MP3Car.com - View Single Post - will a crank break my harddrive? +HD power question

mhorton · 05-21-2004, 07:06 PM

Quote: Originally Posted by sm1thson

how much current does a harddrive (desktop) need, on both the 5V line and the 12V line?

Most drives have this printed on the label somewhere. It's different for different drives.

At work I've had experience working on computers using weak 120VAC (40-60 watt) power supplies. They tend to overheat blow a cap and the output goes out of spec. I've seen drives spin down when the voltage is below 11v, and above ~13.5v too. I think it varies a lot from one drive to another. But I definately have seen poor power kill drives permanently. All this is relating to defective power supplies providing a constant out of spec output, so it may not be relative to a momentary voltage dip from a crank.

05-21-2004, 07:06 PM	#5
mhorton Low Bitrate Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Virginia Vehicle: 1991 Honda CRX Posts: 59 My Photos: ()	Quote: Originally Posted by sm1thson how much current does a harddrive (desktop) need, on both the 5V line and the 12V line? Most drives have this printed on the label somewhere. It's different for different drives. At work I've had experience working on computers using weak 120VAC (40-60 watt) power supplies. They tend to overheat blow a cap and the output goes out of spec. I've seen drives spin down when the voltage is below 11v, and above ~13.5v too. I think it varies a lot from one drive to another. But I definately have seen poor power kill drives permanently. All this is relating to defective power supplies providing a constant out of spec output, so it may not be relative to a momentary voltage dip from a crank. Last edited by mhorton; 05-21-2004 at 07:09 PM.