To quote our friend Wikipedia:
"A regulated power supply is an embedded circuit, or stand alone unit, the function of which is to supply a stable voltage (or less often current), to a circuit or device that must be operated within certain power supply limits. [...]
The type of stabilization used may be restricted to ensuring that the output remains within certain limits under various load conditions, or it may also include compensation for variations in its own supply source."
So the SMPS600 is a regulated power supply that "keeps the output within certain limits under various load conditions".
So admitted: not a regulated power supply (power supply is regulated or not, not "not full" or "halve" or whatever....).
Being of no sonic advantage having a regulated supply is another matter, and there are different opinions; take a look for example at the Wire Amp thread where there has been a hot discussion on unregulated vs regulated power supplies with respect to dynamic power compression as a result of voltage sag.
A high power class A/B amplifier does not behave different from a class D amplifier when looking at the power supply.
No it's not; it will keep the output within certain limits under various load conditions, but that is not what is meant with a regulated power supply.
As you quote: "....the function of which is to supply a stable voltage to a circuit or device.....".
The SMPS600 is not supplying a stable voltage; here the datasheet is clear: output voltage is proportional to mains line voltage.
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Nice selective quoting. Let me quote the part you left out: "The SMPS180 has a PFC input, due to this PFC regulating the output voltage is regulated.".
So it is regulated.
Nice selective quoting
Jan Peter also said: "It's not a fully regulated supply", so in my opinion it is not a regulated supply since supplies are regulated or unregulated, not "fully" or "halve" or whatever.
Read a bit about PFC's and see that this has nothing to do with voltage regulation.
Yes it is.
That is precisely what is meant with a regulated power supply.
What part of "The type of stabilization used may be restricted to ensuring that the output remains within certain limits" don't you agree with?
Yes it is. It is held stable, independent of load (unlike in an unregulated supply), at a value proportional to the mains line voltage, and by doing that, it avoids the " dynamic power compression as a result of voltage sag" that, as you say, plague unregulated power supplies.
I agree with stopping the discussion.
But be clear and honest Jan Peter and reply with a simple "yes" or "no":
Is the SMPS180 "regulated" in terms of power delivery to varying loads by means of PFC?
Is it a voltage regulated power supply where output voltage is held stable (by an active regulating circuit) irrespective of mains line voltage?
Yes, for more details about the SMPS180 check the datasheet; http://www.hypex.nl/docs/SMPS180_datasheet.pdf
Come on Jan Peter, I know you can do it....
Say "no" to my second question, and don't invite me to ask you to rewrite your datasheets....
You don't take a "yes" for an answer, do you?
Even if the answer to your second question would be a "no" it would still be a regulated power supply (apart from your own special extra-demanding definition of "regulated").
So here is a question to you: Does the SMPS, in your opinion, allow the voltage to vary as the load varies (as would happen if the power supply was unregulated)? And if your answer is "no", would you then agree that, even if it doesn't correspond to your narrow definition of "regulated", the SMPS is not unregulated?
You don't take a "yes" for an answer, do you?
No I don't, especially since it does not correlate with the datasheet.
SMPS180 datasheet General Performance Data
Unregulated Output Voltage Aux 2x14 - 2x18 Vdc; note 5.
note 5: This output voltage is proportional to mains outputs Vcc and Vee respectively.
Is my conclusion correct that this power supply taps an unregulated supply from a regulated supply?
Hmmm clever guys at Hypex....
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It is not my own special extra-demanding definition of "regulated".
You came up yourself with the right definition of regulation in a previous post
(...stable voltage....).
My answer is yes, because the supply is voltage unregulated.
With varying loads (current demands) voltage will be unstable, albeit within respectable margins (as good quality power supplies should do).
I am not familiar with the SMPS180 - I have been talking about the SMPS600 that is intended for the nCore, and that is what this thread is about. Do you have a link to the SMPS180 datasheet?
At least on the SMPS600, the Aux voltage is unregulated, while the main output voltage is regulated. I am assumin the SMPS180 is the same.[/QUOTE]
Sorry Julf...
But I am with Pieter on this. Clearly, in common usage by anyone who deals with audio equipment, the usage of the phrase "regulated power supply" means a supply which holds the voltage constant, while also providing all the current that the circuit demands, regardless of load/line conditions.
I do not know what the SMPS 180 has to do with a thread about nCore, but it is totally clear that the SMPS 600 is not a regulated power supply, as it does not hold the output voltage constant. I am not going to argue semantics any further than this.
As far as whether the SMPS 600 might have technical advantages over a traditional linear amplifier supply (transformer-rectifiers-caps) that is a different discussion, and will depend entirely on the design of the linear supply as well (transformer size, type of rectifiers, amount of capacitance, etc).
But calling the SMPS 600 a regulated supply is misleading.
But I am with Pieter on this. Clearly, in common usage by anyone who deals with audio equipment, the usage of the phrase "regulated power supply" means a supply which holds the voltage constant, while also providing all the current that the circuit demands, regardless of load/line conditions.
I do not know what the SMPS 180 has to do with a thread about nCore, but it is totally clear that the SMPS 600 is not a regulated power supply, as it does not hold the output voltage constant. I am not going to argue semantics any further than this.
As far as whether the SMPS 600 might have technical advantages over a traditional linear amplifier supply (transformer-rectifiers-caps) that is a different discussion, and will depend entirely on the design of the linear supply as well (transformer size, type of rectifiers, amount of capacitance, etc).
But calling the SMPS 600 a regulated supply is misleading.
Clearly, in common usage, an unregulated supply is one that has no active regulation. In contrast, a regulated supply is one with an active regulation system that maintains a constant voltage even if the load changes.
I don't know what the SMPS180 has to do with any of this either, but it is totally clear that the SMPS600 is a regulated power supply.
Good.
Not as misleading as calling it an unregulated supply, unless you want to play semantic jiu-jitsu and call it an unregulated supply that happens to supply a regulated voltage.
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