Topic: jb3 external power II...

[jdawg]

What that box looks amazing... so professional! Nice job!

Yes, indeed, Great looking box! +T  But it is as "minty fresh" as my Altoids contraption? 

[JackoRoses]

You still have a non locking adaptaplug on the external lithium battery though..
And IME I have not had any problems using a M adaptaplug on my V3.
Plus you have a non locking plug on the device you are trying to power (NJB3)
Not to say I am not waiting for Marc to get more connectors in so I can order my RA V3
cord. Why not just use the same concept as the V3 though for locking connectors?
I still feel SLA's are flintstone era now with the external lithiums in abundance.
4 lithium packs should power a NJB3 and V3 for a weekend. Off of ebay those 4 packs
would cost a little more then one SLA no?
Thanks for helping me to understand.

[fozzy]

i have converted everything i have to these.  Dean's ultraplug.  very sturdy and made for rc racing so they won't come unplugged unless you want em to.
I do also have some 4pin to dean's patch cords incase i have to borrow some power but have yet to use them.  much more low profile than the xlr's but definately just as rugged.

[JackoRoses]

Fozzy I like those.
Definately better then a adaptaplug and very low profile compared to the XLR.

[tms]

Any idea of the efficiency of this?  Voltage regulators are meant to be mounted to a heat sink, right?  For a music festival, say 20 hours of taping, it might take a big 12V battery to go this route.  If you could measure the efficiency it would be helpful.

got some voltage output data for the regulator circuit i'm working on.

input: 24v (actual 21.91v)
output: 5.20v

input: 12v (actual 11.17v)
output: 5.20v

input: 9.6v (actual 9.3v)
output: 5.21v

input: 7.2v (actual 7.15v)
output: 5.20

input: 6v (actual 5.34)
output: 3.97v

the circuit is very compact and basically can be placed inline in a small hobby box with xlr panel mounts, if necessary.

the regulator IC can handle 1.5A of current so that should be more than ample.

now, who wants to send me their jb3 for testing? 

marc

[thierryhenry]

Dude that box rocks, I don't know what the fuck is going on, but it rocks.

[leegeddy]

You still have a non locking adaptaplug on the external lithium battery though..
And IME I have not had any problems using a M adaptaplug on my V3.
Plus you have a non locking plug on the device you are trying to power (NJB3)
Not to say I am not waiting for Marc to get more connectors in so I can order my RA V3
cord. Why not just use the same concept as the V3 though for locking connectors?
I still feel SLA's are flintstone era now with the external lithiums in abundance.
4 lithium packs should power a NJB3 and V3 for a weekend. Off of ebay those 4 packs
would cost a little more then one SLA no?
Thanks for helping me to understand.

the xlr connection and sla are not mutually exclusive. one has nothing to do with the other.  the 4pin xlrs simply provide a very ROBUST connection and is foolproof.  you can NOT get the polarity mixed up and the connections are no=brainers.

Any idea of the efficiency of this? Voltage regulators are meant to be mounted to a heat sink, right? For a music festival, say 20 hours of taping, it might take a big 12V battery to go this route. If you could measure the efficiency it would be helpful.

i'm hoping that the guys who run the prototypes can give us some feedback.

marc

[spyder9]

Marc, check your PMs. 

[JackoRoses]

the xlr connection and sla are not mutually exclusive. one has nothing to do with the other.  the 4pin xlrs simply provide a very ROBUST connection and is foolproof.  you can NOT get the polarity mixed up and the connections are no=brainers.

Good point, you would have to be a blooming idiot to plug a xlr in wrong.
I can see this proving valuable in the middle of a festival saturday night changing battery packs between sets all swilled up. Thanks for helping me to see the light 

[mmmatt]

In an effort to keep this thread as long as "jb3 external power I"    I figured I'd share a few pics of my 5v regulator that I just finished tonight! This was the first circuit I've ever put together I think. Anyway, here are a few shots. Now whether or not I'd actually use this in the field, who knows, but it was fun just working on it. And thanks again to Fozzy for that Altoids tin idea!

curiously cool... +T for a minty fresh box!
Matt

[Crumbo]

damn....that's a great looking box

very nice Marc 

[bagtagsell]

I just did what John2525az built.  Same exact box in an altoids can.
Pros-
small
cheap!!!
works like a charm

cons-
harder than hacking car charger
average soldering skills needed
might be some heat issues, haven't run it for more than a few mins.

Right now I am a big fan of this one.  way to go guys!!!

[sethro]

Hey leegeddy, I've got a question about your Bumblebee VR-JBOX.  Can the circut regulate down somewhere between 3.2v and 4.1v?  I've converted and internal jb3 battery to accept external power.  I made a 3v battery and it works great, the problem is recharging it.  As I have a ua-5 on the way a vr-box seems more useful than trying to make a single "altoids tin" circut to regulate the battery.

[leegeddy]

Hey leegeddy, I've got a question about your Bumblebee VR-JBOX.  Can the circut regulate down somewhere between 3.2v and 4.1v?  I've converted and internal jb3 battery to accept external power.  I made a 3v battery and it works great, the problem is recharging it.  As I have a ua-5 on the way a vr-box seems more useful than trying to make a single "altoids tin" circut to regulate the battery.

yes. the output voltage can be tailored to 3-4v.

marc

[poorlyconditioned]

Like everyone else here I'm trying to power both a UA5 and a NJB3.

Attempt #1: 12V SLA battery plus two car adapters (active regulators) one to 9V and the other to 5V.  Problem: whenever the NJB3 did a seek there was a lot of noise/buzzing in the UA5.

Attempt #2: Two walmart-type 9V Li Ion batteries.  One feeds the UA5 directly, and the other feeds the NJB3 through a 5V 7805 passive regulator.  Problem: It seems these batteries cut out under high load.  If I leave the battery in the NJB3, the current is very high (it charges as well as records) and the battery cuts out quickly.  If I remove the NJB battery it runs for longer, but it still cuts out randomly.  Question: is this normal, or is there something wrong with my battery?  It seems to cut out if I try to draw more than, say 1.5A out of it.  The battery returns to normal if I disconnect and reconnect it.

I've got two plans going forward.  One is to use NIMH, either directly into NJB battery holder (three cells) or get a 7.2V NIMH pack (six cells), put it through the 7805 and then into the 5V port.  The second plan is to use SLA for the NJB, but I'd hate to carry all that weight.

Thanks for the inspiration guys.  Even if things aren't working, I'm having a blast with all this stuff!

  Richard