Topic: Power converter issues in Europe?

Hey everybody,

I'm new here, but I wanted to ask a question about an issue some of you might have experience with.

I own a refurbished NTSC NES and SNES. I've had them for about a year, and both worked perfectly in the US. I just moved to Germany and brought the consoles with me. I also brought my American TV, which I need to power with a step-down converter.

When I finally bought a European adpater for the SNES, the SNES powers up fine, but the image is wobbly and shakes and has green tones. Apart from the power sources, it's the same setup I had in the States.

I suspect it's the converter that I'm using for the TV. Could it cause interference like that? I don't think the console was damaged during transport, and I don't think the European SNES adapter could cause a problem like this, but I'm not sure. I'm still waiting for my European NES adapter to arrive so I can see if the NES has the same issue.

If the TV is the issue, I'm not against buying a European one. But I wanted to get other people's opinion first.

Thanks.

Alex

As far as I know the European SNES adapter has 9V AC output while the US version has DC output. So you should not use an European SNES adapter on an US SNES as it is expecting DC.

I should have clarified: it's a European adapter designed for a US console. I just checked. It's a 10V DC output.

One volt too many?

Ah OK if it is DC it should work then. I don´t know if the US SNES has a voltage stabilizer in the console after the power supply, but I guess this is the case and the 1 Volt more could generate a bit more heat, but that should not be the issue then with the wobbly image.
If you get the same issue with other NTSC video sources on your TV it could be an issue with the power converter as most of the converters out there convert just the voltage but not the frequency of the AC which is 50Hz in Europe and 60Hz in the US. I don´t know if that is the issue, it is just an idea.

Should you find out that other NTSC video sources work just fine on your TV and the SNES is the only console with a wobbly image, you you could try to replace your SNES power supply with a powerfull stabilized power supply like this one here:
http://www.amazon.de/Goobay-NTS-2250-EuP-Schaltnetzteil-schwa...

It can deliver 2250 mA which is more than your SNES will ever need and you can set it to 9V. The only thing is that you would have to build something with the plug, maybe take the cable from your old SNES power supply.
Anyway, I guess it makes sense to test your TV with other NTSC video sources first before you think about that option.

Yeah, that's what I thought. I mean, not in that amount of detail, but I vaguely suspected the converter/TV combo was the problem.

Weird that it affects the video like that though. The converter is only powering the TV and nothing else, but I guess it's just interfering with the console signals?

UPDATE:

OK, it turns out it wasn't the step-down converter I was using for the TV. The problem was in fact the European SNES adapter after all. I ordered a 9V British adapter for US SNES consoles, plugged it into a European socket adapter, and the console works perfectly fine no, perfect picture, no more interference.

I also got an NES European adapter and had no issues with it so both systems are good to go. And thankfully, the TV wasn't the problem!