82240B AC adapter?

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keithdalby
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82240B AC adapter?

Post by keithdalby »

I've ordered an 82240B now and some thermal receipt roll that I hope will fit. I've read reports that the printer is lamentably slow printing when on battery power, but I can only find two AC adapters listed on eBay and they are both prohibitively expensive to get to the UK (£67 and £36, both too expensive when I work in a physics lab!) I'm struggling to find details of the output characteristics of the adapter. Some reports say 5V AC output, some say DC. Could someone please confirm the output characteristics for me? Also, is there a cheaper alternative anyone knows about? Elsewise, I may look at "hot-wiring" the device with a bench top supply.

Printer yet to arrive because of the small sprinkling of snow in the UK, but when it does, I'll be looking at adding to the lab program I made to add the option to print the table of data, graph and analyses.
grsbanks
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Re: 82240B AC adapter?

Post by grsbanks »

The manual for the 82240B states: 9-12V AC or DC capable of supplying 500-1500mA. As for the plug, the inside diameter is 2.1mm and the outside diameter is 5-5.5mm.

So that's a pretty wide net you can use to snag something.

While it may seem counter-intuitive, you do still need to have batteries in the printer even if running off an adapter.

FWIW, I didn't bother with an adapter, I just use NiMH rechargeables and put up with the slowness.
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keithdalby
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Re: 82240B AC adapter?

Post by keithdalby »

Thank you grsbanks. Can't believe I hadn't thought of checking the manual!
grsbanks wrote:
Thu Mar 01, 2018 7:25 am
While it may seem counter-intuitive, you do still need to have batteries in the printer even if running off an adapter.
Anyone who knows me could anticipate my next question..... why would the batteries be needed? Surely no current would flow through them if the adapter is connected.
grsbanks
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Re: 82240B AC adapter?

Post by grsbanks »

keithdalby wrote:
Thu Mar 01, 2018 9:28 am
Anyone who knows me could anticipate my next question..... why would the batteries be needed? Surely no current would flow through them if the adapter is connected.
Well... That is in the manual too :)
There are only 10 kinds of people in the world: those who understand binary and those who do not.
keithdalby
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Re: 82240B AC adapter?

Post by keithdalby »

Thank you. I'll read the manual :)
toml_12953
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Re: 82240B AC adapter?

Post by toml_12953 »

grsbanks wrote:
Thu Mar 01, 2018 7:25 am
The manual for the 82240B states: 9-12V AC or DC capable of supplying 500-1500mA.
You'd definitely want to go for the upper current range! 500mA makes life miserable when printing long listings. Also, even when plugged into AC, the printer draws off the batteries as well when using a 500mA adapter.
Tom L

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HPMike
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Re: 82240B AC adapter?

Post by HPMike »

FWIW, my adapter is an HP model 82241A, and it’s output is 9V AC 13.5VA MAX, which would correspond to 1.5A (1500mA). It does seem to print a bit faster on the AC adapter than on batteries.
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Craig Bladow
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Re: 82240B AC adapter?

Post by Craig Bladow »

I'm using an adapter that provides 12 VDC at 2 amps. It came from an old external hard drive setup. Prints forever with no batteries.
keithdalby
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Re: 82240B AC adapter?

Post by keithdalby »

"Do not use the AC adapter without batteries installed, because the printer may require supplemental battery power during heavy printing." (From the manual)

I'm finding it so hard to swallow that statement and it's provoking lots of questions in my head, but I don't think any more about it can/should really be discussed here. I'll play with the printer when it makes it to me - the barely perceptible sprinkling of snow has caused significant delays in all my mail.
toml_12953
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Re: 82240B AC adapter?

Post by toml_12953 »

keithdalby wrote:
Fri Mar 02, 2018 6:42 am
"Do not use the AC adapter without batteries installed, because the printer may require supplemental battery power during heavy printing." (From the manual)

I'm finding it so hard to swallow that statement and it's provoking lots of questions in my head, but I don't think any more about it can/should really be discussed here. I'll play with the printer when it makes it to me - the barely perceptible sprinkling of snow has caused significant delays in all my mail.
That statement is true. During prolonged heavy printing, you can actually drain the batteries even when using the AC adapter.
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