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Registered Member #662
Joined: Sat Apr 21 2007, 06:58PM
Location:
Posts: 32
I'm going to turn a computer ATX power supply into a cheapo bench supply; mainly for powering radios. Does anyone think that the one below is ok? or is it cheap and will the ic's melt after 15 minutes of use?
Registered Member #477
Joined: Tue Jun 20 2006, 11:51PM
Location: Seattle, WA
Posts: 546
You may find that if you don't need all the different voltages, you have to find some way to use them anyway. I have a couple of old stand-up arcade video game machines at home, and recently the power supplies started to die. I bought some cheap-o ATX supplies and found that they wouldn't even stay on unless something was using at least *some* juice on all the different outputs. The machines only needed +/- 5V and +/- 12V. So I stuck a few big wirewound resistors across the 3.3V outputs to burn off some of that and wheee!! The thing actually worked.
EDIT: BTW, what kind of radios are you powering? Switchers are notoriously noisy. If you plan on powering shortwave (e.g., ham HF) gear with such a supply, you may be disappointed by how much hash noise you hear. This is one of the reasons most ham operators still swear but the old heavy linear supplies. AFAIK, switchers used for radio gear tend to be designed with special filters and shielding to prevent unwanted noise.
Registered Member #477
Joined: Tue Jun 20 2006, 11:51PM
Location: Seattle, WA
Posts: 546
brockolicious wrote ...
I probably wont be using a ham radio, just cb and some other random frequency radios that I have collected. Just to talk with my friends.
Maybe I should use use a monster transformer from an old Marantz stereo that I have and a 50 amp bridge with some mean caps?
Well, shucks, give it a shot, but I would not be surprised to find that your CB picks up a lot of switching noise. Even switchers designed for radio communications service are sometimes ratted out for being too noisy in customer reviews (see eHam.net, for example). I'd tend to think that you'd be happier with a linear supply for your CB, but 50A is probably 10x what you'd need!
Registered Member #505
Joined: Sun Nov 19 2006, 06:42PM
Location: Yorkshire!
Posts: 329
What are the voltage and current requirements for the load(s) that you want to drive?
If you want to modify the PC power supply then the simpler AT and ATX ones will probably be easier to modify as they will have less bits like PFC and secondary post-regulators to contend with. This is especially important depending on your experience with power electronics.
Registered Member #79
Joined: Thu Feb 09 2006, 11:35AM
Location: Arkansas
Posts: 673
I used to run my CB off an ATX PSU. It worked just fine (I was using the 12V wires, and didn't mod anything). It wouldn't hurt to try. I have no idea how big your radios are. I woudn't buy one to find out though.
Registered Member #662
Joined: Sat Apr 21 2007, 06:58PM
Location:
Posts: 32
I think I'll just stick with the old heavy iron laminate transformer for now. I already have everything wired up in a cool box, I just need to go pick up a giant smoothing capacitor tomorrow.
My radios--some of them strap onto your belt most of them are from old buses, and some of them moderately large.
I'll post a picture once it's finished. I want to show everyone how I ground everything... including the handle on the wooden box. :)
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Is this ok?
