DJK(John) Robinson
djkr at msn.com
Fri Jan 6 09:53:48 CST 2006
Mine is a Belkin (UK) - Universal 1200VA. Handles two PCs, 19" monitor etc, with zero hassle, orderly close-down, event log, history etc. Chose it a couple of years back after doing a *lot* of reading/research (and rejecting APC). The current model has AVR too. Good to hear John Bartow's professional views supporting my limited, amateur experience! Yes, get the biggest you can afford, then forget about it. John -----Original Message----- From: dba-tech-bounces at databaseadvisors.com [mailto:dba-tech-bounces at databaseadvisors.com] On Behalf Of Jon Tydda Sent: 06 January 2006 15:12 To: 'Discussion of Hardware and Software issues' Subject: Re: [dba-Tech] UPS recommendations? Belkin it is then, thanks a lot John :-) Jon -----Original Message----- From: John Bartow [mailto:john at winhaven.net] Sent: 06 January 2006 14:52 To: 'Discussion of Hardware and Software issues' Subject: Re: [dba-Tech] UPS recommendations? Hi Jon, I sell a lot of UPSs. I personally have dealt with 5 brands. I have the APC RS 1500 with extra battery pack for my network along with an older Triplite model. Last year I put in a number of APCs, Triplite, Monster Power, and Belkin units of various sizes. I'm fairly disgusted with APC at this point. You pay top dollar for them (because they are the big dogs in UPS) and the batteries do not seem to last which is why I ended up getting the extra battery pack for my RS1500. It was only a year and the main batteries had gone belly up. Previous to the RS1500 I had a different APC Smart UPS and the batteries went dead before 4 years but cost so much to replace that I just bought the new unit. On the other hand I've got one unit 750W on a client site that's about 1 year old. I checked the logs for it last week and it had handled 72 power events! Mostly line noise but a few brown outs too. So it is holding up well. I used to use them years ago in my former job and didn't have much problem with them either, maybe I just get all the APC lemons in my office! I haven't been too impressed with their customer support as of late. My Triplite (they are one of the top UPS companies also) is 6 years old and had to temporarily take over for it (which it isn't made for). But generally the other smaller Triplites don't seem to hold up well. I've had a handful go out due to power events. That is their job but it seems they get damaged easier than the others. My supplier warned me that they do not honor their warranties well but I have not had to deal with that so I have no personal experience with their customer support The Monster Power units were smaller ones that I got lot of them for a one shot, good deal and passed on to my clients for their PCs. They have done real well. One failed within a couple of weeks and they replaced it for free. The replacement blew out a few weeks ago from a major power event. It is in the home of one of the employees where I set all the other units up. Its kind of a country home with poor power so the fact that one went bad and the other blew already is real indicative of anything being wrong with them per say. And, that's a UPSs job - sacrificing themselves for the sake of the equipment! The majority of them are on a small network (all PCs have one) where the power supply is very poor due to the florescent lights being old - they buzz all the time and they're unwilling to replace them - its an awful place to work. The UPS units have an alarm that I can't turn off (some models allow that) and it chirps about every 10-20 minutes. At first the staff called and said there was something wrong with them until I explained it. They have been working under those conditions for about 2 years. Their customer support was good. I have been impressed with the Belkin units, which I originally were wary of. My supplier recommended them and after some discussion, took his word on it I have an entire small business running on them for a year now and haven't had a single incident. All the PCs have a IIRC 650W unit and the server has a bigger one that give it a half hour runtime in a power outage. One of the things my supplier (who is also a consultant - he runs a couple of businesses) said was that their customer support is good, I have dealt with it personally though. The monitoring/auto-shutdown software for all of them are similar and come with the units. Also some of the better units have AVR (automatic voltage regulation). The Belkin units and some of the APC units I have out there do. I never thought I'd say this but at this point I'd recommend the Belkin units. Make sure you get one bigger with more Wattage output than what you think you need. And study up on "Joules" a bit before proceeding. HTH John B. -----Original Message----- From: dba-tech-bounces at databaseadvisors.com [mailto:dba-tech-bounces at databaseadvisors.com] On Behalf Of Jon Tydda Sent: Friday, January 06, 2006 6:55 AM To: Dba-Tech (E-mail) Subject: [dba-Tech] UPS recommendations? Got home last night to find that my ADSL modem/router was toast... This is the third one I've had to replace due to power cuts etc, and the Electric company say that they're not responsible for any damage caused. At over £70 a throw, buying new DG834GT's is getting to be an expensive hobby. So I'm thinking of investing in a UPS once the new router has arrived. I don't really know what I'm looking for in a UPS as the only ones I've seen are the huge ones at work that sit in the bottom of the racks. Ideally I'd like something smaller and less obtrusive as it has to go in the living room at home. Does anyone have any recommendations? Thanks Jon The information in this e-mail is confidential and may also be legally privileged. The contents are intended for recipient only and are subject to the legal notice available on request from : webmaster at alcontrol.co.uk ALcontrol Laboratories is a trading division of ALcontrol UK Limited. Registered Office: Templeborough House, Mill Close, Rotherham, S60 1BZ. Registered in England and Wales No 4057291 _______________________________________________ dba-Tech mailing list dba-Tech at databaseadvisors.com http://databaseadvisors.com/mailman/listinfo/dba-tech Website: http://www.databaseadvisors.com _______________________________________________ dba-Tech mailing list dba-Tech at databaseadvisors.com http://databaseadvisors.com/mailman/listinfo/dba-tech Website: http://www.databaseadvisors.com The information in this e-mail is confidential and may also be legally privileged. The contents are intended for recipient only and are subject to the legal notice available on request from : webmaster at alcontrol.co.uk ALcontrol Laboratories is a trading division of ALcontrol UK Limited. Registered Office: Templeborough House, Mill Close, Rotherham, S60 1BZ. Registered in England and Wales No 4057291 _______________________________________________ dba-Tech mailing list dba-Tech at databaseadvisors.com http://databaseadvisors.com/mailman/listinfo/dba-tech Website: http://www.databaseadvisors.com