Hi, I’m building a 3d printer and was wondering about these power supplies. some people say they fry after a week, but then i see them in all the Reprap kits and most home builds. So i just want to find out what you guys think about them.
I use this type of power supply myself.
What I have had as far as bad experiences with them have been very few. I have had them last years in constant duty cycle (ON always). What I can suggest is buy the one that’s about $30 on average. they seem to last quite well.
Meanwell clones? They’re relatively decent. As always, get them with a bit of headroom and they’ll likely last forever.
@Chris_Bigpaws_Chambe ok thanks for the info
@Thomas_Sanladerer i did not realise it was a clone. if a have any trouble with this one i might go and get a legit one.
thanks for yout help!
@Mark_Rehorst hmm interesting, have you every tried the non clones ?
I plan on running proper MeanWell’s in my build (still pending)
They weren’t much more expensive (~$40) than the knock-offs
The biggest thing that you get when you buy MeanWells is quality
Here are some pics of mine (true MW vs. Knock-off)
https://plus.google.com/113675942849856761371/posts/HDjcWrruys3
With the MeanWells, you get proper mains isolation and protection
(they didn’t skimp there), proper thermal management with temperature sensing–in the knock-offs, the “auto fan control” just means the fan is permanently on, and great manufacturing quality.
The knock-offs have a lot of left-over flux residue from the manufacturing process, and I had to take them apart to re-solder some components and hot-glue some stuff down.
I guess the key to using knock-off power supplies is to give yourself a lot of headroom, but with MeanWells, you don’t have to worry that much
Yes, I agree that Meanwell is a safe brand to consider and good quality reputation. My experience comes mostly from the couple of years selling LED lightings, used together with Meanwell power supplies.
If your on a budget and you want an awesome quality power supply for $10, then look for a “hot swapable” server power supply. There are millions of them in overstock all over the USA. They provide quality that is equal to , or superior, to the meanwell you want to buy and they are readily available on ebay or amazon.
Without knowing what brand it is, it’s hard to say. I use Swan and Smun brands from these guys - I have bought about 50 so far and not a single problem. They produce reliable, clean power: http://www.aliexpress.com/store/613696
All I can say is plan to replace the fan. The PSU itself has worked for me without complaint for about six months of heavy use, but the original fan started making awful noises within the first month of use.
I replaced it with a dirt cheap generic fan from Newegg or Amazon and it has worked without issue since.
Or don’t.
I love these rules… Don’t you think it has a lot to do with the quality of manufacture?
Just as I never replaced the fan in my computer PSUs, I’ve never seen the need to replace one of these for CNC or 3D printers. The machines make more noise than a 3" fan.
tbh @Mark_Rehorst I think if you have ‘burned through a couple’ then you have the wrong rating, a poor knockoff or generally doing something wrong with it. We have used over 90 of them in repraps running over the last 2 years without problems
I’ve been using this style and have yet to burn one out. One has a noisy fan which I should replace soon. If anything, make sure you get one with the plastic piece that covers the terminal strip. Power supplies and RepRap electronics should be inside a protective vented enclosure.
yeah，you’re right，maybe you should change another power，it will be better and won’t be like this