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Cheap (AXT) Bench Power Supply 30 Amps!

last photo ←

This is my second PSU (Power supply Unit) as my prievieous one mysteriously burnt out (!)
I managed to purchace a new Computer PSU to convert, this one has a nice jucy 5V at 30A! and 12V at 21A!
I also managed to get a 30A panel Ammeter Yay!
Any comments welcome!
(Plz dun be too harsh lol)
Enjoy!

20 comments

Apr 14, 2011. 11:18 PMQuackoman says:

the ammeter you found looks good but if the max out is 30A you should have gotten an ammeter that can read just above btw it looks very neat.

Jun 17, 2010. 4:13 AMAngelLaHash says:

Personaly i just got a light switch and hooked a ATX connection (24pin i think) to one end and 5v/12v on the other.. that way i figured i could use any ATX PSU i wanted. I love the Amp meter tho .. maybe write what connector is what on the case.

Dec 20, 2009. 1:23 PMkiiko says:

hehe cool, your tabel looks like mine ^^. lods of fun stuff

Dec 20, 2009. 6:15 PMmuttyfutty (author) says:

Haha!
I really need to tidy that mess up!
can't find my little snipper things...

Oct 16, 2009. 8:29 PMpjharro says:

Would you please be able to briefly explain your wiring? What do the lights do?

Thanks

Oct 21, 2009. 3:36 AMmuttyfutty (author) says:

Sorry for the late reply, I've been very buisy!
The Orange light is the mains on light
The large toggleswitch is the mains on/off
The red light is the system O.k indicator, it is connected to the 12V rail
And the small toggleswitch is the system on/off, it connects the Grey,green wires which have to be connected in order for the PSU to work.
Hope I helped!
Mike

Sep 29, 2009. 9:18 PMbumsugger says:

Looks good,any chance of a ctt. diagram,plus a few "build" details??

Sep 30, 2009. 1:21 AMmuttyfutty (author) says:

well, Ctt diagram, hmmmm. all I did is just erm... hang on...

Sep 28, 2009. 7:39 AMbikedude880 says:

*cough* ATX *cough*

Sep 29, 2009. 1:14 AMmuttyfutty (author) says:

O.o ???

Sep 26, 2009. 10:02 PMmikedoth says:

Don't most home circuits only supply 15 amps?

Sep 28, 2009. 9:52 AMcpotoso says:

At 120V, a good power supply has a pretty good energy efficiency. Power = Voltage * Current (roughly speaking, there are some refinements needed for AC). Hence, 5V * 30A = 150 W, only ca. 1.3 A at 120 V, say a bit more because of inefficiency, still leaves things well-below the 15 A...

Sep 27, 2009. 5:36 AMjhines0042 says:

Yes, 15 amps at 120 volts AC in the US anyway. Sometimes you will find 20 amp wall service, the outlet has a separate little tab cut into it to indicate.

For the rest of the world, check this page on wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mains_power_around_the_world

The thing is that the OUTPUT of the Power supply is not at 120 volts. So the amperage can be boosted as the voltage is dropped.

Sep 28, 2009. 7:43 PMmikedoth says:

"So the amperage can be boosted as the voltage is dropped." How in the world is this possible?

Sep 29, 2009. 3:43 PMjhines0042 says:

This link has a great explanation of this exact principle.

http://www.allaboutcircuits.com/vol_2/chpt_9/2.html

Basically if you cut the voltage in half with a transformer you necessarily increase the amperage by a factor of 2. A mathematician would say they are dependent variables.

Sep 28, 2009. 1:20 AMmuttyfutty (author) says:

Sorry, lol I ment 'no' as in you didn't understand, not that home circuits dont provide 15A (actually its 13A for 240V and 15A for 120V (I think!)) but you can get larger ampage ones for cookers, ovens etc...

Sep 28, 2009. 3:54 AMjhines0042 says:

I knew what you meant, I was simply trying to help clarify your point. Nice instructable, btw. I will probably make one of these myself at some point.

Sep 28, 2009. 4:41 AMmuttyfutty (author) says:

Oh, Ok sorry lol thanks,I wish I documented the making so I could make a I'ble oh well, I'm currently working on a flyback driver, hmm...