Recommendations for a High Quality +/- 15V Power Supply - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / projects

author: cpsmusic
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: November 13, 2019, 04:44:09 am
content: Hi,I'm a musician and have a small home studio. I'd like to build a high quality +/- 15V power supply to power a W492EQ. More details of the project can be found here:https://groupdiy.com/index.php?topic=28332.0I have beginner-to-intermediate level electronics knowledge and have been researching power supplies. Problem is, the more I read, the more I'm confused about what I need. I don't want to go down the "audiophile path" and include things that aren't necessary. However, as this is a one-off project I don't mind going the extra mile in terms of quality. i'm hoping to get either a PCB or a kit.Just wondering what people would recommend for this project?Cheers,Chris

author: Hiemal
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: November 13, 2019, 06:45:36 am
content: Well, you have a few different options.The easiest, and simplest method would just to use a center tapped transformer, and two linear regulators to give you your plus and minus rails. Add some decent filter capacitance, and you have a pretty foolproof bipolar supply. Of course, this requires mains.If your project is battery powered, then you could try a charge pump; keep in mind though most charge pumps are relatively limited in their output power capability, typically in the range of 20 mA. It's also hard to find a high voltage charge pump that can handle 15 volts, so this might be disqualified based off of that alone.Then there's the DC-DC converters; an inverting buck/boost converter could give you your negative rail, and a normal boost converter gives you your +15 rail. Biggest downside to these is noise, and they also typically require a minimum load to prevent oscillations.There's also AC-DC switch mode power supplies, which could also give you your plus and minus rails.All of these options you can buy off the shelf solutions for. Meanwell makes good AC-DC converters.As to what is "best", well.... Eeeh. I'd lean towards just a transformer since it's pretty foolproof and is probably going to be the cheapest solution too. This is my opinion though, and I'm sure there will be people who disagree.

author: MarkF
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 13, 2019, 01:51:46 pm
content: In case you need the simple linear regulator design (+/-15V @ 1A):Click for larger picture.And a PCB layout I did for power supplies I built:

author: AG6QR
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: November 13, 2019, 02:47:13 pm
content: Check out the Elenco XP-720, available as a kit or preassembled. The manual is online and includes detailed schematics and theory of operation. This is a classic linear power supply with a center-tapped transformer. If it doesn't meet your needs, it might form a starting point for something that does.It is only rated at one amp on each rail (there is also a 5V rail rated at 3A), and it is big and heavy compared to switching supplies.

author: dom0
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 13, 2019, 04:05:24 pm
content: With 8 NE5532s the circuit shouldn't need more than ~200 mA. +-15 V @ 200 mA you can do with an AC wall-wart and dual one-way rectification.