Dell DA-2 Power Brick Help

PSUs: The source of DC power for all components in the PC & often a big noise source.

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casspd
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Dell DA-2 Power Brick Help

Post by casspd » Wed Oct 31, 2007 6:47 pm

I have two different DA-2 power bricks (P/N Y2515 and P/N MK394). Both supplies light green when plugged into the PW-200-V, but the light will go out as soon as I turn on the system power.

Specs:
Biostar TF7025-M2
Athlon 64 X2 3600+ Brisbane
PW-200V DC-DC converter
Dell DA-2 AC-DC converter

Things I have tried:
- CPU/Motherboard will power on, but won't post if I disconnect the P4 power connector from the PW-200V
- I have connected a fan to the P4 connector and that will turn on with the system
- CPU/Motherboard works when connected to a normal ATX power supply
- The DA-2/PW-200V combo powers an older Nforce 2 IGP/Athlon XP system I have without a problem

It seems to me my system may draw too much current for the DA-2 at startup. Has anyone had this problem before? Thanks.

Ashex
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Post by Ashex » Wed Oct 31, 2007 9:20 pm

Try powering on the power supply without anything attached.

So take it out of the case completely, and short the green wire in the P1 (main power cord for mobo) to any black wire on that connector.

casspd
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Post by casspd » Thu Nov 01, 2007 4:24 pm

I shorted the green wire to ground and the green light on the DA-2 stays lit. The DA-2 looks like it is working properly. Any other ideas?

izhar
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Post by izhar » Thu Feb 28, 2008 12:58 pm

I am having the exact same problem with two different DA-2. when connected to an older PC power supply, the PW-200 works perfectly and draws about 5A, it seems strange that an 18A power supply can't supply the few amps the MD + CPU draw at boot.
casspd, did you sort this out? anyone else has any idea? thanks,

pipperoni
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Post by pipperoni » Thu Feb 28, 2008 2:19 pm

It sounds like you are tripping a current switch in the AC-DC brick. I had an issue similar to that and one of the solutions I had thought of but never tried was putting a big 12V rechargeable battery in line with the AC-DC brick. A giant capacity might also work. Or neither solution will work.

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Post by ryboto » Sat May 03, 2008 4:51 pm

I guess I'll try and revive the topic...I'm having the same issue. Using the same power brick. Has anyone ever found a solution? The Pico works fine with the Y2515, but the PW-200 causes it to shut off if I turn the system on. The Pico is works fine for CPU tasks, but if I attempted to play any games the power draw might be a bit more than the unit can handle.

mark314
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Post by mark314 » Fri May 09, 2008 10:39 am

How are you connecting the Dell power brick to the PW200? Each of the 3 +12V connectors in the power brick cable are rated for 6Amps, 18A total (which is the rating of the power brick and PW200). If you are running them through the barrel jack connector of the PW200, it might not support that much current, and you might be limited...

That said, you shouldn't expect the system to work at all without the P4 plug. Keep that plugged in. Are you using a 20-24 pin ATX adapter or are you just plugging the 20-pin into the 24-pin?

Try removing everything except the mobo, and cpu. Try to get it to post. Just those two together shouldn't exceed the 200W of the PW200.

Use a voltmeter/ammeter with the Dell brick and connect the PW200 to an adjustable load. Try to see if you can get 12V stable output, starting at a low amperage and going up and up...You will need an ammeter and adjustable load that is rated for 10A or more.

Start with a load of 6 Ohms (I=V/R, should give you 12V 2A result). Then decrease your load, see if you can get 10A stable. That is more than you need for a mobo/cpu/ram to post.

Just some suggestions...

Aris
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Post by Aris » Fri May 09, 2008 12:06 pm

check the lines on the brick with the volt meter, make sure its actually outputting 12v.

Theres an additional line on the stock bricks that needs to be shorted out to ground before it will output the proper voltage/amperage. When you pull the plastic cover off the brick, it will be labeled on the PCB board in the brick where the lines are soldered to it. I forget exactly what its called, but its "one of these things is not like the other".

When that line is not shorted out, the brick doesnt output the proper voltage. I wanna say it was like 5v or something.

I havnt played with mine in a while, but i want to say that the light will be green just plugging it in, but its not actually outputting 12v/18a until the light turns amber. Once the extra lead is shorted to ground, it'll change to amber and be working properly.

I have the Y2515 one.

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Post by ryboto » Fri May 09, 2008 9:33 pm

To connect to the brick, I made an 8-pin connector from a motherboard 24-pin plastic frame. It fits perfectly. I know that the Brick works, because it can power the system IF I use a PicoPSU. Using a PicoPSU I the system boots fine from the brick, but the issue is load draw, since I'll be at the extreme limit of the Pico while gaming. So, if the Dell brick can power my system using a Pico, would you still suggest all the same tests?

