New subject: suggestions on BBC Micro, voltage converter, PAL monitor (in US)?

22 Apr 2002

...
 You could buy a 110-220 step-up transformer, and that
usually has the
...
 european two prong plug built in.  I myself would see
if the power
supply has a split primary for the mains power; then rewire/flip the
...
 switch for 110 operation and just use a US style power
cord. 
	No doubt you can get a suitable two-prong plug
	with an IEC on the other end of the lead, but
	in the UK (and the beeb is, after all, a UK box)
	the standard plugs are three-pin.

...
 Monitor:  If it is an RGB with seperate outputs, the
NTSC/PAL question
...
 is moot.  I know that US RGB monitors for the Amiga
will sync to PAL
...
 rates (625 lines, 50Hz) with no problems.  The conflict
arises only when
...
 the video is composite, as the color information is
encoded
differently.  I have seen small converters for sale, that change PAL
...
 video to NTSC and vice versa.  I've never seen how
good/bad they work,
...
 but that is a viable alternative, if your only output
is composite
video. 
	A small cub monitor cannot be much
	harder to ship than a beeb can it?
	The real problem is possibly going to
	be the 50Hz/60Hz issue. I know that
	in the lab (in the UK) we used to have
	a 110/120V 60Hz supply specifically
	for the oddball US kit we used to end up
	with, but that was (IIRC) done with 
	something a little beefier than
	a stepup transformer. The small
	(but very, very) heavy step down
	transformer we also had, did nothing
	to convert the frequency (not a problem
	if all you want is juice, but if anything 
	is trying to generate an approximate
	clock from the line frequencey ....)


	Antonio