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Canadian computer in the UK?

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  • Power Supplies
  • Computers
Last response: in Other Consumer Electronics
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May 16, 2014 4:09:02 PM

I have a 2000 watt power converter that allows me to use North American devices, and plug them into UK outlets, which is where I am currently living. I am planning to have my PC sent from Canada to England, and I want to know if I can even plug in my PC to this thing. Will it work? Will everything explode? If it doesn't work, is it possible to just put a UK power supply in my computer?

More about : canadian computer

a b ) Power supply
May 16, 2014 4:26:24 PM

Providing it's a half decent PSU in your computer, you shouldn't need to use a power converter at all. Most PSUs can accept a wide range of voltages (100-240V is quite common) and frequencies (47-63Hz I believe mine takes), and either switch automatically, or have a manual switch on the back to change between input voltage. This is done by the manufacturers to save money, as then they don't have to manufacturer differing electronics for different parts of the world. So with that in mind, all you need is a new lead to plug it in, or plug converter.

I've taken a number of electrical items to and from the US and UK, and as long as it says it can cope with the input voltage and frequency, you don't need a power converter, just a plug converter.
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May 16, 2014 5:45:52 PM

I may have used the wrong terminology, by power converter I meant plug converter. It's just a thing I stick the Canadian plug into with a UK plug on the other side. So if you're saying it will work, that's great news. Do you figure a 2000 watt plug converter will be strong enough?
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a b ) Power supply
May 17, 2014 1:17:10 AM

Yes, that will be more than enough. You'll be fine :) 
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July 14, 2014 7:20:12 AM

So, after the long process of getting all of my gear from Canada to the UK, things have gone horribly wrong.
I plugged it all in, and when I switched on the power supply, there was a bright spark, a loud pop, and the fuse in my room blew. So uh. I think there's something slightly wrong here. I need to identify how much damage has been done to my PC, and find a safe way to get it working. Any help is appreciated.
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a b ) Power supply
July 14, 2014 7:23:39 AM

pangolins said:
So, after the long process of getting all of my gear from Canada to the UK, things have gone horribly wrong.
I plugged it all in, and when I switched on the power supply, there was a bright spark, a loud pop, and the fuse in my room blew. So uh. I think there's something slightly wrong here. I need to identify how much damage has been done to my PC, and find a safe way to get it working. Any help is appreciated.


Oops.

Where did the spark / pop come from? the power converter or the PC itself? I'm thinking step one is buy a UK 230v PSU and see if it works?
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July 14, 2014 7:26:04 AM

The spark came from inside the tower, where the power supply was. One thing I noticed, and that might have tipped me off if I knew anything about electricity, is when I had the power cord plugged into the plug converter, before I even turned the power supply on, there was a faint sort of hissing sound?
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July 14, 2014 7:32:29 AM

Oh also, there was a pretty strong burning plasticy smell when it happened. I am sort of scared my expensive computer has been melted, but I can't see any visible burns inside.
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a b ) Power supply
July 14, 2014 7:33:10 AM

pangolins said:
The spark came from inside the tower, where the power supply was. One thing I noticed, and that might have tipped me off if I knew anything about electricity, is when I had the power cord plugged into the plug converter, before I even turned the power supply on, there was a faint sort of hissing sound?


You might be lucky here, a good quality PSU would have fallen on the sword to save your other components :D 
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July 14, 2014 7:36:39 AM

He will be remembered for all time. ;-;
I don't know if it was a good PSU, but I think it was? I don't know a lot about watts and volts, but mine is a cooler master, has a big 550 on the side?
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a b ) Power supply
July 14, 2014 7:44:06 AM

pangolins said:
He will be remembered for all time. ;-;
I don't know if it was a good PSU, but I think it was? I don't know a lot about watts and volts, but mine is a cooler master, has a big 550 on the side?


Well if you tell me your CPU and GPU I can point to you a cheap but quality PSU so you can test your system without breaking the bank
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July 14, 2014 7:48:55 AM

Well my graphics card is a GTX 560 Ti, and I'm not entirely sure how to see what my CPU is?
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a b ) Power supply
July 14, 2014 7:53:00 AM

pangolins said:
Well my graphics card is a GTX 560 Ti, and I'm not entirely sure how to see what my CPU is?


click the start button, right click 'computer', select 'properties' (Windows 7) That should tell you what your processor is

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July 14, 2014 7:53:57 AM

That will be difficult since I kind of can't turn it on.
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a b ) Power supply
July 14, 2014 8:00:23 AM

pangolins said:
That will be difficult since I kind of can't turn it on.


