[sdiy] Voltage Regulators

[Oakley Sound]

 > Any opinions on LM317 vs LM723?

I'll echo Ian's point of view on a good distribution being probably more 
important than the mV detail of supply regulation. However, the one 
advantage of the 723 and series pass transistor is that you can set 
maximum load current pretty accurately - you can also give it some sort 
of foldback protection if that is what is required.

The three terminal types have some bizarre and often unspecified 
behaviours under shorted conditions. For the standard 7805, a 1A device 
will often take over 1.7A under shorted or near shorted conditions. 
It'll shut down when the die temp exceeds 150C of course, but that could 
take some time with a big heatsink. I've not tried a 317 in this same 
sort of test, but I would guess that the maximum current draw could be 
considerably more than your transformer is rated for.

Also, the 723 can be configured for remote sensing which is useful if 
your power supply is in a different box to the distribution set up.

Tony

www.oakleysound.com