Correct UPS for Dell Studio XPS 9000

[Anonymous user]

I plan to buy a Dell Studio XPS 9000 and the APC Backup UPS RS 1300 LCD UPS System as a stand alone setup for home use. I am seeing some chatter on the Dell Community Forum that the Dell XPS 9000 computer requires that a UPS unit should have a pure sine wave when in battery backup mode. As I understand it, the APC Backup UPS RS 1300 model does not have the pure sine wave when in battery mode.

I would very much appreciate a recommendation as to which APC UPS model that has the appropriate battery backup sine wave for my new computer setup. Thanks, Sam.

[Techie_apc]

Sam,

Could you please resend the details?

[Anonymous user]

I plan to buy a Dell Studio XPS 9000 and the APC Backup UPS RS 1300 LCD UPS System as a stand alone setup for home use. I am seeing some chatter on the Dell Community Forum that the Dell XPS 9000 computer requires that a UPS unit should have a pure sine wave when in battery backup mode. As I understand it, the APC Backup UPS RS 1300 model does not have the pure sine wave when in battery mode.

I would very much appreciate a recommendation as to which APC UPS model that has the appropriate battery backup sine wave for my new computer setup. Thanks, Sam.

[Anonymous user]

Thanks very much for your prompt reply and information I needed. Have a good day, Sam

[Anonymous user]

I know this reply is late in the game, and that some people may disagree with its contents, but here it goes anyway.

The two claimed culprits are PFC/APFC power supplies and simulated/approximated sine wave UPS output, or insufficient VA/Watt output of the UPS. So I'll cut to the chase.

The problem with StudioXPS 9000's (among many) is the power supply. I received one (a complete system) as a warranty replacement for another system, and since Dell couldn't get on the ball, it is in warranty limbo, so I don't mind messing with it. Imagine my dismay when a half-second power outage shutdown my system. It was connected to a 750G Back-UPS. I did an extended test (unplug from the wall). Sure enough, as described everywhere, I got the rapid power cycling as it attempted to power on.

My apologies to Dell, but your system is not so special that it can't run on simulated/approximated sine-wave power, if every other Dell system, and just about every other high-end system builder can do it, so can you. (We use Dell Optiplex computers primarily in our deployments, so don't think I'm a hater)

Being not afraid of warranty issues, I swapped the power supply with a Corsair TX650. Just do a google search and you can get the specifications. This power supply uses APFC among other technologies and is designed to be highly efficient, so if any power-supply is going to be picky about the power source, it is going to be this one, right?

The result: The system runs as would be expected, even on battery, no sudden power loss, no rapid power cycling, and now I actually have enough power connections to do something with the system. (Side note: The power sequence on the StudioXPS is a little funky, as many have noticed, due to a secondary power control board that the power button is connected to instead of directly to the mainboard)

Granted the TX650 is a bit pricey, between $89-$119. I got it on sale at newegg.com for $89 with a $30 rebate, so about 60-bucks when it's all said and done. Compare that with the $400-$500 for a pure sine wave output UPS. Granted, these are the best battery backups to have, but that is not readily attainable for everyone, especially if you just dumped your cash into a StudioXPS 9000.

Personally, and with work, I only use APC UPS systems. In many articles/posts that address this issue, they blame the UPS. I hope that from what I have written you can see that this is a cheap shot. If you can afford a pure sine output UPS, get it, you won't be sorry, But if you can't, I would recommend an APC..

My overall conclusion is that while in concept the Studio XPS 9000 is pretty nice, in practice that system is a little ill-conceived. Perhaps they skimped on some components, like the "FLEXRONICS" power supply and others. The result is a system that is more Studio than XPS and sadly barely equal to the sum of its parts.

[Anonymous user]

I think it's time for APC (and other brands) to develop a kind of stripped down version of the Smart-UPS line, one that produces a true sinewave, but with the same features available in the back-ups line. I think this is feasible, don't you think? Is is too costly to make, for example, a 500VA true sinewave unit? A "Back-UPS - TS" - "TS" for "True-Sinewave" 🙂

I've made this sugestion here before and I'm still waiting for an UPS like this one and since all power-supplies is now coming out with active pfc, and there is no way back, the UPS manufactures should come up with a better solution and not just say, buy the "xyz" line (that costs three, four, five... times more). Or is it really the PSU manufacture's fault???

[Anonymous user]

If you go back in time a little and check the specs, APC has made Smart-UPS that small (500 VA), We still have a few kicking around and work. They were still pretty expensive. Load capacity is determined by by two things (in general): the battery capacity and the inverter "capacity", which is really more like a maximum flow-rate. To have a small UPS you simply put a smaller battery and smaller inverter. In general these are the cheapest components. The additional components, "externally" for line conditioning, and more important "internal" to the inverter for pure sine wave output, are the most expensive, thus when you move from Back-UPS to Smart-UPS you are lifting the base cost which is initially in the components to provide the "pure" AC power output.

I would love a line of pure-sine UPSs. Just don't expect them to be anywhere near the price point for a standard 500VA or even 750VA UPS.

I don't run on my UPS for a long time. It is to save me from brief (sub 5-second) power drops, over/under voltage, and to allow for safe shutdown. In all these scenarios, having a good power supply can insure clean power to the internal DC circuits as long as the voltage is right on the AC side and the frequency is close.

