Here's the conclusion first: for 24V at 5A, order the Mean Well LRS-120-24. For 5V logic and sensor power, order the Mean Well LRS-50-5 or LRS-100-5. And if you're a chandelier installer looking at a dead outlet near a switch, check the switch box before you change the outlet. A bad light switch can cause outlets not to work, but a loose connection in the same box causes it even more often.

I've managed supply buying for a 10-person lighting and fixture installation company for about six years. My annual budget for power supplies is roughly $40,000. That doesn't make me the smartest person in the room, but it means I've seen where the hidden costs live.

The Mean Well 24V 5A power supply I actually order

When people search for a mean well 24v 5a power supply, they usually need a constant-voltage 120W unit. The LRS-120-24 is rated at 24V, 0-5A in Mean Well's published datasheet, and it's been the workhorse in our install vehicles. It's not the cheapest supply I can buy. It is, in my experience, the most predictable one. On a restaurant chandelier job, predictability matters more than a 15% line-item saving.

I checked a few authorized distributor sites in January 2025 and saw the LRS-120-24 listed around $35-$42. Don't hold me to those numbers; pricing changes quarterly. I'm telling you this so you know I'm talking about current procurement reality, not 2020 sticker prices.

If you need dimming, the LRS is not the series for a triac wall dimmer. For 0-10V or 3-in-1 dimming, look at Mean Well's HLG or ELG families. The LRS is a straight constant-voltage box. Use the right tool.

Mean Well 5V power supply: size it before you order it

A mean well 5v power supply is not an accessory. It's what powers control boards, sensors, and some addressable LED drivers. My default is the LRS-50-5, which gives you 50W and 5V at 10A. For larger control banks, the LRS-100-5 gives you 5V at 20A. Both are compact, fanless, and reliable if you don't block the vents.

I still kick myself for the time we ordered 30 units of the wrong voltage. Someone had typed 5V when the fixture spec said 24V. No, wait, I typed it. I knew I should double-check the line item before submitting, but it was a repeat order. I thought, what are the odds? The odds caught up with me. We didn't have a formal check between the bid sheet and the purchase order, so it cost us a full day of sorting and return freight. Now every voltage-critical order has a second verification step.

Black chandelier fixtures and hidden driver problems

A black chandelier can turn a dining room into the nicest place in the house. But as a chandelier installer, I've learned to look behind the canopy before I trust the fixture. Some manufacturers include an unverified LED driver tucked into a tiny space with no airflow. That driver might last through the warranty period and die the week after.

When a client asks me about chandelier black finishes, I tell them the finish is the easy part. The hard part is knowing whether the integrated LED driver is serviceable and whether the power supply is a genuine Mean Well or something with a re-labeled brand. I've swapped out more mystery drivers for an LRS-120-24 or an LPC-60-700, depending on the load, than I can count.

Can a bad light switch cause outlets not to work? Yes, but check the box

This is a real question I see every few weeks. The honest answer is yes, with conditions. If the outlet is a split-switched receptacle, the light switch can absolutely cut power to the top half or bottom half. That's by design. But if a normal outlet in the same room stops working and the switch feels loose, the switch might not be the problem. The switch box might be.

A backstabbed wire on the switch can wiggle loose and break the neutral path for a downstream outlet. The switch still gets hot, so it still works, but the outlet downstream loses its return path. I opened a bedroom switch box once because a homeowner was sure the switch was faulty. The switch was fine. The black wire was hanging on by a tiny piece of copper. Replaced the stab connection with a screw terminal and the outlet came back. So don't just swap the switch. Open the box and look.

Why delivery certainty is part of total cost

I have mixed feelings about expedite fees. Part of me thinks they're just an upsell. Another part knows the cost of missing a deadline. In March 2024, we paid $50 extra for overnight shipping on an LRS-120-24. The alternative was showing up to a restaurant install without a working driver, which means a second trip, a lost evening, and a client who remembers us for the wrong reason. That $50 fee bought certainty, not just speed.

This is where the cost controller and the time-certainty view meet: uncertain and cheap is not cheaper in total cost. When I compared eight vendors over three months, the lowest quoted price usually vanished after freight, handling, return risk, and delayed restocking were added. Our TCO spreadsheet caught a 17% difference in a $4,200 order once. The real cost was the unpaid electrician hours watching a shipment that showed up four days late.

When I do not pick Mean Well

Mean Well is not the answer for every fixture. If you need a small class 2 driver in a tight residential canopy, the LRS enclosure can be awkward. For constant-current LED strings, use a constant-current driver like the LPC-60-700 instead of a constant-voltage supply. And if a job calls for DIN rail mounting in a control panel, I would rather use the HDR series than a screw-down LRS.

Also, I'm not an engineer or a licensed electrician. I'm a buyer who keeps careful records. Codes vary, and live electrical work should be done by a qualified installer. My advice is about procurement logic, not legal or engineering guidance.