Check the link to my system in my signature for more info on the connection. I think I wrote about it. There was another thread where I got the idea from, and I'm sure I linked it in there. Too lazy to search for it now.

So, to summarize; The Dell Y2515 I have will power my system, if and only if it's connected to the PicoPSU. Once I try using it with the PW-2000-M, it just shuts off(light on brick goes out, so do motherboard indicator lights) when I hit the power button. I know the PW-200-M works, because I'm using it right now, only I have it plugged into a 6-pin PCIE connector from an ATX power supply for the 12v DC.

edit: I am using a 20-24 pin adapter, because the PW-200-M would otherwise not fit in the system. The RAM is blocking it's installation. I am also using the 4-Pin P4 power connector.

displacedtexan
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Post by displacedtexan » Tue May 13, 2008 10:12 am

I am having the same problem with my Abit an-m2 motherboard. I fabricated a connector similar to this post (www. silentpcreview. com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=38787 can't post links yet... low post count) except I used an old 20 pin ATX extension cable instead.

When I short the 'trigger' wire to ground, the LED on the brick turns green, and a LED on the motherboard lights up. When I try to start the computer, the cpu fan turns a few times and then all the LEDs go dark (brick & mobo).

I tried with hard drives attached and with nothing attached (just mobo and cpu).

I used a wire nut to connect the 3 12 volt lines to the single white wire on the PW-200-V. I also used a wire nut to connect the 3 grounds from the brick, the trigger wire, and the black wire from the PW-200-V. My PW-200-V already had a P4 connector soldered onto the PW-200-V.

I ordered a 120 picoPSU since others have had success (oddly) with a pico when the PW-200 wouldn't boot.

I'll report my findings (hopefully positive) as soon as I can!!

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Post by ryboto » Tue May 13, 2008 4:28 pm

displacedtexan wrote:...
So similar to my experience. Same board, same brick, same PW200. I've made several inquiries to Short-Circuit and MiniBox about the issue, currently I'm waiting a second response from MiniBox. As it is, I can use the PW-200 from the 12v DC of an ATX power supply, but that's not quite the point of using the PW200.

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Post by ryboto » Fri May 30, 2008 10:01 pm

It seems it may not be the PW-200's, and instead it might be the boards. Certain boards might work, while others do? The reason i say this, is that a user, mark314 in this thread:viewtopic.php?t=48379&highlight= seems to have no issues with the combination. Also, eitheta used a PW-200-V successfully with a Dell DA-2 in this thred: viewtopic.php?t=38787&highlight=nsk1300.

I've tried using the brick with both versions of the PW-200, and using two different motherboards, neither worked.

ryboto
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Post by ryboto » Sun Aug 31, 2008 2:01 pm

Still trying to get this to work, since I don't want to spend $120 on a PC62 combo, which seems to be the only other option.

I wonder, have any of you who still has trouble with the brick tried to plug in a fan directly off of the 12v lines? Like, load the powersupply slightly, then attempt to power on the system? I'd try it, but I don't have any of my supplies with me this weekend. If this works, wouldn't it be the same as added resistance?? maybe we could just try adding a small resistor in parallel with the system?

tmclaugh
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Post by tmclaugh » Sun Nov 09, 2008 9:18 pm

I just started a new thread, and then found this thread. I can get the PW200 to spin up my little valley board, but my DG45FC w/E6600 will not spin up by itself. I'm thinking of trying an E7200 to lower the initial power draw.

Is there a way we can increase the draw on the power brick, and then activate the rest of the system? My theory is that if the amperage goes up to quickly the brick trips. Any ideas?

*EDIT* Also does anyone know where I can pick up a screwdriver for these trippy screws? They're like torx but with a pin in the middle

ryboto
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Post by ryboto » Mon Nov 10, 2008 6:34 am

tmclaugh wrote:I just started a new thread, and then found this thread. I can get the PW200 to spin up my little valley board, but my DG45FC w/E6600 will not spin up by itself. I'm thinking of trying an E7200 to lower the initial power draw.

Is there a way we can increase the draw on the power brick, and then activate the rest of the system? My theory is that if the amperage goes up to quickly the brick trips. Any ideas?

*EDIT* Also does anyone know where I can pick up a screwdriver for these trippy screws? They're like torx but with a pin in the middle
I'm not sure about the screws, mine were philips head. As for the brick, I don't know if it's an amperage issue, since the PicoPSU120 has no issues booting my system with the DA-2. If I try to use the PW-200, I have a problem. Maybe wire a few fans, or some other 12v devices that draw as much as your system? It would be difficult and inconvenient.

