power supplies

power supply

Things that you should know about power supplies!

Power supplies are generally used to power computers to enable them to operate properly. The main function of a power supply is to convert A.C (alternating voltage) into D.C (continuous voltage). There are multiple things that people often don’t know about power supplies including efficiency, rails and protections.

There are two power supply designs

There are two types of power supplies – linear and switching mode. Linear power supplies work by retrieving voltage from the power grid and lowering it’s value via a transformer. This lower voltage is then rectified by a set of decodes, which converts the A.C into pulsating voltage, which is then filtered by an electrolytic capacitor. The D.C is the obtained after the capacitor oscillates. When a higher quantity of power is required, however, the best choice is a switching mode power supply. The input voltage in these power supplies is increased before going into the transformer. With this input voltage increased, the transformer and capacitors can be small.

A good power supply can improve your PC

A good quality power supply can actually improve the durability of the equipment and even reduce your electricity bill. If you use a computer regularly and for longer periods of time, this saving can be very noticeable. It pays off to buy a power supply with a higher efficiency even if the initial cost is higher than one with a lower efficiency. Another advantage is that less heat is priced by a power supply with a high efficiency – this prevents any heat damage to your equipment and keeps it functioning well, as computers tend to work better at cooler temperatures.

It is always advisable to protect your power supply

There are multiple different types of protection that should be applied to your power supplies. Firstly, short circuit protection will turn off the power supply if any output is shorted. Under voltage protection and over voltage protection shutter the power supply down if the voltage falls or rises below or above the trigger value. Under voltage protection is optional, but over voltage protection is a requirement. Other protections include over current protection which prevents the power supply down if the rail that is being monitored is pulling more than the triggering current, and over power protection, which prevents the rail from pulling too much power. Lastly, over temperature protection shuts down the power supply if the internal temperature reaches trigger value.

Power supplies play a vital role in cooling your equipment

Power supplies not only provide power for your computer, but also cool it down. It removes hot air from the case by using a fan. Usually, it is possible to control or maintain the speed of the fan. The only downside to this is that they can be quite noisy, though most power supplies include a circuit that internally controls the speed of the fan according to the temperature. So, if the power supply is cool, noise is kept to a minimum.

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