Apc G5?

[jvgillow]

Anybody got one of these units?

http://www.apc.com/resource/include/techspec_index.cfm?base_sku=G5BLK

It's clearly not as advanced as the H-series, since it doesn't have the voltage regulation feature, but I'm wondering what the deal is with all the LEDs on the front? The tech specs say it has DC trigger for 2 delayed outlets, and also has some power sequencing feature but doesn't say whether sequencing just applies to those outlets or to multiple banks.

 

[jvgillow]

APC G5 review

Revisiting my old thread since I finally bought one of these units. There are still no reviews that I could find on the web, so hopefully this will help some folks.

I was quite surprised at the amount of control offered for such an inexpensive device. The G5 has more settings than my H15 does.

Things the G5 does not have:

• DC trigger input
• Coax protection
• RJ11/RJ45 protection
• Automatic voltage regulation
• Battery backup

Features it does have:

• Front LCD display
• Measures incoming voltage, frequency, and load level
• 4 banks of sequentially delayed outlets (5 outlets total)
• Adjustable sequence delay (1-60 seconds per)
• 3 always-on outlets, one of which is front-mounted
• Fully adjustable LED brightness (including off)
• Mostly adjustable LCD brightness (cannot completely shut off)
• Adjustable low-voltage and high-voltage tolerance level
• Fault management
• Rack ears and feet included for either install type
• Equipment grounding post
• EMI/RFI filtering (50dB 150kHz-1MHz, 40dB 1MHz-30MHz)
• $450,000 connected equipment protection policy

The status button lets you view all active parameters for the unit. If you have a particular screen you want to show all the time, you just hold down status for 3 seconds and it will lock to that screen. I decided to change mine to show the amps/load percentage screen instead of the voltage/frequency screen. Those two screens have update intervals of 0.5 seconds. When playing music through my 2ch system I can see it go from ~1.0 amps up to ~2.3 amps but it moves around a bunch. With nothing attached to the unit, it reads 0.5-0.7 amp load.

The settings & up/down buttons let you adjust the brightness levels, delays for the 4 outlet banks, and voltage tolerances on the low-volt and high-volt side. Delay can be as short as 1 second (so the unit powers all 4 up within 4 seconds) or you can extend it out to 60 seconds per outlet (unit takes 2 minutes to start all outlets). During power-off it removes power in the reverse order, with the same amount of delay time. Unlike a unit with AVR, the G5 will simply shut off power to the connected equipment if it detects that those voltage tolerances have been violated.

On the front side along with the LCD, LEDs, and control buttons is the circuit breaker reset and an accessory outlet that is always-on.

On the back side are the 8 additional outlets. 2 are always-on, 1 is a regular switched outlet, and the other 5 are delayed outlets. 2 of the delayed outlets are for high-current devices. APC recommends connecting your equipment to the ground terminal if you need to eliminate any group loops. That is safer than using a cheater plug.

The user manual can be downloaded from APC here:
http://www.apcmedia.com/salestools/EALN-7Q2HCS_R2_EN.pdf

The unit can be locked from unauthorized operation by kids:

 

[jvgillow]

Additional photos

 

[jostenmeat]

Thanks for the review! Perhaps you can repost in the "write your own reviews" subforum (or maybe you did already, I didn't look yet).

Looks pretty nice. One day, I will be proud to say that I have no Monster in my racks, but that day is still not here!

Question: If I can program a certain powering up sequence with delays . . . must the reverse power off be exactly the opposite? IOW, can I have it power up a projector (mine's not connected to my power center, but I'm just curious), but leaving it on when powering down (so the fans can cool-down)? For that matter, there aren't identical delay lengths for the powering down cycle, right, or is there?

Thanks.

 

[jvgillow]

The power-off sequence has the same amount of delay as the start-up. So it will shut off bank 4 first, then wait # seconds, then shut off bank 3, and wait, then bank 2, etc. You can't change the order of them, it's fixed.

I noticed I had a typo above, with 60 sec delay it takes 4 minutes for everything to power on. Although I really can't imagine any load that needs that amount of delay, considering that the whole unit only handles 15 amps.

If my amps have been sitting without power for a while, when I start the unit up they have an inrush current high enough to make the "overload" LED blink for a very brief moment. I caught the LCD showing 12.1A around that same time, then it immediately settled down to 1A.

