Confused Power Supplies

  • Thread starter Thread starter The Doctor
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The Doctor

Due to mixing up power supplies, I don't know which one belongs to my ext
hdd & ext dvd drive. They both have identical power sockets.

One power supply output is 12v 3A, the other is 12v 2A. If I get it wrong &
connect the 3A supply to the 2A device, & 2A supply to the 3A device, what
will happen?
 
kony said:
ty

Best case, they both work fine. Worst case, the one which
needs the 3A supply won't have enough current from the 2A
supply and the drive may not initialize properly and/or the
power supply itself may not be able to regulate - at which
point it may keep trying to, typically making a clicking
noise while it does, or if it's a high quality PSU it should
shut down.

Hard drives tend to need more peak current when initially
spinning up so try the 3A PSU with it first... then if it
starts clicking, unplug it and try the other one.
Click to expand...
 
Due to mixing up power supplies, I don't know which one belongs to my ext
hdd & ext dvd drive. They both have identical power sockets.

One power supply output is 12v 3A, the other is 12v 2A. If I get it wrong &
connect the 3A supply to the 2A device, & 2A supply to the 3A device, what
will happen?
Click to expand...

First: Inspect the labels on the boxes.
They should either specify amps or watts.
(12 volt 2A = 24 Watt, 12 volt 3 A = 36 Watt)

Providing 3 amps to a device that only requires 2 amps is
harmless. Providing just 2 amps to a device that requires 3 amps
results in that device not working properly.

So, if everything else fails: use the 2 amps unit for your DVD
(which may only result in bad picture or improper reading :-) and
use the 3 amps device for your harddisk.
Because very bad thing may happen if you provide improper power
while a harddisk is writing. It may not only disturbe the data
you attempt to write but may also destruct data already committed
to the drive.
 
The said:
Due to mixing up power supplies, I don't know which one belongs to my ext
hdd & ext dvd drive. They both have identical power sockets.
Click to expand...

Devices powered by the ubiquitous wall-wart power supply should have a
label indicating voltage and current as well as polarity of the connector
and whether the voltage is AC or DC. Many don't. I add a label to each
new toy when it arrives ... while I still have the packaging and any
literature: well worth the time invested.
 
The said:
Due to mixing up power supplies, I don't know which one belongs to my ext
hdd & ext dvd drive. They both have identical power sockets.

One power supply output is 12v 3A, the other is 12v 2A. If I get it wrong &
connect the 3A supply to the 2A device, & 2A supply to the 3A device, what
will happen?
Click to expand...

The voltage and current required by each device *should* be embedded in the
device or on a decal in the vicinity of the power jack on the device. Look
very closely in that area.
 
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