I've opted to use a PicoPSU 120, but since the Pico is thermally limited, I've taken the 12v from the brick to directly power the PCIE and atx 12v needs. The pico powers the motherboard+fans and a single hard drive, while the brick gives 12v power directly to the GPU and CPU.

The only trouble I have now, is that the 12v is very very low. I've measured the 12v at the brick, it's 12.4v even under full CPU load, it doesn't seem to change. The 12v at the home-made connector is only 11.91v under load. The motherboard sensor tells me I'm only getting 11.7v. If I also load the GPU, it drops all the way to 11.3-4v as reported by PC-probe, but 11.7v at the connections. I'm going to try shortening the DA-2 cable, if that doesn't work, I guess I'll try cleaning up the solder joints.

kahuna
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Post by kahuna » Fri Feb 20, 2009 4:28 am

Hi.

Another victim. Dell DA-2 and PW-200-M. No 20-24 pin cables, PW-200-M fitted fine. Mobo is Foxconn G9657MA-8EKRS2H. 3 out of 4 DIMM are blocked, but 4th is all I need for 1GB RAM.

Torx bolts - break out center pins by small screwdriver.

From DA-2 to case supplied power cord used, plugs in the existing AC connector on the case. Other end is soldered inside DA-2. 3x 14 AWG wires. 2 for DC, 1 for trigger wire from brick. Now shortened to ground inside the case.

Brick's led is green, 12V is there, pressing power button on case turns brick off. Plug off the wall, plug in - brick is green again. Current protection, but not by the current amount, i think, but current increase speed.

PW-200, taken out of mobo starts fine, by shorting PWR-ON to ground in ATX connector of PW-200. Fans, HD and CDROM are spinning.

Best thought seen here is a capacitor 12V to ground, or, my idea, is a coil in 12V line. Would try tomorrow.

ryboto
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Post by ryboto » Fri Feb 20, 2009 6:57 am

kahuna wrote:Hi.


Best thought seen here is a capacitor 12V to ground, or, my idea, is a coil in 12V line. Would try tomorrow.
I have always wondered if an inductor or capacitor could help here, to induce some latency to the current ramp, which is what I suspect the issue is. I just never had the time, and wasn't sure what size cap to try....can't wait to see how it works for you!

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Post by kahuna » Sat Feb 21, 2009 3:53 am

No good so far. Put ~ 7000 uF - nothing. Added coil, made from biggest toroid I could find in an old PSU, connector - coil - 12V PW-200, and 7000uF 12V PW-200 to ground - no luck. Once I noticed fan spinned a bit, but wasn't able to reproduce. Usually fan did not even move.

Brick and PW-200 still working, I'm able to power HDD+CDROM+fan without mobo.

Did somebody have this brick's electric diagram? To cut off this frickin protection?

kahuna
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Post by kahuna » Sat Feb 21, 2009 9:59 pm

To: [email protected]
Subject: ADP-220AB Support

Hi.

I would like to get your support for ADP-220AB AC/DC adapter. I'm speaking for all silentpcreview users, which have faced this problem.

The problem is this adapter's overcurrent protection, which does not allow to use it with ATX DC/DC converters to power a computer.

Starting computer shuts off the ADP-220AB. All componet's combined power rating is way below the maximum ADP-220AB limits.

We'd like to know:

1) Detailed overcurrent protection specs. Is it absolute current threshold, or current rise speed threshold (dI / dt) ? Values?
2) Adapter's wiring diagram.

Thanks in advance.

Thread is : viewtopic.php?p=453665

Regards,

ryboto
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Post by ryboto » Sun Feb 22, 2009 11:46 am

That's a great idea Kahuna. Hopefully Delta gives us some actual information. The guys at minibox told me the PicoPSU and PW-200 should behave the same with any power brick. When I told him the PicoPSU could boot my system with the DA-2 and the PW-200 couldn't, he was a bit confused, and couldn't really offer me any suggestions. I never attempted to contact Delta.

kahuna
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Post by kahuna » Sun Feb 22, 2009 6:42 pm

From: Charlie Wu [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Monday, February 23, 2009 1:38 PM
Subject: Re: ADP-220AB Support


We do not deal individual customer.

ryboto
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Post by ryboto » Mon Feb 23, 2009 5:24 am

sounds like he thought you were interested in purchasing one? Seems strange they wouldn't offere individual support.

kahuna
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Post by kahuna » Thu Mar 05, 2009 5:09 pm

No, i think they just do not spare time on individuals.

BTW. I found a problem with my board: cpu heatsink bolts coming through the holes in the board, were touching hole edges, so internal layers were shorting bolts to 12V. And heatsink, was grounded through cpu, so i had 12V to ground short on P4 connector.

