Will this SLIGHTLY different (output spec) Charger work as hoped?

[free41andall]

Hello all,

Newbie here, hoping someone can help me with a knowledgeable answer....

I am intending to acquire a set of SONY headphones with an accompanying docking unit (which charges the headphones batteries when docked and wirelessly transmits sound to the headphones when they are in use). I prefer to buy the item internationally (much cheaper), but which would consequently come with a differing-region power charger/plug.

I would want to change the charger/plug to one from my region (rather than having to use it in conjunction with an adaptor/travel plug).

The power charger/plug for the docking unit is listed in the user manual for the headphones as power output spec: DC * 6V * 800mA

Unfortunately, a same-region charger/plug of that precise Voltage & Amp spec isn't available at what I'd regard as a reasonable price.

However, I have a Nokia charger/plug (originally a cell/mobile phone charger) which is very close to that stated power spec.
It is: DC * 5.7V * 800mA

Is the Nokia charger/plug spec similar enough to that of the headphones docking unit to likely prove an acceptable, issue-free replacement?


If not, then I have seen a same-region charger/plug with output power spec: 6V * 900mA

Would this likely be a reasonable alternative?

Thank you in advance

[smrpix]

If you're lucky, the slightly lower voltage will result only in slower charging. If you're not lucky and the polarity is reversed you could destroy the headphones. You decide.

But read the full specs. Many chargers are universal and only need a different cord to the mains.

[Keyser]

The difference in voltage can be a problem. On the other hand, you can choose a charger with any current spec as long as it is AT LEAST 800mA (I suppose you made a mistake, it is 800mA, not 0.800mA)

So, a charger with, say, 6V DC, 1.5A (or any other value greater than 0.8A) would be OK. I don't think you'll have a problem finding it, since 6V DC is a very common voltage (much more common than 5.7).

[free41andall]

Hi smrpix and Keyser

Thank you greatly for those prompt, informative replies. It's appreciated.

Wow, a reversal of polarity blowing the unit....

I am going to shelve that idea then (had no idea that that could happen)!

Yes, (my apologies) -- got caught between 2 stools in stating the spec as either: 800mA or 0.8A.......and subconsciously plumped for neither.

The charger plug that I saw with spec: 6V * 900mA seems the candidate to be choosing then.

Thanks again to you both!

[newpball]

Doing an international purchase for something as common as a wireless headphone?
Okay....

What model are you looking at and what country are you from?

[jagabo]

Wow, Reversing polarity blowing the unit....

I am going to shelve that idea then (had no idea that that could happen)!

Buy (borrow) a cheap multimeter and check. For example:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/DT830B-Digital-Voltmeter-Ammeter-Multimeter/dp/B008RJQ33E/

[free41andall]

Hi newpball

I am in the UK and am interested in the SONY MDR-DS6500. They are 7.1 surround-sound headphones. This isn't the pinnacle item for this type of product, but is very much the high end of the market.

I have seen them in Germany that (with the present Pound - Euro currency rate being extremely favourable) I can buy from Amazon (with free shipping) for about £105-110.

That is at least £30+ cheaper than the price I could acquire them for anywhere within the UK.

Also...

The UK....though separate from Europe in several respects, including currency.....is in the same Euro-Zone ''Economic Union'' (with the trade benefits that come with being in that trans-border association), so there thankfully also won't be any importation charges for this item.

If that wasn't the case then it really wouldn't have been worth my while looking further afield.

[newpball]

...with the current Pound - Euro currency rate being very favorable

Ah yes, very true, it takes awhile for importers to catch up!

This model is discontinued so you might even get deals from local BM stores who want to clean their inventory. At any rate a good price, here in the US they cost around $200.

I am from the US and am looking for picking this up really cheap from Europe:

Sales price without tax: 423,53 €



Cost about $900 in the US, almost double the price in Europe!

http://www.dgtshop.nl/index.php/19/9/e-boards/dgt-e-boards-with-e-board-sets/dgt-e-boa...-pieces-detail

[free41andall]

Very nice. And what a difference in cost!

[free41andall]

And you'll never have a better time to make that purchase than at the moment. The Dollar is doing even better against the Euro than the Pound is...

[free41andall]

Have just completed my purchase of the headphones: £110 (inc. the obligatory currency conversion charge) - with free shipping - from Amazon.de (Amazon website in Germany).

The difference in price that a consumer can be presented with for an item like this is startling.

No price even close to that is available from any source within the U.K. Even the Amazon.co.uk website is listing its cheapest available price for the headphones as: £163.90 + £3.99 UK delivery (over 50% more).

So my thanks to you helpful souls for supplying me with that info I was lacking (so that I could take the plunge)!

