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The Best Power Strips for All Your Stupid Power Bricks

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iMONITOR

Silent Key
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Almost all of us have to deal with this necessary evil. However there have been some new designs that make it less painful and helps cut down the cable clutter. The article below gives some good examples and offers some suggestions.

The Best Power Strips for All Your Stupid Power Bricks
The Best Power Strips for All Your Stupid Power Bricks

That being said I recently made a change in my shack that made a big improvement! I recently consolidated my 12VDC power requirements to one source. I purchased a Astron power supply. I chose the Astron 12A linear power supply w/switchable volt and amp meters (one meter that can display Volts or Amps with a flip of a switch), 12A ICS 9A continuous, 4-1/2x8x9in. It has no noisy fan, just a nice big heat sink on the back. It's not too big or heavy and provides enough current to maintain power requirements to probably up to 10 typical scanners. Smaller and larger models available. Some with one, two, or no meters at all to lower cost. Be sure to choose a 'liner' design over a 'switching' one. Switching power supplies generate RF noise/interference. If you sell off all your wall-warts you can probably raise enough cash to pay for it, with it's low price of just over a hundred bucks. I bought mine at GigaParts or $104.

Astron RS-12M

1551458048186.png
 

AK9R

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Be sure to choose a 'liner' design over a 'switching' one. Switching power supplies generate RF noise/interference.
I think you are referring to linear powers supplies as opposed to switch-mode power supplies.

The RF noise/interference claims with switch-mode power supplies is old news leftover from the early days of SMPS's. A modern, properly designed switch-mode power supply will not generate noticeable RF/interference.

I have three switch-mode power supplies that I use with my radios, an Icom PS-125 and two Astron SS-30s. None of them cause RF or interference problems in my experience.
 

iMONITOR

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That's entirely possible. I wasn't aware, only going my what I've read a few years ago. Thanks for the update!
 

kk4bhs

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12 amps is not alot of power. I have one radio it can use 25 amps by itself to transmit. But yes linear are better than switching.
 

DJ11DLN

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12 amps is not alot of power. I have one radio it can use 25 amps by itself to transmit. But yes linear are better than switching.
From the context it appears that he's just using it to power scanners and 12A continuous would indeed power several of them. A transceiver would of course have a higher power requirement.
 

DJ11DLN

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Correct. I'm running the following with a total draw of just over 1 AMP.
(1) BCT15X
(2) BCD996P2
(1) BCD536HP
That power supply is overkill for the load those scanners present. Which is not a bad thing at all; you have excess capacity. You can add more radios!(y)
 

Project25_MASTR

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That's entirely possible. I wasn't aware, only going my what I've read a few years ago. Thanks for the update!

Most the higher end repeaters utilize switch-mode power supplies...not linear. Motorola MTR2000, MTR3000, SLR5700, SLR8000, Quantar and GTR8000 are such examples of repeaters going back 20 years. Now, those power supplies did have reliability issues in some cases (Quantar and MTR2000/3000) but RF wise they don't create noise.
 

a417

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That power supply is overkill for the load those scanners present. Which is not a bad thing at all; you have excess capacity. You can add more radios!(y)
by an order of magnitude, GET THIS MAN MORE RECIEVERS!
 

a417

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Plus pretty well all modern computers use switch mode power supplies...
and some are noisier than hell, but don't usually have sensitive RX components placed either inline or in close proximity. I have a 1000w Antec that was converted to a desktop 3.3/5/12v DC power supply that just hashes out huge sections of the spectrum on the SDR unless I'm using quality shielded & grounded coax for the feed & a mounted antenna. HT on a stubby near it for ferreting out noise? Fuggedaboutit. If I get several feet away its slightly better than full quieting, but it's still bad. Granted YMMV, but when a device is built for a purpose, and then used off label, it's hit or miss what your results will be.
 

Driverj30t9

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I'm using an MFJ switching power supply and haven't noticed any noise from it. Have bands that are dead quiet, somtimes, but the rest of the time it's due to QRM and QRN. How are you going to hook up all those scanners to the Astron PSU then?
 

iMONITOR

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I'm using an MFJ switching power supply and haven't noticed any noise from it. Have bands that are dead quiet, somtimes, but the rest of the time it's due to QRM and QRN. How are you going to hook up all those scanners to the Astron PSU then?

Right now I just have four connected in parallel fused power cords to the back banana binding post on the power supply, but I'm thinking about something like this:

73501
 

Driverj30t9

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Had those in mind too, look like they could be nifty and convenient. Good the know how to do it the way you have them now though. Hmm that didn't really post too well.
 
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