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Author Topic: Xenon Power Supply Help Justin West Master Film Handler Posts: 271 From: Peoria, IL, USA Registered: Jul 2001 posted 12-05-2004 11:04 AM                     I have since tried to emulate a completed lamphouse circuit by jumping terminals 2 to 5 and 4 to 6...then connected 120vac to the L1 and L3 power-input terminals and flipped the switch, then attempted to measure VDC output on the DC output connectors...nothing! Maybe I will need to try the same thing only find someone with 3-phase service...or else something really was zapped on the circuit board in this unit.  |  IP: Logged System Notices Forum Watchdog / Soup Nazi Posts: 215 Registered: Apr 2004 posted 04-17-2008 10:58 AM                 It has been 1228 days since the last post.  |  IP: Logged Ken Lackner Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1907 From: Atlanta, GA, USA Registered: Sep 2001 posted 04-17-2008 10:58 AM                     Does anyone know of a shop that repairs the "Version 0" supplies? I have a couple that are dead and I'd really hate to just junk 'em. I imagine the cost of repair, if anyone can do it, would be much cheaper than buying a new one the next time one dies. Mark, why do you say that a high reactance supply is a downgrade? They are far more reliable.  |  IP: Logged Mark Gulbrandsen Resident Trollmaster Posts: 16657 From: Music City Registered: Jun 99 posted 04-17-2008 07:58 PM                     Ken, Switchers are no less reliable than a high reactance supply if properly installed. Strong's high reactance supplies have a horrible reputation for many, many reasons and in fact if you have ordered a high reactance supply from Strong in the last say 4 or 5 years you will get one manufactured for them by LP Associates. The LP's are much better than the Strongs were. Lamp life with a switcher can be very long as the 35khz or higher switching frequency is basically invisible to the bulb itself. Inrush current can actually be finely controlled instead of just a theoretical value they is never quite met. The switchers from Strong are not the only ones around... They are also made by IREM and Sanrex. They are also quite easy for any qualified tech to repair. Contrary to popular beliefs it is not necessary to send a switcher back to Strong to get it repaired. Mark  |  IP: Logged Sean McKinnon Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1712 From: Peabody Massachusetts Registered: Sep 2000 posted 04-18-2008 12:49 PM                        In my (limited) experience I have found the brute force high reactance type supplies from strong to be a lot more reliable than the switchers. I know of many complexes that had to change out all 20 switchers for the ORC style high reactance supplies.  |  IP: Logged Mark Gulbrandsen Resident Trollmaster Posts: 16657 From: Music City Registered: Jun 99 posted 04-19-2008 02:11 PM                     quote: Sean McKinnon I know of many complexes that had to change out all 20 switchers for the ORC style high reactance supplies. Sean... They should have repaired the electrical problem at hand first! They will also more than likely suffer from more than normal number of diode failures down the road a short ways as well as lots of premature light bulb failures. I've seen this very same thing happen... Megaplex Theaters here in SLC had massive switcher failures in their first build. They also had QSC power amps shoot flames out their fronts... something they more or less never do. The culprit there was high line voltage... almost 130 volts steady state... I can't imagine how high the spikes were... In the second build whose line voltage was a bit more normal they installed high reactance rectifiers and still suffered an occasional diode failure. Ditto at location three. No surge supressors were installed on the booth panels at all!! Mark  |  IP: Logged Sean McKinnon Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1712 From: Peabody Massachusetts Registered: Sep 2000 posted 04-20-2008 10:07 AM                        Well, this particular theatre is in Danvers, Mass which is NOTORIOUS for dirty power, especially the area where the theatre is around the mall. They had a six screen across the highway that suffered brownouts constantly during the summer that would trip off all the sound processors and automations. They also went through Diodes (Christie CH series consoles) like crazy. When they built the 20 across the highway at the mall they put in all Strong Highlight II consoles with switchers. They had major problems with them burning up and not building up enough open circuit voltage to strike the lamp. After having Mass electric and Strong reps out at the theatre they finally replaced them with the ORC style high reactance supplies. Suprisingly all the issues went away. Lamps would light on the first try, and for some reason they rarely lose diodes anymore? The six across the highway re-opened as an independant seven screen with Christie CH, and SLC consoles and they still AFAIK go through diodes often. I don't know if the power