Wow, some really interesting PSUs in this thread.
I got these MCP PSUs with LCDs displays that were dead. Turns out the 9v regulators for the displays did not have heatsinks on them and they all burned out. For one of the PSUs I replaced the regulators with new ones, added heatsinks and now they work perfectly. Both of them have monster toroidal transformers inside:
For the second PSU, I drilled out mounting holes and replaced the LCDs with analogue panel meters:
The panel meters fit in very tightly next to each other:
And below is the result. I stripped out the series/parallel functionality and replaced the switches with normal toggles to allow for quick and easy current-limit adjustment. It's currently my most-used supply:
I built the one below up from a switch-mode supply that I stripped out of an old network switch. It's very high power on the 5v line and can maintain 20A without any significant heating. I did add a fan into the enclosure just in case. It's very stable, but it tends to be electrically noisy:
And then, finally, the one below is the PSU I have been using since I was 17 years old. I built it in school as a project and it's been serving me well for 25 years now. It's based around the 723, regulates all the way down to 0v and has excellent regulation. Only down side is that it can deliver, but not maintain, 3A for long periods due to a smallish heatsink at the back:
I'm currently building another one, also based around the 723 that uses a toroidal transformer, but will only be 0-15V and 0-3A. Will post some pics when it's all done.
--deckert