Switchmode Supplies - WTF???

I´m so sick of this useless technology. Today my third reverb died for this month. First a TC M3k, then our Eventide Eclipse and now a Bricasti M7.
Are electronic manufacturers too stupid to implement this technology right? Since I´m in my actual job (5 years) I had no linear PSU failure but I had app 30 SMS failures. Please, someone tell them to go back to reliable technology SMS is not progress, it´s a drag, a piece of crap that gives me headache. Higher maintenance cost, more downtime, reliability issues, lost time through deinstallation + repair. I AM READY TO PAY EXTRA MONEY FOR LINEAR SUPPLIES, PLEASE GIVE ME THIS BEAUTIFULLY WORKING TECHNIQUE BACK!


rant over (not really)

jensenmann said:

I´m so sick of this useless technology. Today my third reverb died for this month. First a TC M3k, then our Eventide Eclipse and now a Bricasti M7.
Are electronic manufacturers too stupid to implement this technology right? Since I´m in my actual job (5 years) I had no linear PSU failure but I had app 30 SMS failures. Please, someone tell them to go back to reliable technology SMS is not progress, it´s a drag, a piece of crap that gives me headache. Higher maintenance cost, more downtime, reliability issues, lost time through deinstallation + repair. I AM READY TO PAY EXTRA MONEY FOR LINEAR SUPPLIES, PLEASE GIVE ME THIS BEAUTIFULLY WORKING TECHNIQUE BACK!


rant over (not really)

Click to expand...

+1


M7 down? 

1 fried adi 8 pro here due to failing SMS....this was a couple of years ago..

The technology is actually reliable but due to peny pinching the ones they  generally use in audio are cheap designs and working just on their limits.

Is this maybe a symptom?  Really bad luck aside, I'd guess that the supplies are overheating. Is their plenty of ventilation space?  There are these little LCD temperature displays that have a stick-on sensor that you can get for a few dollars which you could use to monitor the PSU temperature.  In my experience, mechanical and thermal failures account for almost all electronics failures, other than devices that succumb to infant mortality. If a device survives a few days of random power cycling and thermal stress, then it will probably last forever unless it's mechanically stressed.

My biggest complaint about SMPS is that they are difficult to repair at best, and typically have unobtainable parts. Also, the wicked bad shocks you get if you get careless

I hope your luck improves!

They require good ventilation, because of the above reasons.  Biggest failure is dried caps, either by themselves or also taking down silicon junctions.  Third fault is cold solder due to heat.
Mike

http://www.groupdiy.com/index.php?topic=19733.0

I think there was another thread about switching supply repair.  If I find it I will post a link.

There are lots of SMPS in use and working so this may be anecdotal... I recall having a similar conversation with a friend in Oz and he was complaining about (switching) computer PS always failing and I was surprised because I didn't have a similar experience, but thinking about it, I suspect pretty much the same universal PS are being used in both 120v and 240v markets, so perhaps the 240V market sees more failures due to more stress, or specifically less headroom. 

I still haven't quite figured out why customers tolerate higher levels of failures with computers than they do almost every other product.

JR

To me the biggest problem with SMS supplies is that when they go wrong, they take down whatever is connected with them.
I have had two PC dead because of a 5cents tantalum capacitor that went pow at turn on!!  :-\

To me, linear supplies, with their inefficiencies and power waste is still the better way to go. And when they go down, it does happen, usually there will be no more damage...  (allas, not always)

Luc

I've had at least one switching computer PSU fail. But it was a very cheap one. Didn't make that mistake again.