Power Supply Looking for a sub-$50, UL-listed, 12V 240W/20A, 2.5mm barrel power supply

[Hifihedgehog]

The title of the thread says it all. I am looking for a robust, reliable power adapter to power a Mini-Box picoPSU-160-XT. More specifically, it needs to be a 240W/20A 12V, UL-listed power adapter, terminated with a 2.5mm barrel plug. My price range is $40 to $50 shipped. This Amazon listing's depicted Delta Electronics EADP-220AB, which I recently found, is essentially what I am after. However, given the broken English in points of the product description and the seller's 92% rating, it could be the product is not the Delta unit at all (merely, an example of the kind of item being sold, perhaps) or, worse, a Chinese counterfeit. Hence, this post. Your help is greatly appreciated. Thank you.

EDIT: 2020 buyer beware! According to the reviews, the Amazon seller has since switched to an inferior, off-brand 120W unit that is NOT manufactured by Delta. Do NOT purchase from the Amazon link above.

 

[Thehack]

If you're actually going to use it above 120W watts continuous, you should know that 5.5/2.5 top out at around 120W. You need to use 7.4mm or some kind of 4 or 6 pin.

 

[Hifihedgehog]

If you're actually going to use it above 120W watts continuous, you should know that 5.5/2.5 top out at around 120W. You need to use 7.4mm or some kind of 4 or 6 pin.

Thanks, since this is my first time working with this small of a form factor and configuration of power supplies. The Mini-Box power supply (fortunately, not ordered yet) will be in a Streacom F7C Alpha (already ordered), which has a predrilled hole on the back. My next question is: does the F7C Alpha's hole in stock form (the family member does not want any mods of any kind that would void a warranty) accept other larger barrel sizes or connectors that can supply more current?

 

[aquelito]

I used to have a F7C and what I did was modding a low profile bracket to fit a HDPLEX 7.4mm barrel PCB (Picobox X7-ATX-500 on the picture though) :

 

[Hifihedgehog]

I used to have a F7C and what I did was modding a low profile bracket to fit a HDPLEX 7.4mm barrel PCB (Picobox X7-ATX-500 on the picture though) :

Thanks! That’s great, but if there was a more simple method with a purchasable part, I’d appreciate it. Perhaps there are half-height brackets sold commercially that have larger barrel plugs on them? If it were my own PC, I’d actually be more than willing to look into doing this. But since we don’t own a Dremel and this family member wants no major modding for his PC, a mod job is a no-go.

 

[Hifihedgehog]

If you're actually going to use it above 120W watts continuous, you should know that 5.5/2.5 top out at around 120W. You need to use 7.4mm or some kind of 4 or 6 pin.

Actually, to double check, is continuous power probably a bit lower than 120W? The system will have a Ryzen 5 2400G, ASRock ITX motherboard, 32GB (2x16GB) DDR4, one 512 GB PCIe M.2 SSD, two SATA SSDes (capacity TBD), and roughly four USB 2.0 and 3.0 hard drives. This is only an HTPC (just Kodi serving up at most UHD Blu-rays, and light gaming of GOG games earlier than 2012 and Dolphin emulation), with zero overclocking and it will not be a media server. Given all of this, will continuous power be under 120 watts?

If that is safely under that threshold, let’s return to my initial question in the original post.

 

[aquelito]

Thanks! That’s great, but if there was a more simple method with a purchasable part, I’d appreciate it. Perhaps there are half-height brackets sold commercially that have larger barrel plugs on them? If it were my own PC, I’d actually be more than willing to look into doing this. But since we don’t own a Dremel and this family member wants no major modding for his PC, a mod job is a no-go.

I just used a bracket with a VGA port. Not even sure I had to drill an extra hole

 

[Thehack]

Actually, to double check, is continuous power probably a bit lower than 120W? The system will have a Ryzen 5 2400G, ASRock ITX motherboard, 32GB (2x16GB) DDR4, one 512 GB PCIe M.2 SSD, two SATA SSDes (capacity TBD), and roughly four USB 2.0 and 3.0 hard drives. This is only an HTPC (just Kodi serving up at most UHD Blu-rays, and light gaming of GOG games earlier than 2012 and Dolphin emulation), with zero overclocking and it will not be a media server. Given all of this, will continuous power be under 120 watts?

If that is safely under that threshold, let’s return to my initial question in the original post.

It would be at around 120W continuous for that build (probably closer to 100W with no OC). You said you have a PICO-PSU. If you can, you should just buy the one mini-box sources. They're not that much over what you'd pay anyways, and you're guarantee a non-crap one.

Their 12V PSU has 4pin connector.

 

[Hifihedgehog]

It would be at around 120W continuous for that build (probably closer to 100W with no OC). You said you have a PICO-PSU. If you can, you should just buy the one mini-box sources. They're not that much over what you'd pay anyways, and you're guarantee a non-crap one.

Their 12V PSU has 4pin connector.

So, yes, I have a Mini-Box picoPSU-160-XT, due around Friday/next Monday. The problem with their AC-DC adapter in their kit on their website is that it uses a mini-DIN, which would require modding the case. So I am just purchasing the Delta power supply I mentioned. Amazon told me given that it is fulfilled by Amazon, if it does not match the description, including the photos, or is inauthentic, that they would refund me and investigate the seller. I also just contacted my regional office for Delta Electronics, and they could confirm authenticity of the adapter for me. So, we're going that route unless this turns out to be a fake.

