need some electrical advise

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foolproof

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i just bough a film scanner from a fellow member. now the scanner is american and im in ireland so im gonna have to step down the voltage. can i use a converter or do i need to use a transformer because of circuits/chips etc (think i read that somewhere). anyone done anything similar with electronic items??
 
foolproof said:
i just bough a film scanner from a fellow member. now the scanner is american and im in ireland so im gonna have to step down the voltage. can i use a converter or do i need to use a transformer because of circuits/chips etc (think i read that somewhere). anyone done anything similar with electronic items??
Click to expand...


This is a tricky excersise, not just the voltage, but if the device uses the freq of the net feed for timing you could be well up the swanney here.. This is however almost unimaginable so don't worry

Has it got an external power brick? If so, check the writing on it, you may be in luck and it will take 100-250V In which case all you do is cut the plug and replace or get another lead to feed the brick.

If it uses an external brick and it is not like I said above then you can get a new brick of the same voltage and transplant the input plug if need be.

If the PSU resides inside the scanner, read the label at the back, if it says "100-250V AC" Then no worries.

If not then get in touch with the manufacturer.

//J
 
snip said:
This is a tricky excersise, not just the voltage, but if the device uses the freq of the net feed for timing you could be well up the swanney here.. This is however almost unimaginable so don't worry

Has it got an external power brick? If so, check the writing on it, you may be in luck and it will take 100-250V In which case all you do is cut the plug and replace or get another lead to feed the brick.

If it uses an external brick and it is not like I said above then you can get a new brick of the same voltage and transplant the input plug if need be.

If the PSU resides inside the scanner, read the label at the back, if it says "100-250V AC" Then no worries.

If not then get in touch with the manufacturer.

//J
Click to expand...

brick? PSU? thats all way over my head 😛 guess i'll have to wait till it comes before i can have a look at it. though i could just use a step down converter or transformer, no?
 
Your printer is likely the same: you plug into the mains and the power goes to the 'brick', and from there on to the printer.

The 'brick' is the hefty device that turns mains power into something the device can use.

Some can take a wide variety of voltages and translate them all into 12V or whatever it is that your device needs. If that happens to be the case with your new one all you'll need is a way of plugging a US plug into an Irish socket.

Hotel chambermaids are the best source for plug adaptors as many tourists forget to take them home.
 
ClaremontPhoto said:
Your printer is likely the same: you plug into the mains and the power goes to the 'brick', and from there on to the printer.

The 'brick' is the hefty device that turns mains power into something the device can use.

Some can take a wide variety of voltages and translate them all into 12V or whatever it is that your device needs. If that happens to be the case with your new one all you'll need is a way of plugging a US plug into an Irish socket.

Hotel chambermaids are the best source for plug adaptors as many tourists forget to take them home.
Click to expand...

ah i know what a brick is now 😱 hopefully it can handle it and i only need an adaptor. i imagine a scanner would be fine to use with a electronic step down transformer as all the ones ive looked at say you an use a laptop/computer/tv with them.
 
Shouldn't be difficult to find something that converts 117V to 240V, should that be necessary. In India the mains power is 220V 50Hz and many people use electrical devices bought in North America.
 
Prices vary hugely, if you do need a voltage converter (as mentioned before, if the scanner has a 'brick' and runs on, say, 12v, better to buy an adapter that converts from 220 to 12, rather than 110 to 220 to 12).

I have an adapter bought from Ryness of all people, which converts from 110 to 220, use it with my 50s Fender Champ and it works great, cost around £12.
 
Your "brick" should have a label clearly stating the allowed voltage input range. If there is no label, look at the scanner's manual or get the specs from the manufacturer's website.

If the voltage range specs do not include yours (220/50Hz), you need either a transformer (220 to 110, a small one should suffice) or, better and probably cheaper, a different brick. If so, take your original brick to an electronics parts store - they will show you an equivalent one that will work with your scanner.

The label in the brick should also state the output power specs (something like 12 V / 1.5 A). Check that your new brick has the same voltage output (12 V in the example) and at least the same design current (1.5 A in the example). If it can give more current, fine.

CAUTION: Chances are that your original brick will not allow your Irish power voltage. If so, DON'T ever plug it into the wall with a plug adapter - it could burn or explode, and it might also damage the scanner circuits. I've seen that happen and it is not pretty.
 
I do not trust 'voltage converters' (as distinct from transformers) as some years ago my 110v laptop computer power supply (the 'brick') literally blew up -- bang, smoke, evil smell -- while running on one of these things during a short trip to 220v Germany from the USA. This necessitated a lot of 'phone calls and a journey to another city to get a 220v brick.

I was told that this was due to the way 'converters' work, by wave clipping or half-wave rectification as far as I recall. Now I use transformers if I HAVE to convert voltages, but as others have said, many bricks are now self-setting and if they aren't they can usually be replaced.

Cheers,

R.
 
cool. will look into the brick changing option also once it gets here. its a konica minolta dimage 5400 in case that helps or someone knows more.
 
For lower wattage, I used to carry a transformer, and for higher wattage, I carried a solid state converter. Seemed all the solid state converters eventually started passing 220.


Hopefully, your device will have a universal input. If it is, you may be able to find a dipole cord feeding in to it or use a plug converter. Oddly, I had a Nokia phone from the US with a charger that worked perfectly on 220, bought the same model with a 220 V charger that would not work on 110. There are quirky things, but a magnifying glass and an inspection should sort things out.

Regards, John
 
DougFord said:
I've got the Minolta elite 5400 scanner.
The 'brick' does not have an input power cord. Rather, it has a plug (5-15P) which is molded into the plastic case of the brick itself. The voltage spec for the brick is 100-120vac 50/60hz with a 24VDC output.
The 5-15P plug is used in N/S America as well as Japan.
You are going to have to buy a step down transformer that accepts a 5-15P or just buy a new brick with a 24VDC 1A output. 🙂
Click to expand...

cheers 😉 could i get a new brick in any electrical/electronic store? i rang a big electronics company here in Dublin and they dont do transformers. only converters. the guy said he was at a sony/playstation 3 meeting when the 1st batch of them came out over here and as they were American models playstation recommended customers to use a skytronic step down converter. now surely sony wouldnt recommend a converter for something as fragile as a ps3 if the thing was gona explode? plus a ps3 puts out about 175w i think......still a bit confused but will look into the brick option
 
In Britain (don't know about Ireland) there's a chain of specialist stores called 'Maplin' and they will put you right.

They likely have a website even if they don't have a branch in Dublin.
 
DougFord said:
I've got the Minolta elite 5400 scanner.
The 'brick' does not have an input power cord. Rather, it has a plug (5-15P) which is molded into the plastic case of the brick itself. The voltage spec for the brick is 100-120vac 50/60hz with a 24VDC output.
The 5-15P plug is used in N/S America as well as Japan.
You are going to have to buy a step down transformer that accepts a 5-15P or just buy a new brick with a 24VDC 1A output. 🙂
Click to expand...

Mine is 3pin 13a (UK) plug on the transformer/rectifier case, so it’s 220-240v 50Htz input and a 24v DC output if that’s any help
 
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