PSU for Chameleon Standalone

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Don't Panic. Please wash hands.
  • Hello !

    Im probably posting this in the wrong section, but as its about a PSU I thought maybe it could go here.

    Today I got the new Chameleon v2. :-)
    And to be safe I thought I'd ask one time too many, instead of once too little.

    I just wonder what PSU I should use for the Chameleon now ?
    Can I use any 5V PSU ? I remember there was some mention of that it should be 5,1 V ?
    I see that the PSU plug is mini-USB not micro so that limits me to PSUs with detachable cable.
    I would otherwise maybe use a RPi PSU but they dont have detachable cable.

    I have an old iPAD 1 PSU/charger, that I think is 5,1V (not very much used, so should still be good ?)
    The PSU on my old Cham. v1 is just a nondescript USB psu but its 5,1V I think.

    The amperage should be greater than 1A ? Only 1A on that iPad PSU/charger.
    I plan to use PS2 mouse and keyboard.

    Thanks for any info !

  • Can I use any 5V PSU ?

    Almost, yes. The Chameleon requires around 420-450mA of current, but the 500mA-rated China PSUs may not be up to the task, and you need some headroom to add keyboard, mouse, SD-card and possibly the Docking Station. We therefore recommend 1A- or higher rated PSUs.

    I remember there was some mention of that it should be 5,1 V ?

    It was even a recommendation for 5.2V, but that was for the V1 hardware with cable loom. The V2 hardware is geared towards 5.0V, as those PSUs are much easier to come by.

    I have an old iPAD 1 PSU/charger, that I think is 5,1V (not very much used, so should still be good ?)

    5.1V should be OK as well, also for the V2 hardware.

  • Thanks for reply ! I know I'm a little out of line here as I saw that a lot was answered already in the Quickstart guide -
    For my v1 all these years I only used the PSU that Vesalia supplied back in the start - I see now it also is 5V but 1,2 Amps ! (Hama)

    I found I also have two dedicated USB PSUs 5V/2A (with detached USB cable) - but they are of nondescript China type so I think those might be a bad idea ? And I have no way to check if they are _regulated_ (?) I really need to get more electronics skills :-(

    In addition to the old iPad1 charger I have a new 2A Samsung charger and an old Samsung charger both for Galaxy Tabs. Could these be likely candidates ?

  • I found I also have two dedicated USB PSUs 5V/2A (with detached USB cable) - but they are of nondescript China type so I think those might be a bad idea ? And I have no way to check if they are _regulated_ (?)

    I'd trust they are regulated - even the cheapest PSU chip sets have a voltage reference and a regulation loop. Worth a try. And Hama is just a German importer of Chinese stuff, so the source might as well be the same :-)

    Could these be likely candidates ?

    Yes, anything that has a USB power outlet is a likely candidate.

  • Apparently my Chameleon v1 should have power greater than 5v ! I got some artifacts moving a little on the multicable but none when I used the 5.1 V iPad charger. But I HATE Apple and prefer not to use that charger. And I struggle to find other 5.1 V supplies. I thought about the Raspberry Pi supplies as I think they said they were 5.1 V but unfortunately they are micro usb and non detachable cable so I need a type a female to micro b female adapter or another 5.1 V supply :-( ANYONE have tips for me ? Thanks in advance ! And my image problems might also be solved due to the 5.1V supply voltage (but I would prefer to get it from other source than built by Apple .. :-( ) And the other v2 image problems were likely due to poor VGA cable !

  • ANYONE have tips for me ?

    You could solder a USB cable to the Docking Station - that will feed power into the Chameleon through the 44-pin port, bypassing the Schottky diode in the cable loom that is responsible for the slightly-higher voltage requirement.

  • Just wanted to apologise about negative words about image quality of V2 on FB. Looks like its resolved now, better PSU on V1 and better VGA cable on V2 ! Plus apparently there is some flicker due to the way the AGA core for minimig works ! And that is not due to hardware itself.

  • Don't apologize here - describe your solution on FB! I don't have an account there (and don't plan to). Not a single iComp employee has a FB account.

  • The last reply was more than 365 days ago, this thread is most likely obsolete. It is recommended to create a new thread instead.