UK Console power supply's on a PCE Duo

PCEngineTrev · 09/11/2017, 12:43 PM

Hey guys,

Does anyone know what UK console PSU's are compatible without issues on the black PCE Duo?

I grabbed a Duo for a good price recently but it didnt come with a PSU, was hoping to save cash buying one.

I know the Mega Drive PSU can work with the original white PCE, is that the case with any other models? Thanks!

NichlasEk · 09/18/2017, 12:26 PM

Search gor "Replacement for 10V 1A AC Power Adaptor 6.3mm x 3.0mm for PC Engine Turbo Duo" works a treat. I ise it (amongst others" with a eu adapter.

imparanoic · 09/19/2017, 02:08 AM

Best to get 10v with minimal 1000mah, why not have a look at maplins or ebay

ClodBusted · 09/19/2017, 02:37 AM

I'm using an universal switchting mode psu like this one from Goobay for my Turbo Duo:

The specs say 60 W, so there's plenty of angry pixie flow available even at 10 V DC. Also pretty handy when doing electronics projects or just powering other devices that are more hungry than a Duo.

PCEngineTrev · 09/26/2017, 05:04 AM

From the nuggets of info Ive found on the interwebs, it looks like nothing for UK consoles works on a Duo. Managed to pick up a good power supply from these guys though:

https://en.retrogamesupply.com/products/power-supply-for-nec-pc-engine-duo

ClodBusted · 09/26/2017, 11:13 AM

I'm concerned if a 9V, 1A (9V * 1A = 9W) supply would still be able to deliver enough power for a Duo, which is expecting 10V, 1A (10V * 1A = 10W). I'd rather go for something that complies with the original's specs.

SignOfZeta · 09/26/2017, 11:30 AM

I'm just always wondering why people think scrambling for other 30 year old power supplies that also sucked is a way to power anything.

Buy a new switching power supply. It won't match the original but it will be smaller and use massively less juice, especially when the unit is off. Then, when you go to use you Genesis or whatever it will still have its power supply.

From my experience 9W is enough for a Duo. Probably about 6 or 7 W is where it will start to see trouble during peak current demand (CD seeking). However, yeah, there's no reason to restrict it.

ClodBusted · 01/21/2018, 02:32 PM

Since I have trouble to recover my adjustable power supply brick that I had shown above, I'm thinking about getting a small dedicated supply for my Turbo Duo.

10 V supplys are rather scarce. Will 9 V / 1.3 A (12 W) be fine? Those are more common. I can replace the tip with one that fits my Duo.

mickcris · 01/21/2018, 06:19 PM

Quote from: guest on 01/21/2018, 02:32 PMSince I have trouble to recover my adjustable power supply brick that I had shown above, I'm thinking about getting a small dedicated supply for my Turbo Duo.

10 V supplys are rather scarce. Will 9 V / 1.3 A (12 W) be fine? Those are more common. I can replace the tip with one that fits my Duo.

yes, 9v is fine. its easier to find a power supply with at 5.5x2.1 tip. also probably easier to find one with 1.5a or 2.0a. these make it easy to adapt to work on a duo.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Adapter-6-3x3-0mm-male-plug-to-5-5x2-1mm-female-jack-DC-Power-For-Toshiba-Laptop/142041862568

ClodBusted · 01/22/2018, 01:28 AM

I didn't know about these tip adaptors, thanks for mentioning these and providing a link.

Ergot_Cholera · 01/22/2018, 10:43 AM

Switching mode power supplies can cause visual interference on some old consoles though as they were made to use linear supplies.
I have a switching mode supply for my SFC original model that works fine but displays interference on a 1chip console.
The same power supply causes interference on my Core Grafx.

ClodBusted · 01/22/2018, 11:26 AM

I had both a linear lab power supply as well as the switching power supply mentioned earlier on my Duo and couldn't spot any difference.

Mind you that both the lab supply as well as the switching supply were oversized for the job.

I wouldn't be surprised if some cheaply made miniature supplies have the potential to introduce visible or hearable noise, regardless if switched or linear, each in their own way.

I wish there would be more namebrand manufacturers for the small universal switching supplies. When searching on the web, often times you'll just find the usual bunch of strikingly similar looking models just with different off-brand names attached. I'd even pay some premium if I am garantueed to get my hands on a wallwart switcher that neither does introduce noticeable signal noise into the attached device, neither annoy you with humming or chirping sounds emitted from the supply itself.

And no, I don't mean this in an Audiophile esoteric snakeoil way, fuck those guys.

All I want is a product that is guaranteed not to suck.

ClodBusted · 01/26/2018, 04:56 PM

For shits and giggles, I measured the current draw of the Turbo Duo when playing games, using my lab power supply set at 10 V DC.

For Hucards, Blazing Lazers draws around 700 mA constant after a couple minutes of playtime.

For CDs, loading Gate of Thunder draws slightly more than 1 A at peak. If I set the power supply for a strict maximum current of 1 A, the Turbo Duo will refuse to finish the loading process, as the supply is switching to constant current mode.

OldMan · 01/26/2018, 09:27 PM

QuoteI measured the current draw of the Turbo Duo when playing games,

For future reference, could you do that with an EverDrive?

ClodBusted · 01/27/2018, 02:43 AM

I don't own an Everdrive, but I got a poor man's PCE flash cart I can dig out and test. I can also use my DMM and see if it has a min/max function for detecting peaks.
However, this is about total current draw of the console, not the current draw between cart bus and the cart itself.

