On Wed,8/3/2016 11:29 AM, Ken Winterling wrote:
Check out the IOTA power supplies. I have had the IOTA DLS-55 with IQ4
smart charger module for years. Sometimes it has run 24/7 for months. The
IOTA units are exceptionally RF clean and have excellent electrical
characteristics.
Hi Ken,
I've scoured the IOTA website and cannot find a single word about EMC
compliance, nor even about use with radio equipment. Their "technical
library" is largely dedicated to the charging of lead-acid batteries.
There are no prices on the website, and clicking on "Ham Radio/Hobby" in
the Distributor link directs me to a company that specializes in sales
to radio control users (we're talking battery charging for model
airplanes here) and another that specializes in SELLING "TOP-OF-THE-LINE
Chargers/Power Supplies/converters to Manufacturing and the Public,"
neither of which gives me a warm fuzzy feeling about RFI.
Whether or not RFI will be observed from any noise source will strongly
depend upon what "antennas" are connected to that noise source (AC
wiring, DC wiring), the proximity of receiving antennas to the noise
source, and the other RF noise present in the environment. Most hams
have antennas that are pretty close to their shacks, and most of us have
RF noise from other sources in the homes and businesses that surround
us. I've seen far too many observations that XYZ product is clean when
in reality it is not, or is quiet on some bands and not others, when in
reality the noise it produces is covered up by other noise. As a result,
I'm VERY skeptical of observations like this, especially when the mfr's
published materials make no mention of RFI, when the product is not sold
through ham distributors, and when the product is primarily used as a
charger. :)
All I can find in IOTA product literature is this statement: "The
exceptionally clean DC output of the DLS Series converter promotes
longer life for any connected load and virtually eliminates AC ripple
that can cause static or premature failure of radio or television
equipment." To most power supply designers, "ripple" means
power-frequency variations in voltage, not RF noise.
I've tried to use products like this that hams had claimed were "very
quiet" and found that they were not. My QTH is quieter than most, but
far from dead quiet, because I have neighbors. I've yet to find a
switching power supply that is anything approaching quiet on 160M, or
that is quiet enough to be run within 30 ft of HF antennas.
So my question is, how quiet is your QTH, and how close are your
antennas to your shack?
73, Jim K9YC
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