Another 12v trigger question

cbecker33

cbecker33

Audioholic
I'm looking to purchase 2 surge suppressors with 12v triggers, unfortunately my receiver only has a powered 120v out. I was wondering if it was possible to make (or use pre-existing hardware preferably since I have little electrical skill) an adapter for this?

I would also like to be able to delay the turn on, perhaps 3 seconds for one suppressor and 6 seconds for the next.

Any help would be much appreciated!

thanks,
-chris
 
WorkerBee

WorkerBee

Junior Audioholic
Keep asking around here or on other forums....seems like a pretty technical question to me.
Somebody might pop in here before long that has that kind of knowledge. :)
 
Last edited:
BMXTRIX

BMXTRIX

Audioholic Warlord
I don't know how you would deal with the delay you are after, but you can use a generic 12v wall wart that you can pick up from Radio Shack or you may have laying around from an old cel phone or piece of computer gear, etc.

You may need to clip the wire and put on the right connector to trigger the surge supressor, but it should work with no problem.
 
cbecker33

cbecker33

Audioholic
BMXTRIX said:
I don't know how you would deal with the delay you are after, but you can use a generic 12v wall wart that you can pick up from Radio Shack or you may have laying around from an old cel phone or piece of computer gear, etc.

You may need to clip the wire and put on the right connector to trigger the surge supressor, but it should work with no problem.

Do all wall warts have the correct amp output (I think that is what I need to focus on - probably around >30 m amps because the specs say on one suppressor says 30ma, the other one says >10ma )? I assume it will be no problem splitting the wires and running them to two 1/8 mini plugs, correct?

thanks,
-chris
 
Last edited:
cbecker33

cbecker33

Audioholic
Also, disreguard the delay question, the panamax 4400 has a built in 10 second delay.


Thanks,
-chris
 
BMXTRIX

BMXTRIX

Audioholic Warlord
12 volt wall warts typically go upward from 500ma - so if one needs 30 or more and the other needs 10 or more, you have used 40 of the 500ma. Yeah, 12 volt triggers require slightly more than no power, but barely. Almost any wall wart will do you fine. 12 volt triggers also typically work with 6-24 volts not just 12. They just are looking for some voltage that triggers them.
 
cbecker33

cbecker33

Audioholic
BMXTRIX said:
12 volt wall warts typically go upward from 500ma - so if one needs 30 or more and the other needs 10 or more, you have used 40 of the 500ma. Yeah, 12 volt triggers require slightly more than no power, but barely. Almost any wall wart will do you fine. 12 volt triggers also typically work with 6-24 volts not just 12. They just are looking for some voltage that triggers them.

So if I get a adapter that puts out 500m amps, I'm not gonna fry anything, right?? Also, is it a problem because the source from the receiver will be a 120v outlet as opposed to a true 12v trigger? What I want to know is, does the 12v trigger simply send a short burst, or is a constant source of power? I just want to know if I'm going to damage anything.

thanks
-chris
 
BMXTRIX

BMXTRIX

Audioholic Warlord
The wall wart transforms the power from 120v to 12v so the 120v is exactly what is appropriate when combined with the transformer.

Almost all products that use low voltage just draw as much power as is necessary to make them work. So, if you have a 12v 500ma product, and a 12v 1500ma transformer, you don't damage the product that only draws 500ma, you just have extra power left over. In your situation, you won't blow up your product because you have some extra ma left over - as long as you are feeding within the low voltage specs of the products you are trying to turn on your are fine.

12 volt output should always be constant, not pulsed to 12v triggered products. If it was a pulse that turned on the surge supressor and an identical pulse turned the surge supressor off - then how would the trigger know if it was on or off? Instead, when 12 volts exists, the supressor is on, when 12 volt doesn't exist, the surge supressor is off. There is no middle ground where it 'may be' on or it 'may be' off.
 
cbecker33

cbecker33

Audioholic
Excellent,

Thanks BMXTRIX, that's exactly what I needed to know.

-chris
 
newsletter

  • RBHsound.com
  • BlueJeansCable.com
  • SVS Sound Subwoofers
  • Experience the Martin Logan Montis
Top