bipolar power supply?

[blunbintles]

n00b questions: 1) what exactly is a bipolar power supply? 2) why are
they used? 3) can i use a PC power supply to power an amp that needs a
bipolar power supply?

 

[Mark Harriss]

n00b questions: 1) what exactly is a bipolar power supply? 2) why are
they used? 3) can i use a PC power supply to power an amp that needs a
bipolar power supply?

A bipolar power supply is any supply made by Phil A.

Actually they probably mean one with + and - rails
w.r.t. ground.

 

[David L. Jones]

n00b questions: 1) what exactly is a bipolar power supply?

It's basically a power supply that has equal positive and negative
rails with respect to a common ground. i.e. +/12V
So a bipolar supply will have a positive terminal, a negative terminal,
and a Ground (or Common) terminal.

2) why are they used?

They are used most for analog devices like amplifiers that need to
accept and generate positive and negative signals.

3) can i use a PC power supply to power an amp that needs a
bipolar power supply?

Most likely.
A PC power supply has both +/-5V and +/-12V outputs, so if it has the
current and other specs you need then it will work. It's common (no pun
intended) to turn a PC power supply into a bench power supply for all
sorts of purposes.
Sometimes they need to be modified though, to ensure that the don't
shut down under minimum loads etc. Should be plenty of info out there
on doing this.

Dave

 

[Friday]

A bipolar power supply is any supply made by Phil A.

Phil isn't bipolar he's just very negative.

 

[The Real Andy]

It's basically a power supply that has equal positive and negative
rails with respect to a common ground. i.e. +/12V
So a bipolar supply will have a positive terminal, a negative terminal,
and a Ground (or Common) terminal.


They are used most for analog devices like amplifiers that need to
accept and generate positive and negative signals.


Most likely.

I would have to say that this depends on what type of amp the OP is
intending to use. If one was trying to drive a 1kW audio amp, then a
PC PSU is no good. If one was trying to drive an instumentation amp,
the the PC PSU is no good. If one was trying to drive a small practice
audio amp that requires +-12v then yes, a pc power amp would be fine.

 

[Trevor Wilson]

n00b questions: 1) what exactly is a bipolar power supply?

**As other have stated, it is + 0 - operation.

2) why are

they used?

**Lots of reasons. In audio equipment, it allows for the elimination of
output coupling devices (capacitors and transformers).

3) can i use a PC power supply to power an amp that needs a

bipolar power supply?

**Sure, provided you don't want a great deal of power. The largest supply
rails available from a (standard) PC power supply are +12 Volts and -12
Volts. That translates to around 20 Watts @ 8 Ohms. However, there is a far
more serious 'gotcha'. The -12 Volt supply is usually a very low current
one. Absolutely useless for any sane amount of audio power. Typically your
power output will be limited to around 5 Watts, using the +/- 12 Volt supply
rails.

 

[Dac]

n00b questions: 1) what exactly is a bipolar power supply? 2) why are
they used? 3) can i use a PC power supply to power an amp that needs a
bipolar power supply?

This is a common thing that comes up alot with students. They need a
bi-polar supply for an amp and haven't the faintest idea where to get one.
Is this for a small project? What is your power rating? Assuming your doing
some op-amp stuff usually the easiest way is to simply use two batteries in
series. At one end is +ve at the other -ve and inbetween is 0v.

You can even start to get tricky, like have some chips powered from 0v to
'-5v' and other 5v to 0v to do something like semi inversion etc.

 

[Guest]

Phil isn't bipolar he's just very negative.

No, I must speak up for Phil (and Rod Speed)! I was warned when subscribing
to this group to killfile both to preserve my sanity. Googling their 'work'
confirmed this. But nearly all of their recent posts have been helpful and
unabusive. So judge as you find, I say...

 

[Friday]

No, I must speak up for Phil (and Rod Speed)! I was warned when subscribing
to this group to killfile both to preserve my sanity. Googling their 'work'
confirmed this. But nearly all of their recent posts have been helpful and
unabusive. So judge as you find, I say...

I certainly have no problems with Phils helpfulness, and as an adult I
can tolerate the abuse, but if I had a young kid interested in
electronics I certainly wouldn't allow them on this newsgroup. Abuse is
one issue but the language used is another.

 

[Guest]

I certainly have no problems with Phils helpfulness, and as an adult I can
tolerate the abuse, but if I had a young kid interested in electronics I
certainly wouldn't allow them on this newsgroup. Abuse is one issue but
the language used is another.

Agreed. Any on many. And some otherwise good posters seem incapable of
expressing anything with the f*