nes power cord?

[thomas_surles]

I just picked up a Nes for $10 with no hookups. Does anyone have any close up shots of their power adapter so I know what to look for at goodwill?
I just need to know the volts or whatever so I can power it up without damaging it.

[JDFan]

Here's a pic (tried several times but can't get a clear pic of the text as it is the same black as the rest of the adapter and kind of worn after about 20 years

So Here's a rundown of what it says :

Nintendo         UL listed
Ac Adapter        18j5

Model No. : NES-002
INPUT AC 120V 60Hz 17W
Output AC 9V 1.3A
Power supply for use with
Video Game NES-001
only

      Nintendo Co. Ltd
      Made in Japan

[Vigo]

Keeping a few of these around are always nice for powering old consoles.



Never damaged any console on one of them.

[opt2not]

The NES is built like a tank.  Unless you're a collector-type and want the original adapter, any 9v adapter with the proper plug size will work.

[JDFan]

The NES is built like a tank.  Unless you're a collector-type and want the original adapter, any 9v adapter with the proper plug size will work.

^+1 -- figure the unit itself is rated at 9V 850Ma so even a 1A adapter should be fine.

[Slippyblade]

The original NES had an AC to AC power plug. It was literally just a step down transformer.  I don't remember if it will work with a 9v DC adapter.

[JDFan]

The original NES had an AC to AC power plug. It was literally just a step down transformer.  I don't remember if it will work with a 9v DC adapter.

You are correct - I believe it needs to be AC output as listed (not sure if DC would work) -- For example here is a 9v 1A AC unit that would work - ( http://www.ebay.com/itm/9-VOLT-1AMP-AC-AC-POWER-SUPPLY-ADAPTER-9V-1A-1000MA-/251039163052?pt=Laptop_Adapters_Chargers&hash=item3a7319a2ac )

EDIT : seems PBJ is correct and DC output will work Here is another forums post that discusses it - that also has several members saying they use 9vDC units but this post sums it up well

The NES has a powerful voltage regulator and it's power supply very unusually works on AC voltage, which is usually inhospitable to consoles and other electronics in general.

As a direct result, you can use almost any power supply you want between 7-12 volts with as little as 300mA. The voltage regulator only needs 7v (5v in reality, but it regulates it to 7v) and so anything over that is just wasted as excess heat.

Since it was built to accept AC current directly, polarity is not a factor when powering an NES. You can use DC power supplies of either center pin negative or outer barrel negative polarity.

You could use a model 1 MegaDrive power supply, or any generic one. The NES is a beast that does not care.


However, this ONLY applies to the NES-001 (the 'toaster') and NES-101 (the "top loader"). This does NOT apply to any version of the Famicom, or any other console. Only the NES.

[pbj]

The original NES had an AC to AC power plug. It was literally just a step down transformer.  I don't remember if it will work with a 9v DC adapter.

Huh, well today I learned.

And yes, it works fine with a 9V DC adapter.  I believe the Genesis one plugs right in?

[thomas_surles]

Ok cool I think I have some 9 volts in the shed with my guitar stuff.

[SavannahLion]

IIRC the reason why it can accept both AC and DC isn't because of the step down transformer but of the quad diodes. This is readily apparent and easy to spot in the NES-001 schematic. When you drive the NES with AC, the diodes rectify (is that the right term?) the current to DC at a cost of a couple of volts (7v- 2v=5v just right for a computer). When you feed the mess DC, you just use 2 out of four diodes.

I think the Pac-Man was constructed in the same way. I might be wrong though.

Keeping a few of these around are always nice for powering old consoles.



Never damaged any console on one of them.

I had one  by that company that caught on fire. I bought it for a 2600 originally then removed it for a different console. Probably that bastard Lynx with the ultra ---smurfy--- plug adapter. One of the tips on the pigtail you see in the pic came into contact with the four way. Drained nearly all of the magic smoke store in the house into my room while I slept through the whole thing as my parents frantically searched for and disposed of the source.

The model there lacks the phono adapter but I don't doubt you can still get them. Just make sure you tape it off if you get one with the phono.

[PL1]

IIRC the reason why it can accept both AC and DC isn't because of the step down transformer but of the quad diodes. This is readily apparent and easy to spot in the NES-001 schematic. When you drive the NES with AC, the diodes rectify (is that the right term?) the current to DC at a cost of a couple of volts (7v- 2v=5v just right for a computer). When you feed the mess DC, you just use 2 out of four diodes.

Quite right, SL.   

The four-diode arrangement is called a Bridge Rectifier.

Tutorial here for those who want to know how they work.

You can see the Bridge Rectifier in the upper left corner of pg 2 of the NES schematic here.

The symbol to the right of the Bridge Rectifier is a polarized capacitor. (It's not a commonly used symbol version, found it here)

After some smoothing/filtering capacitors and the power switch, the 9v feeds into the 7805 voltage regulator.

Based on the schematic, a 9VDC input should work as well as a 9VAC input, but it will probably cause the 7805 to dissipate a bit more heat since the voltage and current flow is constant instead of the pulsing "waveform without capacitor" (dotted line) shown below -- not sure if that will shorten the component life on the 7805.   




Scott