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Radio Power Supply

Started by ♠SARKID♠, January 20, 2008, 10:47:17 PM

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♠SARKID♠

How do you figure out what kind of power supply you need for a radio?

Eclipse

Ask your DC, seriously, he probably have extras you could have.

If its a mobile radio (i.e. fr the car), it is almost certainly 12 volts.

If its not labeled as such, then search for the make and model online to find the power specification, and then get a power supply that matches the voltage and exceeds the current requirements.

What kind of radio?

"That Others May Zoom"

♠SARKID♠

Im going to be using a mobile to go back and forth between car and house and need the PS for in my room.  Its a Kenwood tk-730, and I can't find jack diddly squat on the internet.

_

If it runs off a car battery then you get a 12/13.8 volt DC power supply.  The power supply will have places where you can hook up wires just like you have to hook up the radio to the car battery.  You'll need a second set of wires, one for car, one for house.  The power supplies are pretty generic so that they can work with a wide range of radios.  They're made to act just like a car battery,  they're not usually made specifically for an individual radio.  They generally put out 13.8V instead of 12V.  I got mine from hamradio.com

SarDragon

Quote from: ♠SARKID♠ on January 20, 2008, 11:35:31 PM
Im going to be using a mobile to go back and forth between car and house and need the PS for in my room.  Its a Kenwood tk-730, and I can't find jack diddly squat on the internet.

Neither can I. Mobile radios are nominally 12 volts, although an auto electrical system actually operates at about 13.8 volts. If you have the manual, look at the spec for current draw during transmit. It's going to be somewhere around 10 A. My olde Neutec drew 9 A, and my current EFJ draws just over 12 A. The transmitter power output for the EFJ is 50 W, and yours is spec'd at 45 W, so the input power requirements are similar.

You'll need a "12 V" PS that exceeds your max power by at least one amp, so I would suggest, lacking any spec info, that you get a 15 amp PS.
Dave Bowles
Maj, CAP
AT1, USN Retired
50 Year Member
Mitchell Award (unnumbered)
C/WO, CAP, Ret

Eclipse


"That Others May Zoom"

Eclipse

Wow - must be pretty old - can't find squat.

"That Others May Zoom"

♠SARKID♠

Its a mid 90s model radio.  Kenwood doesn't even have it on their website anymore, and I even called the actual factory where they were built and they didn't have it in their databases either.

pixelwonk

A.E.S. ...AKA, the candy store
Please tell me you've at least called them.

Quote from: SarDragon on January 21, 2008, 12:23:52 AM
so I would suggest, lacking any spec info, that you get a 15 amp PS.

concur.

♠SARKID♠

They aren't open today, otherwise I would have.  If I waited till tomorrow, I'd have forgotten, just how I am.

Besides, I was too busy watching the Packers lose...
:'( :( >:(

And while I'm thinking about it, do I need any equipment to hook the radio up to my truck?  Or do I just run wires from battery to radio plug?  BTW, I'm having a professional install it.  I just want to make sure I have everything he'll need.

SSgt Rudin

Quote from: ♠SARKID♠ on January 21, 2008, 04:01:06 AM
They aren't open today, otherwise I would have.  If I waited till tomorrow, I'd have forgotten, just how I am.

Actually you would have to wait till Tuesday, tomorrow's a holiday.  ;)
SSgt Jordan Rudin, CAP

sardak

Link to photos and description of a Kenwood TK-730 installed in a Ford pickup.  The owner says it draws over 20 amps.
http://www.eurekaboy.com/f250/kenwood.htm

He has scanned the schematics and other documents here:
http://www.eurekaboy.com/tk730/

Also, one of us CAPTalkers (floridacyclist/Gene Floyd) owns one, according to this thread:
http://captalk.net/index.php?topic=140.msg12446

Mike

♠SARKID♠

Interesting, the heat sync on his is uber lots longer than the one on mine.

Eclipse

You may need a noise filter, and you have to be careful where / how this is connected.

Some newer vehicles prohibit the use of high-powered radio equipment and/or hook-up of same because it can pooch the internal computers.

If a pro is doing it, I would make sure he checks this but you're probably fine.

BTW - real men drill holes in their roof for the antenna!   ;D

"That Others May Zoom"

♠SARKID♠

Smart men run the cable through the sliding glass rear window and stick some black foam padding in the extra space to keep the frost and rain out.  Thats how the CB is set up.

Eclipse


"That Others May Zoom"

♠SARKID♠

Quote from: Eclipse on January 21, 2008, 05:13:13 AM
SEE-BEE?

Disclaimer: The use of a CB radio in my personal vehicle was for the sole purpose of determining how well a radio setup would work for me.  i.e - Antennas/coax, power draw, mounting systems, stereo interference, etc.  It was to lead to my eventual installation of a VHF radio.  I do not like nor endorse the citizens band, nor do I claim to be affiliated with users of said band.  I am not a candy bander, and hold a valid amateur radio license to prove my non-alliance with users of the citizens band.

mikeylikey

Take it to RADIOSHACK.  The place is called RADIOshack for a reason!  I am sure between trying to sell you a cellphone and 10 billion AAA batteries they can look it up in some old Radioshack book.

RADIOSHACK!
What's up monkeys?

♠SARKID♠

Quote from: mikeylikey on January 21, 2008, 05:38:19 AM
Take it to RADIOSHACK.  The place is called RADIOshack for a reason!  I am sure between trying to sell you a cellphone and 10 billion AAA batteries they can look it up in some old Radioshack book.

RADIOSHACK!

I like radioshack about as much as I like a chili pepper in my eye.  I only go in there as a last resort, and only if I know EXACTLY what I want, and I know that they have it.  And with the staff we have around here, they wouldn't have a flipping clue as to what to do about my situation, and would probably try and tell me that a nice Radioshack brand CB is what I want.

mikeylikey

Quote from: ♠SARKID♠ link=topic=4108.msg79351#msg79351
And with the staff we have around here, they wouldn't have a flipping clue as to what to do about my situation, and would probably try and tell me that a nice Radioshack brand CB is what I want.

The last time I walked into a Radioshack I was looking for a Cable TV line splitter (a $3.99 item) and I somehow ended up walking out with a  Radioshack charge card, 4 packs of D batteries, a new cellphone, and a subscription to Sirius satelite radio.

That place has really gone down hill since the other big box electronic retailers opened up (best buy, circuit city etc).  I would actually try to avoid the place in the future, if I knew it wasn't the only place I can buy certain "parts".
What's up monkeys?