I received my UPS today and after several days of pure panic I was relieved to learn my fears were for naught.
After I had already committed to the purchase I read about something I wasn't aware of. New power supplies using a technology called PFC.
Apparently many people were finding that this model UPS doesn't place nice with power supplies that require a real sine wave, which this device does not supply. Oooooopsy.... Panic panic panic! Run about and wring hands for three days! Panic more !!
I have two large, high power Hackintosh systems and one FreeNAS unit in a rack mount configuration and all three of them are FULL of hard drives.
Between the three machines there are about 28 4tb hard drives installed. So it's a hefty load.
But the thing that was scary is that all the power supplies are the new PFC type. When I got the UPS in I shut down one of the systems and plugged it into the UPS. I booted it into bios setup mode rather than the OS so if it failed the test nothing would be harmed. I pulled the power cord of the UPS from the all and the Hackintosh kept right on going like nothing had changed. Plugged it back in and pulled it again. Rock solid, no problem.
The power supplies in my machines are Corsair HX650 and HT750 (x2) and after some more research it seems that Corsair power supplies are not as sensitive about the false sine wave this UPS provides.
As for run time I have no concerns as long as they will keep the three machines powered up for 15 seconds to 1 minute.
I have a whole house Generac generator that automatically starts up and transfers upon city power failure.
When the city power fails the Generac self starts (runs on natural gas) and transfers the house from city to generator. The shortest start and transfer time I've seen is 15 seconds. I can imagine that maybe in the winter if it's really cold (which is very rare here) that it MIGHT take longer to crank up and transfer.
So the Cyberpower unit only serves to carry the machines for a very short time until the generator kicks in.
There's also a nasty, nasty downside to the generator, when it detects that city power has been restored it will automatically transfer the load back to the city and the generator shuts down to standby. But when it transfers from generator back to city, it's a very rapid cycle, like half a second.
And electronics don't like rapid power on/off cycles like that. Especially computers. Even though it's only like 1/2 a second long that's enough to crash a computer and make all the clocks start blinking. So again the Cyberpower UPS will rescue my stuff from that nasty transfer business.
I have no doubt it can carry three heavy Hackintosh systems for less than one minute and that's really my only need.
I am pleased and relieved that it does play nice with my Corsair PFC power supplies after all.
I will probably buy two more of these to carry the rest of the electronics at my desk and I'll probably buy several of the much smaller units to put around the house to cover when the generator does it's thing. And of course there is an added benefit of protecting my equipment much better than a $10 surge protection strip from Walmart would.
As others have mentioned, the Mac software is pretty barren and bleak but it does work. It would be really nice if it could send a command through my LAN to tell all machines to power down but I guess I would have to get enterprise gear to have that ability.
The price was right and this will do what I need, keep three machines running for under one minute.
I just hope it doesn't make poo on itself like some people have mentioned theirs did.
Products related to this item
Page 1 of 1Start overPage 1 of 1
Related products with free delivery on eligible orders
Page 1 of 1Start overPage 1 of 1
Sponsored | Try Prime for unlimited fast, free shipping
Works good, Nice display, Good size, looks sharp, HEAVY, Software BUGGY
UPDATE 1/6/2018I've posted more photos of the software bug. It continues to drive me crazy several times a day with popups and dings and dongs... The unit it's self seems to still be working fine tho. I'm loving everything but the bugware.============================ORIGINAL POST:OK I've had my UPS (1500 Model) for about a month now. I'm 95% happy. Knock off 5% for annoying software alerts.When I first received the UPS unit, it arrived in perfect condition and was brand new.First thing I did was plug it in. The battery was around 88% so I let it charge. In just a few minutes, it had reached 100%. It started out pulling 18.2 watts with 88% charge on the battery. By the time it got to 93% charge, it was pulling 15 watts. As the battery gets closer to full charge, the less current it pulls to do so.NOTE: Just because the unit says 100% charged, does NOT mean it is topped off. In fact, it will still continue to charge for HOURS later. More on that later...