TheGiantHogweed
Newly Enlightened
- Joined
- Sep 11, 2015
- Messages
- 35
I'm back to being a little stuck again. Many of these supplies on ebay and amazon are just unbranded or some random name that you search, then find nothing.
I think I have luckily got away with getting cheap LED strips. The CRI is pretty poor, but they have worked out excellent value. They use what was stated as 2835 LED chips and have 2 wide and 120 of them per metre. They claim to use 24 watts per metre and I use 3 lots of 2.5 metre strips. The output of the power supply gets split then goes to each strip. It supposedly will use around 180w if there is no voltage drop. The light output suggests this is probably about right.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07ZJ154DZ/
I started off with a power supply like this 12v 15a one but switched the lights off by a switch on the 12v output cable. This meant the supply was switched on permanently even when the lights were off (which was most of the time) This probably wasn't ideal. It then started making clicking noises and soon gave up after a year or so. I did rewire it and put the switch on the 230v input cable when I bought the replacement though. So it will now be totally off when the lights are off.
I then got the 30A version in the same link. This one has a fan which I didn't think would bother me, but it is tiny and doesn't seem to have a speed control depending on the temperature. The RPM rate must be insanely high and fixed. This was tolerable, but just a bit annoying. However, it has developed that at times when the fan isn't running, the supply emits a loud and high pitched noise (between 13 and 14khz). Many won't hear this but it is just unbearable for me. Guess it is my fault for going cheap, but I certainly can't trust these ones from amazon or ebay now despite seeming to have enough power in them.
Someone suggested mean well as being a good brand but I seemed to have difficulty in finding suitable supplies by them that are sold in the UK. I have however now found one:
https://www.powersuppliesonline.co....12-200-4w-12-16-7a-enclosed-power-supply.html
It looks incredibly similar to the dodgy ones I'd bought but is about 3 times the price. It does at least have a 3 years warranty and a well known brand name to it. And hopefully that will mean the parts inside will be reliable. I could do with a supply that has screw connectors like this one as the cables used have ring terminal connectors on them that I crimped into place.
If this supply is a good one, then let me know or suggest some others that similar and at around the same price point.
Thanks.
I think I have luckily got away with getting cheap LED strips. The CRI is pretty poor, but they have worked out excellent value. They use what was stated as 2835 LED chips and have 2 wide and 120 of them per metre. They claim to use 24 watts per metre and I use 3 lots of 2.5 metre strips. The output of the power supply gets split then goes to each strip. It supposedly will use around 180w if there is no voltage drop. The light output suggests this is probably about right.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07ZJ154DZ/
I started off with a power supply like this 12v 15a one but switched the lights off by a switch on the 12v output cable. This meant the supply was switched on permanently even when the lights were off (which was most of the time) This probably wasn't ideal. It then started making clicking noises and soon gave up after a year or so. I did rewire it and put the switch on the 230v input cable when I bought the replacement though. So it will now be totally off when the lights are off.
I then got the 30A version in the same link. This one has a fan which I didn't think would bother me, but it is tiny and doesn't seem to have a speed control depending on the temperature. The RPM rate must be insanely high and fixed. This was tolerable, but just a bit annoying. However, it has developed that at times when the fan isn't running, the supply emits a loud and high pitched noise (between 13 and 14khz). Many won't hear this but it is just unbearable for me. Guess it is my fault for going cheap, but I certainly can't trust these ones from amazon or ebay now despite seeming to have enough power in them.
Someone suggested mean well as being a good brand but I seemed to have difficulty in finding suitable supplies by them that are sold in the UK. I have however now found one:
https://www.powersuppliesonline.co....12-200-4w-12-16-7a-enclosed-power-supply.html
It looks incredibly similar to the dodgy ones I'd bought but is about 3 times the price. It does at least have a 3 years warranty and a well known brand name to it. And hopefully that will mean the parts inside will be reliable. I could do with a supply that has screw connectors like this one as the cables used have ring terminal connectors on them that I crimped into place.
If this supply is a good one, then let me know or suggest some others that similar and at around the same price point.
Thanks.