Welcome to the MacNN Forums.

ero2 · Jan 27, 2006, 12:26 PM

I will be running my new Dual 2.0GHZ, 1gig of ram probably will go to 2gigs, 256mb radeon, 250gig HD, an apple 20" LCD, and my firwire drive and I am pretty darn sure that's it off of it. I was thinking a 450 Watt would be fine, is that enough, or too much? Obviously savings money is always a plus so if it's too much I would like to know too, LOL

Thanks!

mduell · Jan 27, 2006, 02:24 PM

450W sounds a bit small... run your configuration through APC's UPS selector for workstations (with your desired run time on batteries, future expansion, etc).

ero2 · Jan 27, 2006, 06:09 PM

this is what they recommended for "best price", does that mean it is fine, and will work but is cheap, or what? I just don't understand what they mean by good price. I put in FW drive, powered speakers, peripherals, modem, router, and 20% expandibility and this is what it gave me.

APC Back-UPS ES USB 750VA w/TEL & COAX 120V

mduell · 08:40 PM

They mean exactly what they say; that's the cheapest one that can support your current load. The other options offer extended runtime on batteries, more features, or more capacity for future expansion.

flabasha · Jan 27, 2006, 09:25 PM

Finding out what works and won't in UPS's is maddening. I have just about the exact same configuration as you, and I've done weeks of research and am still confused.

Many people (including APS tech support, according to one user) have said the ES series doesn't work well with Macs because of its' squared sine wave output, that you should go with the XS series, I believe.

And nobody can give a real straight answer on what wattage is needed. I'm starting to think nobody really knows. I think max wattage for our 2.0 duals is 507 watts or so, so it should be bigger than that. You just guesstimate, aim high (more expensive, of course) and try it immediately with a "pull the plug" test.

But if anyone more knowledgeable (especially with a dual 2.0), please weigh in. I need your help, too...

mikochu · Jan 27, 2006, 09:38 PM

I have my DC 2.3ghz Power Mac G5, a PC (400 watt psu), 1x17" LCD, 2x15" LCDs, and two firewire/USB2 external harddrives on an APC Smart-UPS 1000. When the Power Mac and the 17" and one 15" LCD are on, the load is at one notch. When I boot up the PC and other 15" LCD, the load goes to three notches (out of... 8-10 notches?) then it goes back down to 2 notches. If the APC couldn't handle it, it would freak out with an alarm. So far, so good.

One thing about APC battery backups is that the batteries don't last for more than...2 years. Lucky for me, there's a battery replacement warehouse in Miami. Two replacement batteries for like 45 bucks.

svtcontour · Jan 27, 2006, 10:44 PM

Originally Posted by ero2

I will be running my new Dual 2.0GHZ, 1gig of ram probably will go to 2gigs, 256mb radeon, 250gig HD, an apple 20" LCD, and my firwire drive and I am pretty darn sure that's it off of it. I was thinking a 450 Watt would be fine, is that enough, or too much? Obviously savings money is always a plus so if it's too much I would like to know too, LOL

Thanks!

I think a 650 to 1000 would be a better range. 650 is fine if its only the computer and nothing else - no monitor, no accessories. I'd go for a 1000va if you will plug in your monitor and other little things.

Jason Bourne · Jan 27, 2006, 10:54 PM

This may not be directly relevant but on my Quad I needed the XS1500. I tried the lower level down (900VA I think) and it couldn't support the load of my quad + 30" ACD). I exchanged it for the 1500 and it works great.

ero2 · Jan 27, 2006, 10:56 PM

well, I bought a 450, but I will take it back tomorrow and exchange it. Are they really that necessary? It just keeps my HD from getting zapped in a surge right? Does anyone have a program that comes with them that will shutdown the APPLE computers, not just PCs? I bought a cyberpower cause it was cheaper, but am curious if it is the same as APC like the best buy guy told me or not? Do the APC ones come with a mac version of software to shutdown your computer/? Thanks for all the help so far guys, I really appreciate it.

ero2 · Jan 27, 2006, 10:57 PM

oh, and where do you guys get replacement batteries? Any good cheap places since I will need one in like 2 years?

ero2 · Jan 28, 2006, 01:43 AM

okay, well I figured I would give it a try. I plugged it in a let it get a little charge, around 3 hours, then turned it off, plugged in my devices (1 20" apple LCD, 1dual 2GHZ Powermac, 1 250GIG 7200 RPM HD), turned everything on then pulled the plug on the cyberpower UPS. It beeped 2 times about every minute or so but ran for about 5 minutes until I decided to turn it off. I was opening Photoshop CS, running safari, and adium while just being powered from the battery (was not plugged into the wall at all) Does that mean I am okay with the one I got? Most of all, is there a mac autoshutdown software available?

Jason Bourne · Jan 28, 2006, 11:20 AM

I installed APC's powerchute software with my UPS which does shut down the computer, but I think OS X has that functionality built in. When I go to energy saver it gives me options for "UPS" with different times I can get the computer shutdown (i.e. 5 minutes before running out of juice or when batteries reach 20% of charge, etc...). THere's also a battery indicator on my menu bar now, next to the airport and bluetooth range icons.

This all requires that your UPS is connected to your computer with a USB data cable. That way, the UPS and the computer can "talk" to each other.

ero2 · Jan 28, 2006, 06:36 PM

so does this in fact mean because it still worked fine after I unplugged the battery backup that I went with enough wattage? I really only want it to run for 1 minute, which is long enough to shutdown, right? I don't need it to run on battetry for an hour or so...just long enough to save my work and shut down or protect the unit correct?

Jason Bourne · Feb 4, 2006, 11:22 AM

Sure - that could work for you but assumes that you are always in front of it when the power dies to shut it down. A little bit longer battery duration give you more room to use the computer's auto-shutdown capabilities (if you connect the USB cable, new energy saver options will come up allowing you to set shut-down rules in the event of power failure).