Power supply switch?

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RobertoIsRad

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Jan 29, 2008
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Hi I'm working on building a MAME cabinet and my problem is that I'd like everything to turn on all at once. I've got my computer and the monitor figured out but I'd like to get my speakers on the same switch. My speakers are from an old car audio system with a 350W computer power supply powering the amp. I turn on the speakers by shorting the green and black motherboard wires but I'm looking for a way to have it tie into the other switch (push button, speakers are on an on off toggle switch). Is there something that I can get to put in between the power supply and the switch to accomplish this?
 
One way is to remove the toggle switch on the stereo PSU. Then splice the green wire on the stereo PSU to the green wire from the PC. And splice the black wire on the stereo PSU to a black wire on the PC.

The power button on the PC will turn them both on and off.
 
Frank4d said:
One way is to remove the toggle switch on the stereo PSU. Then splice the green wire on the stereo PSU to the green wire from the PC. And splice the black wire on the stereo PSU to a black wire on the PC.

The power button on the PC will turn them both on and off.
Click to expand...

I've never tried that - are you sure there wouldn't be any complications from connecting the two psu's together like that? I'd be more apt to use a double pole switch that keeps them separate, yet toggles them at the same time.
 
most psu adapters do that same thing. i'd get an adapter to do it however, to forgo splicing.
 
It works and is safe to do so long as those are the only connections between the two PSUs. As matrix563 posted, adapters are available to avoid cutting into the PSU cables. Or if you are comfortable with doing so, you get to keep $5-$10.

A disadvantage of using a toggle switch is you would have to always shut down Windows before turning the switch off (or risk trashing your hard drive).
 
Yeah, there's no danger, as long as you're only splicing the green and black wires. FYI, in a normal computer setup, the motherboard pulls the green wire to ground in order to tell the PSU to power up. It's just a signal line (not a power line), so you're not going to blow anything up.

Alternatively, you could power a relay off the computer's power supply, and connect the green and black wires from the speaker PSU to the output contacts of the relay, but that would be a bunch more work for the same functionality (plus isolation).
 
Thanks I don't know why i never thought of splicing into the computers power supply. thanks again for all of your answers
 
I think using an SPDT toggle with spring loaded to center neutral is a good switch to use for doing dual PSU rigs - one way turns one PSU on or off and the other way does the second PSU and the springs force the toggle to center neutral when not in use. both black wires to the center (pole) and one green to each throw.

.bh.
 
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