 

[Hifihedgehog]

I can now confirm that the Delta Electronics power supply listed on Amazon that I shared in the original post is authentic. At a mere $40, what a steal for a UL-listed 240W AC-DC power brick with a 2.5mm barrel plug.

 

[robbee]

20 amps over a 2.5mm barrel, yikes! The limits i've seen for those connectors range from 5 to 8 amps...

 

[aquelito]

Incredible for a 12V unit !
Looks like it's Dell DA-2 with 5.5 x 2.5 mm DC jack connector.

Did your Delta office confirm if the 5.5 DC jack is legit and what is its current rating ?

I own an original Delta 12V 12.5A with a 5.5mm DC jack ; it's the most powerful unit I came across with such a small barrel.

 

[Hifihedgehog]

Incredible for a 12V unit !
Looks like it's Dell DA-2 with 5.5 x 2.5 mm DC jack connector.

Did your Delta office confirm if the 5.5 DC jack is legit and what is its current rating ?

I own an original Delta 12V 12.5A with a 5.5mm DC jack ; it's the most powerful unit I came across with such a small barrel.

I contacted Delta, who referred me to Cisco. Cisco informed me the product, though its serial number is not in its database and was sold through an unauthorized "gray market" channel, is very likely legitimate given the format and pattern of the serial number (i.e. DCH1120xxxx) and overall appearance of the product itself. According to the Cisco representative, until the item has cleared sale from an authorized reseller, Cisco does not add it into their product serial number database—strange procedure, but okay. At any rate, I have personally handled the product and closely examined the materials and construction, though, and I agree it is authentic. Most especially, it has the most rugged and solid-feeling cabling and casing I have ever seen in a 2.5mm barrel plug-equipped power adapter. It is more battle-proof than the UL-listed FSP Group supplies which come bundled with the Intel NUCs, including Skull Canyon, I have used, as well as sundry stock laptop power adapters. Based on this, I am certain it is legitimate.

 

[aquelito]

Thank you very much for the thorough answer. Very good to know, I think I'll snap one for my thin mini-ITX builds.

I asked because I also own a Dell DA-2 modded with a 5.5 DC jack, which looks very similar to yours.
My unit looks and feels very profesionnal but it is not official !

BTW, the other 150W unit I have is a FSP150-AHAN1, with an original 5.5 DC jack.

The mystery in all this is that DC barrels are rated for up to 10A (confirmed by Gigabyte).
Why producing 20A AC Adapters if the DC barrel is rated for half ?...

 

[Hifihedgehog]

The mystery in all this is that DC barrels are rated for up to 10A (confirmed by Gigabyte).
Why producing 20A AC Adapters if the DC barrel is rated for half ?...

I wonder that myself. Apparently, according to Cisco, it is used for powering their enterprise-oriented network appliances but I never asked which. I am rather curious now, though, so I will call and ask which specific device(s) it is used to power.

 

[Hifihedgehog]

First, answer. Yes, 2.5mmx5.5mm barrel plugs can support up to 20A. Mouser has one right here, who confirmed this:

http://www.mouser.com/catalog/specsheets/KC-300479.pdf

Via:

https://electronics.stackexchange.c...tings-on-barrel-connectors-work/108079#108079

The one on this Delta/Cisco power supply feels incredibly heavy duty, more than many plugs I have handled on high-end gaming laptops. So it will likely have similar power delivery capabilities. In fact, this Cisco power supply has the very same locking dimple as the Kobiconn barrel plug above. It could be one and the same part as 1710-2522 or an equivalent!

To answer the related curiosity we both had, the UC520 is the device this power supply is commonly used with. However, it typically has an 8-pin connector in that case.

Boy, I learned a lot today.

 

[aquelito]

Good call !

However, on the "receptacle" side, I've never seen a barrel rated for more than 10A.
That's actually the maximum you can find on Mouser :

CUI PJ-080BH

I'm pretty sure this is the barrel connector on my Gigabyte H110-TN-M thin mini-ITX motherboard.
Gigabyte also confirmed few months back that the motherboard connector is rated for 10A.

I would love to have a 20A one as I'm using it to output power to my GPU, through the on-board Mini-Fit JR.
Right now I'm limited by the barrel conenctor to a 120W system (35W CPU and a 1050 Ti).

@QinX any clue why DC jack are rated for more than DC barrel connectors ?

 

[robbee]

First, answer. Yes, 2.5mmx5.5mm barrel plugs can support up to 20A. Mouser has one right here, who confirmed this:

Nice find. Like @aquelito noted, the jack also needs to be rated for the current. I would contact Mini-box about the current rating of their jack or keep a very close eye on temperatures.

 

[Thehack]

There's a reason why the industry moves to a 4 pin DIN when using above 10A.

So yeah, you can use it, but if you're OCing or doing anything crazy, I'd be weary of the risks of melting the connector. A 2400G should be 100-120W when given a light OC.

Not sure why it was even manufactured. Maybe it was a mistake specification so the units ended up on the gray market?

 

[Shahmatt]

I am also building a Raven Ridge pc. Should your solution give you trouble consider a 19V dc atx instead. Coupled with a 180w adapter you should be able to use a 2.5mm jack with no trouble.