I have been replacing the power supply in Partner processor and line/extension cards that aren't working well. If I see brown plastic or feel a lot of heat at the top of an old module, I take that to be a sign that it may need a new power supply. It seems to fix the problem, but I would like to be a little more scientific about it.

Is there some quick and dirty way to test the power supply to show it is no good? When I plug my butt set into the Partner extensions, sometimes L1 and L2 glow steady, but other times they blink. Does this indicate a problem, or maybe this is just the stuttering that tells you that you have a voice mail?

For computers I have a handy-dandy power supply tester. Can this be adapted to test Partner power supplies?

The usual way to determine if a Partner power supply is bad is to plug the power cable directly to power jack on the rear of the module.

If the power supply is bad, chances are good that it will spark & smoke (so point the top of the unit away from you).

I dont think your doing your customers any favors . when the PS is going bad its time to replace in my opinion as you will likely see other components fail soon

I appreciate the advice, but I am not quite following it. Why would it spark and smoke? Didn't it have the same power while it was in the cabinet?

I was thinking maybe it is better to just replace the whole module.

When installed in a 5 module holder, a bad Partner power supply will often cause the carrier's fuse to fail.

To determine which power supply is at fault, you would....as noted earlier....power up each module individually. The bad power supply will....in all likelihood....spark & smoke before failing.

True, a power supply could have other problems that would not cause a complete failure but would cause the module to not function properly.

While these older modules can be used with any release Partner ACS processor, replacing these old modules with the latest (and now final) hardware....the 308EC....is well worth considering.