------After I saw 100% I took a lamp with a 3/way bulb in it which was 50w/100w/150w. I set the lamp on the 150 watt and plugged it into my (Kill-A-Watt) current tester. The lamp was pulling 148 watts plugged in using the 150w setting.I then plugged the 150w lamp into the UPS alone, and unplugged the UPS. The lamp did not blink.DRAW-DOWN RESULTS:---0 minutes runtime = DISPLAY=53 mins left, battery 100% remaining3 minutes runtime = DISPLAY=32 mins left, battery 62% remaining9m 45s runtime = DISPLAY= battery 50% remaining21m 30s runtime = DISPLAY= battery 25% remaining25m 25s runtime = DISPLAY= battery 15% remaining27m 08s runtime = DISPLAY= battery 10% remainingUnit turned off right after it hit 10%. I turned it back on and it ran for about 1 more minute and went to 0 (ZERO) batter remaining.You can expect to go from 100% charge to shutdown in 27 minutes pulling 148 watts with the display on. This this is with a NEW set of batteries. In my experience, this time will shorten as the batteries age.CHARGE-UP RESULTS:---I removed the lamp from the UPS unit and plugged it in with nothing hooked to it.The unit is pulling 18.3 watts with completely dead batteries. This is the maximum it will ever pull. I would call it 18 watts.Reached 15% charge = withing secondsReached 19% charge = 18 minutes pulling 17 watts to do soReached 20% charge = 21m 40s pulling 17 watts to do soReached 30% charge = 1hr 11m pulling 17 watts to do soReached 35% charge = 1hr 32m pulling 17 watts to do soReached 40% charge = 1hr 55m pulling 17 watts to do soReached 70% charge = 4hr 15m pulling 17 watts to do soReached 75% charge = 4hr 42m pulling 17 watts to do soReached 80% charge = 5.0hrs pulling 17 watts to do soReached 100% charge = 6hr 29m pulling 17 watts to do soThis reached 100% about uhhhh 8:pm.Although 100% charged, the UPS unit continued to pull the higher voltage from the wall. The voltage draw continued to fall as the HOURS passed by. I let the UPS unit stay plugged in until I saw that the voltage draw either shut off or leveled out somewhere. I finally gave up watching this slow voltage drop-off and went to bed around 2:00am, about 6 hours after 100% was reached. The next morning I woke up and saw that the UPS unit was only pulling 7.0 watts. I continued to watch the voltage draw a few more hours and it never changed. The unit pulls 7.0 watts continuously. This is with the LCD on. I never turned the LCD off to see if the voltage went to zero but I doubt if the LCD pulls 7 watts. I am assuming from my testing here that the unit till trickle 7 watts of current always with the LCD on. You can expect at least this much once you have it hooked up and it's "FULLY" charged.THE SOFTWARE:---(PowerPanel Personal)The software instilled on Windows 10 PRO easily and as expected with no errors.*The software the remaining percentage of batter (i.e. 100%)*Remaining runtime (i.e. 22 minutes) for me and my computer & 3 monitors usually are pulling around 300w*UPS Load. Right now my load says 279 watts typing this up and listening to tv stream in background, 1x 32", 2x 24" monitors. Intel i7 6 core. 3 browsers open and about 30 tabs, outlook, Visual Studio and the UPS software running.*Output voltage (i.e current coming from the wall to the UPS 120v)*Another page shows a short history of blackouts and brownouts. *(I see none on mine)*setup email alerts. Cannot setup text alerts. However the alert can go to your gmail and your phone will alert you.*You can select from two options of what happens if power goes out.--- Shut down computer when remaining runtime left is: 5, 6, 7, 8, 10 minutes--- Shut down after running on battery after 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 minutes*Adjust when the UPS kicks in; (i.e. if voltage goes below 100v, when AC voltage goes above 139v) You can set these parameters. I left them at the defaults show above.*You can set the sensitivity (i.e. Low, Medium, High) I left this at the default of Medium.*You can select the type pf shutdown. (i.e. Shutdown, Hibernate) I left this to the default of Shutdown.You do not need the software for the UPS to function as you would expect a UPS to function. I installed the software.The software is BUGGY on my Windows 10 PRO. The only bug I can report is very annoying. Throughout the day an startling and annoying Windows ALERT will popup in the bottom right of the screen and in the Windows notification area telling you that the UPS has lost connection with the UPS. In less than 5 seconds another startling and annoying Windows ALERT will popup in the bottom right of the screen and in the Windows notification area telling you that the UPS has reestablished connection and everything is alright. This happens all the time every day. I hate it. I doubt any connection is ever really lost here, who knows as there is no evidence of it. I will probably end up uninstalling the software as it the negatives outweigh the positives for me personally.I never open the software anymore to check on any of those features I've mentioned above. Once you've learned about the current you use and about how much time you have after a power failure, there really isn't anything else you need to know.If you don't install the software, the default settings is, on power outage it runs the outlets until the unit gets down to 10% then abruptly dies.I have been searching for opinions on these popup alerts and they seem to have been happening for many years so I wouldn't expect a software update fix anytime soon if ever.I have provided PHOTOS of these errors.There is a MANUAL Mute button on the front of the unit. Don't let anyone tell you there isn't. It works but I like to be alerted. Who wouldn't?I do think this UPS is well worth its price. I got it on sale during Black Friday.I hope this review has helped you.
