Hi all, a quick power supply question.

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Hi all, a quick power supply question. If power supply is too off-topic, please let me know and I’ll ask elsewhere.

I’m currently powering 12V UCS1903 (bleh) strips with a 600w ATX power supply, which works fine.

I’m considering upgrading to 5V APA102s in the future, and I’d like to reuse my power supply if possible.

My power supply is rated for 47A on the 12V rail. If I were to purchase high-current buck converters like http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/311920228113, would I theoretically have 112A of 5V power at my disposal (47A / 5V * 12V) = 112A?

I know I’d lose ~10% of that through the buck converter, but is it feasible (and safe) to power 5V LED strips through 12V with buck converters in this way? Thanks!

P.S. It’s worth noting that I’m not looking to push the power supply to its limit, I’d likely have < 50A of current through the 5V LED strips all up.

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Hi, I use 12v to 5v buck converters all the time with no problems at all. I do use the waterproof ones though but the electronics are probably the same.

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Thanks Jeremy, I think my logic is sound but it’s good to know that I’m not doing something crazy :slight_smile:

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With all large LED projects, it helps greatly to locate the 5V converters distributed right behind the LEDs, so the 5V power wires are kept as short and direct to the LEDs as reasonably possible.

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Thanks for the tip Paul, that’s indeed the plan.