Im a librarian who has used Amazon since 1998 (when they only sold books and magazines) and this is the FIRST item Ive ever returned! Amazon lists me as being a customer "only" since 2000, but I used them before that for work/personal items.

THE SHORT REVIEW:

I plugged it into the wall AC after checking that it was set to 110 AC. This units specs are up to 30V / 5A.

I turned on the power switch and immediately the fan kicked in and the Voltage shot to 50.2V and the current went to 6.65A and the knobs had no effect of any kind.

I snapped a photo and typed a quick note to the seller (By4Easy) about the problem. The CV light was also on. The low switch only changed the current down to 3.3 amps.

A few seconds after sending the email I heard a large BANG and something blew up inside the unit.

This power source lasted less than 3 minutes.

After multiple emails over a couple weeks, and driving around town a bit I received a FULL refund.

THE LONGER REVIEW IF YOU'RE INTERESTED:

Youre supposed to use the supplied leads to short out the unit and make adjustments to the current / voltage but it was at 50v 6a and I was a little leery about that. I hesitated, but again, the unit was on for less than 3 minutes (more about that down below).

I emailed again and asked for a refund saying the unit blew up and won't turn, they asked for a photo of the problem.

I sent them the photo of the readouts at the super high levels (glad I wasted a few seconds taking the photo, or else Id have had to send just a photo of the unit turned off/dead).

They emailed back and said theyd send me a shipping label. It was a self ship. I paid $35 + $15 for this unit. The shipping from the Post Office was $39 BEFORE any insurance. The UPS store was just a little less, but still more than the unit cost me. That in itself shows that if you get a working version of this item it really is a DAMN GOOD DEAL! If

So, I wasted a day driving around to shipping companies, having them way this thing and measure the box and then quote some outrageous price. None of their weights, measurements seemed to match each other, but every single one wanted about $40 to ship this thing back home.

Having never returned anything in my past 18 years on Amazon I thought that was the end of it and itd just pull some of the heavy and nice seeming parts off this thing, but someone told me to re-email the seller. I did and a day later they emailed a new shipping label that was pre-paid. Cool!

They received (and signed) for the package after a few days. About a week later I emailed and asked about the refund. They emailed back and said theyd issue me a refund. Um, okay. Obviously they got the item back but did nothing about it. The next day I got a refund notice from Amazon and a few days after that the refund appeared on my credit card.

I am a librarian. Ive been using Amazon since 1998, back when they only sold books and magazine subscriptions. This is the FIRST ITEM IN 20 years Ive tried to return. I think this is only my SECOND 1 star rating since 1998. You can go see some of the items Ive reviewed/rated beforeI research and am generally very, very happy with my purchases. If the product is what is was supposed to be they get a 5 star, if  kinda sucks or I hate it for personal reasons it's a 4. I'm an easy grader, even though this review will sound run-of-the-mill whiney to many, that's not my style.

I knew this purchase would be a gamble because of all the reviews saying the power cords arrive with short circuits in them. I figured if that was the case I could just use a spare computer cord and throw away the one that comes with the unit. I would have rated it 5 stars if that were the case, but this just went to a deadly 6.6 amps (albeit, the promised 5 amps would be just as deadly I suppose-but not deadly to the actual unit).

The instructions say: turn on unit, THEN short out the terminals and quickly make adjustments. The supplied banana plug fell off the wire lead upon opening the package. Even if this thing didn't blow up I don't feel good about attaching (AS AN INTENTIONAL SHORT) cheap, thin wires to a RUNNING power supply blasting out 50v 6.6a. Yeah, I know people say that even cheap leads are good up to 10amps, but Im thinking: these people cant build a power supply, they cant attach the banana plug to a lead so it stays attached in shipping, Im going to trust my life/fingers to them? Anyway, there wasn't time: the thing just blew up sitting on the shelf with nobody touching it, thankfully. I supposed an experienced electrician would have immediately leaped across the table, shut it down and diagnosed the problem while disassembling it and simultaneously drinking a cup of coffee and doing a crossword puzzle. Um, yeah. Maybe. But with 50 volts at over 6.5 amps they/ I / we shouldnt have to and I'm more of a Lissajous Figure/Oscilloscope mellow type of guy. New to the higher voltages, lol.

Ive watched YouTube videos of people unboxing and using this SAME MODEL unit and they plug it in and it doesnt go past zero (let alone 50v) and explode. They plug it in, marvel at the cool red digital readout and then go on to whatever project their doing. Many owners weren't sure if the unit had a fan in it, yet my fan screamed on start up louder than my Dell desktop running Vista. Mine was special.

