Amateur Radio Stack Exchange
Amateur Radio Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [dc-power]

Questions about DC power supplied to equipment (typically 12/13.8 volts), power distribution, wiring, connectors.

27 questions
11
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5 answers

Should I ground my radio to the chassis or battery for a mobile install?

From what I've seen, there are generally two ways to power a mobile radio: Positive lead to battery, negative lead grounded to chassis Both positive and negative leads to battery I know that antennas should be grounded to the chassis, but what…
Ben
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10
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4 answers

What sources of power are useful in emergency situations?

Situations that call for emergency operating usually have some hams working in field conditions. Relying on the mains grid could be problematic. A lead-acid battery would probably be heavy to lug around should the operator need to relocate in a…
VU2NHW
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10
votes
4 answers

Understanding power supply requirements

I have a basic question about power supply requirements for typical transceivers. I'm looking at the specs for a Kenwood TM-V71A, which is a 50W mobile transceiver. I figured that a 50W transceiver running on a 12V(-ish) power supply would pull…
larsks
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7
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3 answers

On Anderson Powerpoles, does the red on go on the left or right?

When attaching a red and black pair of Powerpoles together, which way should I do it to ensure that it will plug into the most number of other people's gear? When looking from the top of the connector (the side where the "tongue" is not visible)…
Arthur
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6
votes
3 answers

Practical differences between switching and linear power supplies?

Power supplies for ham radio equipment (and other equipment of course) seem to come in two flavours: switching and linear. The switching gear tends to be cheaper and smaller as well as more efficient. My understanding is that switching supplies…
Jim MacKenzie VE5EV
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5
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1 answer

How can I counter DC-DC inverter noise / ground noise in an electric-vehicle mobile setup?

So, I'm relatively new to all this; and I've gotten an ICOM IC-7100 on sale, which looks like an excellent transceiver … unfortunately, this very specific line shows up in the manual: The transceiver may not receive well on some frequencies when…
ELLIOTTCABLE
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5
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4 answers

Are there any cons of running shack on battery?

I'm building a low-power shack to operate on non-licensed bands (UHF PMR 0.5W + HF CB 4W). I don't have any "RF-grade" sources of 12(-ish) volts and don't want to buy a specialised power unit. I'm thinking of running the whole setup from a 12V…
Alexander
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4
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1 answer

why do some radios have two fuses in the power leads

On a number of fairly modern rigs I've seen that both power leads are fused: Why is this still so? Does this have something to do with some vehicles having a ground-positive system or is this simply a forgotten relic that needs to disappear as…
captcha
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4
votes
7 answers

How do I separate dovetailed PowerPole housings?

Anderson PowerPole connector housings can be joined side-to-side using dovetail joints molded into the plastic to make a multi-conductor connector, as seen in the conventional amateur radio 12V power positive/negative configuration. How does one…
Kevin Reid AG6YO
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3 answers

Power connector for a HPA

I've got two Kuhne's HPAs rated at 12V, 10Amps. The HPAs have power connectors circled in blue. Is there a specific jumper with a compatible head that I could plug directly into this connector? I'm trying to avoid soldering if possible.
Moses Browne Mwakyanjala
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4
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3 answers

Need batteries for backpack operation

I am building an HF backpack rig using an Icom IC-706MkIIG with a Opek HVT-400B antenna. The specifications on the radio say 20 A draw at high power, so what size and type batteries would be suitable for a backpack operation?
Steven Donnell KG5GRI
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4
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3 answers

Coax braid acting as power supply ground between radio and amplifier connected to the same supply, is this a problem?

I have a Kenwood TH-D72 and I just got an old Radio Shack HTA-20 2m amplifier to use with it. They're both powered from a sizeable 3S2P Li-Ion battery pack and they work great together for the most part, but I recently noticed something odd. I…
MoTLD
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Is it possible to power your ham radio station by solar power? If so, how?

The very first New York Times article announcing the invention of the solar cell by Bell Labs in 1954 shows a man holding a brick-shaped device in the sun in one hand and a microphone in the other hand, while standing far away from any other sources…
SDsolar
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3
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1 answer

Are the Icom 2300 h and Ftm 400dr DC cables interchangable?

I would like to swap out my 2300h to a 400dr. Would rather not swap out dc power cable. Are the cables the same or is there an adapter for make it possible?
Rich
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3
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1 answer

Bias Tee for HF: noise and losses?

I have a homebrew remote antenna switch. It uses relays and it has a nRF24L01-based wireless link to the band selector (Arduino, taps into CAT and switches antennas accordingly). I would like to power this device without running a separate power…
hjf
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