NTSC Dreamcast stepdown problem, help!

[losersclub]

Just recieved a US dreamcast i bought over the net the other day, i bought a stepdown a while back for something else but never used it so i decided to put it to use, from looking on the internet the voltage looked to be right etc however when i plug in the DC and turn it on nothing happens!

This is the stepdown i'm using, have i fudged up and used one i shouldn't have?





James

[Shinebi]

It's there: http://www.ntsc-uk.com/tech.php?tech=ImportHardwareFAQ

Watts too low I think.

[honeymustard]

Yeah you'll want 75 watts rather than 45.

[MattyD]

Maplins do a 100w one for a tenner: http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=31899

I have about half a dozen various machines that I run using one of these. They'll power just about anything, US or Japanese.

[losersclub]

Thanks for the responses guys

I think the machine is dead anyway as i tried swapping over the internal psu from my pal machine into it but that didn't bring it to life either

Will i have killed it by trying that stepdown?

Cheers

James

[honeymustard]

Well I would have thought that you'd at least get the power LED to come on, even if it wasn't getting enough power, surely?

[losersclub]

Thats what i thought too, can't get anything from it. With the PAL psu in it it makes a faint "whine" to show that the psu itself is working but nothing lights up or powers on properly

It was an ebay buy, guy selling loadsa loose ntsc dc's on there at the minute

[Link83]

Do you know what revision Dreamcast this is? You can tell by looking at the bottom silver sticker and looking for a number 0, 1 or 2 in a circle.

I only ask as I have just recently heard that the 0 revision motherboards (VA0) do not operate using a PAL Dreamcast power supply unit as the PAL PSU's dont provide the motherboard enough juice, although im unsure if anyone has actually tested this

This could mean that your Dreamcast is still fine (Even if its definitely dead please dont throw it away, as theres always somebody who can make use of it )

OT But can I ask who you bought the NTSC Dreamcast from and how much it was? I only ask as I have been looking to buy a cheap console only NTSC Dreamcast for a while now.

[MattyD]

Will i have killed it by trying that stepdown?

Shouldn't have done - I think the worst case scenario with less power than required is that it just doesn't power up. You can blow it with too much voltage / amperage etc but not the other way around.

[losersclub]

Do you know what revision Dreamcast this is? You can tell by looking at the bottom silver sticker and looking for a number 0, 1 or 2 in a circle.

I only ask as I have just recently heard that the 0 revision motherboards (VA0) do not operate using a PAL Dreamcast power supply unit as the PAL PSU's dont provide the motherboard enough juice, although im unsure if anyone has actually tested this

This could mean that your Dreamcast is still fine (Even if its definitely dead please dont throw it away, as theres always somebody who can make use of it )

OT But can I ask who you bought the NTSC Dreamcast from and how much it was? I only ask as I have been looking to buy a cheap console only NTSC Dreamcast for a while now.

It was a revision one mate, the guys sending a replacement anyway now

Here's the guy selling them

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&item=120350548666