After unplugging the now dead brick I noticed 3 of the 4 screws holding the transformer to the bottom of the unit were loose. These are the screws sticking out of the bottom of the unit: I did NOT open the unit up. Did the transformer shift and short out something inside? I didn't want to peak inside since I was going to return this defective unit. I did notice the paint was flaking off the case near the almost all the screws that hold the case on. Had someone been playing inside this unit before or was it just a lousy paint job?

I knew that and gambled it would be a simple power switch, AC cable, AC to unit interface joint problem that people other were experiencing and then fixing. A fun, cheap way to get a power supply that you kind of fixed/modified yourself. Or heck, maybe Id be in the chosen few and get a unit that actually WORKED like promised.

Nope: I guess I got the NEW AND IMPROVED version that is shorted and runs at twice spec for a minute or two then explodes. It was LITERALLY less than three minutes by the time stamps on my photos and emails. Bummer, but for what I paid theres some nice parts I could have scavenged in the worst case scenario.

I noticed the instruction manual covers a bunch of different versions of this unit, including ones that go up to 60v. Maybe some 60v parts snuck into my unit-not enough to keep it from exploding thoughthat awful snap of an electrolytic capacitor (Im guessing) going off like a firecracker.

Honestly, 17 years on Amazon and there was a batch of cheap camera lens covers that fell off because they weren't true Canon size (which I gave a 3 star review); a bipod that arrived missing one of the two mounting pins that were supposed to be WELDED on (which I gave a 1 star review and repaired myself kinda sorta; and then THIS hunk of electric danger. [Edit: I have now made a SECOND return in 17 years on Amazon, because I was shipped a Counterfeit item-confirmed by manufacturer when I tried to register it-but that was not from this seller].

Thats about it for bad experiences in 17 years of buying for myself (tons of weird gadgets like spectroscopes, fancy telescope and camera stuff) and for libraries (books and office supplies). I wasn't even going to buy it and deleted it off my wish list, but I recently had an incredible run of some big, expensive and boring life purchases (mattress, car repair parts, medical bills, etc.) and wanted something fun.

Oh, you can see through the vent holes the less than stellar soldering job the boys in the FlingDung factory did. Its not horrible (what I can see) but you can definitely tell a human did the soldering and not a machinein a not so great way. To be sure, if you look inside the Elenco kit power supply that *I* soldered together a couple weeks ago youd probably laugh at a few things as well, but then again, you don't HAVE to look inside mine because mine WORKS.

Also, Ive only soldered 5 kits in the past few years and Id say the best of their soldering is better than the best of mine, but the worst of their soldering is way worse than the worst of mine. But then: I do not get paid to solder things and again, MINE WORKS! This does not.

My self-soldered capacitance decade box works fine! Along with the Geiger Counter in a coffee can (it raises the voltage when my ionizing uranium/uraninite test source is near, but does nothing with other rocks in my mineral collection and tallies pretty well with my real store-bought Geiger counter).

Are you looking for cheap parts or a possible mystery problem to figure out? Well, this unit is for you. Its very, very heavy and looks really cool. The digital meters wold look kinda cool hooked up to another (working) power supply if you want this thing for parts. There are course and fine adjustment knobs, which if ordered by themselves would probably cost as much as this unit.

The banana plug leads seem nickel coated, which is why the factory workers were unable to successfully solder the banana plugs and alligator clips to each end. DANGEROUS because theyll pull out and youll have a live wire dangling somewhereif your unit actually works. If

I opened the bag with the wire leads and a banana plug just fell out on its own. Ugh!

MAKE SURE TO CHECK OUT THE KOOKY PHOTO I POSTED HERE (sometimes the Amazon phone/tablet apps don't show customer photos so you may have to use the browser version or a desktop computer). It shows 50V / 6.5 Amps. They were both a tad higher, but remember, a few seconds after snapping the photo something inside this thing literally exploded.

I suppose I could be angry/upset/indignant/etc. but I just chuckled. Also: THE SELLERS WERE REALLY POLITE in their various emails to me, and DID get me a FULL refund. However, this product is obviously junk and they really shouldnt be selling it until they fix the multitude of manufacturing problems they're continuously encountering in their factory for the past few years ago to some of the other reviews here.

Save yourself trouble and look elsewhere. Never buy anything that isn't PRIME / shipped by Amazon themselves / Fulfilled by Amazon if it was worth returning upon receipt of a defective unit. I lucked out and (after multiple prodding emails along the way) got a successful refund of ALL my money on this item.

Ive soldering up my own working power supply that is still working just fine. All I did was plug this unit in and it blew up. This was my first ever Amazon return in 17 years. I am jealous of people who just had faulty power cords, etc. that were easy fixes.