Top reviews from other countries
-
-
-
- Ed - BC, CanadaReviewed in Canada on August 2, 2023
Performance Under Pressure
This 1500 watt battery backup UPS delivers. I wish to share my experience with it for those of you who may decide to integrate one of these into your home.Performance Under PressureEd - BC, Canada
Reviewed in Canada on August 2, 2023
First, I bought the unit with the intention of putting it into my wall, literally. So, warranty is void obviously and I did have to buy additional components to do this job. The goal for me was to provide and protect my network connection and lighting during a power outage. The Cyberpower 1500 watt UPS provides a sufficient amount of run time should we have a power black out and its surge protection safeguards the network equipment connected to it.
I considered that the general space between wall studs gives me about 14.5 inches, but where this was going I only had 10.5 and 2x4 studs are 3.5” wide so the casing for the UPS had to go. I protected the circuit board and transformer of the UPS in smaller project boxes, and after replacing the battery wires with longer ones and lengthening the wires to the transformer, the unit was almost ready to install into my wall. It was powered by the kitchen light switch (replaced by a tamper proof switch that needs a key to turn on or off, so it is always on and cannot be accidentally shut off). The UPS provides power to the wifi kitchen LED lights which are un turn operated through a voice assistant. The voice assistant also is powered by the UPS and the wifi booster is also powered by it as well.
The front panel of the UPS case I kept intact and mounted to a piece of black acrylic plastic I had left over from a similar project. This “panel” was mounted over the cut out I put in the wall and another wood cover was placed over the battery area I cut out lower from the panel. The whole project took a few days to prepare and then a few hours to install into the existing wiring of the house. Now, the UPS is inside of the wall, and function perfectly.
The series of photos show the unit disassembled, then I checked to see how it fit into the project boxes. After that it was just mounting, soldering, wiring, and then modifying the house wall and wiring, to place the unit before the kitchen lights, but after the switch power. The one with the wood panel and vent is a cover for the battery compartment. Last are a couple of finishing photos, one showing the lights with 100% brightness, the other at 25% brightness. The estimated run time is on the Cyberpower display and the load image above is blank because the LED lights draw almost nothing for power when running.
Our home’s kitchen lights are now able to run for as much as 460 minutes at 25% brightness, or as much as 160 minutes at full brightness. The goal was achieved and I am very pleased with the Cyberpower UPS as it does exactly what we need it to.
The unit had the ability to surge protect your cable, and RJ-45 (Ethernet) connections, but I removed these as they were not needed. I hope that whether you use it as is or you modify it yourself, you enjoy the protection it offerers for many years to come.
Images in this review
-
DanNeruReviewed in Mexico on November 20, 2024
Excelente calidad!!
Maravillosa compra, tengo conectada una tv de ya sus años y la ps5, he hecho pruebas jugando y la vdd está funcionando genial, t sientes seguro a la hr de jugar.Excelente calidad!!DanNeru
Reviewed in Mexico on November 20, 2024
Images in this review
