AC protection

[wolfvid]

AC protection and UPS

 

To protect the AC input to your system forever with insurance use only what

Whitlock (a god amongst engineers) recommends:

http://www.surgex.com/products.html

Surge X start at $ 299 for 8A protection  at Markertec 

http://audio-video-supply.markertek.com/search?w=SA-82&sitepref=1  10 year warranty ( of connected gear)  http://www.surgex.com/products/sa82FlatPak.html

larger one to look at:

http://www.surgex.com/products/Axess-ELITE.html

They just started making stepped wave UPS which I have not researched.

I recommend   APC UPS start at $ 650 for sine wave at http://www.apc.com/products/category.cfm?id=13  (have a good warranty for connected gear, but their AC protection is not up to SURGEX, check on fans and if you can add batteries to built ins, and if they turn on without AC present at input!  Most do)

APC has excellent phone salesmen; they can tell you how you can find out how many amps you are actually using. They will even tell you what an Amp is and what it has to do with battery life in the UPS. They have smaller UPS that you can extend with temporary battery packs for longer operation.
http://www.markertek.com/Product.asp?baseItem=SUA1000RM1U&cat=POWER&subcat=&prodClass=UPSSYS&mfg=&search=0&off=

Here a big dog 3K watt

http://www.apc.com/products/resource/include/techspec_index.cfm?base_sku=SUA3000XL   for this they have extended warrantees… investigate for “professional” use.

 

I think these are sine wave UPS which is something that will save you inexplicable problems when you need it.

http://www.apc.com/products/family/?id=165

”I know APC in its various incarnations and have blown plenty of it up thru various unknown conditions (others operating)  [ this would be an argument for the  SurgeX in addition  wolf]   and can recommend them for great sales service and good well designed (now also built in China) goods. You have to turn them off on a purposeful disconnect, but they will work with no 110V present and really take good care of batteries.”  A user from the Wexler board

Since our video assist monitors don't really need continuous power in case of failure I think I will try the cheaper Surge X stuff.  We use the square wave APC UPS for video recording carts... (Cheaper than sine wave) there is no discernible noise from the semi sine wave output anywhere (not even in wideband UHF preamps for TV receivers it kept 15 feet away – but why risk it for the extra 20% in cost) battery weight is always an issue!!!! Sine wave equip. from APC has the widest latitude and is the sturdies and more expensive.
wolf

 

Furman strips, like most MOV based powerstip “surge Protectors” are junk: If they blow a light goes out - nothing else happens, there is no safety for your gear there at all. Some though have a $15,000 warrantee included, that may be a good idea.

 

Furman has autotransformers in expensive boxes:
just looked at the Furman AR15   approx  $ 650.00
http://www.furmansound.com/product.php?div=01&id=AR-15_II
http://www.furmansound.com/pdf/manuals/AR-15_manual.pdf
no circuits provided (very suspicious – written for dummies)
it does have autotransformers ... this is different from their "strips" which are just cheap MOVs. Problem with MOV’s is that they wear out and there is no way to tell if they are good or not

here a few independent test sites for this stuff... http://www.google.com/search?q=compare+ups+power+backup&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a

this
http://svconline.com/mag/avinstall_furman_ar_series/
guy is a total lunatic:
" Comparing the units, the Furman seemed to take the edge off the high (of audio) end a bit, but with no other major distinctions. The stereo image feels deeper and more defined with both. Reverb tails have more definition, but are not extended as though compressed. I also compared two identical 17in. VGA LCD monitors. I had struggled with these monitors prior, since the number two unit simply did not look as good as the number one. It was grainy by comparison, and not as bright. When I connected it to the Furman unit, I discovered that it had been powered by straight wall AC, unconditioned. Upon application of conditioned power, the image was remarkably better — crisper, brighter, and more vivid. There is no question that regulated conditioned power is far preferable" 

[You find such nuts on the net… beware]  
if a power supply has those effects the guy also sees flying saucers on demand

 

 

L 695 recently had a first class edu session which covered batt powering and AC safety more thoroughly than anything I have read here ( I miss some stuff for sure). Have a look.  Also the end of the "groundloops" class by Whilock from Jensen at the very end has some  good hints on power control... 

http://www.695.com/html/edu-vid-gr-loops.html

I am giving away some nice battery boxes as in  http://wolfvid.com/datasheets/Specials.pdf  build your own     

 

 

XANTEX  is a high quality inverter ( they do have fans though):

http://www.xantrex.com/power-products/power-inverters/prosine.aspx

I use a Xantrex Sine Wave 1000 watt inverter ( as good or possibly better than APC larger and more expensive but just an inverter, not inverter and charger combined)) powered off an AGM 79ah Marine battery. You need a Xantrex 20a charger that charges the battery. The battery powers the inverter as well as all 12 v DC equipment.
 

Its worth a thought or two to protect your expensive stuff…  wolf

[VASI]

Thanks for sharing! I learned a lot!