I want to use a computer PSU as a temporary indoor power supply for a car amp / subwoofer.
It seems pretty well ironed out how the technology should be selected. The power supply specifically needs to have a single huge 12v rail, that can be accessed by collecting all +12v yellow wires and all black grounds into two common + / - connections.
Fortunately it appears this single rail design has now become a commonplace specification for computer power supplies. For example NewEgg currently says there are over 400 PSU's with a single 12v rail.
However the next question is how closely or loosely the PSU wattage rating should match the car amplifier wattage. I know if the instantaneous power draw is too high in a single spike, the PSU will treat it as a short circuit, crowbar itself, and shut down / reset. Oversizing the PSU may be necessary to deal with sudden high power speaker thumps that are within the normal operating limits of the amplifier..
Also a PSU is normally designed to supply more than just +12v, and +5v takes up a large amount of the PSU's wattage capacity. If the PSU wattage rating is the sum total of those voltage values, then a 500 watt PSU will be insufficient for a 500 watt car amplifier, and it may need to be perhaps 50% larger or 750 watts..
Does anyone know about these details?
(I would prefer to just use the PSU directly with a car amplifier, without having to fool with 0.5F capacitors, capacitor charge limiting, and bleeder resistors.)
It seems pretty well ironed out how the technology should be selected. The power supply specifically needs to have a single huge 12v rail, that can be accessed by collecting all +12v yellow wires and all black grounds into two common + / - connections.
Fortunately it appears this single rail design has now become a commonplace specification for computer power supplies. For example NewEgg currently says there are over 400 PSU's with a single 12v rail.
However the next question is how closely or loosely the PSU wattage rating should match the car amplifier wattage. I know if the instantaneous power draw is too high in a single spike, the PSU will treat it as a short circuit, crowbar itself, and shut down / reset. Oversizing the PSU may be necessary to deal with sudden high power speaker thumps that are within the normal operating limits of the amplifier..
Also a PSU is normally designed to supply more than just +12v, and +5v takes up a large amount of the PSU's wattage capacity. If the PSU wattage rating is the sum total of those voltage values, then a 500 watt PSU will be insufficient for a 500 watt car amplifier, and it may need to be perhaps 50% larger or 750 watts..
Does anyone know about these details?
(I would prefer to just use the PSU directly with a car amplifier, without having to fool with 0.5F capacitors, capacitor charge limiting, and bleeder resistors.)