-Mike from Detroit
Im a librarian who has used Amazon since 1998 (when they only sold books and magazines) and this is the FIRST item Ive ever returned! Amazon lists me as being a customer "only" since 2000, but I used them before that for work/personal items. THE SHORT REVIEW:

I plugged it into the wall AC after checking that it was set to 110 AC. This units specs are up to 30V / 5A. I turned on the power switch and immediately the fan kicked in and the Voltage shot to 50. 2V and the current went to 6. 65A and the knobs had no effect of any kind. I snapped a photo and typed a quick note to the seller (By4Easy) about the problem. The CV light was also on. The low switch only changed the current down to 3. 3 amps. A few seconds after sending the email I heard a large BANG and something blew up inside the unit. This power source lasted less than 3 minutes. After multiple emails over a couple weeks, and driving around town a bit I received a FULL refund. THE LONGER REVIEW IF YOU'RE INTERESTED:

Youre supposed to use the supplied leads to short out the unit and make adjustments to the current / voltage but it was at 50v 6a and I was a little leery about that. I hesitated, but again, the unit was on for less than 3 minutes (more about that down below). I emailed again and asked for a refund saying the unit blew up and won't turn, they asked for a photo of the problem. I sent them the photo of the readouts at the super high levels (glad I wasted a few seconds taking the photo, or else Id have had to send just a photo of the unit turned off/dead). They emailed back and said theyd send me a shipping label. It was a self ship. I paid $35 + $15 for this unit. The shipping from the Post Office was $39 BEFORE any insurance. The UPS store was just a little less, but still more than the unit cost me. That in itself shows that if you get a working version of this item it really is a DAMN GOOD DEAL! If

