[Kevin OBrien]

While battery backups might not be the first thing that come to mind when you think storage, having a reliable UPS at the heart of any testing platform is a must.

StorageReview Enterprise Testing Environment: Eaton 5PX UPS Review

[Mastaba]

Kevin OBrien, on 30 January 2012 - 09:19 PM, said:

While battery backups might not be the first thing that come to mind when you think storage, having a reliable UPS at the heart of any testing platform is a must.

StorageReview Enterprise Testing Environment: Eaton 5PX UPS Review

How is the noise level ?

I know that the fans works at full speed when battery operation (charging/discharging) and perhaps when the load is high, but how is it in normal operation ?

[Kevin OBrien]

During normal operation I believe the fans are off... quietest part of the lab. I'll double check though since if they are running they are completely silent.

[Mastaba]

Have you checked ? I'm still hesitating (there's a 10% rebate on a nearby shop for a few day left on the eaton stuff)
I'll need one but i don't want it to ruin all the effort i put into building quiet desktop & servers...

Here i read:

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It's relatively loud in my opinion, even during normal operation. I still have the 5PX servicing a handful of NAS devices in a small server closer and you can't hear it through the door, but it's not something you'll want nearby if you're near it. I'd equate the sound to a mid-range PC from a couple of years back.

Here i also found some pieces of information :

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When the 5PX switches over to battery power there is also a very distinct increase in fan noise as it spools up to keep the unit cool. In a normal situation this noise would be annoying, however in all fairness this noise is not a constant issue with the product and only produces itself during power loss, at which time most users would be more concerned with saving data than fan noise.

Here i read:

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Cons: Fans tend to get very loud (not a problem in a data center)

and

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When powering up the unit the first thing you notice is the noise. Like an angry choir, the fans roar at high RPMs then revs down a bit while the UPS performs a full system self-test.

But that's with the fans at full speed.


I also asked Eaton and Brian (thanks to him) answered me :

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The noise level drops to 40dB when the fan is on low speed. dB levels are always funny. You can have a low dB but the fan can still be completely annoying because of the frequency it puts out. This fan noise is much more of a white noise vs. a high pitch fan.

Typcially, this UPS is not something you would have under your desk. With that said I have had a 5PX1500RT under my desk and it uses the same fan as the 2200. You can definitely tell a difference when the UPS is on vs. off with the low fan speed but for me it was something I got use to.

This post has been edited by Mastaba: 05 April 2013 - 08:11 AM

[Kevin OBrien]

Just confirmed and with a small load and on AC power the fan does operate at a low speed.

[Mastaba]

By low speed you mean it's really quiet ?
Does the fan speed up with the load ?

[Kevin OBrien]

Very quiet. It has more of a drone than a super quiet 80mm desktop PC fan and does ramp up when under load on battery power. I haven't noticed much of a speed pitch change with low or high AC load though.

[Mastaba]

So i finally bought it.

It's very noisy when powered on the first time, then when the batteries are fully charged the fans lower their speed a little, but they are still too noisy for me.
Way too noisy, and i won't be able to let it run this way (it's sitting near my desktop with my computers, built only with quiet parts).

I saw the fans inside were common 12V 80*25mm, so i'm wondering if there is a way to replace them for quieter ones without harming the UPS ?
I don't know the cooling needs of this UPS, but as i already have a 100% fanless APC SMT750I line interactive i think it could be possible.
Also the output air is still pretty cold.

On the other hand i really don't want to destroy anything by modding the inside or by making it overheat in case of insufficient cooling/higher load...

What can i do ?

[Kevin OBrien]

While you could probably get away with swapping out the fans and making it quieter, you are most definitely going to void the warranty and probably have a lower-quality/less-reliable fan in its place. That said depending on load a quieter aftermarket fan could probably do the trick, although I don't know for certain what type of power connection the fans use.