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DIY Power Supply for Home Server
 


 

DIY Power Supply for Home Server

 


I'm replacing my old power-hog home server with a new one based on the Intel D945GSEJT mainboard. This board is essentially a netbook platform that's been "desktopified". Among it's weirder points are that it uses the Mobile 945GSE chipset, SODIMM ram, 44PIN IDE, and that it runs off a single 12V supply. The reason I chose this board is that it consumes 13W in idle and 18W under full CPU and GPU load which is pretty much the lowest power consumption one can get with an Atom system (excluding some server-specific boards that were beyond my budget). Not wanting to use an ATX PSU I've decided to build a completely new power supply for the board. Not having to bother with all the voltages needed for ATX makes this a lot easier. I've decided to make a high-amp 12V supply, and a 5V supply capable of driving two HDDs.


DIY Power Supply for Home Server

I bought (actually it was a swap for some things I no longer had use for) a 100VA toroidal-core transformer to start with. This type of transformer is widely used by audio amp builders for example as they're more efficient and take up less space than plate transformers. After that we have the usual bridge rectifier and smoothing capacitor combo. For the latter I'm using a single 10000uF/63V electrolytic cap, a RIFA PEH169 rated for 78000 operating hours(cca. 9 years) @85C. Since we're nowhere near the rated voltage or the temperature given for the operating hours It should probably be safe to say that this cap will outlast everything else inside the case.

After rectification I get around 18Vs from this setup. For the DC regulation I decided to go with TI's power modules. The 6Amp PTN78020 for the 12v supply, and the 1.5Amp PTN78000 for the 5V one. The 5v supply is because I don't want to run more than 1 HDD off the board's internal dc-dc power supply so I'm running a couple of molex connectors from inside the PSU for 2 more. These power modules are pretty impressive. Essentially they're complete switching regulators on a piece of PCB. You just need to add some input and output capacitors (and optional ripple filtering) and you're done. They can reach up to 96% efficiency and come in 1.5/3/6 amp versions with various protections against frying themselves and whatever it is they are powering.
I went with the recommended implementation from the datasheet just adding the optional output ripple filter. Low ESR electrolytics and 1uF SMD ceramics. The thing to the left of the caps is a double ferrite bead.

The 1.5Amp module doesn't have the optional filter. At this point I was considering what to use for the output cap. That's why there isn't one in this picture. Ended up using the same as in the 6Amp module (470uF Low-ESR Samxon)

I've just replaced my old server with the new one powered by this PSU.

Board layouts & schematics can be downloaded below.


DIY Power Supply for Home Server




DIY Power Supply for Home Server

DIY Power Supply for Home Server





Accurate LC Meter Capacitance Inductance Meter with 16F628 and LCD
Volt Ampere Meter with 16F876 Microcontroller and LCD display
 
Accurate LC Meter

Build your own Accurate LC Meter (Capacitance Inductance Meter) and start making your own coils and inductors. This LC Meter allows to measure incredibly small inductances making it perfect tool for making all types of RF coils and inductors. LC Meter can measure inductances starting from 10nH - 1000nH, 1uH - 1000uH, 1mH - 100mH and capacitances from 0.1pF up to 900nF. The circuit includes an auto ranging as well as reset switch and produces very accurate and stable readings.
PIC Volt Ampere Meter

Volt Ampere Meter measures voltage of 0-70V or 0-500V with 100mV resolution and current consumption 0-10A or more with 10mA resolution. The meter is a perfect addition to any power supply, battery chargers and other electronic projects where voltage and current must be monitored. The meter uses PIC16F876A microcontroller with 16x2 backlighted LCD.

50MHz 60MHz Frequency Meter / Counter with 16F628 & LCD
1Hz - 2MHz XR2206 Function Generator
60MHz Frequency Meter / Counter

Frequency Meter / Counter measures frequency from 10Hz to 60MHz with 10Hz resolution. It is a very useful bench test equipment for testing and finding out the frequency of various devices with unknown frequency such as oscillators, radio receivers, transmitters, function generators, crystals, etc.
1Hz - 2MHz XR2206 Function Generator

1Hz - 2MHz XR2206 Function Generator produces high quality sine, square and triangle waveforms of high-stability and accuracy. The output waveforms can be both amplitude and frequency modulated. Output of 1Hz - 2MHz XR2206 Function Generator can be connected directly to 60MHz Counter for setting precise frequency output.

