut off.

Jman