LZX Capsule Low Noise Eurorack Power Supply
Category: Unknown · Tags: diy · Posts: 35
#1 — phosphenes · 2021-04-27
Sharing Lars’s post from Facebook for those who might not be on there!
“We have made our +/-12V +/-1A EuroRack power supply available as an open hardware design. Gerbers and Diptrace source files are available below. Do absolutely anything you want with it (except please, please don’t design poorly routed derivative PCBs.)
Experienced DIY’ers are welcome to help commit resources or export products to the repository. The switcher module this design uses is a little pricy, but available OTS from Mouser/DigiKey in low quantities, so it is a good design for DIY. For those without lots of hand SMT experience, this would be an advanced level SMT build due to the QFN parts. But it is low parts count on the SMT side.
This may not be identical to what we offer in the future, but it’s a solid EuroRack power supply design and now you own it.”
https://github.com/lzxindustries/lzxcapsule+/-12V +/-1A Low Noise EuroRack Power Supply. Contribute to lzxindustries/lzxcapsule development by creating an account on GitHub.
Link: lzxindustries/lzxcapsule
#2 — reverselandfill · 2021-04-27
The Mainboard looks like a 4layer board, the Switcher a 2layer board.
I see the mainboard has 11x (16pin) power connectors, so it acts as a busboard too. neat!
Some visuals:
#3 — Fox · 2021-04-27
Here are the two internal copper layers. JLC’s gerber viewer doesn’t show you these.
+/-12V fills and GND plane respectively:
#4 — addamm · 2021-05-11
My first time messing around with diptrace but it looks like the switcher pcb is just an add on to mount/attach the DKA30A-12 to the main board? Passive SMD stuff looks like 0603. The TPS7A voltage regulators look a little tricky to hand solder but maybe not?
Anyone thinking of doing a pcb run?
#5 — reverselandfill · 2021-05-11
addamm wrote:
TPS7A
JLCPCB might have these in stock, so a SMD populated pcb run would be possible.
I have to check their list some more. The TPS7A would be 5v right?
#6 — addamm · 2021-05-11
reverselandfill wrote:
SMD populated pcb run would be possible.
Interesting! Looks like the non-basic parts are
TPS7A3301RGWR
TPS7A4700RGWR (not sure what voltage you’re looking for - the specs indicate a range for input and output, and mouser has low stock on these)
MURATA BNX (not sure which one? I may have not exported the BOM with all the info)
#7 — reverselandfill · 2021-05-11
a BOM would be handy
(I don’t have Diptrace installed here)
#8 — eyesnoface · 2021-05-11
BNX016-01 is the part that should be used here. https://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/Murata-Electronics/BNX016-01?qs=wcegd7B9MGv5f1vSnNmbeg%3D%3D
#9 — addamm · 2021-05-12
thanks @eyesnoface, updated the sheet
@reverselandfill here’s the BOM, Not sure if I can share a csv on the forum. Happy to email or share via google if you want.
edit: not sure part 15 is a missing value resistor or just an extra line. Can take a closer look possibly tomorrow.
NameManufacturerQuantity1GRM188R71H104KA93DMurata Electronics222GRM188R71H103JA01DMurata Electronics13GRM319R6YA106KA12DMurata Electronics64870025574001Wurth Electronics25GRM188R61H105KAALDMurata Electronics26WP424IDTKingbright27SS5P10Vishay18EUROPWR16_HORIZ119644456-4TE Connectivity41039-30-1041Molex211PJ-002ACUI11287230-3TE Connectivity113BNX016-01Murata Electronics114RC0603FR-071M5LYageo115Yageo116RC0603FR-071KLYageo217RC0603FR-0710KLYageo118RC0603FR-070RLYageo219TESTPOINT320TPS7A3301RGWRTexas Instruments121TPS7A4700RGWRTexas Instruments1
#10 — Rik_bS · 2021-05-12
So… I’m in the market for a new PSU soon, would probably need one per 1U row, who do I give my money to?
#11 — thynk · 2021-05-12
Screen caps of schematics:
https://p139.p2.n0.cdn.getcloudapp.com/items/qGuELemG/4066b071-34c0-4df5-a1cc-455c0e74b6ec.png?v=83e7277376d6bd8d5725f1f734e15e88If unreadable in Discourse full res image.
#12 — thynk · 2021-05-12
Is the switcher separated in order to elevate it for heat dissipation?
#13 — rempesm · 2021-05-12
#14 — giantmecha · 2021-06-14
Is anyone (ideally in the US) building/selling versions of this LZX-spec power supply, either as kits or built?
#15 — rempesm · 2021-07-13
I have a few spare LZX Capsule power boards built by me for $150/ea + shipping. All tested and visually compared against a Malekko Power V1.3 with Shapechanger’s Stencil output and all looks good to me. I’m based in Portland, OR. DM if you’re interested.
