ACT/Apricot - Apricot power supplies - converting between 110V and 240V AC

*****WARNINGS*****

  • Power supplies contain high potentials during and after use. Unplug machine completely. Leave machine unplugged for 10 minutes before working on it.
  • Modifying components such as power supplies can be dangerous to the machine and yourself.
  • The procedure here is not specified or recommended directly by the manufacturer.
  • Please consult an approved expert if you are in any doubt as to the validity or correctness of the procedure.
  • This page is provided as guidance only. Use this information at your own risk.
  • Read these instructions completely before starting.
  • Check the fuse ratings inside the power supply and any plugs or connectors used to connect the machine to the main supply.

All that rubbish said, the Apricots tend to be pretty easy for an experienced electronics or computer enthusiast.

One thing to note is that the Apricots use a number of different size and thread screws. Make sure you know which screws came from where so that they go back in the same place. I have two methods that I use to ensure this. Both need a little extra working space:

1) When a part is taken off, place it down in it's own space. Put the screws that originally held it on through the correct holes in the part that you took off. This doesn't work so well when you still have parts hanging off with wires.

2) Take a large piece of paper and draw a set of boxes on it. When you take a set of screws off that come from the same item and are all the same size, write on the paper where they came from and put them in one of the boxes.

Converting between 110V and 240V AC - disassembly

Take the cover off your machine (see "Taking apart the Apricot F1").

Open the power supply. The F1 power supply has two screws at the side at the bottom.

Sitting at the back of the machine, slide the PSU case to the right. There are two little horizontal tabs that it comes free of (circled). There are two little holes that slip on to these. Look at them now and make a mental note of how they fit - since they will have to go back onto the tabs as you re-assemble.

Converting between 110V and 240V AC - finding the thingy

This is a shot of the inside of the PSU, again while sitting looking toward the back of the machine. The arrow is pointing to the thingy that selects the PSU input voltage. ("Thingy" is a technical term, don't worry if you haven't heard it before).

OK, now here is a really useful diagram from the Apricot F1 manual which shows the position of the Thingy for 240V and 110V:

NOTE:This diagram is drawn looking at the front of the machine NOT the back. My pictures are taken from the back of the machine. Sorry.

OK, what to do. The Thingy is plugged in to a four pin connector with one pin missing. For 110V, the thingy straddles this missing pin. For 240V, the thingy sits on the two close together pins, the end of the Thingy is over the missing pin.

OK, here's a picture of two Thingys. The one on the left has a "115V" sticker wrapped round it. The one on the right has a "230V" sticker.

As you can see, they are virtually the same. In fact they are interchangable since the wire loop on both is exactly the same.

And here's a close-up of the connector without the Thingy attached. You can see the 110V drawn straddling the two pins either side of the missing pin. You can also see "230V" marked across the two close-together pins.

Converting between 110V and 240V AC - performing the conversion

To convert to 110V, put the Thingy across the two pins either side of the missing pin. The only one showing will be the end "230V" pin.

To convert to 240V, put the Thingy over the two close-together pins and the missing pin. The only one showing will be the end "110V" pin.

Use the diagram from the manual to check your selection.

Converting between 110V and 240V AC - marking the voltage change

When the selection has been changed, there are at least two important safety labels on the computer that are wrong. There is most likely a label on the power supply that lists the old voltage setting. There will also be a label on the back of the computer that lists the old voltage setting.

PLEASE either remove them or put a sticky label over these with the new voltage setting.

A label inside or on the power supply itself will be a special non paper label that can cope with high temperatures so the safest method for this is probably to remove it.

I suggest for the label on the back of the computer cutting a paper label to the right size and sticking it over. This allows it to be changed back and it will be less likely to come off.

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