POWER (As Clarkson would say)

[PaulSS]

Yes, another cable discussion 

I'm thinking of having my PAW (Classic with a Pi3B+) under my seat, where it will be close to the PAW external antenna. This will mean the power will have to run about 2m from the Charge4 USB supply I will have hidden behind the panel.

In the absence of 4AWG with a micro USB connector on the end, what is the opinion of the Power Gurus on this little number? Price is not really the snag, I just want it to do its job well 

https://www.juicebitz.co.uk/2m-20awg-premium-nylon-braided-strong-usb-2-0-type-a-to-micro-b-fast-data-charger-cable-black

I like the red because it goes with the mist in my head and the braid reminds me of the snakes which come from the walls and tell me to do bad things 

[JCurtis]

Depending on what you have in the Charge4, you can make one with very heavy wire if you want... these type A connectors are quite wide.

For some reason the links are very long, but the RS part numbers are 179-2871 and 179-2869

Basically these are connectors with screw terminals, you only need the power connectors.  Should be able to get some really chunky stuff in there.

https://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/type-a-usb-connectors/1792869/

https://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/micro-usb-connectors/1792871/?relevancy-data=636F3D3126696E3D4931384E525353746F636B4E756D626572266C753D656E266D6D3D6D61746368616C6C26706D3D5E2828282872737C5253295B205D3F293F285C647B337D5B5C2D5C735D3F5C647B332C347D5B705061415D3F29297C283235285C647B387D7C5C647B317D5C2D5C647B377D2929292426706F3D3126736E3D592673723D2673743D52535F53544F434B5F4E554D4245522677633D4E4F4E45267573743D3137392D32383731267374613D3137393238373126&searchHistory=%7B%22enabled%22%3Atrue%7D

[PaulSS]

Haha, I love the lateral thinking, Jeremy 

As you're a man wot knows about elektrizity, do you think 20 AWG is not 'man enough' for a 2m run? Would 18 be good, as I have quite a lot of that 

Plugged into my Charge4 permanently will be my PAW with Pi3B+ and an iPad Mini 4. Occasionally will be an iPhone getting charged up etc but I expect normally there will be a maximum of 3 USB ports used at a time. I think the Pi3B+ will be using a good deal of its allowance of 2.4A per port and I expect the iPad Mini will be using a couple of amps if the screen is bright. That still gives me about 4-4.5A to use on phone charging etc, so I think my power plan should be okay for my PAW.

[JCurtis]

Haha, I love the lateral thinking, Jeremy 

As you're a man wot knows about elektrizity, do you think 20 AWG is not 'man enough' for a 2m run? Would 18 be good, as I have quite a lot of that 

Plugged into my Charge4 permanently will be my PAW with Pi3B+ and an iPad Mini 4. Occasionally will be an iPhone getting charged up etc but I expect normally there will be a maximum of 3 USB ports used at a time. I think the Pi3B+ will be using a good deal of its allowance of 2.4A per port and I expect the iPad Mini will be using a couple of amps if the screen is bright. That still gives me about 4-4.5A to use on phone charging etc, so I think my power plan should be okay for my PAW.

Depends if it will be 2m once it's been routed where you want it to be.  Could be be less, but more than 1m?  Are you going to excess with 2m when, say, 1.2m would be fine?

Probably be OK with 20AWG, if not then just get the wirable connectors and double up on the 18AWG (or 20AWG) as belt and braces.  Always good to have a backup plan available...

[Alanr]

I am also interested in doing similar to what PaulSS is doing but in my case from a Charge2 which will also have an IpadMini2 in it. (Wish I had fitted a Charge4 when I built the aeroplane!)
What I am concerned about is the power drop to a Rosetta via say a 18AWG wire over 2m? Will this be a problem do you think?

[Admin]

as far as AWG is concerned the smaller the number, the greater the diameter, so if you REALLY have 18AWG, thats really good, I would like to know where you got 18AWG with a MicroUSB connector

Thx
LEe

[Alanr]

re- 18AWG,. No sorry, my mistake, it is 20AWG but same question. Will it be ok over a 2metre run from the Charge2 behind the panel to the Rosetta mounted behind the seat do you think?
The alternative I suppose is to put the Rosetta behind the panel and then have 2metre Co-ax runs to the antennas?
Which is preferable, Power drop or Signal drop do you think?

[Paul_Sengupta]

if you REALLY have 18AWG, thats really good, I would like to know where you got 18AWG with a MicroUSB connector

https://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_sacat=0&_nkw=18+awg+micro+usb&rt=nc&LH_PrefLoc=2

[PaulSS]

Hi Lee,

I have some 18AWG wire (aircraft grade etc etc) and would just make up my own lead using the USB A and micro USB connectors that Jeremy provided links for. I would be very posh and have a customised lead 


Jeremy,

The lead may well come out a bit shorter than 2m but I know I wouldn't get away with 1m. I do like the idea of making my own as it looks very easy to do and gives me an excuse to play with shrink tube again 


Alan,

Which is preferable, Power drop or Signal drop do you think?

I think we're thinking along the same lines. I decided I would like to put my PAW under the seat (or in that general location) because it will mean a shorter coax run to my PAW antenna (underneath the aircraft) and to the ADSB antenna (which will be inside the fabric covering but behind the seats). It will also mean fewer boxes behind the panel, which will already be quite busy. With the Pi2 I don't think I would have been quite so fussy about power but the Pi3B (+) seems to be a bit more temperamental and I'd like to ensure I don't end up as another person who writes about throttling and the associated snags.

[Seanhump]

as far as AWG is concerned the smaller the number, the greater the diameter, so if you REALLY have 18AWG, thats really good, I would like to know where you got 18AWG with a MicroUSB connector

Thx
LEe

There's a few over on Alibaba etc … charge only, but that's all that's needed

Unsure of the quality / longevity, but might be worth looking into

Cheers

[Paul_Sengupta]

I bought one of these for charging phones and such, and have been fairly impressed even though it doesn't say what gauge the wire is. You can get 1.5m as well if it suits better than 2m. I thought I'd try it due to the flexibility of the cable. Seems to work quite well.

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32889300505.html

Advertised as "2.4A" but not for the 2m cable!

[Paul_Sengupta]

This is cheaper, isn't advertised as 2.4A, but has the same description below. Make of it what you will... 

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32671497421.html

[Admin]

a while back I purchased various samples of cables advertised as 18AWG
..... and after a teardown, they most definitely were not !

Thx
Lee

[exfirepro]

Which is preferable, Power drop or Signal drop do you think?

The short answer is ‘neither’.

At significant levels, Signal reduction will have a noticeable effect on range and traffic received - and at worst case, could have a serious effect on whether the received signal reaches the required trigger levels for Bearingless Mode-C and Mode-S alerts. Power drops on the other hand can cause the system to lose connectivity or at worst case, system shut down.

The answer is to balance power cable length against wire gauge, and where longer signal cables are required, use low loss (for the correct frequency) coax and high quality connectors.

Best Regards

Peter

[Seanhump]

a while back I purchased various samples of cables advertised as 18AWG
..... and after a teardown, they most definitely were not !

Thx
Lee

Not really surprised there … some of the Chinese stuff is of dubious origin..