BA1404 HI-FI Stereo FM Transmitter
USB IO Board PIC18F2455 / PIC18F2550
BA1404 HI-FI Stereo FM Transmitter

Be "On Air" with your own radio station! BA1404 HI-FI Stereo FM Transmitter broadcasts high quality stereo signal in 88MHz - 108MHz FM band. It can be connected to any type of stereo audio source such as iPod, Computer, Laptop, CD Player, Walkman, Television, Satellite Receiver, Tape Deck or other stereo system to transmit stereo sound with excellent clarity throughout your home, office, yard or camp ground.
USB IO Board

USB IO Board is a tiny spectacular little development board / parallel port replacement featuring PIC18F2455/PIC18F2550 microcontroller. USB IO Board is compatible with Windows / Mac OSX / Linux computers. When attached to Windows IO board will show up as RS232 COM port. You can control 16 individual microcontroller I/O pins by sending simple serial commands. USB IO Board is self-powered by USB port and can provide up to 500mA for electronic projects. USB IO Board is breadboard compatible.

ESR Meter / Transistor Tester Kit
Audiophile Headphone Amplifier Kit
 
ESR Meter / Capacitance / Inductance / Transistor Tester Kit

ESR Meter kit is an amazing multimeter that measures ESR values, capacitance (100pF - 20,000uF), inductance, resistance (0.1 Ohm - 20 MOhm), tests many different types of transistors such as NPN, PNP, FETs, MOSFETs, Thyristors, SCRs, Triacs and many types of diodes. It also analyzes transistor's characteristics such as voltage and gain. It is an irreplaceable tool for troubleshooting and repairing electronic equipment by determining performance and health of electrolytic capacitors. Unlike other ESR Meters that only measure ESR value this one measures capacitor's ESR value as well as its capacitance all at the same time.
Audiophile Headphone Amplifier Kit

Audiophile headphone amplifier kit includes high quality audio grade components such as Burr Brown OPA2134 opamp, ALPS volume control potentiometer, Ti TLE2426 rail splitter, Ultra-Low ESR 220uF/25V Panasonic FM filtering capacitors, High quality WIMA input and decoupling capacitors and Vishay Dale resistors. 8-DIP machined IC socket allows to swap OPA2134 with many other dual opamp chips such as OPA2132, OPA2227, OPA2228, dual OPA132, OPA627, etc. Headphone amplifier is small enough to fit in Altoids tin box, and thanks to low power consumption may be supplied from a single 9V battery.
 

Arduino Prototype Kit
RF Remote Control 433MHz Four Channel
 
Arduino Prototype Kit

Arduino Prototype is a spectacular development board fully compatible with Arduino Pro. It's breadboard compatible so it can be plugged into a breadboard for quick prototyping, and it has VCC & GND power pins available on both sides of PCB. It's small, power efficient, yet customizable through onboard 2 x 7 perfboard that can be used for connecting various sensors and connectors. Arduino Prototype uses all standard through-hole components for easy construction, two of which are hidden underneath IC socket. Board features 28-PIN DIP IC socket, user replaceable ATmega328 microcontroller flashed with Arduino bootloader, 16MHz crystal resonator and a reset switch. It has 14 digital input/output pins (0-13) of which 6 can be used as PWM outputs and 6 analog inputs (A0-A5). Arduino sketches are uploaded through any USB-Serial adapter connected to 6-PIN ICSP female header. Board is supplied by 2-5V voltage and may be powered by a battery such as Lithium Ion cell, two AA cells, external power supply or USB power adapter.
200m 4-Channel 433MHz Wireless RF Remote Control

Having the ability to control various appliances inside or outside of your house wirelessly is a huge convenience, and can make your life much easier and fun. RF remote control provides long range of up to 200m / 650ft and can find many uses for controlling different devices, and it works even through the walls. You can control lights, fans, AC system, computer, printer, amplifier, robots, garage door, security systems, motor-driven curtains, motorized window blinds, door locks, sprinklers, motorized projection screens and anything else you can think of.
 

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