USB c socket high pitched whining

[simps100]

Hey

LAP 13A 2-Gang SP Switched Socket + 4.2A 15W 2-Outlet Type A & C USB Charger Black Nickel with Black Inserts - Screwfix

Order online at Screwfix.com. Decorative metal socket with USB charging, 2 x USB ports, 4.2A total. Ideal for charging iPads, iPhones, tablets, mobiles, cameras, MP3s and more. Features angled, in-line terminals and includes backed out captive screws for easy installation. Quick and easy to...

www.screwfix.com

Have installed a couple of these in my room - mostly for the usb c function.

The issue is when ever there’s something plugged into the usb c ports there’s a very high pitched whining, no loud by any means but annoying especially in a bedroom! This is happening on both sockets I installed, i have 2 more to swap but am holding off.

Has anyone had this from USB ports on LAP sockets before? I thought they were a fairly reputable brand!

Thanks
Marc

 

[flameport]

Coil whine, can happen with any switching power supply although some are obviously far better than others.

LAP is a screwfix own brand, the equivalent of Tesco Value.

 

[simps100]

Coil whine, can happen with any switching power supply although some are obviously far better than others.

LAP is a screwfix own brand, the equivalent of Tesco Value.

Didn’t know they were screwfix!

Would something like this be a better quality? http://www.bgelectrical.uk/uk/wiring-devices/nexus-metal/range/usb-charging-sockets/NBN22UAC30B-01

 

[Taylortwocities]

Didn’t know they were screwfix!

Would something like this be a better quality? http://www.bgelectrical.uk/uk/wiring-devices/nexus-metal/range/usb-charging-sockets/NBN22UAC30B-01

I'm afraid that you get what you pay for! And LAP rhymes with ****.
BG are a reasonable mid-range product.

 

[robinbanks]

I've always pronounced is "ell ay pee".. which made it a bit tricky to get what you were rhyming for a moment ..

As to the whistling- yep, my LAPs do it too, annoying enough that I reverted the ones by the bed to normal sockets with wall wart adapters, but bonus that they can be switched off when not in use. Annoys me that these sockets with built in chargers all have the charger on permanently; would it be so hard for the manufacturers to wire it into the switched side of one of the plug switches?

 

[jurassic sparkk]

manufacturers to wire it into the switched side of one of the plug switches?

They could but the current draw from a USB charging socket with nothing plugged in will be next to negligible so manufacturers think it's better if they remain powered.

 

[Taylortwocities]

For many makers, the USB converter electrics are connected all the time (some only are active when the USB plug is inserted. MK for example). Even so you consume only a small amount of electricity even when it's no being used.
Maybe MK the better choice: no whining and no load when not being used.

 

[jurassic sparkk]

Maybe MK the better choice: no whining and no load when not being used.

British general are also pretty good IMHO.

 

[Taylortwocities]

British general are also pretty good IMHO.

already said that

BG are a reasonable mid-range product.

 

[simps100]

Thanks for the comments - leant something new that LAP are just screwfix own! I will be getting the BG ones which look almost exactly the same - more expensive but worth it to get rid of the whining noise in my bedroom!

 

[FrodoOne]

This is an interesting "problem" which I have not encountered with the many Switch Mode Power Supplies which are now around.

According to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Switched-mode_power_supply ,.
"The switching frequency ranges from several hundred kHz to several MHz."

In the "old days", 625 line, 25 Frames/Second TVs had a "Horizontal Line" frequency of 15,625 Hz, which I could hear from some TVs -when I was a "young man".
By the time my teenage Son had a (monochrome) TV in his bedroom, he complained about the "whistle" it made.
I did not doubt him but, by that time, I could not hear such high frequencies.

Hence, while there may be SMPS which generate a frequency in the region of 15 kHz - or above- I certainly count not detect this
and
the Wikipedia article indicates that SMPS frequency "ranges from several hundred kHz " which is well above 15 kHz.

(Perhaps the Wikipedia article needs correcting!
It would be an interesting exercise to establish what frequency is being heard,
but
this would probably require a "laboratory" equipped to undertake the task.)

 

[bernardgreen]

The often over looked problem with USB supply modules inside a 13 Amp socket is when the USB module goes faulty and trips the MCB and/or the RCD cutting power to that and other sockets. Power to those sockets cannot be restored until the socket with the faulty module is replaced ( by an electrician ).

So much easier to have normal sockets and plug in USB power modules.

 

[Taylortwocities]

The often over looked problem with USB supply modules inside a 13 Amp socket is when the USB module goes faulty and trips the MCB and/or the RCD cutting power to that and other sockets. Power to those sockets cannot be restored until the socket with the faulty module is replaced ( by an electrician ).

So much easier to have normal sockets and plug in USB power modules.

They mess up IR testing too, or die if you treat them to 500V!