Battery/UPS backup recommendations?

[Virgil.]

I'm looking to get a battery/ups backup for my mac. Any suggestions? I'm looking on newegg and I see CyberPower has good reviews. Does anyone have any good suggestions for brands or deals here in the states? Specifically maybe things I should look out for or stay away from. Thanks!

 

[guitarguru777]

APC make the best in the business but you will pay a premium for them

 

[AD Chaos]

APC make the best in the business but you will pay a premium for them

Just last week my APC ES-750 caught on fire INSIDE during a drop of voltage!! What a piece of shit it could have burnt down my house

And yes I spent a SHITLOAD of money on it..
Better off with just my Furman protection, thank you very much.

 

[Virgil.]

Whoa, glad your house didn't catch fire man!

Yeah, I'm reading reviews and it seems like a tossup between APC and CyberPower. I only have about $150 to spend, so for the money, the Cyber Power seems like i'll get the most bang for my buck considering that most of the APCs in the price range seem very week when it comes to surge protection. But all of these models look so similar I have no idea what the hell I'm buying or looking for. I only need it to back up my Mac and give me enough time to shut down. Most of the time it's off anyway when I'm not using it so something that shuts it down for me automatically when I'm not home isn't necessary.

 

[Scott Horner]

We use Tripp Lite Omni 900 LCD's here at the office and they seem to work pretty well. All of the APC's we have have pretty much been taken out of service. Just my experience though.

 

[AD Chaos]

Whoa, glad your house didn't catch fire man!

most of the APCs in the price range seem very week when it comes to surge protection.

THanks man I was actually here when it happened (but I wasn't at the computer). I heard some crackles and then, the smell of burned circuits.. the APC started to throw sum smoke and make menacing sounds -- inside the outlet holes I saw fire- the thing was literally burning inside!

I didn't neglect the thing; in fact I had it checked not long ago, but when I took it to the APC service center, they were working on these huge enterprise units -that have to be transported by truck-, so right then I thought ''dang they're not gonna pay enough attention to my small UPS...'' which is -was- a pain to carry btw.

I bought this because there's always been a 'ghost' electrical problem in my bedroom (that not some 10 electricians/electric enginners have been able to figure out)- a couple of pedals I hooked up died (not mine fortunately ), my Triton Classic got a circuit burned, and a whole pc got fried (3 different components; HD -with the musical work of +5 years-, mobo and RAM). The tech explained to me sometimes very small changes in the voltage from electric outlets sort of build up overtime on sensible electronic components and can be very harmful. That's why, in addition to my Furman PF-PRO R, I got the APC. It has a nice USB-hooked software that shows you those small voltage changes (in real time), reports of incidents. plus other info. My unit worked fine for a year and it was cool to keep on working even when the lights went out, but I wouldn't call that a necessity.

MUCH more important is to have a physical ground (cooper bar buried in the yard and stuff). I for one will NEVER get a UPS again, just power regulators. The batteries on a UPS are heavy-as-fuck, expensive and IMHO, unreliable (just like any other battery, performs superb at first, but then more and more, not so much).

 

[TheWinterSnow]

The reality of getting an APC or any UPS to catch fire is rare and extremely horrid mains could cause failure, and can cause failure to surge protectors as well although the only way you will find out is when the surge protector fails to protect your shit from a thunderstorm. With batter backups their issue is that their batteries will fail and eventually lead to your system crashing when you have a blackout, or the battery will drain before you have time to save and shutdown what you are doing. IME, I had a small APC that was being used 24/7 for 5 years that went through numerous blackouts/brownouts and overvoltages before the battery failed and all it did was shut off my computer when the cable was accidentally unplugged (as it should have gone to battery).

I am running a larger APC now and it powers my computer, LCD monitor, Speaker Monitors, external HDD, modem and router, all on the battery circuit alone. It has done a great job at the never ending overvoltage moments (going to backup while its over 125v). It also has an LCD display that tells you everything from input and output voltages, input and output frequencies, power consumed, load and load percentage, the time available on the backup based on current load. Hell is also surge protects your phone/internet line as well. Its been almost 4 years since I have had it, and its still running like a champ. Mine is an 800 watt and is capable of delivering an 800watt load for a half hour, and I got it for $150 USD.

And the software that comes with it is awesome. Just keep in mind that the batteries that come in them only last being run on for a few times for long periods of time (so this doesn't count a few second overloads and brownouts) so when you drain the battery decently you should get a replacement battery just be safe because the last thing you need is for the thing to not work.

 

[dmmi]

Powerware 9120

 

[Virgil.]

Thanks for the tips guys!