220 to 110 voltage conversion

Tex
Tex Posts: 189
edited December 2008 in Electronics
Does anyone have any experience with using 220 volt European electronics on 110 volts? I am looking at a nice Denon receiver that someone brought from Europe. I was told by the seller that all I need is a step down converter to use it on 110 volts. They also said it might be able to be converted internally to 110 volts by a qualified technician. I have no experience with this so any help would be appreciated.
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  • MikeC78
    MikeC78 Posts: 2,315
    edited October 2006
    Most of the European products I seen were mulit-systems.

    Which means they will work for both, the power supply usually detects the voltage and adjusts accordingly. Sometimes they have a small switch on the back panel which the user can adjust the voltage preference from 110/220.

    The outlet plug is most case is going to be a dual round prong (standard European) plug that you'll need an adapter for. No problem, an adapter can be had at your local Wal-Mart in most cases.

    If all the latter, like he said... you could always get a step-down converter to convert the voltage. I'm sure it will be costly to have a technician change the power supply in the AVR?

    Ask him those questions, it will most likely specify under where the power cord goes into the receiver. Also, have him look for that switch.

    You could always make this easier and just call Denon direct. Give them the exact model number and let them know it's European and I'm sure they'll let you know it's capabilities?

    Mike
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  • Polkersince85
    Polkersince85 Posts: 2,883
    edited October 2006
    If it is a straight Euro model, there may be some issues. If you want to feed your video thru it, it may be a Pal output for video. Not good. Would need to feed video straight from player to tv. This creates onscreen calibration issues of the sound output. Maximum watts usage on the back need to be doubled for the 110 step down transformer. If it like says 300 watts @ 220, you need a min. 1000 watt transformer. Not found at Walmart. Radio stations may or maynot come in due to different frequency steps. Hope this helps.
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  • Nicholas Shaw
    Nicholas Shaw Posts: 1
    edited December 2008
    As a previous user said, many items that are made for Europe will say on the back if they are only 220 volts, or if they are 110-220 volts. The latter meaning you can use it in the USA with simply a plug adaptor that can be purchased at a walmart, or online store.

    In the even it is just 220 volts you will need a voltage converter. Having it changed over would be ideal, but usually nearly impossible and cost prohibitive to find someone who can do this for you. In this case the best option is to buy a good quality voltage converter also known as a voltage transformer.

    Another user brought up a great point about Pal / NTSC. Pal is the TV system used overseas which is differnt from the tv system used in the USA which is NTSC. Although most Denon recievers support both, so I don't believe this will be an issue for you.

    if you need to purchase a voltage converter I would suggest this place:
    http://www.220-electronics.com/Transformers/trans/prod.html


    Good luck
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