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crutschow said:Not likely. What is the pot for?
Yes, R1 needs to be 240 ohms to give about a 25V maximum output with a 5k ohm pot. 120 ohms may be recommended in some data sheets but using 240 ohms should have little effect on the regulator output characteristics for most applications.audioguru said:The correct value for R1 on an LM317 is 120 ohms.
Then a 5k pot will create a max voltage of 53.3V which is much too high.
A 2k pot will create a max voltage of 22.0V if the supply is at least 25.0V.
National Semi invented the LM117/LM317 and other manufacturers copy it.crutschow said:using 240 ohms should have little effect on the regulator output characteristics for most applications.
I didn't see that on my National data sheet dated August 1999. But after some thought I understand the reason for it.audioguru said:National clearly states in the datasheet that if R1 does not have a low enough resistance (120 ohms for the LM317) then some LM317 ICs will cause the output voltage to rise when the load is removed. A pretty serious problem if your load is a very low current circuit and it blows up because the power supply voltage decided to rise by itself.
The more expensive LM117 can use 240 ohms for R1 as is shown many times on the datasheet.
Except if you make it too high, the Adj pin bias current will interfere with output voltage predictability (not a problem when using a pot), and with stability vs temperature.Hero999 said:If you are using the power supply to power a circuit that always draws more than 5mA, there's nothing wrong with using 240R. Indeed, if the circuit uses a minimum current of 10mA then it's alright to use even higher value.
The trick is to determine whether your way is number 1 or number 2.audioguru said:I am glad that you understand that there are two ways to do anything:
1) The correct way.
2) The other way.
Or you are a gambler.
I always do it the way that is in the datasheet. It is almost always correct.crutschow said:The trick is to determine whether your way is number 1 or number 2.