#16 — reverselandfill · 2021-07-14
how do you solder those QFN parts? in a oven?
#17 — rempesm · 2021-07-14
Nope, haven’t investigated getting an oven yet. For these I used a hot air gun + PCB preheater + low temp ChipQuik + flux. This is the rework station I used on this run:
https://www.circuitspecialists.com/csi853bplus.html
You could probably get away with using a regular hot air tool without the preheater–just spend a bit more time on the soaking stage with the hot air tool.
I potentially have two more boards I could put together and do a short video on it. Once you get used to the rough reflow timing and how the chips look once they’ve dropped, it’s pretty easy. Soldering the through hole headers probably took me the most time.
#18 — dubpixel · 2021-07-15
thank you for sharing the unit I’ve been meaning to ask you . I have been looking for a ”recommended” preheat plate lazily for a bit now. I feel like there are so Many rebranded and/or wtf options out there including ali or eBay it feels like a dice roll to get one.
This is certainly in my price window.
How do you like it for your work?
I think deep down somewhere I’m just waiting & looking for an excuse to get a whizoo. But So far have been fairing fine with a hot air iron and a needle tip iron. Definitely am itching to get into that world of oven baked goodness. I always seem to eat the face off of at least one or five leds with the hot air tool, the plastic is so particular.
#19 — rempesm · 2021-07-15
Yeah, there are a ton of options out there for hot air rework stations / ovens and by no means am I claiming this is the best unit for a given budget. Circuitspecialists happened to have a sale on when I picked it up which helped. I have no huge complaints about the build quality since you could pay significantly more for a similar feature set, it seems.
I’d like to get an oven when I can afford it as this board and pretty much any SMT board you have a stencil / paste for would go much quicker. Then the temptation would be to find a cheap pick n’ place.
dubpixel wrote:
always seem to eat the face off of at least one or five leds with the hot air tool, the plastic is so particular.
Not sure if you meant SMT LEDs or through hole but in the latter case, try some kapton tape–it is amazing how much heat shielding it can provide. If it’s SMT LEDs and they’re getting chewed up during reflow, you probably need more flux and a lower temperature. You can always cheat a little bit with ChipQuik low temp solder if you’re just not getting on with a particular part. Preheating the whole board before the ramp up stage with your hot air tool helps so much, especially if you are fighting against a continuous ground plane in a multilayer board.
#20 — Robbertunist · 2021-10-25
I’m a bit confused by the LZX Capsule’s power input, will it except a DC12V from a power brick or is the LZX 4hp DC Distro suggested required when multiple Capsules are used in the same case?
#21 — Z0NK0UT · 2021-10-25
The 12V brick is the way to go for the Capsules. DC Distro is designed to directly power modules with barrel inputs.
#22 — Robbertunist · 2021-10-25
Cheers Chad for clearing that up
I really should of spotted that as I read the info about the Distro on its product page earlier.
#23 — Robbertunist · 2021-10-26
Hello everyone, another question regarding the Capsule, this time it’s about the Meanwell DKA30A12. Basically I find any in Europe & they won’t be available until the end of Feb’22. I’ve been looking at the datasheet & from what I read, the DKA30B12 would also work but it needs a power brick that will output at least 18V & up so 36V. The DKA30B12 will still output the required +12/-12V. Has anyone been forced to try this due to the shortages?
#24 — creatorlars · 2021-10-28
Robbertunist wrote:
’ve been looking at the datasheet & from what I read, the DKA30B12 would also work but it needs a power brick that will output at least 18V & up so 36V. The DKA30B12 will still output the required +12/-12V. Has anyone been forced to try this due to the shortages?
Seems OK at a glance! Let us know how it works out for you.
#25 — Jesse · 2022-03-28
How’s component availability on these now? Anyone taken a look recently?
Otherwise I’m about to
#26 — rempesm · 2022-03-28
Octopart is your friend for this.
The main ones that have been out of stock for a long time and will probably not be available until late this year if not next year are the voltage regulators.
20TPS7A3301RGWRTexas Instruments121TPS7A4700RGWRTexas Instruments1You can also substitute the R on the end of both of those with a T for other potential stock with the same footprint but I saw nothing from reputable sellers when I just looked.
