Hi! Would appreciate some help.
Was thinking of using a car radio at home. Specs read current consumption 1.5A (at .5W). The fuse is 5A.
DC power supply should be at least 1.5A but can I go up to 4A without harming the radio? Not sure if I would gain any improvement in sound.
Thanks!
Please cc: my email address if possible.
Louis snipped-for-privacy@msn.com
lou wrote in news:f0f5a9ee-1f0a-41b5-ab62- snipped-for-privacy@y5g2000hsf.googlegroups.com:
If it can connect on a car battery it's safe on as many amps as the supply can give, it's the volts and the load that determine how many amps are drawn. The fuse just protects against unexpected heavy load. A 4A supply is good, and might give a slight improvement in sound over a lower current supply, because if you listen to a lot of strong bass, the reservoir capacitors will be refilled more quickly if the supply isn't limited to a low current. The difference will be small, but noticeable because its unlikely that the spec was written to take account of all possible forms of music and audio mixing.
Yes. Match the voltage, and use a matching or higher amperage.
Voltage is the pressure that makes current flow.
A 12-volt 10-amp power supply delivers 12 volts (pressure) and CAN deliver UP TO 10 amps. When it is turned on with nothing connected, it is delivering 12 volts, 0 amps.
and if the power supply cannot supply enough current you run the risk of it blowing a fuse or worse at high volume because the louder you play the radio the more current it requires to supply the power needed to drive the speaker.
Mike
"In view of such harmony in the cosmos which I, with my limited human mind, am able to recognize, there are yet people who say there is no God. But what really makes me angry is that they quote me for the support of such views." Albert Einstein (theoretical Physicist)
You are saying correctly about Voltage as a pressure, however there are week and strong Voltages, Voltage without sufficient current is weak voltage(weak pwr supply). If you supplied 12V with higher Amps, will this drive your stereo to output more powerful sound? No, way. It depends on the Load of your stereo. Your Stereo load dictates the power consumption. If Mr. Load wants 5 hamburgers, then give will want to take as much as 5 hamburgers as you can supplied, if you gave him 10, Mr. load will only take 5 Maximum.
Jack.
You are saying correctly about Voltage as a pressure, however there are weak and strong Voltages, Voltage without sufficient current is weak voltage(weak pwr supply). If you supplied 12V with higher Amps, will this drive your stereo to output more powerful sound? No, way. It depends on the Load of your stereo. Your Stereo load dictates the power consumption. If Mr. Load wants 5 hamburgers, then he will want to take as much as 5 hamburgers as you can supplied, if you gave him 10, he will only take 5 Max.
Jack.
Nonsense. The volt is a unit defined by international standard. It's a measurement of potential difference, which is independent of current capacity.
Nobody said that higher than nominal capacity would "drive your stereo to out more powerful sound". The OP was concerned that a PSU of the correct voltage but higher current capacity (larger bore pipes or tap, in the hydraulic analogy) would potentially damage his stereo.
lostgallifreyan was saying that for an audio application heavy in bass it makes sense to have spare current delivery capacity above the nominal 1.5A consumption. In a car this is available in a battery of typically 45A or 60A capacity. The OP's suggested 4A PSU, with a capacity below the rated fuse value of 5A, would be OK. Car stereos seldom contain large reservoir capacitors because they are connected to large batteries.
If Mr. Load eats 3 hamburgers per day average but you know that he eats 2 on Monday and 4 on Tuesday, it makes sense to be able to give him 4 rather than leaving him hungry.
"Cornelius J Rat"
Exactly what I meant but you were not openminded to perceive it. Read it again and experiment with your own eyes and try to crasp.
I tried to tell people indirectly that Higher Current will not force your output to go higher if your audio driver was not designed with such capacity. Load can change due to volume increasing by the user's adjustment, but where are you going with your argument? You sounded like a new student just got off your school.
Jack.
I like my eyes as they are, no need to experiment with them. If by "openminded" you mean I will accept that there are weak volts and strong volts; no, I am not.
Nobody said "higher current will force your output to go higher". I believe you are opposing a proposition that nobody put forward.
I am using your hamburger analogy to say that peak demand and average demand are different, and you should cater for peak. Alternatively, consider this quote from
"Music Power "The music power of an amp is real, and is generally higher than the continuous power. It is measured by using a tone-burst generator, and is the peak power than an amp can supply for (typically) about 10ms. This is quite reasonable, but not terribly useful when it is examined carefully. Since music is very dynamic, with the peak amplitude exceeding the average by 10 to 20dB (depending on the type of music), an amplifier is never called upon to provide full power all the time (at least if clipping is avoided, which should be all the time). "If the power supply is regulated or has considerable excess power capacity, the continuous and music power ratings will be almost identical. The difference was (at one time) measured, and was called 'dynamic headroom'. Few amps have a dynamic headroom of better than 1 or 2dB, and the greater the headroom, usually the cheaper the power supply for the rated power."
Maybe that's because in physics class 42 years ago I was taught the value of using precise language. Or maybe I'm just pedantic :). Nick
ElectronDepot website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.