Source of High-Quality Aftermarket Sega AC Adapaters?

[marurun]

Well, I think most of those multi-voltage power adapters are switching adapters these days, but it's probably good to check to be sure. Switching is very important, because it improves the efficiency of the wall wart. Less wasted power. Also, if you look for a supplier on Alibaba, look for ISO9001 certification. It might indicate more attention to quality. You want to probably go for 1 AMP, or 1000 mAH. That should be enough to cover most systems, though it does look like the JVC X'eye and the CDX both want 1.5 AMP (1500 mAH). Having more AMPs on tap won't harm a system. It will only use what it needs. Basically if you can find an adapter that covers 6, 9, and 12 volts with a healthy selection of reversible tips that supports either 1 or 1.5 AMP output you'll be fine.

TurboGrafx adapters claim weird power requirements, like 10.5 volts, and such, but usually that's just to scare people off. Here's a quote from an old thread from around here on the forums that addresses that. So the hard part is really going to be researching and drawing up the instructions.

^^
The TG16 has a 7805 voltage regulator so if its within 7-12v you should be fine.
As well make sure that the power supply you'd be using is at least 730mA or greater.
And that the polarity is correct.

[bmoc]

I've heard nothing but good things about the ac adapters from Retro Game Cave http://www.retrogamecave.com/

That said, I am pretty sure they are hand made because they are almost always out of stock. Supply may be an issue. Maybe you could work out some sort of deal to be a reseller and get production increased? They are on the pricey side but you said you wanted high quality.

[samsonlonghair]

NES is the only console designed to run on AC power

I see where you're coming from, and maybe it's simpler to state it in those terms, but I think it's a little disingenuous to say that the NES runs on AC. The NES's wall wart is only a transformer, and it's AC power at the barrel jack, sure, but it's still converted to DC (internally) before powering any of the other circuitry.

Granted. This is exactly correct. The NES does convert AC to DC internally rather than at the wall wart. I apologize if I seemed disingenuous when I simplified the matter.

It's a strange design for sure. I can see why an industrial designer might choose to put the power adapter completely outside the device or completely inside the device. Buy why do part of the power adapting outside the NES and part of the power adapting inside? It's just so weird, you know?

It's just that the rectifier and ripple filter are in the console, rather than the brick, in the case of the NES. There are a number of ways to rectify an AC signal, though, and the NES has one of the most unconventional rectifier circuits I've ever seen. At first glance it looks like it should just be a standard diode bridge rectifier, but it's actually in a configuration like transil packages on an inductive load, to suppress back-emf. Far as I can tell, they were just trying to get up to 13V (unregulated) for the RF circuit. Not entirely sure why they couldn't have just used a transformer with a different turns ratio, though--.

Fascinating. I appreciate your analysis. You clearly know more about the subject of rectifiers than I do. I tip my fancy hat to you, sir!

So not being an electrical-gifted person, what should I look for in sourcing these things?

I would look at user reviews from end users who have used the product for many years. I think longevity is the true test of build quality.