Computer Power supply Unit

• Power supply of Computer is an electronic unit that supplies power by altering current & voltage characteristics form source form to destination form.
• In technical terminology of computers, it is called Switched Mode Power Supply (SMPS) because it makes use of switching regulator.
• Regulator is mainly used for switching,which occurs quickly between 50 KHz-1 MHz.
• These regulators are highly efficient in functioning.They are of smaller size & are light weight.
• However,switching regulators can cause electrical noise if not designed carefully.

Power supply for computer

• Power supply of your desktop provides power needed by all the components of your computer to function properly.
• Basically power supply operates on 3 voltage levels.They are -
  • 3.3 volts - Mainly used by digital circuits.
  • 5 volts - Used by VSB circuit for "standby voltage".
  • 12 volts - Used for running fans & motors in disk drives .
• The power supply is usually measured in Watts that is a unit of voltage.
• Some power consumption values of different peripherals are -
  • Network interface card - 4W
  • Hard disk - 10W
  • 550 Hz Pentium III - 30W
  • RAM -10W
  • CD-ROM - 10-25W
  • Motherboard -20-30W

Best computer power supply

• Power supply uses Switcher technology to convert AC voltage in DC voltage.Switchers or Switched regulators are replacement of linear regulators because they dissipate more power &hence waste energy.
• Sometimes power supplies generates noise from fans used for cooling.To avoid this,you can use a large sized fans that run at slow speed without making noise.
• Do not touch the power supply cables as they contain capacitors having electricity.This can cause electric shock.
• Most common reason for power supply failure are lightning, dirty environment & overheating.

Power supply in computer

• Modern computer power supply is a device with on & off switch that translates AC power from main supply into output DC voltages.
• Power supplies can consists of magnetic amplifiers & converter circuit design.
• Switched Power supply is more efficient then linear power supply because it uses small transformer that are of small size & are light weight.
• In Switched power supply,there is very little loss between input & output load.It generates heat only in abnormal conditions.

Computer Power supply fan

• Most predominant component of any Power supply unit (PSU) is power supply fan.It is the primitive source of cooling inside your cabinet.
• In addition to power supply fan,some newer systems include auxiliary fans & special cooling devices.
• These fans operate at +12 volts.
• One significant factor to be considered for fans are the quality of construction of motors.Motors must be of good quality.
• Another factor is how much air is fan throwing out.If this is more that means, fan is doing work nicely.

Replace computer Power supply

• If your computer is overheating & overloaded,then its the time to replace a power supply.
• Now,first check if your power supply is AT (Advanced Technology) or ATX (Advanced Technology Extended) style.
• Check the output voltage in watts (for eg, ATX-350W). Be sure to buy a new power supply with same or higher wattage.The higher the wattage,the more energy your power supply will provide to your system.
• Always use the proper power supply connectors.Some computer manufacturers like Dell provide their connectors with power supplies.