Mouser is quoting late/early November for these. :\
#27 — Jesse · 2022-03-28
Thx Matthew,
Yeah Octopart is a godsend. What are the chances the ones on Aliexpress are what they say they are? Edit: Those listings are whack
Follow up question:
If a person wasn’t opposed to altering the schematic what about getting it in a different package? https://www.rocelec.com/part/TISTPS7A3301KC
Bonus points because can add a heatsink to that
Double EDIT: looks like a PITA though because it almost certainly requires bending the leads, and only seeing a TO-220 package for the 3301. Looks like the 4700 doesn’t come in a TO-220? Weird
#28 — Jesse · 2022-03-29
@eyesnoface@creatorlars would parallel LT3045’s work in lieu of the TPS7A4700 on the positive side? Obvi would require a small redesign of the PCB, just curious if it’s a worthwhile rabbit hole to follow. Looks like the 3045’s are even lower noise
LT3045 Datasheet: https://www.mouser.com/datasheet/2/609/30451fa-1513158.pdf
TPS7A4 Datasheet: https://www.ti.com/lit/gpn/TPS7A47
EDIT:
Also parallel LT3094’s might be a possibility for the negative side?
analog.comhttps://www.analog.com/media/en/technical-documentation/data-sheets/LT3094.pdfhttps://www.analog.com/media/en/technical-documentation/data-sheets/LT3094.pdf2.67 MB
Link: LT3094.pdf
I ask because Mouser restocks those 3045’s in May, same for certain 3094’s
#31 — eyesnoface · 2022-03-30
At an initial glance these ANALOG DEVICES LDOs look like nice replacement performance candidates albeit lower output current, but this is all a fine example of the current ever-shifting landscape of DFM (designing for manufacturability) that everyone in electronics design is having to adjust to.
We’ve certainly had a number of projects now that have been conceptualized and designed around essential performance parts only to have them become unavailable to purchase for production. This has lead us in some cases having to create/maintain multiple revisions of a design around an array of parts that may or may not be available for quantity purchasing at a given time, but then of course all of these revisions also individually require their own unique hardware considerations and prototyping cycles before they can be fully adopted into the broader LZX design ecosystem [PRODUCT RELEASE DELAYS!!!].
I wish we had the internal RnD bandwidth to revise/maintain Capsule Power further, but after lengthy consideration Lars and myself recognized the massive benefits of solving power performance standards at the individual module level and making the end user hassle/experience as invisible as possible, thus implementing the Power/Sync subassemblies you now find on Gen3 modules.
The architecture and performance metrics for a successful implementation are all there in the released Capsule design and could be revised to meet that standard by anyone who wants to put the effort in making their own using other currently available LDOs. LZX will undoubtedly offer a new power distribution board design once our current outstanding deliverables are met.
[HARDWARE DESIGNER WARNING]
“The layout requirements for these high performance parts are often incredibly specific and will only yield the specs you seek if followed diligently. READ, RE-READ, AND COMPREHEND THE DATA SHEET… or else.”
#32 — Jesse · 2022-03-30
Thanks for the thorough response @eyesnoface really appreciate the insight into what y’all are dealing with and the philosophy surrounding it. Also thanks a ton for doing so much of the work in terms of capsule and releasing it for us to use as a jumping off point.
To clarify, I definitely wasn’t asking that you redesign to accommodate different LDO’s - was just hoping for a glance and a “that could work” or “that couldn’t work” before jumping in. The supply chain must be brutal for you cats, been hard kicking our case company off the ground and we’ve got nowhere near the number of components.
We spent 6 months waiting for one jack of one color - literally had everything else ready to go but couldn’t get that one jack or a suitable replacement so I feel you. It’s a real scramble filled with dead ends and alot of following hypotheticals to their often dead end. Must be 100 fold dealing with such complex designs with such a large parts count.
Really appreciate LZX open sourcing the Capsule design, as someone solving the clean power problem from the other side its a welcome addition to the arsenal. We’re hoping to offer them as our cheaper alternative to our system for 1 & 2 case users who a $1200 12.5A external psu doesn’t make sense for.
You cats made the right choice with the power subassemblies, will be nice to remove the annoyance from the equation altogether for end users.
Thanks a milli
#33 — Farmer · 2022-07-19
The Capsule power kit includes a DC distro panel, is it unnecessary? Can i just plug the brick into the bus to bypass the switch?
#34 — eyesnoface · 2022-07-20
The DC distro panel in the Capsule Power kit was largely there to provide a potential out-of-the-box solution for a system power switch regardless of final case design being used. The DC barrel on the Capsule Power module could be supplied with 9-18V directly if that solves some particular mounting need for you
#35 — _PG · 2026-03-28
Hi! I’m thinking of building some Capsules for a DIY case. Perhaps this has been explained elsewhere, and I missed it, but I wonder: Is it possible to daisy-chain several Capsules so they are all powered by the same (powerful enough) brick? I suppose I can connect the brick to the DC power jack and then daisy-chain two or more Capsules using the two 4-CKT R/A headers. Is that right? If yes, does it matter which of the two headers I use for output/input? Thanks a lot.
#36 — rempesm · 2026-03-29
Yes you can do this as you described.
#37 — _PG · 2026-03-29
Great, thanks for confirming that
