Powering a coin mech

[seibu]

Hi,

I've just got a Mars 115TS coin mech. I'm told it needs 12v 1A supply.  I may be being very dumb, but I have no idea if this should be AC or DC. I am assuming AC, but is this correct?

Furthermore, seeing as I'm not planning to put a full size arcade power supply in this cab (it would be powering the coin mech and nothing else), I'm wondering whether it would be possible to power the mech from a PC power supply? It can give me +12v and GND, but am I right in assuming the amperage (15A) would be too high? Would there be any way to remedy this?

Or could I power the mech using a stand-alone AC adaptor from Radio Shack or somewhere?

Thanks for any help. I'm know these are newbie questions!

[Trimoor]

its probably DC, but check the power leads to see if they are polarized and where they go.

I have no idea whats in an electric mech, but 1 amp seems too much.
If the power goes directly to an LED or microchip, it is DC.
If there are motors/coils in it, it could be either.

The PSU should be able to drive it fine.  just make sure you don't overload it with drives and other things.

[seibu]

Great! Thanks loads for your help.

I've done a bit more research and it appears that Arcade power supplies output DC 12v, so it would be a bit strange if the coin mech required AC 12v.

So, the only thing I'm concerned about is that the mech says it requires 1A, but the 12v line from the PC power supply says 15A. Is this a maximum, then? So, 15A means it can power anything which requires *up to* 15A?

[benwillcox]

So, the only thing I'm concerned about is that the mech says it requires 1A, but the 12v line from the PC power supply says 15A. Is this a maximum, then? So, 15A means it can power anything which requires *up to* 15A?

Yes that is correct. As Trimoor says, 1A seems a bit high, thats probably peak current at switch on and I would imagine that it'll only take a few tens or hundreds of milliamps continuous.

Either way yes the PC supply should cope no problem.

[toffee]

what I did was take a power splitter for a PC power supply that you use to add an additional hard drive and cut the connector off. Use the 12v DC (yellow) and ground (black) from here to power your coin slot. works like a charm!

[Sir Auros]

A tangent question: Is it necessary to have a coin mechanism powered to have it function? Could a coin mechanism be powerless and still accept quarters and trigger switches leading to an Ipac?

[seibu]

A tangent question: Is it necessary to have a coin mechanism powered to have it function? Could a coin mechanism be powerless and still accept quarters and trigger switches leading to an Ipac?

Firstly, thanks loads to everyone above for the advice - this has put my mind at rest!

Secondly, yes I *think* there are coin mechs which work without a power supply. They accept only one coin and close a switch when they do so, so they would work with an ipac.

Mine only needs power because it's a 4 coin type connected to a credit board, which accepts 10p, 20p, 50p,

[mp2526]

Most coin mechs/doors do not use power, other than a few that use a lock out coil to prevent use when the game is turned off and there are a few that can be set to accept varying types of coins that use logic circuits to determine that.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but most Mars coin mechs are used in things like soft drink dispensing machines and vending type equipment and they do require power as they have to keep a tally of how much you have entered and eject change if needed.

I'm sure there might be uses for Mars coin mechs in arcade situations, but for a MAME situation it's probably over kill.

seibu, of course, may not be using this how we might be expecting him to in an arcade situation.

[Ken Layton]

Mars Electronics International manufacturers so many different models of dollar bill acceptors and coin acceptors that it's best to contact their tech support dept for the correct information. Their website is www.meiglobal.com