I believe Manfred is exactly right. Linear power supplies tend to be
less trouble-prone than switchers, but when they do fail, their failure
mode can dump a significant overvoltage on their load. Fortunately, an
inexpensive crowbar overvoltage circuit solves that problem. For me, I
always prefer to use linear power supplies because they last longer and
never cause RFI problems, which switchers are prone to. On the other
hand, the switchers are lighter and significantly more efficient than
their linear counterparts, and cheaper too, so ultimately the decision
which to use comes down to personal preference.
73,
Jim W8ZR
On 12/7/2017 7:08 AM, Randall, Randy wrote:
The bottom line is that switching power supplies are far less likely to expose
a radio to overvoltage, although it's likely that their overall failure rate is
higher than that of linear power supplies, owing to their higher complexity.
Where there are more parts, there is more that can go wrong.
A high power linear power supply should always be fitted with a crowbar-type
overvoltage protection. A switching supply can also be fitted with one, but
it's less necessary.
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