Best to stay away from APC UPSes now?

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Elledan

[H]ard|DCer of the Month - April 2010
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My first good UPS I bought years ago was an MGE one, which worked perfectly year after year and still works aside from bad batteries. I replaced it with an APC BackUPS CS 650 VA which died after a few years for no apparent reason. APC refuses any liability, saying that the CS series just wasn't meant for PCs.

The second APC UPS I used next to the previously mentioned one was a BackUPS RS series, 850 VA (BR800I). It worked well until I had trouble keeping the connected systems running. They'd turn off seemingly randomly and refuse to start until after a lot of poking. I finally determined that the connectors on the back of the BR800I were making very poor contact, and had this unit replaced under warranty.

Fast forward just over half a year and the replacement BR800I unit begins to develop the same issue. Try the very same (APC-supplied and DIY cables) cables in an el-cheapo Sweex UPS and there's no connection issue. Put them into the BR800I and you hear crackling noises just like with the first unit while electric contact is sporadic.

I disconnected the UPSes (the Sweex as well, due to just being a POS) as they were reducing up-time to maybe 0.5 or less and got into contact with APC.

According to APC my cables just suck, but they may be willing to replace it. Again.

I'm thinking of just selling any replacement unit and either go UPS-less or find a replacement brand which doesn't suck like APC

Thoughts?
 
Personally APC is about the only UPS manufacturer that I will purchase these days (at least at the consumer-level). I've had probably 10-15 units over the past 15 years, 95% of which are still functional to this day (other then the usual battery replacements over the years).

I started with a SmartUPS 700 then moved up to a bunch of BackUPS XS 1300 and 1500 models (with a pair of 500 units tossed in somewhere). On the other hand I had a few Belkin and CyberPower units for about two years in there that utterly failed multiple times.

Personally I'd give them another try, perhaps with a different model. Are your power cables getting moved around a lot and replugged often?
 
I currently use 2 APC SUA1500 and 1 SUA1400. Aside from battery replacements every few years, they have been flawless. The 1400 is 12.5 years old and the 1500s are 11 years old. My average runtime is 45 min.
APC%20Sua1500.jpg


With that said, I would try them again but stay away from 'consumer' level stuff. My replacement batteries each cost almost as much as a consumer level UPS.
 
I've been through 8 or 9 consumer models from APC and every one died in under a year. The batteries were fine, the electronics get fried somehow.
 
Sinclair said:
Personally I'd give them another try, perhaps with a different model. Are your power cables getting moved around a lot and replugged often?
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No, it's a virtually completely static setup each time. Each outlet and connector has maybe been connected/disconnected 5-10 times before the issues began to develop.

What's a good range of APC UPSes above the 'consumer' level series?
 
All of mine at home are the SmartUPS. I have 2 1500's like wra18th posted, a 1000 and a 1350 of new models with the LED display. Aside from replacing batteries every few years they have been flawless. In fact, we use them a lot in my industry and I rarely see them go bad aside from dead batteries.
 
My recommendation is get a refurbished APC SmartUPS or other refurbished server grade UPS. And make sure you get a 1000VA model or larger. These can be had for less than $200 shipped with new batteries.
 
I've had ok luck with CyberPower UPSs. The consumer level ones. ~600va or so for running routers, switches, modems, etc. Finally need to replace the batteries for my first one after having it for... 3 years I think. May just get a whole new unit for what the batteries/shipping costs.
 
I use Cyberpower for consumer level UPS's and APC for business situations. I have an 15 year old Back-ups 800 on my wifes PC, and a Cyberpower 1250va on mine. Both work flawlessly.
 
I havne't had any issues with my APC units. In fact, this thread reminds me... Batteries are due for replacement.
 
APC has a wide range of products which runs from trash to very good. It all depends on what you buy.
 
Paul_Johnson said:
APC has a wide range of products which runs from trash to very good. It all depends on what you buy.
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It'd be nice to get some kind of overview of which APC ranges/UPSes are trash/decent/good :)

Seems like UPS reviews are scarce, though :(
 
I'd say let the price be your guide. In my own limited experience, you really do get what you pay for with UPS'

What I'd love to see is a PSU review that measures the output quality when the AC source switches from the wall to your UPS.
 