Should I tell it to Silverstone, so nobody else will step into this? (And ask for mobo refund :)) ?

Unfortunately, playing with the coils and stuff, looks like i killed mobo..
But anyway, even if P4 does not have short (multimeter shows charging capacitor behaviour), the brick still shuts off. Without P4 connector attached, PW-200 starts fine on mobo.

Will try PW-200 on my desktop system today, to see if PW-200 is still OK.

Current list of mobos, working with PW-200:

Asus P5B-VM
Gigabyte GA-G33M-DS2R
GA-FP35-DS3 (ATX)
ABIT AN-M2 (AMD)
ASUS P5E-VM
GA-MA78GM-S2H (AMD)

kahuna
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Post by kahuna » Sun May 24, 2009 4:19 pm

Update!

Brick did not work with PW-200-M. I think problem is not a motherboard, but the brick's protection circuit.

I bought the chinese almost noname brick for 10A ($25) and it works fine. Here is its details:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... 0405348069

http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-12V-10A-Adapter ... 1|294%3A30

NEW DC 12V 10A AC Adapter Power Supply for LCD monitor or TV+Cord
Brand:R&F
TYPE:LCD12v10 5525
Adapter Type:Replacement AC adapter(non-OEM)
Input Voltage: 100V-240VAC (50-60Hz)
Output Voltage: 12 Volts DC
Amperage: 10Amps
Power: 120W
DC Plus Dimension: 5.5mmX2.5mm

Perfect. Wall readings idle:49W, load max 110W.

System:
MB: Foxcomm G9657MA-8EKRS2H
CPU: Intel E2140 1.6GHz o/c to 2GHz
Memory: Some brand 2GB 1 dimm. Low profile! This allows to plug PW-200-M directly on the mobo, without ATX cable.
HDD: Samsung F1 green 1TB
DVDROM: some old tray NEC 5"
Case: Antek NSK1300 (PSU removed)
ATX PSU: mini-box.com PW-200-M (5.5mm dc socket for panel was sourced at jaycar.com.au)
CPU Fan: Silverstone NT-06evo (pipes bended to make it upright, near case fan)
TV Tuner: DTV1000S
Video: MSI Radeon HD 2400 Pro. Passive heatsink, UVD2 for HW video decoding (hw support works with Windows 7 orig drivers).
LAN: Wireless USB stick inside the case (but aerial is put outside, difficult to find usb stick with detachable aerial.. this was named smthg nintendo wii..)

Ask! :)

The_Helper
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Post by The_Helper » Sun Jun 07, 2009 1:35 am

Kahuna, what's your experience with those power bricks from eBay? I'm also on the hunt for an affordable brick, but I'm a bit concerned that they either get quite warm or make high pitch noise (or even worse - both). You think they're ok?

kahuna
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Post by kahuna » Mon Jun 08, 2009 6:44 am

Kind of luck. I tried this one, it works fine, no noise, warm as all other notebook bricks. Cannot say for other models.

mark19891989
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Post by mark19891989 » Mon Jun 08, 2009 12:21 pm

im using a Da-2 with a pico psu that i brought from ebay , for £18

Im usng the setup on 2 different builds, and they work, fine, not sound, warm to the touch, but no hot.

I would like a cheap killawatt, to see how much power these builds are using, but i dont know where to get one in the uk

kahuna
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Post by kahuna » Mon Jun 08, 2009 5:49 pm

Yes, Dell DA-2 has better specs, works with PicoPSU, but it is twice bigger and heavier, and it does not work with PW-200 often.

The_Helper
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Post by The_Helper » Mon Jun 08, 2009 9:59 pm

Yeah, that'd be fine for me as I'm leaning towards a 150XT. I'm currently running an Intel DG45FC + E5200 combo with a 2.5" drive and a DVD burner attached. So I don't anticipate the system drawing more than 100 Watts, even on startup. But correct me if I'm wrong here. I'm always happy to hear opions from people with similar builds.

mark19891989
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Post by mark19891989 » Tue Jun 09, 2009 8:39 am

The_Helper wrote:Yeah, that'd be fine for me as I'm leaning towards a 150XT. I'm currently running an Intel DG45FC + E5200 combo with a 2.5" drive and a DVD burner attached. So I don't anticipate the system drawing more than 100 Watts, even on startup. But correct me if I'm wrong here. I'm always happy to hear opions from people with similar builds.
both of my pcs (see sig) are running off of a 150XT having no trouble, dont know how much power they are drawing, im thinking of buying a killawatt device to see how much power they draw, but most i see online dont have the UK power plug on it.

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