company changed anything around the same time that they replaces all 20 switchers bug it was pretty amazing how all the issues went away after the swap. I also worked at a theatre that had Super-Lume X lamp houses on switchers. One of the switchers was replced with the vintage of power supple where strong changed the washers on the DC output to I think one brass and one steel maybe? Well, the problem with that is different metals will expand and contact differently when they get hot so after a while of the washers expanding and contracting at different rates it managed to work the connection loose causing more heat etc... One day I was working the concession stand when a customer came out and said that there was no picture on the screen. I opened the booth door and the stairway was filled with smoke. I ran up and killed all the power and when I investigated I found that it was the switcher that had caught on fire, the DC output terminal had burned up! Strong replaced the unit free of charge!  |  IP: Logged Mark Gulbrandsen Resident Trollmaster Posts: 16657 From: Music City Registered: Jun 99 posted 04-20-2008 10:46 AM                     quote: I ran up and killed all the power and when I investigated I found that it was the switcher that had caught on fire, the DC output terminal had burned up! Strong replaced the unit free of charge! YEP! This happens because either the DC lead was not tightened properly or the nut on the back half of the DC terminal was not tightened properly at the factory, I think Wrong has modified that tterminal board as well. This is a good example why through maintainance is a necessity. In all fairness to Wrong International this same problem happens on all other makes and brands of rectifiers too... I;ve seen both Irem and Christie rectifiers high current connection areas go up in smoke. Preventative maintainance catches alot of this stuff but not 100%. I also check inside breaker panels on alot of first time service visits... lots of loose breaker screws to be found. Mark  |  IP: Logged Sean McKinnon Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1712 From: Peabody Massachusetts Registered: Sep 2000 posted 04-21-2008 09:31 AM                        I think what exasperated the problem was Strongs brief switch to two different types of washers on the connection. Different metals will expand and contract at different rates. If you mix brass and steel for example, that is why (as you said, Mark) I ALWAYS check those connection during routine maintenance. I don't want anyone to have to go through what I went through at the tender age of 16 having a switcher belching smoke into the booth like crazy!  |  IP: Logged Dave Macaulay Film God Posts: 2321 From: Toronto, Canada Registered: Apr 2001 posted 04-21-2008 10:23 PM                     Strong has used the same rectifier to lamphouse wire numbers since dinosaurs walked the earth. Some have disappeared but the basic five are unchanging. Wires #2 and #4 are 120VAC power to the lamphouse from the rectifier with about 500VA worth of power available. Wires #5 and #6 are the rectifier on inputs. On high reactance models these go to the power contactor's coil through some thermal safety switches. On switchers the workings are different but the effect is similar - apply 120VAC and the rectifier starts making DC lamp power. Wire #3 is a dummy, used to pass an automation's "lamp on" relay contact up to the lamphouse so the AUTO/MANUAL switch can finally have a purpose. To trick the unit into making DC power without a lamphouse, jumper #2 to #5 and #4 to #6 then turn on the AC feed and the rectifier breaker (if it has one). This usually works, but... there's a trick thrown in by Strong - some console rectifiers have an internal connection between some terminals (I don't recall which - 2 to 5, 2 to 6, 4 to 5, or 4 to 6...?) and you might just get some buzzing and general lack of DC power. Some have a console/lamphouse switch, set it to lamphouse. Others are just wired different with no outside indication, try a single jumper from #2 to #5, if that doesn't work try #2 to #6, then #4 to #5 and then #4 to #6. One should work. The "wrong" connection may be shorting out the 120V lamphouse supply, overloading the little step-down transformer, so don't leave the thing powered for long if it isn't making DC power. Some switchers have an external mega-size fuseholder with a relatively unobtainable (ie special order in most of the world) special type fuse inside (16A super fast blow) and a really special trick: if you remove the fuse to check it because the danged supply isn't making power... and the fuse tests good... when you put it back in it does blow, instantly - unless you've left the rectifier powered off for a half hour or so. Sweet, eh? Later models have the same fuse and same trick but locate the fuse in a fuseholder hidden underneath one of the many-screwed covers. The fuse rarely blew in operation (and usually meant a fried DC block) but boy a lot of them were destroyed by "testing".  |  IP: Logged

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