[sdiy] 7915 regulators

[Jay Schwichtenberg]

In my experience the pin outs are the same for the same type. But the pin
outs are different between the 78XX/79XX. Check that out. Yes put a small
load on them for testing. Some will work others won't without a load. Also
with 30 volts in put a big heat sink on it or a small (in resistance, not
current) power resistor in series to dissipate some of the power going into
the regulator.

I read a lot on 78XX/79XX regulators and gave up using them on anything that
is remotely serious. There was an article on power supplies for audiophiles
in Audio Amateur by Walt Jung and Jan Didden (sp?) that made me give up on
them. Basically it said the 78/79 were junk, LM317/LM337 were better and
LT1086/LT1175 were tolerable in audio. They were looking at ripple rejection
and noise. Each set was about -10 db quieter than the others. Anymore I use
LM317/LM337 for misc things and the Linear Tech parts for audio.

Jay