Message was edited by: themunchkinman

[Anonymous user]

EDIT: Repeat post removed.

Message was edited by: themunchkinman

[Anonymous user]

I don't run my PC from the UPS battery for a long time either. I expect the same thing from my UPS, to keep my PC running when the power goes out briefly or to give me enough time for me to shut everything down properly and it's been like this since 2005, when I bought my first UPS and from 2008 on when I bought my first APFC PSU, everything continued to work fine.

I just wish there were a cheaper and definite solution for this problem, but for the time being I think the cheapest solution is to change the PSU for one that works with the cheap kind of UPSes.

Thanks for the reply!

[Techie_apc]

Sam,

Thank you for consulting us to choose a right UPS which can support your Server. I would like to gather some more information from you in order to recommend a UPS for you.

How many watts or amps does your Dell Studio XPS 9000 use? This information should be available on the power supply or from the manufacturer.
How much runtime would you like in the event of a power outage?
Do you want a rack mount or tower UPS?
Are there any other features you would like the UPS to have?

Have a nice day!

[Anonymous user]

Very much appreciate your reply! The following is in answer to your questions:

a. Watts for computer - 475
b. Run Time - five minutes minimum, 10 minutes desired
c. Desire tower UPS
d. Other desired features: Minimum of five battery backup connections (computer tower, 23 inch flat panel monitor, two external hard drives.

Thanks for your prompt rely, Sam.

[Anonymous user]

It appears that my original reply did not include my answers - So will resend

Very much appreciate your reply! The following is in answer to your questions:

a. Computer watts - 475
b. Battery Run time: 5 minutes minimum, 10 minutes desired
c. Desire UPS tower
d. Other features: desire minimum of five battery backup connections (computer tower, 23 flat panel monitor, and two external hard drives)

Thanks for your prompt reply, Sam (for some reason cannot see my answers)

Message was edited by: scams

Message was edited by: scams

[Anonymous user]

Very much appreciate your reply! The following is in answer to your questions:
a. Computer watts - 475
b. Battery Run time: 5 minutes minimum, 10 minutes desired
c. Desire UPS tower
d. Other features: desire minimum of five battery backup connections (computer tower, 23 flat panel monitor, and two external hard drives)

Thanks for your prompt reply, Sam

Message was edited by: scams

[Anonymous user]

Very much appreciate your reply! The following is in answer to your questions:
a. Computer watts - 475
b. Battery Run time: 5 minutes minimum, 10 minutes desired
c. Desire UPS tower
d. Other features: desire minimum of five battery backup connections (computer tower, 23 flat panel monitor, and two external hard drives)
Thanks for your prompt reply, Sam
Sure hope this reply goes through! - for some reason the first and last lines are going through with my replies but not the lines within the first and last lines of my reply Hopefully by removing the blank linex within the body of my reply, this will go through..

[Techie_apc]

Sam,

I recommend you to purchase either APC Smart UPS SUA1000 or SUA1500 UPS. These units output pure sine wave.

SUA1000 UPS details:

Output Power Capacity: 670 Watts / 1000 VA
Output Connections: (8) NEMA 5-15R-Battery Backup plus surge protections outlets
Click here to view the UPS runtime and technical specifications.

SUA1500 UPS details:
Output Power Capacity: 980 Watts / 1440 VA
Output Connections: (8) NEMA 5-15R -Battery Backup plus surge protections outlets
Click here to view the UPS runtime and technical specifications.

I hope that this helps. Please let me know if you have any question.

[Anonymous user]

Good evening sir,
I also just bought an XPS 9000 unit (Core i7-965 processor) and found that my RS1500 unit (with supplemental battery pack) is unable to keep the computer powered when it switches to battery -- even though no other devices connected to the UPS are affected and PowerChute indicates more than 100 minutes of runtime available. All three battery modules are about 1-1/2 years old. When the unit goes on battery, for example during a self-test, the computer powers off immediately, then proceeds to rapidly power on/off/on/off/on/off at a fairly high frequency, maybe one or two tenths of a second between on, off, and on again.

In skimming this forum I noticed you mentioned that the SUA1000/1500-class UPSs output pure sine wave. Is the RS1500 outputting a different voltage waveform (square wave, etc.) than the SUA1000/1500, and if so could that be causing the problem? If it is, I'd be interested in adding a SUA1500 to the mix just to power the computer and monitor.

Thanks for any information you can provide.

[voidstar_apc]

>
In skimming this forum I noticed you mentioned that the SUA1000/1500-class UPSs output pure sine wave. Is the RS1500 outputting a different voltage waveform (square wave, etc.) than the SUA1000/1500, and if so could that be causing the problem? If it is, I'd be interested in adding a SUA1500 to the mix just to power the computer and monitor.
>

Yes, the BackUPS line of products output a psuedo-sine wave, which is somewhere between a sine wave and a square wave. Lately, power supplies have been incorporating PFC technology to meet European regulatory requirements and they don't always work with the psuedo-sine wave. In particular, the XPS 9000 does not seem to like it. You would be better served with a SmartUPS.

[Techie_apc · Accepted solution]

You are welcome Sam! Please let us know if you have any further question.

Have a nice day!