"Warning! Warranty Void if Used on UPS/Inverter Power"

[alclik]

If you buy any Integrated Amp or AVR from ProFX, they put a sticker saying
"Warning! Warranty Void if Used on UPS/Inverter Power - ProFX"

What does it mean?! As many Indian households would have UPS or Inverters because of the poor electricity situation...

I am worried because I have ups for home and and panning to buy a small dedicated one for Amp, TV etc.
Is it safe?

 

[rdevakumar]

When i bought inverter, i was told inverter which produces 'sine wave' output are similar to the regular current we get. Other inverter produces different signal which may not good for sensitive electronics. I don't have any technical knowledge / detail about this.

 

[jkarthik]

IMHO, DON'T connect the AVRs or any electronic equipment through the inverter/UPS line.
Use stabilizers like Servo stabilizer (Brand: Vertex, Krykard etc.) for connecting.
Direct power line plug(No UPS/Inverter line) -> Servo stabilizer -> Electronic equipment.

 

[ghatgepatil]

Correct, never use hi-fi equipment on UPS/inverter power. A voltage stabilizer is fine though. Whats the freaking necessity to connect TV/hi-fi gadgets to battery source if there is a power cut?

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

Apart from not cutting the music/TV when power goes, I have always assumed that the reason to use a good UPS is to protect against voltage fluctuations, especially surges. Yes, it should be sine-wave, for electronics, hifi or computer etc, and if it is made for electronics (UPS, rather than inverter, usually is) then what harm can it do?

 

[arj]

Apart from not cutting the music/TV when power goes, I have always assumed that the reason to use a good UPS is to protect against voltage fluctuations, especially surges. Yes, it should be sine-wave, for electronics, hifi or computer etc, and if it is made for electronics (UPS, rather than inverter, usually is) then what harm can it do?

Most UPS/inverters are not Sinewave but Square
Pure sinewave invertors cost at least 3 times more than the regular ones

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

Most UPS/inverters are not Sinewave but Square

OhMyGod, maybe we'd better merge this with the recent digital musical discussion !

In one line you've made me feel ignorant again. Oh well, that's never a bad thing.

I thought the ones made for electronics were sine: I'd better check what mine is.

 

[rdevakumar]

Correct, never use hi-fi equipment on UPS/inverter power. A voltage stabilizer is fine though. Whats the freaking necessity to connect TV/hi-fi gadgets to battery source if there is a power cut?

There is one strange reason i want to listen music when the power goes (especially in the late evenings / nights). I don't have any dedicated music listening room which has sound insulation or air conditioned and i am living in an apartment. When the power goes, the noise level of surrounding goes down which enhances the music listening experience

 

[baijuxavior]

Offline UPSs that we normally use for computers have a square wave output. Line Interactive model UPSs usually have a qusi-sinewave form, but it is not true sinewave. These UPSs can be connected to devices with smps based power supply like a computer, dvd player or even TV. But amplifiers have transformer base psu which will be affected by these UPSs. To understand it, just connect a table fan to a normal ups and you will hear the fan producing unwanted sounds. Online double conversion UPSs have sinewave output, but they are expensive and usually starts at 15K onwards. Most home inverters claim to have sinewave output though I'm not sure about it. It is better not to use ordinary ups for amplifiers.

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

I thought the ones made for electronics were sine: I'd better check what mine is.

It looks like mine (APC BACK-UPS) is a stepped approximation to sine and the next range up which is, yes, much more expensive, is sine. However, the APC inverter we also have claims to be sine.

 

[arj]

It looks like mine (APC BACK-UPS) is a stepped approximation to sine and the next range up which is, yes, much more expensive, is sine. However, the APC inverter we also have claims to be sine.

Thad approximation can really range and price would be a good indicator.

 

[Vijay_s]

I have connected my entire devices to UPS, there are frequent unscheduled power cuts in the area I lives.

