DSC 5020? 5200 power supply needed?

I asked DSC tech support about that some time ago. They said it is not recommended to draw more than 700mA from those terminals. I asked about the 3 Amp limit and they said that is for "brief periods". Asked if a typical siren timeout of 4 minutes would be excessive the tech said yes.

You should add the DSC auxiliary power supply to your system. That will give you more power and the ability to switch your powered outputs, nice for driving multiple sirens, strobes, etc.

Humm.. I wonder what else could draw that type a current and be "brief"?

Ok. I'm confused. The PC5200 seems to just have terminals for the keybus, tamper, AC input and AUX output. So, I could split the aux devices on the PC5020 (864)'s AUX and the PC5200 AUX but then that still leaves the real problem which is the siren circuit. Would you use a relay to switch the source power for the siren circuit from the 5200 power supply? Even with that I'd be over the maximum 1A current on the

Thanks,

-jr

I have been told by GE tech support that cell backup draws alot at first then lightens up. The GE cell unit will operate without the aux power supply on a NX panel with 40 or 50 VA xfrmr. I know that doesn't help you with your problem.:)

He is talking about the PC5204. If you are only interested in more constant power for the system, the PC5200 will work for you. With the PC5204, it has

You can reliably power a siren(s) drawing 1.5 to 2.0 amps for four minutes as long as your battery is in good shape. You have to realize that any current the siren circuit needs in excess of what the power supply can deliver is drawn directly from the battery (that's why they only recommend "short periods"). As for your particular setup, adding another power supply is recommended because it's been my experience that what the manufacturer states a device draws isn't always what it actually uses (they vary by a few milli-amps here and there) and you're close enough to the max allowable.

Bass has no experience installing or servicing DSC products and I doubt he would be able to talk to anyone at tech support because he got "nailed" stealing their downloading software.

Got it. I think the PC5204 is what I need. Use the output 1 of the 5204 for the exterior siren output (1.2A max), PC5200 bell output for the interior siren (480mA), split the aux power between the PC5200 and PC5204 and put the strobe ( 210mA) on one of the programmed outputs set for latched system event.

So, I'll need the 5204, transformer, and battery. Is it possible to use just one larger transformer? Also, does the 5204 come with a CAN or just the board?

-jr

You will have to buy the can and transformer seperately. Just connect all the keypads/expanders to the PC5020 and connect all other devices to the PC5204, including the interior siren and the strobe.

Not a good idea to use one single larger transforner to power both system..

The catch is the battery has to be kept in good shape. I f you let the battery get marginal and the alarm sounds you run a chance of burning up the aux power on the control. DSC does not like to run at its limits. We have burned up several because of this. :(

I would use the seperate AUX power supply. Or better yet dont use DSC controls.

James

Frank,

Thanks. I got a handle on things now. I'm going to go ahead and get the

I plan to connect all devices to the 5204 except the keypad and the

I appreciate the feedback from everyone..

-jr

The aux output is protected with a circuit breaker. A weak battery will not burn it up. Your experience with "burning up the aux power" is most likely related to the bad bridges a few years back. DSC controls will run all day at the mfg. spec.aux. limit of 500ma. I use DSC with very little trouble. All mfgs. have issues. js

I disagree with you that a bad battery will not burn things up. I have seen this many times with these controls. I think it just adds enough stress to the power supply that if the Aux power is at its limit with devices it will burn it up.. I also had many go bad due to the bad bridges.

James

I've had this experience as well. The condition of the battery wasn't a factor, however. On the 5010, if you exceed it's rated aux power, you'll find that portion of the board around the heat sink gets really warm. Couple this to a poor installation location (boiler room or unventilated closet) and you risk losing the power supply (or shortening it's life). For the few extra bucks involved, we always use the additional supervised power supply whenever the load imposed by connected field devices exceeds 400 mA. That's also written "in stone" in our procedures manual. I've only lost three 5010's to "bad bridges".