Brining electronics to Canada?
Jan 13th 2004 | 12:05 am
#31
Forum Regular
Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 257
From: oakville, ontario
yes you`ll be ok. i brought over a playstation1 with games, a tv, video and all the kids video tapes and camcorder tapes of the kids growing up. i bought a transformer `tc 500a`for about $90 and they work fine. i also brought a teac hifi system which i put on a transformer and that also works with no problem.
for what it costs to bring them over with your other belongings it is well worth it. to bring them over seperately would cost you a fortune.
dean
for what it costs to bring them over with your other belongings it is well worth it. to bring them over seperately would cost you a fortune.
dean
Jan 13th 2004 | 12:41 am
#32
Forum Regular
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 182
From: SWO, Canada
Cheers CG!
It's a wee portable TV (about 14 inch) that we're taking, and it's the only "large" piece we'll be taking.
I'd rather we took our time to replace our "toys" rather than shell out a fortune for new PS2 and to replace the 50+ games (PS1 and PS2) that we have (plus 20+ DVDs) as soon as we arrive...
So as long as it'll work - it'll do me in the interim.
Thanks again!
Wendy
It's a wee portable TV (about 14 inch) that we're taking, and it's the only "large" piece we'll be taking.
I'd rather we took our time to replace our "toys" rather than shell out a fortune for new PS2 and to replace the 50+ games (PS1 and PS2) that we have (plus 20+ DVDs) as soon as we arrive...
So as long as it'll work - it'll do me in the interim.
Thanks again!
Wendy
Originally posted by canada girl
Hi
A very good option, but you will need to get games for it from uk. if you want the latest. So eventually you will need to convert . And the game prices are cheaper. Also TV very heavy and fragile. Would look at cost to ship and search for cost of new and weigh up options over new, warranty. when I was there I found elctronic goods better priced than uk.
Canada Girl
Hi
A very good option, but you will need to get games for it from uk. if you want the latest. So eventually you will need to convert . And the game prices are cheaper. Also TV very heavy and fragile. Would look at cost to ship and search for cost of new and weigh up options over new, warranty. when I was there I found elctronic goods better priced than uk.
Canada Girl
Jan 13th 2004 | 4:06 am
#33
Forum Regular
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 182
From: SWO, Canada
Cheers Dean!
Thanks, Wendy
Thanks, Wendy
Originally posted by citizen
yes you`ll be ok. i brought over a playstation1 with games, a tv, video and all the kids video tapes and camcorder tapes of the kids growing up. i bought a transformer `tc 500a`for about $90 and they work fine. i also brought a teac hifi system which i put on a transformer and that also works with no problem.
for what it costs to bring them over with your other belongings it is well worth it. to bring them over seperately would cost you a fortune.
dean
yes you`ll be ok. i brought over a playstation1 with games, a tv, video and all the kids video tapes and camcorder tapes of the kids growing up. i bought a transformer `tc 500a`for about $90 and they work fine. i also brought a teac hifi system which i put on a transformer and that also works with no problem.
for what it costs to bring them over with your other belongings it is well worth it. to bring them over seperately would cost you a fortune.
dean
Jan 16th 2004 | 2:00 pm
#34
Part Time Poster
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 4,219
From: Worcestershire
Check your appliance is compatible with 60hz mains..
If not it'll not work, in my first visit to canada I fried a tuner on my hifi the rest was OK
TV's are at risk here as well, some I gather work other don't.
one solution is to by localy a powerfull 12volt power supply (enough to ahndle the surge current on your TV) an dthen step back up using an inverter to 240v 50Hz.
I'm currently running a 100hz scan sony TV this way no problem, (other than the surge on switch on blew my first inverter)
P.S. my dyson works connected directly to the 120v 60hz at about 60% eff
Working my way down the system this time...
If not it'll not work, in my first visit to canada I fried a tuner on my hifi the rest was OK
TV's are at risk here as well, some I gather work other don't.
one solution is to by localy a powerfull 12volt power supply (enough to ahndle the surge current on your TV) an dthen step back up using an inverter to 240v 50Hz.
I'm currently running a 100hz scan sony TV this way no problem, (other than the surge on switch on blew my first inverter)
P.S. my dyson works connected directly to the 120v 60hz at about 60% eff
Working my way down the system this time...
Jun 15th 2004 | 2:39 am
#35
Just Joined
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 6
i've been scouring ebay.ca looking to see if hifi is traded there or not.. it seems that high end equipment isnt as readily traded as in the UK.
i'm wondering what the costs would be of shipping my AV system from the UK to Vancouver, approximately. I have 3 power amps (33kg), multiregion DVD player (2kg), processor (5kg), VCR and speakers (45kg). Plus cabling, say 100KG of AV kit. I don't have much in the way of furniture to ship. Much of this AV kit I could buy again, but its high-end stuff.. and it doesn't seem to be on ebay regularly enough (I bought most of it secondhand to start with). Some of it I would struggle to get at the prices I paid in the UK.
