Any lightweight UPS that you can reccomend?

[Rick Sutton]

In the past I have taken a Tascam Hi 8 tape machine as a backup to my Genex 9000 on the remotes I do. If the power cord gets kicked out I could rely on the tape machine as a safety. Now the Tascam is having problems so it's days as a backup are thru and I'm having to rely on a Fostex HD824 as backup. I've tested both hard drive recorders and if the power in interrupted they are toast.
So I figure I have to get a UPS. Here's the rub, my body just can't take any more heavy equipment to lug around and the last UPS I had weighed a ton. Are there any reliable UPS's out there that can handle 2 HD machines and not break my back? Just need something that will allow me enough time to stop the machines and shut them down. Also needs to be quiet and the ability to disable any loud alarm. The Fostex specs at 30 watts and I can't find a spec on the Genex but would guess it to be similar.
Any thoughts?
Thanks, Rick

[Martin Kantola]

What I did was carry a small inverter, 150W or so would do maybe in your case, and then feed this with a switching power supply/battery charger. You know, one of those that can be used for running battery powered (12V) gear from 115/230 VAC.

By simply inserting a small motorcycle type sealed lead-acid battery between these I made an improvised UPS, very light weight. In my case I even used a true sine wave inverter for good quality juice. The battery only needs to be large enough to keep the recorders running long enough.

Mounted all of these in a small case. Worked.

Martin

[LX3]

Most of the UPS manufacturers have spec sheets listing size/weight/power for their units. If I were you, I'd still go for a true online double-conversion unit. I know they're heavier, but they're a lot more confidence-inspiring than the line-interactive ones.

(Although any UPS is much better than no UPS)

There are some fairly low-capacity (= light) online UPSes around... Doesn't sound like you need much power at all. Do the maths, but I expect you'd easily get away with 1000kVA. (not sure I've seen an online any less than that, but maybe).

Mine is a bit larger capacity, but weighs around 30kg (66lbs)... so I guess it depends what you mean by light. Definitely make a comfortable case to carry it around and deploy it in. Most UPSs aren't constructed with a view to ease of carrying!

[Rick Sutton]

Originally Posted by Martin Kantola

What I did was carry a small inverter, 150W or so would do maybe in your case, and then feed this with a switching power supply/battery charger. You know, one of those that can be used for running battery powered (12V) gear from 115/230 VAC.

By simply inserting a small motorcycle type sealed lead-acid battery between these I made an improvised UPS, very light weight. In my case I even used a true sine wave inverter for good quality juice. The battery only needs to be large enough to keep the recorders running long enough.

Mounted all of these in a small case. Worked.

Martin

Thanks for the idea. Trying to wrap my head around exactly what that would entail. Probably check out some electronic catalogs to see what parts are available.

Originally Posted by LX3

Do the maths, but I expect you'd easily get away with 1000kVA. (not sure I've seen an online any less than that, but maybe).

so I guess it depends what you mean by light.

1000kVA. Isn't that a million VA? Maybe my math is faulty or did you mean 1kVA?

As far as weight, I really don't want to move another 30+lbs piece of gear if I don't absolutely have to so I'm looking in the under 20 lb area.
Thanks to both of you for the info, much appreciated.

[Jimbo]

Here you go, Rick:
SM500RMNAFTA - Smart Pro Rack/Tower UPS - NAFTA assembled version of SMART500RT1U

<18 lbs and 1RU.

The only thing that concerns me is the Output Voltage Regulation:
LINE MODE: Sine wave line voltage 120V (-15% +13%), BATTERY MODE: PWM sine wave output within 10% of 120V


Is PWM sine mode good enough for backup power during recording? The next model up has a true sine wave output in Battery Mode, but weighs almost twice as much.

BigPurpleDog uses them with his rigs. Perhaps he'll chime in...

[Martin Kantola]

Originally Posted by Rick Sutton

Thanks for the idea. Trying to wrap my head around exactly what that would entail. Probably check out some electronic catalogs to see what parts are available.

Think Jimbo found a perfect candidate already, but what I used might be useful if you are looking for clean power. A UPS can give very dirty power that bleeds noise through to your audio. You can also freely scale weight/capacity, especially 12V batteries come in all sizes. It is a crude UPS built from parts, and probably not cheaper than buying a dedicated unit.



Martin

[LX3]

Originally Posted by Rick Sutton

Thanks for the idea. Trying to wrap my head around exactly what that would entail. Probably check out some electronic catalogs to see what parts are available.


1000kVA. Isn't that a million VA? Maybe my math is faulty or did you mean 1kVA?

Whoops, yes, sorry. 1kVa. or 1000VA.

I don't think you'd be able to move a 1000kVA UPS with anything less than an industrial crane

If you want to get under 20lb I think you've got to look at line-interactive systems, and a small one at that. Not as reassuring as online, but I used a cheap APC UPS for a couple of years without too many problems (at least until it blew up).