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fordy on 18 June 2012
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endimion said:
fordy said:
endimion said:
fordy said:
A mere "transformer" may not do the job properly.

In order to smooth out the wavelength, capacitors are used after full rectification to bridge the power gap between the still fluctuating AC. The slower the frequency of the power input, the more capacitance needed in order to store a charge to effectively bridge the gap between voltage peaks.

Usually 50Hz to 60Hz is not a problem, as the capacitors simply do not charge as fully. However, unless the the power design is made for universal applications, using capacitance rated for 60Hz applications in a 50Hz environment can cause fluctuations in voltage. I had the same problem with an NTSC NES, which took 9V AC @ 60Hz whereas my power supply output was 9V AC @ 50Hz. You'll tend to get certain quirks in this instance (failing voltage regulators, some circuits unable to process digital values properly, buzzing of the sound or flickering of the screen.

This also does not take into consideration that some NTSC TV sets do not support SECAM conversion, too.


so what can do a proper job ? or a better one....

That depends. You either need to get a new power supply unit inside the TV, or at least tested that the capacitors can maintain enough charge for a sufficient bridge across 50HZ. Sometimes it can be as simple as replacing the cord (plug), transformer and capacitors. However, you still have to make sure the TV can handle SECAM. There are a lot of TVs that cam handle NTSC and PAL (mainly in PAL countries in order to take advantage of 60Hz games)., but I'm not too sure about SECAM. I think it uses a different system to PAL's Luminance/chrominance levels. You'd need to research the model a little. Check the instructions.

As for the capacitor work, you'd need to take it in to a qualified TV repairman, or electronics tech. Any flat screen SHOULD theoretically be working on DC only, so tweaking the AC conversion portion according to country should allow it to work.

Another thought that occured to me is that there's also the matter of the digital broadcast standards for TV, which can differ for DVB-C (Cable), DVB-S (Satellite) and DVB-T (Terrestrial) television signals.

EDIT: America uses the ATSC method of encoding for HDTV, whereas France would most likely use DVB-T like the rest of Europe. Unless you get a set top box, you'll find that your TV wont be able to pick up channels.

hmm don't care about broadcasting format in France as a matter of fact don't care either about it in the US.... i don't watch TV.... and the rest of my set up is US and works fine together.... so i just have to make sure all the 110V @ 60Hz only component can take the step down transformer....

i think i'll take the risk if it doesn't work... well i'll get my hands dirty and research a little more how to modify the circuitery internaly.... reminds me old times when geeking hard meant hard soldering component on your mother boards or video cards to improve performance.... 


Your biggest two would probably be the TV and sound system. Game consoles can generally get a change of power pak to the new region if they act unusual with a voltage stepdown (provided they're AC -> DC. If they're AC -> AC like the original NES or SNES, you'd need to buy a power pak that does voltage regulation to DC)