Tech Help (AC Adapter)

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galix

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Nov 3, 2004
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So the other day, there was a power surge in my living area out here. My TV went up in flames, PS2 blew out, and my AC Adapter for my laptop went out. So now I'm stuck with a dead battery XPS to stare at all day lol.

Anyway, heres my dilema. I'm in Iraq, so to have a new AC adapter shipped out will take 2 weeks or so. I'm trying to find a way around it. My question is, what will happen if I use a 6.2Amp AC adapter on my Dell XPS. The adapter that I had been using was 7.7Amp. The 6.2Amp is the closest thing to mine, the next being an 11Amp adapter from my friends HUGE alienware computer. Is it dangerous? Will it work for a little while at least?

Also, someone told me that there is actually a fuse inside of the adapter itslef which may be interchangable. Is that true?

Any answers or alternate solutions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

Regards
Galix
 
If there's too much voltage you basically risk frying the contents of, in this case, your laptop. Using one with too low of amps runs the risk of either some things not running properly, if at all...in the case of the laptop, it's battery might still run down even if plugged into a wall if the voltage input's too low...but it'd still be better than nothing.


So best case scenario, your laptop runs fine despite the slightly lower voltage. Worst case, it's internal battery still runs down even if plugged into a wall (though it'd drain slower than if it weren't plugged in at all) and then craps out when the battery's empty, resulting in a however-long-it-takes-to-recharge break.
 
Hallo Galix :D

Sorry to hear a PS2 blew :( Anyway, the rule of thumb in electronics is, low is okay, higher is bad. The best if you can match the original requirement.

Also, make sure that the country's Voltage and Frequency is compatible with the substitute adapter you're going to use. However most adapter supports 110/240, 50&60Hz.
 
Yea, both of the adapters are dual voltage. My TV was also. I just dont know how much voltage was pushed through on that surge.. Enough to make my lightbulbs blow up haha..

Ok, I had been thinkin to myself "whats the worst that could happen with lower voltage" but i wasn't sure. It makes sense, but its a $2400 laptop and i wanted to make sure before i tried experimenting. Thanks for the responses. Input still welcome
 
Your laptop will only pull as much power as it needs from it's power supply, so using an adaptor with a higher amperage output is ok. What is important is the voltage and the tip polarity of the adaptor's plug.

Regarding voltage, you usually have about 15% sway either way but I like to stay within 10%. Example, if your notebook uses 12v, you're safe with adaptors that push anywhere from 10.8v up to 13.2v. I have done this, and it does work. Regulators within the adaptor will correct the variance.

The tip polarity is very, very, very important if you plan to use a power adaptor that is not intended for use on your notebook. If you look on the sticker on the adaptor, you'll see a diagram that looks like:

Code: 
      --\
+  ----• |----  -
      --/
gogo ghetto art

In this case, the tip is positive and the rim is negative. You need to make sure your temporary adaptor has the same polarities; if it's reversed (negative tip, positive rim) then it won't do jack shit.
 
Thanks Cmdr

So basically, I would be okay trying the Adapter that puts out 11Amps, as my computer will only pull the 7.7Amps it needs? So what would happen if I were to try an adapter that only puts out 5Amps (Hypethically). Really, my question is: is my computer at risk at all here mixing the adapters, and if so, what should I NOT be doing.

So tonight I'm going to borrow my sergeants adapter which pushes 6.2Amps. It's a bit outside of the 10-15% sway you mentioned, but I guess I'll give it a shot.

One last thing. If the tip polarity is reversed, will it blow anything, or just not work at all?

Thanks again, I appreciate it
 
galix said:
So basically, I would be okay trying the Adapter that puts out 11Amps, as my computer will only pull the 7.7Amps it needs? So what would happen if I were to try an adapter that only puts out 5Amps (Hypethically).
Click to expand...
You'd be ok with that, yes. I've used adaptors that push ~6 amps for a dinky little rechargeable flashlight that normally takes only 1.2a.

galix said:
So tonight I'm going to borrow my sergeants adapter which pushes 6.2Amps. It's a bit outside of the 10-15% sway you mentioned, but I guess I'll give it a shot.
Click to expand...
You mean 6.2v? The 10-15% sway I was talking about refers only to voltage; amperage can be as high or low as you wish. If your adaptor pushes too little amperage, the only issue you should be experiencing is your battery charging slower. Unless that's fried, in which case the adaptor will be feeding your notebook insignificant wattage and as such she probably wont run very stable, if at all.

galix said:
One last thing. If the tip polarity is reversed, will it blow anything, or just not work at all?
Click to expand...
Tough to say. Some things, particularly modern notebooks, have failsafe measures built-in that will simply turn the power supply off if it is fed inverted polarities. I don't want to say you're definitely safe, but there's certainly a good chance. Many older devices, or devices without internal power supplies / cheaper products, will simply start smoking and eventually fry. I actually almost did this to my car once.
 
Nah, when I said Amps i was talking about amps. I can't remember the voltage on my sergeants adapter, but I'm looking at other adapters now online for the 9200 series(which he has) and they have the same voltage as my adapter (19.5v). My amperage is 7.7 though, and his is 6.2.

Should be good though, he gets off work in a few hours and I guess I will found out. Thanks for your help
 
Good luck!

I can't believe he bought that crap. Man I wish I could see the look in his face when-

is this thing still on?
 
i hope you arent risking your laptop on the effect of having to wait 2 weeks to use it.

that'd really suck just to have to buy a new one for trying a wrong adapter:(
 
thanks neo, thats why i posted here because i dont want to lose it over something so stupid as ffxi for 2 weeks.. im actually runnin on the new adapter now, and it seems okay. im thinkin about shuttin down though, i feel like im commiting a crime or somethin lol
 
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