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a1oyesterday at 11:31 PM4 repliesview on HN

> A DC power supply capable of providing 12V

Hey, I just remembered my school used to have ages ago some cool power supplies (I think from Agilent?) that were very idiot proof, they had current limit with a dial that I think didn’t went over 1A or perhaps even less, and they would instantly disarm on short circuit (and indicate it with a led), and also the voltage dial I think wouldn’t go over 25V. I remember it was very big and heavy, but it survived countless students that used the lab daily.

Nowadays, is there any power supply available that is that resistant or is the recommended approach to get an used old one? Does anyone have a power supply at home that is also used by kids with a brand/model they would recommend? Thanks!


Replies

duskwuffyesterday at 11:37 PM

What you're describing is a lab power supply. (The "instantly disarm on short circuit" is overcurrent protection, which is a standard feature.) The name brands like Keysight or Rigol are kind of expensive, but there are a lot of no-name models on Amazon which will do the job well enough.

show 2 replies
bombcaryesterday at 11:34 PM

Those were called something like desktop power supplies.

https://www.mouser.com/c/power/power-supplies/power-supplies...

AT $5k it better make me breakfast, too.

denysvitalitoday at 12:45 AM

Got this for ~50$ a while ago. It works perfectly for this exact setup (Tesla MCU on a bench), tested it, and used it for a lot of other projects.

https://a.aliexpress.com/_EvT5Kog

virtue3yesterday at 11:35 PM

They have variable dc power supplies on amazon on the cheap.

If you want that sort of reliability it will probably go towards 100$.