[DB83]

Are you sure that you get free shipping from Amazon.de to the UK ? I have bought dvds from there but always pay shipping.

Also, you inevitably will now get a two-pin euro-plug rather than the three-pin UK-plug. So you will still require an adapter of sorts.

[free41andall]

Hello DB83

Yes, I'm sure. Different products can sometimes incur different charges, and so can the amount you spend. My purchase was in a category (Electronics) and of a sufficient amount to qualify for free shipping.

As to the Euro plug that will inevitably come with it: my concerns in that regard were my reason for creating this thread.

I wanted a suitable replacement for it, rather than having to use it in conjunction with any travel/region-adaptor plug.

Thankfully, the first 2 responders to my query provided me with the necessary info. I required a UK region DC 6V plug with at least 800mA (0.8A).

There are several such plugs being sold on Ebay with 6V (900mA or 1A spec) for under £3.

One of those will doubtless do the job admirably.

[DB83]

Interesting info. Thnx.

I appreciate the reason for your thread. I was thinking more that the two-pin goes straight to the cradle whereas travel adapters have 3-pin input and two-pin output . If that is the case, this might help you.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Euro-Europe-to-UK-Plug-Converter-2-to-3pin-Pins-5A-Fused-WHI...item2c6b89a60e

Had to get one of these some years ago when I found a two-pin plug on sat equipment actually bought here in the UK.

[free41andall]

Thank you for that.

I actually have one of those cradle type adaptor plugs. Useful things. I got it to house a longer 2-pin replacement lead for my shaver.

My cradle plug is a "push-in/pull out the connector" variety.....as opposed to the hinged type (in your pic) that you open out to insert your cable connector.....and then screw closed again (to house it on a more permanent basis).

And yes! A cradle connection is definitely preferable to a traditional "travel plug" connection, if circumstance allows.

But all too often life doesn't like to make things so simple, it seems.

The power plug for the headphones is a somewhat awkwardly designed affair for UK adaption of this kind.

I enclose a pic to illustrate:







Getting a replacement UK plug seems the more practical solution...

[DB83]

Ok. But what is interesting is that packaging is not specifically directed at Germany. It would therefore surprise me greatly if you did not get exactly the same (I have not looked) were you to buy in the UK. Even if this is not the case that still looks like a standard-length two-pin and the adapter I linked to should work.

But it's your call.

[free41andall]

I remember (when toying a while back with the idea of getting the headphones) that one was offered second-hand on Ebay (which the seller was good enough to provide some great pics of). It was being sold with a moulded UK plug.....which may have been a replacement made by the seller (but which the advert gave no mention of being). So my presumption was that SONY do cater to the needs of their local markets in that regard.

And I assume that my cradle (or the one you illustrated) would definitely house the plug/connector as you rightly state.

But then the plugging of that connected-whole into my power supply may well prove practically and aesthetically unsatisfactory/awkward.

A bit of a square-peg-in-a-round-hole inclusion to my domestic setup.

My call in this instance is....

Go British!


Like your Blackadder profile pic, by the way!

[DB83]

Good luck with the alternative adapter. The 6v 800mA ones actually cost more than a simple adapter plug.

I would go for a universal adapter - one with different output settings and a selection of plugs since you would be gutted if the plug was the wrong dimension.

You can pick these up in any good store for about a tenner.

[free41andall]

Yes, for some reason the 6V 800mA plug was the only one that wasn't available cheaply.

There were 6V - 600mA, 700mA, 900mA and 1A plugs available at less than a third of the price of the one I believed I needed (the 800mA).

Sods Law...

But now that I know that the original Amps spec isn't reqiured I can get the 900mA plug listed here:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/350949350378?_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

I bought a media player a few months ago from Spain (again, it was a cheaper from abroad affair) that I then likewise needed to get a UK plug for.

I found one on Ebay for approx £2.50 with identical volt/amp spec as the original, but it had a lead terminating with a slightly different dimensions jack connector to that of the original (which I'd discovered the dimensions/spec of prior to the arrival of the media player). So I bought a short jack adaptor lead of the following (just for illustration purposes) type for about £1.50 (at the same time that I bought the replacement plug.





Both items were delivered shortly after the arrival of the media player itself, and all work together as hoped/planned.

And knowing now that I don't need a same Amp spec plug for the headphones I imagine a similar outcome (though this time I don't yet know the spec/dimensions of the jack connector).

The company selling the (above linked) plug (which I'll most likely be buying) instructs you to contact them if you have a desired jack connector preference as they seem willing to provide your intended spec plug with a jack connector of your choice....from a substantial range of connector specs.

Which IMHO is a handy service to be offered.

Whichever way I ultimately go, I'll now wait upon the arrival of the headphones, and then take stock of what I will be needing before taking that next step.


Cheers!