A three stage power source for an electric arc welding process comprising an input stage having an AC input and a first DC output signal; a second stage in the form of an unregulated DC to DC converter having an input connected to the first DC output signal and converts the first DC output signal to a second DC output signal of the second stage; and a third stage to convert the second DC output signal to a welding output for welding wherein the input stage and the second stage are assembled into a first module within a first housing structure and the third stage is assembled into a second module having a separate housing structure connectable to the first module with long power cables. The second module also includes wire feeding systems and electronics.