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colin-f asked

Power Factor Limitations for sound system

Hi - I'm about to purchase a Pheonix Smart 1600VA to incorporate into a solar system that will power a fairly large sound system. After measuring the sound system's consumption with a meter I can see that it pulls around 300W at a power factor of 0.65, sometimes going as low as 0.6. I know that there are going to be more complexities and peaks in those figures so I'm happy to oversize the inverter to be a 1600VA Pheonix, as additionally we will be using 48V lithium batteries.

Are there any considerations to take into account for a system with a bad power factor? I recognise that consumption will be close to 500VA nominal but will this power factor have adverse effects on the inverter itself? Is there anything I can do to mitigate these effects?


Thankyou

Phoenix Inverter
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kevgermany avatar image kevgermany ♦♦ commented ·

Not sure about power factor.

Couple of other things to consider.

Start up current. Sound systems have big capacitors, you may need a soft start between the inverter and sound system.

Noise. The AC is generated as many high frequency pulses. This may need to be filtered.

Best discuss with someone knowledgeable at the dealer.

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Alexandra avatar image
Alexandra answered ·

@Colin F

You have already got it covered. Oversizing is the key.

Be aware of the fact that the batteries will see the consumption so also consider that when calculating capacity.

So on the 500va consumption also assume an 80% efficiency on top. So about 625va draw from battery for the load.

Also there may be some interaction with the sound system (the harmonics that can change the sound of the system). So your wiring has to be on point.

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