[JP]

Thanks to the power grid here in southern Louisiana I am scared to turn on my projector anymore. I know you guys in California have it worse than us and thus why I thought I might try to get some opinions on this.


First, I have done my research on this before looking at previous posts. There are two schools of thought with digital projectors: 1. you can turn a projector off without letting it cool down properly because the laws of thermodynamics tell us that we wouldn't want to cool the bulb down any faster than we have to if we want to avoid damage. 2. we need the fan on for proper cool down because where the damage will occur is when the bulb does not cool down evenly and thus why the fan stays on after the bulb is turned off.


I don't want to get off topic and debate these two schools of thought but I thought I better mention it because it seems to get brought up when speaking of UPS/surge protectors.


From what I have read there is one very important point that gets brought up with UPS. It must output a sine wave signal if you want top notch performance out of your equipment. Of course this seems to cost more money for this option.


So my question is this: given there are so many choices out there for surge protectors and UPS's which is the best choice for around $200 street price? Of course UPS with a sine wave output I would think would be everyone's favorite option. However, I can't seem to find one close to this price range with these properties. Are there any which can give off CLEAN power and offer UPS? If UPS is out in this price range what then would be best. Panamax appears to have some great home theater surge protectors but I have heard some claim that Isotel actually outputs a cleaner signal. Is there any truth to this? Is there another manufacturer or option that I am overlooking here?

 

[Carey P]

I've used the APC SmartUPS 1400 on my home theater components (Receiver, LCD Projector, DVD player, HTPC, S-VHS, LD). It has more than enough power (1000W). Never got above midway on the LED scale. It has, I think, a 2ms switch-over to battery when the power fails. It produces a pure sine wave signal. I got it for $215 on Ebay used. The batteries are perfect.


I then got a Tripp-Lite UPS Smart On-line(SU1000RT2U) which handles 800W and is always on line with a pure sine wave. Has a 0ns transfer time. It was black and fit right under my receiver, so I use it now, and moved the APC to my other computer. It has worked flawlessly with all components running and at high volume, with a 350 W LCD projector, for many months now. It has a slow running fan that runs all the time but is not very loud. (The APC fan does not turn on unless battery power takes over.) I bought the Tripp-Lite for $228 brand new sealed off Ebay.


Now I no longer worry about my computers or my bulb blowing up (at least until its time comes http://www.avsforum.com/ubb/wink.gif )


Carey


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My forever in-progress Home Theatre

 

[Morbius]

Carey,


I've used APC UPS units in the past and they are fine units.


The APC SmartUPS 1400 is certainly the one I would use for

a home theater - it has sine wave output and a VA of 1400,

which is about 1000 W and is about the right size for HT.


The other unit I considered was the Best Power Fortress 1425

unit. It has similar specs to the SmartUPS 1400.


I went with the Fortress 1425 because I found a good sale

price on the Fortress. But either of these units would be

fine.


JP, I don't think you are going to find a UPS unit that can

handle the load of a projector for $200. For that price,

you can get UPS units that will handle a small desktop

computer, but not a power hungry projector which wants a

few hundred watts of power.


Greg

 

[JP]

Thank you so much Carey and Greg for your responses. I am gaining a bit more education on the subject now. There is still one thing that confuses me though. I have an NEC VT540 projector which the specs says yields 240W max. I know nothing about electrical currents and what is considered a lot and what isn't. However, is this amount really considered to be "power hungry" as Carey put it? Is something the size of an APC 1400 really warranted for a projector of my size?


Thanks again.

 

[Carey P]

JP,


I'm afraid you quoted the wrong person. I said I ran a 350W projector just fine with either unit I had. That of course includes all the rest of the components including a Yamaha DSP-A1 driving 7 channels. I find that the 800 W unit does just fine. The LED's never reach more than the second LED which is 50% load, so it could be higher but less than 75% (next LED).


I'm sure with a 1400 VA unit which is 1000W, you would sure be covered. When I had mine on there, it was never above 50%. But lets face it, you can go up near 100% if you want, it's just that higher you go, the less time you'll have to shut down during a power fail. It's also nice to have some headroom for audio equipment.


So I certainly would not worry about a 250 W projector compared to a typical power hungry audio amp. Whoops, now there I go! http://www.avsforum.com/ubb/wink.gif .


Carey

 

[lennyr]

Another option worth considering would be a line conditioner. I have an APC Line-R 1250 which puts out very clean power; it has no battery backup, but that may not be necessary for a projector anyway.



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-l

 

[Morbius]

JP,


In addition to the maximum power that the UPS can put out -

you also have to consider the run time on battery. A UPS

that can output 1000 W for 5 minutes will probably be able

to output 500 W for 10 minutes - see the specifications of

the individual units. You might want to time how long

your projector runs the fans cooling itself after you shut

it down. Then size the unit accordingly.


A 1400 VA [ volt-amp ] unit, which because the voltage

and current [ amperage ] are not in phase with these

reactive loads, has a power factor of about 0.7 - so it can

put out about 1000 W. Such a unit will run a JVC D-ILA

which wants 650 W as well as enough hushbox fans to keep

it cool. A less power hungry projector could get by with

a lower VA rating.


If the projector manufacturer warns not to unplug the unit

after turn off while the fans are cooling the unit - then your projector could also benefit not only from the surge

and power filtering capability of a UPS unit - but also

from the ability of the UPS to provide sufficient cooling

to the projector in the event of a power failure - which

has become all too common in places like here in California.


Greg