Su-Kam :: Fusion Series Pure Sine Wave Commercial UPS

 

[Saket]

One gets so called 'sine wave' inverter for even 7K and even for double that price. So, does it mean that the 7-8K priced inverters are not pure sine wave but something like modified square wave? For a normal apartment flat with loads like 4-5 cfls, one refriegerator, one LCD, a washing machine/microwave/dishwasher (used one at a time); what VA inverter should I be looking into(pure sine wave one)?

 

[kapvin]

Correct, never use hi-fi equipment on UPS/inverter power. A voltage stabilizer is fine though. Whats the freaking necessity to connect TV/hi-fi gadgets to battery source if there is a power cut?

for a projector it's absolutely recommended. a power outage would mean that you cannot shut down your projector in the method, risking lamp damage.

of course using a sinewave ups is optimum. I've had a su-kam which worked very well, while it worked. (almost 10 years) the first bit of trouble and the after Sales tech; just messed it beyond repair.

regards

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

Thad approximation can really range and price would be a good indicator.

Thanks, the chart is an excellent, concise summary. The only other relevant thing I read elsewhere is that, when not in battery mode, all UPSs except the very expensive off-line ones just pass on what comes from the socket anyway, which is seldom going to be a nice sine wave, especially in our country.

So, my summation so far is:

square wave: avoid.

simulated sine: probably at least as good as straight mains, and hopefully includes under/over voltage protection.

real sine: go for it if it can be afforded --- and those who own and buy very expensive electronics should probably consider it a necessary expense anyway.

 

[blackscorpio]

Thanks, the chart is an excellent, concise summary. The only other relevant thing I read elsewhere is that, when not in battery mode, all UPSs except the very expensive off-line ones just pass on what comes from the socket anyway, which is seldom going to be a nice sine wave, especially in our country.

So, my summation so far is:

square wave: avoid.

simulated sine: probably at least as good as straight mains, and hopefully includes under/over voltage protection.

real sine: go for it if it can be afforded --- and those who own and buy very expensive electronics should probably consider it a necessary expense anyway.

:clapping: well said.

considering the Indian power conditions, you should probably include the UPS as part of your AV budget.

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

This is why I am so surprised at the warranty restriction! You'd think that any sort of power protection would lead to fewer warranty returns.

 

[Nikhil]

I use a dedicated APC SURT 2000, a now discontinued model, for my music setup. This is a sine wave re-generator and includes battery back up. In our power conditions this was practically the equivalent of a full component upgrade. There is no way I would be able to run my setup without some sort of power treatment.

The rest of my place is on two standard APC Back UPS BI which has been running without incident for a while. I run everything (lights, fans, TVs etc) on them without any problems.

 

[arj]

Thanks, the chart is an excellent, concise summary. The only other relevant thing I read elsewhere is that, when not in battery mode, all UPSs except the very expensive off-line ones just pass on what comes from the socket anyway, which is seldom going to be a nice sine wave, especially in our country.

So, my summation so far is:

square wave: avoid.

simulated sine: probably at least as good as straight mains, and hopefully includes under/over voltage protection.

real sine: go for it if it can be afforded --- and those who own and buy very expensive electronics should probably consider it a necessary expense anyway.

yes the bypass is almost as good as the mains ..it is only when it takes battery power that it gets bad as the battery in such inverters is also not having great power reserves (Dynamic) so do take that into context to run for a long enough time . If you do what to do that you need to have an inverter with a power rating of 2 -3 times the Max power rating of all the equipment in the chain

I do have a Pure Since wave generator (not UPS) for my digital equipment and I have tried all 3 options ie 1. from the Sine wave inverter, 2. mains, 3. from the ATC near sinewave inverter at home (on battery)
From a Sound perspective the above order is in the decreasing order of the effect ie the mains better than the UPS

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

yes the bypass is almost as good as the mains

Actually, I was thinking, "as bad as..." :lol:

Nikhil, I would like to upgrade to the APCSmart UPS from the BACK-UPS --- but the price difference is huge. Maybe one day.