 

[jostenmeat]

Thanks much, Jeremy. Yeah, I was thinking how long I would set delays, and was guessing 5-6 secs for the Onkyo receiver, 3-4 secs for the NAD amp, and then very quick for anything else. I like to watch the voltmeter swing backwards violently when I turn on the first two, hehe.

You always seemed to be a pretty astute guy, so I have more questions for you! Do you think that there is any negative effects of cutting off the power, rather than using the on/off buttons? (Do certain units maintain their health better, somehow, when there is power still connected?). For instance, when I turn off my BDP, it goes through a shutdown process, saying "goodbye" or something like that. I also suppose that the flash memory for settings will be good for at least a couple of weeks on most of the items. Thanks.

 

[jvgillow]

Directly cutting the power is not such a good idea with the sort of intelligent devices out there now. BD players, DVRs, game systems, media streamers etc are basically computers and they don't always like being shut down improperly. Systems with internal hard drives should definitely be powered off properly.

Flash memory settings should last forever, but a lot of equipment use volatile RAM instead of flash. If the memory retention capacitors drain then the system will lose its settings.

For most people, triggered/switched outlets are great for things like amplifiers, subwoofers, bass shakers etc. I would keep the other gear on non-switched outlets unless they draw an excessive amount of standby current. A universal remote with activities will handle which unswitched devices need to be turned on/off.

 

[mtrycrafts]

.... IOW, can I have it power up a projector (mine's not connected to my power center, but I'm just curious), but leaving it on when powering down (so the fans can cool-down)? ....
Thanks.

I would just turn the Pj on and off separately to both save lamp time as it costs $$$ to replace lamps, and your concern of cooling. Also, maybe you want to play music before a film or after where you don't need the Pj but do the rest

Yes, this box looks cool, now to find a space in the cabinet The display is neat, more readouts to check and monitor when the itch hits

 

[mtrycrafts]

The power-off sequence has the same amount of delay as the start-up. So it will shut off bank 4 first, then wait # seconds, then shut off bank 3, and wait, then bank 2, etc. You can't change the order of them, it's fixed.

I noticed I had a typo above, with 60 sec delay it takes 4 minutes for everything to power on. Although I really can't imagine any load that needs that amount of delay, considering that the whole unit only handles 15 amps.

If my amps have been sitting without power for a while, when I start the unit up they have an inrush current high enough to make the "overload" LED blink for a very brief moment. I caught the LCD showing 12.1A around that same time, then it immediately settled down to 1A.

My power outlet is also on a switch so I don't have power wasted 24/7 when things are not used.
What happens when you have programmed this unit and you unplug it for a time? Does it need to be reprogrammed? Or, it has a ram/rom memory until things reprogrammed?

One more
Is the current readout instantaneous or can it be set to peak hold?

 

[jvgillow]

What happens when you have programmed this unit and you unplug it for a time? Does it need to be reprogrammed? Or, it has a ram/rom memory until things reprogrammed?

Not sure, I will have to try that out when my system will be down for a few days.

Is the current readout instantaneous or can it be set to peak hold?

Instantaneous only.

 

[tjmott16]

do you have problems turning the system on at all ? because i a having a problem

 

[jvgillow]

No problems here, I just hold the power button for 2 seconds and the unit turns on. Hold for another 2 seconds to power off.

 

[mtrycrafts]

No problems here, I just hold the power button for 2 seconds and the unit turns on. Hold for another 2 seconds to power off.

Did you get a chance to see if it loses memory if it is unplugged for a time then back on?

 

[jvgillow]

Did you get a chance to see if it loses memory if it is unplugged for a time then back on?

Not yet. I rearranged some equipment this weekend and moved my gear over to the H15. I unplugged the G5 this morning so I'll check it in a couple days and see if it retained the settings.

 

[jvgillow]

Not yet. I rearranged some equipment this weekend and moved my gear over to the H15. I unplugged the G5 this morning so I'll check it in a couple days and see if it retained the settings.

I plugged the G5 back in today and it appears to have retained all of my settings.

 

[mtrycrafts]

I plugged the G5 back in today and it appears to have retained all of my settings.

Oh, that is great, thanks. I guess I will get one of these then. More lights to look at, behind me.

 

[Upgraditis]

Does this unit clean up the signal considerably resulting in better sound or picture quality?

I'm looking at the Belkin PF30, which is comparable, but not as advanced as this APC. I want to know if the APC does a better job and cleaning up the signal, in which case I would spring for it.