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Unread 11-27-2002, 08:56 AM   #39
Since87
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Join Date: Sep 2002
Location: Indiana
Posts: 834
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Quote:
Originally posted by MadDogMe
How difficult would it be to make your own 500~600watt PSU
I did say it would be "pretty easy" didn't I?

Let me explain what "pretty easy" means to me.

Working full time (about 50 hours a week) it would take me about six months to design and produce a 500 Watt PC PSU with substantially better regulation and efficiency than the "high end" stuff sold these days, provided:

1. I had access to all the test and production equipment I have at work.

2. I get a substantial amount of support (Maybe a month each) from a PCB layout engineer and a mechanical engineer.

3. I get about three months of technician time for prototyping and testing.

If I could sell 1,000 of them, the price might be as low as $300 each, unless I actually wanted to make a profit.

Throw in the fact, that doing this involves working with high voltages, and quite likely, a lot of smoked components along the way and you've got fairly good idea of what I meant by "pretty easy". It should be "pretty easy" for the PSU manufacturer's to do this. For even an extremely talented enthusiast working in his garage, this would be a monumental task.

There's no way you could pack a non-switching supply into the space available for a PC PSU.

Providing over-current protection isn't difficult. It's just more components. Doing it without sacrificing substantial efficiency is a bit tricky.
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