Anyone heard of MaxPower PS?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Mike Roll
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Mike Roll

I tried searching Google on this brand of power supply, but didn't find
anything conclusive.

Anyone could comment on it, good or bad?
Thanks,
 
Mike Roll said:
I tried searching Google on this brand of power supply, but didn't find
anything conclusive.

Anyone could comment on it, good or bad?
Thanks,
Click to expand...

Max Power, wasn't that Homer Simpson's legal name for a single episode?
 
Mike Roll said:
I tried searching Google on this brand of power supply, but
didn't find anything conclusive.
Click to expand...

MaxPower = EverPower = Key Mouse Electronic Enterprises, www.kmepc.com

My 300W MaxPower caused a lot of interference on lower TV channels and
AM radio because it didn't contain an AC EMI line filter, despite FCC
approval and website claims that it did. But after I replaced its AC
receptacle with a combination receptacle/filter, virtually all the
interference disappeared.

This PSU did manage to put out its 300W rated power as well as its
190W combined power, but I tested for only ten minutes because my load
resistance ran very hot, plus I was afraid of burning out the PSU. I
didn't have the courage to overload the PSU, and before running the
tests I added a second 30A diode to the +5V output rail (circuit board
had an empty spot for one).

Internally, I'd say that the MaxPower is worse than average but not
the very worst. The heatsinks have maybe 50-70% the surface area of
those in my 300W PowMax and Antec SmartPower. The diode and
transistor capacities are roughly the same, the input filter
capacitors slightly smaller (560uF, vs. 680-820uF for better 300W
PSUs, or 390-470uF for the worst). I don't see as much glue holding
parts in place or as much sleeving or ties for the wires. The
inverter transformer is the same size, which is a good sign because
I've read that if the transformer overloads it can cause really high
currents or voltages.

MaxPower and most other lesser quality PSUs tend to have low +12V
capacity, which can be a problem for mobos that run the CPU from the
+12V because they may need as much as 10A for this, leaving little for
the CD, DVD, and HD.

I wouldn't buy a MaxPower unless my only other choices were pure junk,
like Deer (many names, including Codegen, Allied, Eagle, Foxconn, L&C,
Mustang), Achieve, RealPower (no registration at www.ul.com),
Max-Lite, or ICTronics (mine was included in a free-after-rebate case
from Fry's). But a high-quality 300-350W
Fortron/Sparkle/Trend/Aopen/Hi-Q costs as little as $20-36 -- see
www.pricewatch.com , www.newegg.com , www.directron.com and is very
conservatively rated.
 
larrymoencurly said:
MaxPower = EverPower = Key Mouse Electronic Enterprises, www.kmepc.com
Click to expand...

Hi Larry,

Thanks for the very informative reply. The PS in question is in a very
small tower that could accept a full size ATX board, exactly what I'm
looking for. The PS appears to be on the AMD "Athlon Power Supply
Manufacturers", but I guess that does not mean anything because Deer is on
the list as well.

The system will consits of 800 Duron, 258MB DDR, 60GB HHD, etc. So
interference may be the only issue. Where did you find the spare AC
receptacle with a combination receptacle/filter? Will one from an old AT PS
work? Any link to how to rewire PS?

Thank you again
 
Mike Roll said:
The PS in question is in a very small tower that could accept a
full size ATX board, exactly what I'm looking for.
Click to expand...

I think that my MaxPower came in the same case. It's about 2-3"
longer, front to back, than a normal case, so a full size ATX mobo
will fit without overlapping any CD or DVD drives. This is a lot
better than a tall case where those drives mount above the mobo and
may require overly long cables.
Where did you find the spare AC receptacle with a combination
receptacle/filter? Will one from an old AT PS work?
Click to expand...

That's exactly where I got mine. It was rated for only 200W but
seemed to be better built than some 350W ATX PSUs, and even after I
removed the receptacle/filter, it still didn't cause any interference
because it had a second EMI filter built into its circuit board.
Any link to how to rewire PS?
Click to expand...

I don't know of any, but just wire the receptacle/filter exactly line
the original receptacle, taking care not to mix up the black and white
wires, and if the receptacle/filter has a green-yellow ground wire
attached to it, mount it to the PSU case with a screw (add a connector
if necessary). Also check the resistance of the receptacle/filter
across its AC lines, and if they measure more than about one megaohm,
there's no bleeder resistor inside to drain off the high voltage when
the power is turned off, and you'll have to add your own bleeder to
the terminals. A 250K - 500K resistor rated for at least 1/2W will
work fine. This assumes that there's enough room for the
receptacle/filter because it's possible that MaxPower uses more than
one design. With the one I have the receptacle is near the top of the
rear, well away from the circuit board, and the board is only 5.5"W x
3.0" long. If your MaxPower is different, clearance and shorts could
be a problem. But if the circuit board is much larger it may be
designed so all the EMI filter components mount on it, although they
may have been left out, as was the case with this Deer PSU:
www.webx.dk/oz2cpu/radios/psu-pc400-comp1.jpg (upper right corner --
jumper wires soldered where chokes should have gone, no bleeder
resistor just to the left, no large capacitor across the lines to the
left of it, and no smaller capacitors from each line to ground at the
extreme right). If the filter components are installed, don't bother
adding a receptacle/filter, but if they weren't, try putting them in,
taking care to use an X1 or X2 rated capacitor for the large one on
the left (probably 0.1-0.3uF, 250-275 VAC, not volts DC) and .005uF
(5nF) Y1 or Y2 rated capacitors for the small ones on the right. A
schematic of a typcial ATX PSU at http://pavouk.cz/hw/atxps.gif may
help (EMI filter in upper left). The chokes can be either two
separate units or a single dual unit (like T5 in the schematic), but
if you use the latter, check its wiring since some are made exactly
wrong for the circuit board and will short across the AC lines rather
than put a coil in series with each AC line. Also make sure that the
choke wiring is well insulated and can't short the two lines together.
 
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