Lol sorry I'm in work and wasn't thinking it through when I typed that :D 

The graphics card was the main number I needed so this should be fine:

http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/part/xfx-power-supply-p1550s...
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July 14, 2014 8:03:21 AM

Well, I'd like to go get the power supply right now, there is a Maplin down the road, and they should have this in stock:
http://www.maplin.co.uk/p/g7-680-w-atx-pc-power-supply-...
Will that be good enough? A lot of these numbers mean nothing to me. But I would much rather go buy that right now, even if it costs a bit more, just to avoid the wait.
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a b ) Power supply
July 14, 2014 8:12:06 AM

pangolins said:
Well, I'd like to go get the power supply right now, there is a Maplin down the road, and they should have this in stock:
http://www.maplin.co.uk/p/g7-680-w-atx-pc-power-supply-...
Will that be good enough? A lot of these numbers mean nothing to me. But I would much rather go buy that right now, even if it costs a bit more, just to avoid the wait.


Ok well the cheapest on the maplin site that isn't total garbage is:

http://www.maplin.co.uk/p/corsair-cx600m-600w-atx-80-br...

It's not a brilliant PSU but it will at least deliver it's stated wattage. I thought about the CX500 which is £10 cheaper and is possibly also enough, but without knowing your processor it may or may not be pushing it.
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July 14, 2014 8:18:58 AM

Yikes, I might just go for one day delivery on the EVGA one you linked on Amazon earlier.
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a b ) Power supply
July 14, 2014 8:25:52 AM

pangolins said:
Yikes, I might just go for one day delivery on the EVGA one you linked on Amazon earlier.


This one?
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00DZ6R9GE/?tag=pcp0f-21

Should be fine, I wasn't sure if it was cutting it close but looking at the +12v rail (40 amps) it should be plenty :) 

Are there any other hardware stores nearby?
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July 14, 2014 8:27:09 AM

Yeah, with one day delivery it comes out to 44 pounds, which I can manage. So I'll order that and I'll post again tomorrow if everything catches fire.

There aren't really any other stores around, no.
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a b ) Power supply
July 14, 2014 8:31:59 AM

Ok, I'll cross my fingers for tomorrow.
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a b ) Power supply
July 14, 2014 10:35:10 AM

pangolins said:
The spark came from inside the tower, where the power supply was. One thing I noticed, and that might have tipped me off if I knew anything about electricity, is when I had the power cord plugged into the plug converter, before I even turned the power supply on, there was a faint sort of hissing sound?

I'm very sorry to hear you've had trouble with it when trying to use it in the UK! The fact you heard a hissing sound before even turning on the PSU makes it sound like there was an issue with the plug converter, or possibly with the PSU itself (damaged in transport?). If the converter was rated to handle 2000W then it should have been fine, but there could have been a failure in it that led to a short or something similar.

I never clarified with you before, but was there a switch on the back of the PSU for selecting between input voltage (120 or 240V), or was it an automatic switcher (as they normally are these days)?

LucoTF is right about a good PSU sacrificing itself to protect your other components; hopefully that's the case here. With a bit of luck a new PSU will have you back up and running. Again, I'm sorry, and also very surprised, you've had trouble; if everything was working correctly it should have all worked without issue. Very odd.
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July 14, 2014 10:48:24 AM

The only switch on the power supply is the on/off one. I've plugged other things into the plug converter since the incident, and it worked just fine. If the power supply was damaged in transit, I might be able to claim some money back, as I had insured the package. Although whatever this mishap did to it might make that impossible.
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July 15, 2014 6:38:09 AM

It worked!
At long last, I am reunited with my baby. Thank you both for helping my technologically illiterate self.
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a b ) Power supply
July 15, 2014 6:45:48 AM

pangolins said:
It worked!
At long last, I am reunited with my baby. Thank you both for helping my technologically illiterate self.


Let us bow our heads for a moment in respect for your coolermaster PSU, who gave himself so that others may live...

...that is a slam dunk result my friend, thanks for the update :) 
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a b ) Power supply
July 15, 2014 10:23:56 AM

*bows head*

Excellent news! Hey, I'm happy to help, and even more happy that it's working again.
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!