Job Discussion Forums

[mushroomyakuza]

Hi all.

I'm having problems with some of my Western electrical gear. My UK PS3 won't turn on over here - this is with the adapter in, turning the UK plug into a Japanese one.

I thought that by buying a converter from playasia.com, the problem would be fixed, but sadly not. The converter is a stepup and stepdown one, the theory being that it will lower or increase the voltage as necessary.

With Japan using 110V and the UK using 240V, in my situation I need the converter to increase the power to turn the PS3 on, but no joy. I've tried it every possible way. The converter itself is with a UK plug socket - I've put this into an adapter and plugged it into the wall. The converter itself turns on fine, and the red light comes on to show it's powered. The converter has one UK power socket and two Japanese ones. Here's a link:

http://www.play-asia.com/paOS-13-71-er-49-en-15-converter-70-1pnk.html

But then when I plug the PS3 in, nothing. I've tried it every way - 1) PS3 power plug from UK going straight into converter, 2) Japanese PS3 power plug going into converter (in Japanese power slot) and 3) UK power plug with a power adapter on, then going into the Japanese slot - but still nothing.

This is incredibly frustrating, as I took great care with the PS3 when bringing it over (it was very well padded with bubblewrap, so I can't believe it was in any way damaged during transit) and have just forked out a lot of money for the converter, which seems to be not working.

I also tried the converter with an electric shaver from the UK, just to check it wasn't the PS3 that was the problem - but the shaver wouldn't charge either, so the problem can't be with the PS3. Conversely, the red light on the converter shows as on, meaning it seems to be working fine - so what's the problem?

If anyone has any advice or suggestions or similar experiences with similar problems, I'd love to hear about it. If I can't remedy this soon I may just have to buy another PS3, which means forking out even more money - and rather a lot, judging from amazon.jp's price of 35,000 yen :S.

Thanks all.

[Bread]

This is kind of a dumb question, but does the PS3 have a physical power switch on the back like the PS2 did that you've forgotten about? I remember hearing people who couldn't turn their PS2 on because of that back then, although I used that thing every time I turned it off.

[ShioriEigoKyoushi]

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[seklarwia]

You know what Mr Yakuza? I think the product title might be a little misleading. I was just thinking that for a step up transformer that is extremely cheap (you're normally looking at least twice the price for one with a high enough wattage).

After looking at the site description of what it is designed to do - This 220V Stepdown Converter allows you to connect any 110V console (imported from Japan or the US) to connect to a 220V socket (as used in Europe, Australia and some other countries). - and comments from happy people, I think it might only be a step down convertor, since I can't see any switches on it to change the function to step up and it can't be both at the same time.

EDIT: Actually have you checked for a jumper switch on the back or underneath? If it is indeed a step up and down convertor, it likely arrived pre-set to step down since it is being marketed primarily to people importing consoles into the UK (hence it coming with a UK 3 prong plug).

[mushroomyakuza]

Thanks for the replies.

Bread - an elementary question, but no, I haven't that made that schoolboy error. There is indeed a switch on the back of the PS3 for on/off, much as there is on the converter itself, but it is definitely on.

Shiori - my laptop is just fine, as are many of my other electrical items, for some reason though the PS3 and shaver just aren't having it. Baffling.

Seklarwia - Thought of that myself and actually checked before I bought it by asking playasia themselves. They assured me it would be no problem. But, I do suspect you are right. As for changing the function - here's a brief run down and description of it. On the front, as you can see from the link, there's one UK plug slot, two Japanese/US slots, a power switch which lights up red, and some general text. Nothing on the sides, top or bottom, but on the back there is this:

A slot for the fuse which is removable by twisting the lid. Next to this twisting slot it says: Fuse (with a little fuse diagram), 250V, 5Amp. Above that, interestingly, it says Input Select, with a little red slot next to it. This is hard to describe, but the slot is about a centrimetr long and half a centrimetre wide. On the red slot, there's the number 230 and a very very small box within, though it looks far too small to put anything into it. I'm wondering if somehow this can adjust the power output/input, making it a step-up converter rather than a step-down, but if so, there's on obvious indication of how or any kind of switch. And no mention of it on the instructions.

Aggrivating.

Anyone have any knowledge on how much a new PS3 goes for, on average, in stores at the moment?

[Mr_Monkey]

Amazon.co.jp has new 80GB PS3s for 35,000. Used from 24,000.

http://www.amazon.co.jp/gp/switch-language/product/B001HX3KOW/ref=dp_change_lang?ie=UTF8&language=en_JP

[G Cthulhu]

[seklarwia]

As G Cthulhu said, I believe that is indeed what you might be looking for. If the thing you describe is not a switch as he describes, perhaps its something you can stick a key into to adjust. Imagine a universal power supply; they normally come with adjustable outputs which you change by sticking in a little plastic key and twisting. The key normally looks either like a small allen key or a strange little plug that people often discard as a piece of rubbish... check your box again.

[Glenski]

Looking at that link, I'm not even sure you bought the right thing. It talks about the converter being used to step down the voltage from 220 to 110 volts when you connect it to things like Japanese games. That means your main source of power is 220. It doesn't say you can plug it into a 110 source and run things intended for 220.

At least that's the brief description on the link.

Laptops have built-in power converters. That means not only voltage but Hz. Japan has 50 and 60 Hz power frequencies, depending on where you are. If your converter really is what you need, does it allow for that?

A little more info.
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2225.html
http://kropla.com/electric2.htm

[seklarwia]

[mushroomyakuza]

I'm in a rush so a brief reply.

G Cthulhu - a big thank you. Your idea was right. You have to pull down on the red "switch" (which looks nothing like a switch) to get to the 115 option - tried again, and it worked this time .

A big thank you everyone to the help, and especially to G Cthulhu.

[anneinjapan]

HAHA so ironic!

My boyfriend had the same issue with his and we never thought to try that. And we're leaving. Oops.