Also, there had already been measurements made by db electronics on the current draw of everdrives, so there's no need for me to repeat that.

OldMan · 01/27/2018, 02:54 AM

QuoteI don't own an Everdrive,

Rats.

Quotethis is about total current draw of the console

Got it. Just wondering if ED causes extra draw on power supply. (Not just bus)
If you were seeing 900mA draw, for example, that might be enough difference for border-line supplies to flake out.

Quotethere had already been measurements made by db electronics on the current draw of everdrives, so there's no need for me to repeat that.

Verification is always nice. ( consider the source )

ClodBusted · 01/27/2018, 05:37 AM

Db electronics is way more capable in measuring the bus than I am. I don't even have an oscilloscope yet. I have no reason to doubt him.

I do not worry about the power supply itself with flashcarts.

What I'm just doing is figuring out what kind of safety margin is reasonable when choosing a Turbo Duo power supply on your own. To avoid malfunction of the console and overloading the supply.

ClodBusted · 01/29/2018, 06:29 AM

(Pic source: konsolenkost.de)

Hah! I just found an original PAL Sega Mega Drive power supply model no. 1602-18 (for 220 V / 50 Hz regions) among my spares.
10 V DC
1.2 A

Along with an adaptor for the Turbo Duo power inlet, this should do the trick.

EDIT: Well, this power supply is a bit like Schroedinger's cat. It does and it doesn't.
Why? Because it has a reversed polarity on the plug: Positive voltage on the outer ring and ground being on the tip.

Do not use it.

Unless you have another adaptor handy that reverses the polarity to positive tip and outer ring ground. I did built such an adaptor by myself, since I had the parts available among my spares anyway.

Winniez · 02/02/2018, 01:10 PM

I wonder if there are any PSUs with multiple outputs. It would be handy to have a single unit with 4 plugs hooked to Famicom, SFC, MD and PC-Engine. All systems use the same plug and the power ratings are similar too.
In theory even a simple adapter could do the trick since only one system would draw power at a time.

Gypsy · 02/02/2018, 01:40 PM

Quote from: Winniez on 02/02/2018, 01:10 PMI wonder if there are any PSUs with multiple outputs. It would be handy to have a single unit with 4 plugs hooked to Famicom, SFC, MD and PC-Engine. All systems use the same plug and the power ratings are similar too.
In theory even a simple adapter could do the trick since only one system would draw power at a time.

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/1SpotMC5--truetone-1-spot-multi-plug-5-cable

ClodBusted · 02/04/2018, 11:44 AM

I just wrote an addendum to that Mega Drive PSU to my post further above.

About those multi plug cables, well.... I wouldn't use them. Even if you've got your console switched off, there's still voltage present inside the case up to the fuse and the power switch. Hooking several consoles to the same single PSU is asking for trouble.

If I would need to save sockets on a multiple socket outlet, I'd rather use one single universal switching power supply with a good safety margin on wattage rating. And then only connect one console at a time with an adaptor plug of the correct voltage and polarity.

Gypsy · 02/04/2018, 01:56 PM

Quote from: guest on 02/04/2018, 11:44 AMI just wrote an addendum to that Mega Drive PSU to my post further above.

About those multi plug cables, well.... I wouldn't use them. Even if you've got your console switched off, there's still voltage present inside the case up to the fuse and the power switch. Hooking several consoles to the same single PSU is asking for trouble.

If I would need to save sockets on a multiple socket outlet, I'd rather use one single universal switching power supply with a good safety margin on wattage rating. And then only connect one console at a time with an adaptor plug of the correct voltage and polarity.

Yeah I wouldn't use one of those myself for lots of reasons but since someone asked, I figured I would link. I should have posted some text to go with it.

ClodBusted · 02/04/2018, 04:05 PM

No worries.

I just tried out that Sega 1602-18 power supply, along with a polarity reverse plug adaptor, with my Turbo Duo.

At no load, it supplies around 14 V. So I guess this could be an unregulated power supply.
With my Duo as a load, there's still 11 V measured on the fuse, when I switch the console on.
Still, all readings in the console after the voltage regulators are fine.

The voltage regulators are getting hotter to touch than when I use my lab power supply set at regulated 10 V. The 7805 voltage regulators will accept input voltages from 7 V to 25 V DC. So I guess there's more power to dissipate into heat with higher input voltages, since - another guess - their efficiency drops with higher input voltages.

If somebody more tech-savy could tell me if my assumptions are right or wrong, please let us know.

EDIT: I'll measure the current draw tonight.

Winniez · 02/09/2018, 12:19 AM

Yeah, kind of figured that it might not be a good idea. Thanks for confirming.
And I'm "Way Out Running!" ClodBusted

ClodBusted · 02/09/2018, 12:25 AM

"Anytime Baby!"

Whoops, I forgot about the measuring. Will do so tonight.
In the meantime, I recovered that good ol' switching supply from one of the boxes I used for moving a year ago. I'll also do measurements on this for the sake of comparison.

penrhos · 02/17/2018, 08:25 AM

I've been using these 9VDC @ 2.4A UK PSU's for any PCE imports I've got, you just need to swap the DC plug on the end to the correct size/polarity. Off-load they output 9.1-9.2VDC.

I can confirm they work fine with IFU-30's, Shuttles, Core-II's, Duo-r's & Duo's. the extra Amps means the voltage doesn't drop on heavy load.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Switching-Power-Supply-AC-Adapter-HKP24-0902600dB-Input-100-240V-Output-9V-NEW/291549901064?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2649