Recommendations for UPS

[GLaDOS]

Hi all,

I'm purchasing a UPS for my gaming PC system. I know there are a number of calculators out there for finding the right UPS battery, but I'm not sure for how to account for the numerous gaming peripherals I have plugged into my PC. I'm only looking to have 5-10 minutes of battery time at most so I can properly shut down my PC if the power went out.

Any recommendations or feedback would be greatly appreciated. Is there a way to calculate current power consumption on a computer or calculate how much power consumption my peripherals are using - they are mostly Saitek flight sim components?

As always, I sincerely appreciate your help!!

 

[C0RR0SIVE]

It all honestly, if your peripherals are pulling power from your PC and not directly from an outlet, I would just look at your PSU and figure out the total power it is rated to pull. Should say something like Input: 10A @ 120v which means your PSU under maximum load can pull upwards of 1200w from the wall when fully loaded, the sticker that says 600w on the side of the PSU means nothing, that's just the power it can supply to your PC AFTER it converts the AC into DC. Older power supplies tend to sit between 40 and 60 percent efficiency. That means a PSU that gives only 400w could have pulled upwards of 1000w just to give you that 400w. So it's best to skip calculators.

If you have external equipment, look at the same rating for those and add them onto the total wattage that can be pulled at maximum, this will give you a good basis for the output that you will need from an UPS should power go out while gaming, if possible go just a bit above that output needed.

I never trust calculators because they take individual components and give you a theoretical value, I always for for maximum possible power draw when looking into stuff like this, because if you overload the UPS based upon typical or theoretical values you could actually damage the UPS, or worse, your computer.

 

[GLaDOS]

It all honestly, if your peripherals are pulling power from your PC and not directly from an outlet, I would just look at your PSU and figure out the total power it is rated to pull. Should say something like Input: 10A @ 120v which means your PSU under maximum load can pull upwards of 1200w from the wall when fully loaded, the sticker that says 600w on the side of the PSU means nothing, that's just the power it can supply to your PC AFTER it converts the AC into DC. Older power supplies tend to sit between 40 and 60 percent efficiency. That means a PSU that gives only 400w could have pulled upwards of 1000w just to give you that 400w. So it's best to skip calculators.

If you have external equipment, look at the same rating for those and add them onto the total wattage that can be pulled at maximum, this will give you a good basis for the output that you will need from an UPS should power go out while gaming, if possible go just a bit above that output needed.

I never trust calculators because they take individual components and give you a theoretical value, I always for for maximum possible power draw when looking into stuff like this, because if you overload the UPS based upon typical or theoretical values you could actually damage the UPS, or worse, your computer.

Hi c0rr0sive - thanks for your reply!

I've been checking out the specs page for the power supply I am using (Corsair Professional 750W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply (CMPSU-750HX) - PCPartPicker) and I didn't see input or anything similar to what you posted anywhere - I also checked the TigerDirect page. However, there is a significant chance I'm blind and missing it completely! The TigerDirect page did mention something about input:

AC INPUT​

100V/240V - 60/50Hz​

But I'm not sure if this is what you mean?

The only other external equipment I have would be my speakers (Logitech Z623 200W 2.1ch Speakers (980-000402) - PCPartPicker) which I didn't see a similar input for either??

I sincerely appreciate your time and feedback! Thank you very much!

 

[PP Mguire]

This is the UPS my friend bought which is running his 780ti SLI rig and server.
APC Back-UPS Pro BR1500G 1500VA 865W 10 Outlets Power Saving Back-UPS Pro - Newegg.com

 

[GLaDOS]

Thanks for the recommendation PP Mguire. A buddy of mine at work recommended this one: Amazon.com: Tripp Lite SMART1300LCDT 1300VA 720W UPS Smart LCD Battery Back Up Tower AVR 120V USB Coax RJ45: Electronics

They appear to be almost the same specs. Both should be able to handle a PC with a 750W PSU and numerous USB peripherals plugged in?

 

[C0RR0SIVE]

USB Peripherals are pulling from that same PSU, so your still not going to go over the "720w" it's rated at, which is more than 720w... Like I said earlier, don't go by the output of your PSU, go by the input at full load, which is 10*120v=1200w maximum. That UPS will run 3-5 minutes at best, so I hope you can shut-down quickly. I suggest playing with the software that comes with which ever one you get, so it can tell your computer to immediately start shutting down should the power go out, would save valuable time, especially if windows feels like updating.

 

[PP Mguire]

Yea but even if he was gaming it wouldn't be pulling a full load. My friend running his 2 machines on the 865 has enough time to go and flip his breaker back on whenever it pops. Only drains about 10% of the battery in the time to do this with a game on. My machine with the 3960x at 4.6GHz and 2 580s @ 900MHz core only pulled 700w from the wall while running 3DMark 11. That's before PSU efficiency.

 

[C0RR0SIVE]

The reason your pulling 700w at the wall IS because of efficiency. If your PSU had half the efficiency it currently does, your load on the other end would double just for the same wattage.

 

[PP Mguire]

The point I was trying to make is it isn't that drastic of a change. I'm pretty sure this guy isn't pulling anywhere near that and all I had at the time was my HX850. If what you say wasn't too exaggerated then my TT 1000w with way less efficiency would be pulling double from the wall but it doesn't. Same setup on that PSU hovered between 725 and 750. I actually have a picture of GPUs alone on my TT 1000w pulling an even 600w which is perfect wattage those 2 in tandem should be pulling. Actually slightly less. The HX850 has an efficiency rating in the 90s but the TT is a bronze in the 80s. One should be much higher than the other if what you're saying is 100% true. Before you ask, yes I have a wall meter.