So, I wasted a day driving around to shipping companies, having them way this thing and measure the box and then quote some outrageous price. None of their weights, measurements seemed to match each other, but every single one wanted about $40 to ship this thing back home. Having never returned anything in my past 18 years on Amazon I thought that was the end of it and itd just pull some of the heavy and nice seeming parts off this thing, but someone told me to re-email the seller. I did and a day later they emailed a new shipping label that was pre-paid. Cool! They received (and signed) for the package after a few days. About a week later I emailed and asked about the refund. They emailed back and said theyd issue me a refund. Um, okay. Obviously they got the item back but did nothing about it. The next day I got a refund notice from Amazon and a few days after that the refund appeared on my credit card. I am a librarian. Ive been using Amazon since 1998, back when they only sold books and magazine subscriptions. This is the FIRST ITEM IN 20 years Ive tried to return. I think this is only my SECOND 1 star rating since 1998. You can go see some of the items Ive reviewed/rated beforeI research and am generally very, very happy with my purchases. If the product is what is was supposed to be they get a 5 star, if  kinda sucks or I hate it for personal reasons it's a 4. I'm an easy grader, even though this review will sound run-of-the-mill whiney to many, that's not my style. I knew this purchase would be a gamble because of all the reviews saying the power cords arrive with short circuits in them. I figured if that was the case I could just use a spare computer cord and throw away the one that comes with the unit. I would have rated it 5 stars if that were the case, but this just went to a deadly 6. 6 amps (albeit, the promised 5 amps would be just as deadly I suppose-but not deadly to the actual unit). The instructions say: turn on unit, THEN short out the terminals and quickly make adjustments. The supplied banana plug fell off the wire lead upon opening the package. Even if this thing didn't blow up I don't feel good about attaching (AS AN INTENTIONAL SHORT) cheap, thin wires to a RUNNING power supply blasting out 50v 6. 6a. Yeah, I know people say that even cheap leads are good up to 10amps, but Im thinking: these people cant build a power supply, they cant attach the banana plug to a lead so it stays attached in shipping, Im going to trust my life/fingers to them? Anyway, there wasn't time: the thing just blew up sitting on the shelf with nobody touching it, thankfully. I supposed an experienced electrician would have immediately leaped across the table, shut it down and diagnosed the problem while disassembling it and simultaneously drinking a cup of coffee and doing a crossword puzzle. Um, yeah. Maybe. But with 50 volts at over 6. 5 amps they/ I / we shouldnt have to and I'm more of a Lissajous Figure/Oscilloscope mellow type of guy. New to the higher voltages, lol. Ive watched YouTube videos of people unboxing and using this SAME MODEL unit and they plug it in and it doesnt go past zero (let alone 50v) and explode. They plug it in, marvel at the cool red digital readout and then go on to whatever project their doing. Many owners weren't sure if the unit had a fan in it, yet my fan screamed on start up louder than my Dell desktop running Vista. Mine was special. After unplugging the now dead brick I noticed 3 of the 4 screws holding the transformer to the bottom of the unit were loose. These are the screws sticking out of the bottom of the unit: I did NOT open the unit up. Did the transformer shift and short out something inside? I didn't want to peak inside since I was going to return this defective unit. I did notice the paint was flaking off the case near the almost all the screws that hold the case on. Had someone been playing inside this unit before or was it just a lousy paint job? I knew that and gambled it would be a simple power switch, AC cable, AC to unit interface joint problem that people other were experiencing and then fixing. A fun, cheap way to get a power supply that you kind of fixed/modified yourself. Or heck, maybe Id be in the chosen few and get a unit that actually WORKED like promised. Nope: I guess I got the NEW AND IMPROVED version that is shorted and runs at twice spec for a minute or two then explodes. It was LITERALLY less than three minutes by the time stamps on my photos and emails. Bummer, but for what I paid theres some nice parts I could have scavenged in the worst case scenario. I noticed the instruction manual covers a bunch of different versions of this unit, including ones that go up to 60v. Maybe some 60v parts snuck into my unit-not enough to keep it from exploding thoughthat awful snap of an electrolytic capacitor (Im guessing) going off like a firecracker. Honestly, 17 years on Amazon and there was a batch of cheap camera lens covers that fell off because they weren't true Canon size (which I gave a 3 star review); a bipod that arrived missing one of the two mounting pins that were supposed to be WELDED on (which I gave a 1 star review and repaired myself kinda sorta; and then THIS hunk of electric danger. [Edit: I have now made a SECOND return in 17 years on Amazon, because I was shipped a Counterfeit item-confirmed by manufacturer when I tried to register it-but that was not from this seller]. Thats about it for bad experiences in 17 years of buying for myself (tons of weird gadgets like spectroscopes, fancy telescope and camera stuff) and for libraries (books and office supplies). I wasn't even going to buy it and deleted it off my wish list, but I recently had an incredible run of some big, expensive and boring life purchases (mattress, car repair parts, medical bills, etc. ) and wanted something fun. Oh, you can see through the vent holes the less than stellar soldering job the boys in the FlingDung factory did. Its not horrible (what I can see) but you can definitely tell a human did the soldering and not a machinein a not so great way. To be sure, if you look inside the Elenco kit power supply that *I* soldered together a couple weeks ago youd probably laugh at a few things as well, but then again, you don't HAVE to look inside mine because mine WORKS. Also, Ive only soldered 5 kits in the past few years and Id say the best of their soldering is better than the best of mine, but the worst of their soldering is way worse than the worst of mine. But then: I do not get paid to solder things and again, MINE WORKS! This does not. My self-soldered capacitance decade box works fine! Along with the Geiger Counter in a coffee can (it raises the voltage when my ionizing uranium/uraninite test source is near, but does nothing with other rocks in my mineral collection and tallies pretty well with my real store-bought Geiger counter). Are you looking for cheap parts or a possible mystery problem to figure out? Well, this unit is for you. Its very, very heavy and looks really cool. The digital meters wold look kinda cool hooked up to another (working) power supply if you want this thing for parts. There are course and fine adjustment knobs, which if ordered by themselves would probably cost as much as this unit. The banana plug leads seem nickel coated, which is why the factory workers were unable to successfully solder the banana plugs and alligator clips to each end. DANGEROUS because theyll pull out and youll have a live wire dangling somewhereif your unit actually works. If

I opened the bag with the wire leads and a banana plug just fell out on its own. Ugh! MAKE SURE TO CHECK OUT THE KOOKY PHOTO I POSTED HERE (sometimes the Amazon phone/tablet apps don't show customer photos so you may have to use the browser version or a desktop computer). It shows 50V / 6. 5 Amps. They were both a tad higher, but remember, a few seconds after snapping the photo something inside this thing literally exploded. I suppose I could be angry/upset/indignant/etc. but I just chuckled. Also: THE SELLERS WERE REALLY POLITE in their various emails to me, and DID get me a FULL refund. However, this product is obviously junk and they really shouldnt be selling it until they fix the multitude of manufacturing problems they're continuously encountering in their factory for the past few years ago to some of the other reviews here. Save yourself trouble and look elsewhere. Never buy anything that isn't PRIME / shipped by Amazon themselves / Fulfilled by Amazon if it was worth returning upon receipt of a defective unit. I lucked out and (after multiple prodding emails along the way) got a successful refund of ALL my money on this item. Ive soldering up my own working power supply that is still working just fine. All I did was plug this unit in and it blew up. This was my first ever Amazon return in 17 years. I am jealous of people who just had faulty power cords, etc. that were easy fixes. -Mike from Detroit