DAP-1522 not reverse polarity protected

[Joe Ross]

The new DAP-1522 radio is not reverse polarity protected. Make sure you check you connections, before powering it up.

[Mr. Lim]

We learned this about 3 days ago as well... the hard way.

In Canada, they are carried by Office Depot, and Canada Computer. They range from about $99 to $120.

If anyone has had any success breathing life back in to one of these, I'd like to hear from you.

We replaced two 100uF 25V caps which we popped near the power connector, but to no avail.

[Jon Stratis]

Ouch... that's definitely good advice! I'll take it one step further - don't be satisfied by a visual inspection, either. Unplug the radio before you power it up for the first time, and check the polarity with a multimeter. It's an easy way to save your team $100!

[rsisk]

Can one of the very smart people on this forum give us a quick lesson in an easy to understand way how to check that this is wired properly?

Thanks

[DonRotolo]

Sure.

The power connector is a DC Coaxial Plug (see below, right), and it fits into a socket on the back of the DAP-1522 (see below, left). As shown on the back of the DAP-1522, the center conductor is +5 Volts and the outer 'shell' is ground.

Set your Voltmeter to DC Volts, with a range high enough to read 5 volts safely. With power applied to the power connector, place the RED lead of the voltmeter into the center hole of the power plug, and touch the BLACK lead to the outer metal shell.

Your meter will read either "5.000 v DC" or "-5.000 v DC" (Your numbers will vary from this somewhat. It should be pretty close to 5 though) If it reads MINUS voltage, the power is reversed (and this is bad). Have someone else double-check, regardless of your reading. $100 is a lot of money to fry.

Be certain you understand and can recognize the difference between a positive voltage display and a negative.

[rsisk]

Dang it...

You must spread some Reputation around before giving it to DonRotolo again.

Don, that was exactly what I was looking for. Thanks

[DonRotolo]

Rich, your question wasn't all that ambiguous. So...

Thanks for the virtual greenies.