sestrenexsis wrote:Hi there,
there is no 3.3v rail on my board. It's a later revision that only has 5 and 9 volt rails.
That's a curious revision. It would potentially make for slower RAM. Although, I don't see any level conversion for the RAM in the VA 0 schematics, anyway.
sestrenexsis wrote:Some thorough research hinted me towards voltage ripple being the issue. When I measure using the multimeter when reading a CD, the voltage always fluctuates between like 4.98 and 5.1. The PSU I got seems to be very stable (measuring that alone gave me a rock solid 5v), so my guess is that something in the middle is making it fluctuate, and therefore freeze.
Where are you measuring that fluctuation in voltage? In terms of ripple voltages, that's still only 2.4% of the target output. That should be more than tolerable by the system, but you could have transients that you wouldn't be able to see without an oscilloscope. In all likelihood, that's just the inductive load of the motor, but you could use the AC voltage setting on the DMM, if it has one, and use the MAX function (if available) to try to catch any potential spikes. Depending on the DMM, however, I don't think I would put a whole lot of stock in the results. You may be introducing some power losses, and/or ground loops with your workaround, though. It could be worth putting the output capacitor back into the PSU, or checking the input capacitors on the main PCB.
sestrenexsis wrote:I would've loved to be able to get a replacement transformer by the way, but I have yet to come across one on any page.
Seems like individual parts are even harder to find.
The main characteristic that would be important is the turns ratio. It's only a hunch, but I have seen that PSU transformer marked with 100V (assume RMS transformer input), and if the output should be 9V RMS, the turns ratio would be approximately 10:1.
The other things to make sure of would be that the characteristic impedance is suitable for 50Hz, and the core material would likely need to be a laminated steel core, to minimize eddy current losses.