Steven Posted August 29, 2010 Share Posted August 29, 2010 I'm using 6 Rainbow Floods this year, and needed a power supply for the DC card. So I found this Chinese 75W laptop power supply at Fry's Electronics:Advantages:Small size fits into my enclosure (shown below);It's efficient, so it runs coolDisadvantages:Not quite powerful enough to light all 6 Rainbow Floods at 100% (but does fine at 80%);More expensive than a cheap PC power supply.Here's a picture of the CMB-16D and the power supply installed in a weather-proof Chinese cracker box. The lid fits tightly and I glued 1-inch legs and drilled drainage holes, just in case. Attached files Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dale J Posted September 8, 2010 Share Posted September 8, 2010 nice lookin package all fits snug in the one box, great job Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RickWIlliams Posted September 17, 2010 Share Posted September 17, 2010 Steven, Nice setup. I noticed you have four leads going to the board, I'm guessing you split the pair and spliced in the two pair then heat shrunk?This is good information to know for the rainbow floods. I have some 90W HP adapters at work that would fit this design, but they are about twice the size.Good information, Thanks, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steven Posted September 17, 2010 Author Share Posted September 17, 2010 RickWIlliams wrote: I'm guessing you split the pair and spliced in the two pair then heat shrunk?That is correct. The power supply had a socket on the end of the cord and included several adapters for various styles of laptop power connectors, so I just cut that off and found a 2-conductor cable, which I spliced and covered.I was thinking that I could squeeze a little more power from this supply by removing the 5-volt regulator on the DC board and powering its logic directly from the USB socket in the power supply, but that seems like more trouble than it is worth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ponddude Posted September 17, 2010 Share Posted September 17, 2010 Looks good Steven!! I can't wait to see how everyone uses their Floods and Spots and Blizzard tubes this year. Very exciting to a nut like me! What is the USB port for on the power supply? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steven Posted September 17, 2010 Author Share Posted September 17, 2010 Ponddude wrote: What is the USB port for on the power supply?It's 5-volt USB power. In this power supply's intended use, the cord powers the laptop, and the USB port charges a mobile phone. (Most mobile phones sold today are charged with a 5-volt USB port.)The assumption is that you are using this power supply on the road, and your laptop has a limited number of USB ports, which are being used for things like a mouse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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