RailPro > RailPro Specific Help & Discussion
Power supply
G8B4Life:
--- Quote ---May I presume that all this great information is for layouts that are RailPro only.
--- End quote ---
Correct. I think we could go further and say it is for layouts that are DC based but I don't know of any analogue/conventional control DC layouts that use 2 or more parallel power supplies.
DCC boosters, as with the PWR-56 are made to be worked together (power districts) and one would presume that all the required wizardry to prevent the conditions Alan describes are present in the DCC booster. It's probably different for DCC being square wave AC (Alan will most likely know) but I'm sure the principals are the same and that the relevant precautions would have been taken in the design of the boosters.
- Tim
Alan:
By the fact that Ring specifically shows in the manual paralleled PWR56s, we can assume the little gizmo that comes with the power brick has protection built in. Likely the same schottky diode solution mentioned earlier as this arrangement is nearly universal and frequently used. The recommendation to space the PWR56s away from the rail gap is good advice.
Tim is correct about my recommendation applying to non-Ring power supplies. Sorry Bill, but I can't understand why someone would buy a $120 PWR56 when a $19 power supply will run trains just fine. And the bit about a PWR56 regulating the voltage to +-3% is a feature with no benefit. On a layout of any decent size the resistance in the track and bus wiring will cause more voltage deviation than the power supply regulation spec. Besides, 3% is not uncommon. My eBay power supplies regulate that well too not that it matters. How do I know?
William Brillinger:
--- Quote ---Sorry Bill, but I can't understand why someone would buy a $120 PWR56 when a $19 power supply will run trains just fine.
--- End quote ---
I don't know why anyone would pay $120 either. It's only $91.96 with shipping on PDC.CA ;)
However I can think of a few reasons to choose the PWR56:
- fault reporting and control integration of the PWR56 with the HC
- repeater function (handy on larger layouts)
- simplicity of wiring (no extra monitors needed)
...and when purchased with an HC the pricing is not bad; it comes with an HC for only $69 in the RPK1 set.
Odds are if your layout is big enough to need to PWR56's then you'll want at least 2 HC's anyway.
Alan:
$91.96 Now that's more like it. ;D
--- Quote ---However I can think of a few reasons to choose the PWR56:
- fault reporting and control integration of the PWR56 with the HC
- repeater function (handy on larger layouts)
- simplicity of wiring (no extra monitors needed)
--- End quote ---
If I'm not mistaken the PWR56 integration (ability to the power on/off) is for the gizmo, not the actual power supply brick. Even though there is no power going to the track when the PWR56 is turned off, the brick is still running. One has to ask why a remote control on/off button if it doesn't really turn the power supply on/off? And do I really need to know the temperature? All power supplies have integrated over-temp shutdown. The lawyers see to that. A device that catches fire is bad for business. Just ask Samsung right now about their Note 7 recall. For fault reporting a simple LED across the bus does the job just fine. One can put a lot of LEDs on the fascia panel for $100.00. ;)
Repeater - yeah I understand that. Range has not been an issue fro me. My HC works from the other side of the basement 70' from the train room. But I imagine it is a different story in a busy radio environment like a show or apartment complex. I'll give you that one.
Voltage monitoring on a RailPro layout is absurdly easy. A $2.00 panel voltmeter does the job. It is a tie score on simplicity - Ring 2, Generic 2. PWR56 & brick compared to eBay PS and voltmeter. If you count actual number of wire connections needed then generic wins - Ring 7, Generic 6.
Ring had to offer a power supply to make his product a complete system. I get that. The off-the-shelf generic laptop brick he uses probably is sloppy on the voltage regulation as most bricks are. Bricks also are not suitable for a multiple power supply setup and Tim had to expect modelers to ask for such. So it makes sense he also supplies his gizmo interface which is no doubt a precision voltage regulator. That's why it gets hot and he is concerned about the mounting position. The radio communication is his trademark market differentiation so it too makes sense he includes it.
I am not saying anything bad about the PWR56. I am a delighted RailPro customer. Just making the point that for frugal folk such as myself there is a lot of money to be saved when it comes to power supplies. Money I can spend elsewhere on the layout.
William Brillinger:
--- Quote ---Just making the point that for frugal folk such as myself there is a lot of money to be saved when it comes to power supplies. Money I can spend elsewhere on the layout.
--- End quote ---
Absolutely True.
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