help with a power cord question

[orleans]

i need a cord for a boombox
on the box it says: ac 120v/60hz, power 15w

would a cord that says:
125v/10a 125w
be too strong and blow the boombox up?

[A HERETIC I AM]

1. No.

Think of it this way;

You can screw in a 40 watt bulb in to a socket or you can use a 125 watt bulb. Neither will make the socket or light fixture fail.

The 120v/60HZ is basically what is being sent to your house by the electric utility. Standard in the US and Canada.

The watts is how much the device will use.

So the cord that has 125w capability will work fine for a device requiring only 15w.

The device will only draw what it needs, not be supplied more than it can handle.


Now....if you tried hooking it up to the main transmission lines down the block that are handling thousands of VOLTS....then you might have a problem!

Edit; The cord specs are it's capacity, basically. If more power than it was designed to handle was sent through it, it would overheat and burn.

[orleans]

3. are adapters different then?

my concern stems from the time i used the wrong adapter on one of those little holiday village houses (those tabletop displays). it was something to the effect of me using a 5v adapter when i should have used a 3.5v.

it completely blew out my little ghosty display.

so these power cords (the ones for a boombox) are different than that?

[A HERETIC I AM]

6. Ah! Well now you're talking volts!

OK....I'm by no means an electrician.....so I don't want to mislead you, nor do I want to talk out of my ass! But Volts can be overdone, so to speak.

Here is a pretty good write-up in laymans terms, describing the differences between amps, watts, volts etc.;

http://science.howstuffworks.com/electricity-info4.htm

[Turbineguy]

2. You should be fine.

10 amps at 125 volts is actually good for 1250 watts.

[orleans]

4. but i only need 15 w. ....?

[Turbineguy]

5. You have a larger cord than you need

it only means that the resistance in the cord will be lower. And for anything less than hundreds of feet long, resistance is essentially meaningless. You can use a smaller lighter cord if you want, but the one you have should work fine.

Voltage is like water pressure and amperage is like flow. The larger the wire the more of both you can push through it. However, ultimately the amount that actually goes through depends on how much power the device that you are powering uses.

In the case of your adapter, using a 5v adapter to power a 3.5v device is too high.

[NutmegYankee]

8. Is this an adapter cord or extension cord?

You just want a cord rated for more Watts than the load (appliance) so it doesn't heat up and risk a fire. A 10 Amp extension cord is ideal for this application.

If it's an adapter cord where it's stepping down the power, then you have to match the adapter.

[orleans]

9. it's not an adapter (i don't think) - it doesn't have one of those big boxes attached

it's a cord for a boombox so i can plug it in without using batteries.

[NutmegYankee]

10. It doesn't have it's own power cord?

Usually the only issue in those cases is finding the right shape to fit into the appliance.

[orleans]

11. i lost it. i need a new one n/t

[NutmegYankee]

12. If another fits, it sounds like your ok.

Voltage (V) and frequency(Hz) are important, but Watts (power) (VxA) will be whatever the appliance uses for power.

For instance, a 100W component in the US is designed for 60 Hz and 120 Volts. Because it uses 100 Watts of power, it will draw a current (Amps, A) of 100W/120V= 0.83 A.

Your stereo uses 15W/120 = 0.125 A, which is a small current. The cord is rated for 10 Amps because wires heat up from resistance to the formula of I²xR. Once a certain current is reached, the cord can heat up enough to start burning the insulation and start a fire. The rating warns you what is the max safe Amperage for draw through the cord. That cord is very safe for your load.

If the stereo was designed for a straight 120V input, then you are good to go.

[RobertEarl]

13. Boom box?

With a detachable cord? Never seen one. Do you have a two-prong male plug end on the box?

AC power ratings as described above are fine. When you do the adapter thingee, it was working with DC voltage and you don't want to over-volt a DC appliance.

AC Alternating Current used in US houses

DC Direct Current as used in cars

[orleans]

14. omg--you've never seen a boom box?

(sigh...i'm starting to feel so damn old lately)

it plays cassette tapes.
it has a power cord that can be used instead of six D batteries

yes there is a two prong male plug on the boom box.

[RobertEarl]

15. Hehehe

I've never seen a boob box with a detachable cord.

But yours is old. Mine plays CDs. Nahanahanaha.

Even mp3 on a cd. 3 hours of squeaks in one set.

[orleans]

16. mine plays cds too.

how do you power yours?
(and i'm hoping you're not really talking about a "boob" box. because that would be...i don't know...kind of odd. lol)

[RobertEarl]

17. Boom box - misspell

I'd buy a boob box if i could find one, maybe. What is a boob box?

My boom box is AC/DC. It's programmable. Repeat. Skip, etc.

Mine has a cord. Attached. Also has battery box.

[Brother Buzz]

18. Get a really, really long 500' cord and stand back out of the way, just to be sure

To hell with voltage drop, and all that sissy shit the eggheads want to warn you about. Bottom line: it works or it doesn't, and if something blows up, so be it. And be quick about the experiment, Radio Shack still sell boom boxes, but the stores are closing soon.