Many of the newer consumer grade APC units don't play well with modern power factor corrected(PFC) power supplies. Oddly, the older(10+ years) stuff works fine. I found this out the hard way when I replaced a still working Backups 650 because it had a serial port and Windows 7 didn't offer native serial UPS support. The new unit, a Backups NS-1250 would not keep up my computer with an 80+ Antec PS. APC's tech support recommended a non-PFC PS and Antec pointed the finger at APC. Purchased a Cyberpower 1000PFCLCD unit and it does play well with the Antec PS. Plus it claims to be a pure sine wave output instead of the stepped sine approximation of the APC unit. The Cyberpower has worked perfectly during several power interruptions, including one where the system did an automated shutdown due to low UPS batteries. The new APC unit is now supporting several gizmos that are powered by wall wart type PS.
 
Dead Parrot said:
Many of the newer consumer grade APC units don't play well with modern power factor corrected(PFC) power supplies. Oddly, the older(10+ years) stuff works fine. I found this out the hard way when I replaced a still working Backups 650 because it had a serial port and Windows 7 didn't offer native serial UPS support. The new unit, a Backups NS-1250 would not keep up my computer with an 80+ Antec PS. APC's tech support recommended a non-PFC PS and Antec pointed the finger at APC. Purchased a Cyberpower 1000PFCLCD unit and it does play well with the Antec PS. Plus it claims to be a pure sine wave output instead of the stepped sine approximation of the APC unit. The Cyberpower has worked perfectly during several power interruptions, including one where the system did an automated shutdown due to low UPS batteries. The new APC unit is now supporting several gizmos that are powered by wall wart type PS.
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Yeah, I've read about simulated sign-wave UPS' potentially causing issues with APFC power supplies, though thankfully I have not had an issue with my BackUPS 1200 and Corsair TX750. These potential problems are precisely why I think it would be very informative to have a review that shows which PSU's are able to cope best when being driven by a UPS...

What do you say Paul? Any chance of this happening? :D
 
IMO, the RS series, and any of the older white case APC are to be avoided. If you stick to the Smart-UPS line they are very good.
 
RamonGTP said:
What do you say Paul? Any chance of this happening? :D
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It is certainly in the doable realm from a purely "is it possible scenario", but we would have to look at the equipment cost to do it right side before jumping at it. If so, it would still be months off from the greenlight date due to equipment procurement, setup, testing protocol, and then time to work them into the schedule. So, the answer is not no....just we would have to look at it and if so don't expect one next week ;)
 
Paul_Johnson said:
It is certainly in the doable realm from a purely "is it possible scenario", but we would have to look at the equipment cost to do it right side before jumping at it. If so, it would still be months off from the greenlight date due to equipment procurement, setup, testing protocol, and then time to work them into the schedule. So, the answer is not no....just we would have to look at it and if so don't expect one next week ;)
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"So You're saying there's a chance!"
 
I've always used and sold Smart UPS from APC, they are reliable, batteries are easy to replace and support is good. I have a place about an hour away from me that sells refurb APC's and every time I need some new batteries I take them over and they swap them out. Any consumer grade UPS I've tried, has never lasted anywhere near as long as the Smart UPS line, they are just built to last.
 
I have a 2800w APC unit that i got from Ohio State University. They were tossing it out because the batteries did not hold a charge. I took it to Batteries Plus and had the batteries replaced and it has worked flawlessly for the last 3 years. I can run my gaming rig and all my other components for about an hour before the batteries start to get low.

I have been nothing but happy with my UPS and I will probably continue to replace the batteries and continue using it for many years.
 
As far as I'm concerned, APC BackUPS and all other super-cheap comps from other brands always have been and always will be junk. SmartUPS only for APC. I don't understand why even here people realize you need a good power supply but then go out and buy the cheapest crappiest UPS they can find.
 
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dandragonrage said:
As far as I'm concerned, APC BackUPS and all other super-cheap comps from other brands always have been and always will be junk. SmartUPS only for APC. I don't understand why even here people realize you need a good power supply but then go out and buy the cheapest crappiest UPS they can find.
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The problem here is that APC BackUPS series are hardly among the 'cheap junk' you can find anywhere. APC is supposed to be a good brand, yet I learned the hard way that they apparently sell a lot of crap, just like HP business equipment is good, but their consumer stuff is absolute junk.

While I won't be buying APC SmartUPSes any more, I nevertheless am left with a bitter taste regarding APC and would gladly switch to another brand if it's less dishonest with its customers.
 
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