$15 HD300 Power Adapter Tester

[KeithAbbott]

Recently, I was having some troubles with one of my HD300s, and I was trying to determine if the power adapter was to blame. Which got me to wondering how to test a power adapter. One way that power adapters go bad is if they can no longer deliver enough power to the device. The result is the voltage drops below the required voltage to run the device. So I located a few components that allowed me to view the voltage being supplied to the HD300 under load. The two components needed are:

Mini DC 3.5-30V Voltmeter LED Panel 3-Digital Voltage Meter 2-wire (approximately $5, including S&H)



BiXPower 1 to 2 Power Split Dongle Cable for 5.5 x 2.5mm Barrel Connector (approximately $10, including S&H)

Make sure you order the 2-wire version of the voltmeter, the 3-wire version requires a separate power source for the voltmeter. Clip one of the male ends off of the splitter cable, and determine which wire goes to the conductor inside the barrel (positive), and which wire goes to the outside or ring of the barrel (negative). Connect the red wire from the voltmeter to the positive wire, and the black wire from the voltmeter to the negative wire. Plug the untouched male end of the splitter cable into the HD300, and then plug the HD300 power adapter into the female end of the splitter cable. The HD300 should turn on, and the voltmeter should display the voltage being supplied by the power adapter.

Ideally, the voltage should be greater than or equal to 12 volts for an HD300, even if you are using the USB ports. The further the voltage falls under 12 volts, the more likely you are to have problems with the HD300, and the power adapter should probably be replaced.

I am also working on a voltmeter for the HDHomeRun Prime, which uses a 5.5 x 2.1mm barrel connector. I'll update this posting with my results.

[wayner]

This would also be useful for power supplies for the Hauppauge HDPVR which have extremely high failure rates.

[Zogg]

That self-powered meter is a really good find! Very useful for these applications.

[mdnttoker]

great solution, thanks for posting!

[KeithAbbott]

Originally Posted by wayner

This would also be useful for power supplies for the Hauppauge HDPVR which have extremely high failure rates.

Agreed, with one change. The HD PVR uses a 5.5 x 2.1mm barrel connector, so a different splitter cable would be needed. I've ordered the splitter, I'll update this post once I receive it.

[KeithAbbott]

I've verified that this works for an HD PVR 2, which uses a 5.5 x 2.5mm barrel connector. Still waiting on delivery of the parts for the HDHomeRun Prime and HD PVR.