What might be a rough idea of the costs to ship that much weight over? Can anyone recommend a good shipper? Are there other secondhand online marketplaces in Canada that are more popular than ebay, specifically for hifi? I am quite happy to buy a big transformer but if its cheaper to sell what I have rather than ship it, then I can do that, provided I can find it again in Canada.
i'm wondering what the costs would be of shipping my AV system from the UK to Vancouver, approximately. I have 3 power amps (33kg), multiregion DVD player (2kg), processor (5kg), VCR and speakers (45kg). Plus cabling, say 100KG of AV kit. I don't have much in the way of furniture to ship. Much of this AV kit I could buy again, but its high-end stuff.. and it doesn't seem to be on ebay regularly enough (I bought most of it secondhand to start with). Some of it I would struggle to get at the prices I paid in the UK.
What might be a rough idea of the costs to ship that much weight over? Can anyone recommend a good shipper? Are there other secondhand online marketplaces in Canada that are more popular than ebay, specifically for hifi? I am quite happy to buy a big transformer but if its cheaper to sell what I have rather than ship it, then I can do that, provided I can find it again in Canada.
Jun 15th 2004 | 2:09 pm
#36
Forum Regular
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 47
From: Bridgenorth Ontario
Apologies if this is over the top..or obvious..
Some DVD players just need unlocking to become multi region and most modern ones you can select PAL or NTSC. My DVD payer was just a simple sequence on the remote and hey presto it was multi regoin - there's stacks of info on the web about this.
It's also worth noting that most notebook PCs have switchable power supplies that will work off either 115 or 240 - the little black box you plug into will read something like 115~250v AC.
And make sure your 115-240v transformer is powerful enough otherwise it could become a fire hazard if it gets too hot and melts ..eeek
Some DVD players just need unlocking to become multi region and most modern ones you can select PAL or NTSC. My DVD payer was just a simple sequence on the remote and hey presto it was multi regoin - there's stacks of info on the web about this.
It's also worth noting that most notebook PCs have switchable power supplies that will work off either 115 or 240 - the little black box you plug into will read something like 115~250v AC.
And make sure your 115-240v transformer is powerful enough otherwise it could become a fire hazard if it gets too hot and melts ..eeek
Jun 15th 2004 | 11:44 pm
#37
Forum Regular
Joined: May 2004
Posts: 284
From: Fall river,Nova Scotia
Hi
this seems to be a site where you can get just about anything.
http://www.220-electronics.com/.
mike
this seems to be a site where you can get just about anything.
http://www.220-electronics.com/.
mike
Jun 16th 2004 | 6:16 pm
#38
Forum Regular
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 115
From: desperately seeking...
Not all Radio Shacks are the same.
I wanted a 1500W step up transformer - enough to handle our pricey Siemens toaster, our Italian coffee machine, my power drill etc.
I tried a couple of Nanaimo Radio Shacks and the staff were clueless. I live on Vancouver Island. Ladysmith (30kms south) RS had a 1000W one priced at C$179 plus tax.
I phoned our local electronics shop and they ordered a 1500W one for me (same make as the RS one)...for C$117 plus taxes.
This one has a switch on the back which allows it to be step-up (operate 230v appliances here in Canada) or step-down (operate 115v appliances in the UK).
Works like a charm and is quiet as a mouse.
It only gets switched on when I need to use it. After that it is switched off.
My two multisystem TVs work perfectly over here (no need to adjust voltage). So does my multisystem VCR. Hifis all work fine - they have a voltage switch on the back.
Computer works fine as well. HP G85 printer too.
Had to buy a new kettle though. Wattage too high (at 2000W) for transformer to handle.
Name of product:
Voltage Converter TC-1500A
made in China (where else)
(Yeah...I know...it's a really ingenious name...but that's what it's called)
I wanted a 1500W step up transformer - enough to handle our pricey Siemens toaster, our Italian coffee machine, my power drill etc.
I tried a couple of Nanaimo Radio Shacks and the staff were clueless. I live on Vancouver Island. Ladysmith (30kms south) RS had a 1000W one priced at C$179 plus tax.
I phoned our local electronics shop and they ordered a 1500W one for me (same make as the RS one)...for C$117 plus taxes.
This one has a switch on the back which allows it to be step-up (operate 230v appliances here in Canada) or step-down (operate 115v appliances in the UK).
Works like a charm and is quiet as a mouse.
It only gets switched on when I need to use it. After that it is switched off.
My two multisystem TVs work perfectly over here (no need to adjust voltage). So does my multisystem VCR. Hifis all work fine - they have a voltage switch on the back.
Computer works fine as well. HP G85 printer too.
Had to buy a new kettle though. Wattage too high (at 2000W) for transformer to handle.
Name of product:
Voltage Converter TC-1500A
made in China (where else)
(Yeah...I know...it's a really ingenious name...but that's what it's called)
Jun 17th 2004 | 2:12 am
#39
Just Joined
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 6
excellent responses... just what I need. and some useful tips!
one thing i am still hoping someone might help me with is shipping... i dont have any furniture - hifi, computers, media (CDs, DVDs) and clothes are the bulk of our belongings. what would it cost to ship a couple of hundred kilos of kit across the water to Vancouver, either by plane or boat?
thx
Chris
one thing i am still hoping someone might help me with is shipping... i dont have any furniture - hifi, computers, media (CDs, DVDs) and clothes are the bulk of our belongings. what would it cost to ship a couple of hundred kilos of kit across the water to Vancouver, either by plane or boat?
thx
Chris
