slight electric shock when using ac adaptor

[kacir]

Originally Posted by simple dave

Wow. That's a killing shock. You were lucky to survive. What were you doing? I thought it illegal to enable elctric current over 230v in private homes...

It IS legal in Europe.
If you are a smal house owner here in My country you are very likely to have a big industrial socket sonewhere in the basement or a garage. Many people have big circular saw (for cutting wood for stove or a fireplace), or a concrete mixer, or a welder.

You see, small appliances use 230V - so called "one phase"
Bigger appliances line welders, portable concrete mixers, circular saws, (some) electrical stoves and sone other power hungry appliances use "three phase" 400V power. It consists of 4 wires. You have 3 "live" wires L1, L2, L3 and one "non live" wire N (and a safety grounding wire PE).
Between L1 and N there is 230V tension. also between L2 and N and L3 and N.
but if you measure the tension between L1 and L2 or L3 and L3 or L1 and L3 you get 400V.
In the past, what we now call 230 was labeled as 220V and what we now call 400V was labeled 380V. The tension is the same, juts the measurement system has changed.

So most of the households ARE connected to 400V "three phase" system, here in Europe. You just do not have that big industrial wall socket. But some of your ordinary wall sockets are connected to L1 and N and others to L2 and N - so the load on the power grid is balanced. Or perhaps one apartment is connected to L1 and N ant the next one to L2 and N and your neighbour above to L3 and N

[diabloNL]

Originally Posted by HarryT

Perhaps I'm wrong, but what I think is happening is that the charger is resonating at the mains frequency of 50Hz, and that's what we can feel with our fingers.

That's correct. That's the reason I think it's some induction on the ground wire going to the Reader. The induction from the people that have 110V is probably to low to feel.

[Dave Berk]

kacir, Thanks for the well inform post, I didn't know all that.
diabloNL, harry, I wasn't sure what you meant about resonance, as my high school physics is pretty shaky. Luckily, there is wikipedia. Electrical resonance.

[kacir]

Originally Posted by simple dave

that I touch give off a slight electric shock. When I unplug the cord it stopped.

Take a voltmeter an measure the tension between the case and the grounding wire in the wall socket. Then measure rhe currnet. You can not rely on what you "feel".
Go to the next shop selling lowest quality toys, electronics and houselold items or a nearest flea market and you should be able to buy a very, very lousy "multimeter" for 3 Euro. Then you can use it to measure your power source if it has 5.2 volts on the output.

[diabloNL]

Originally Posted by kacir

Take a voltmeter an measure the tension between the case and the grounding wire in the wall socket. Then measure rhe currnet. You can not rely on what you "feel".
Go to the next shop selling lowest quality toys, electronics and houselold items or a nearest flea market and you should be able to buy a very, very lousy "multimeter" for 3 Euro. Then you can use it to measure your power source if it has 5.2 volts on the output.

I don't know if you can measure the 5.2 Volts. Switched power supplies need a minimum load/current before they work. I'm not sure that the Voltmeter is enough for this power supply since it is a high resistor and the current is very low.

[NatCh]

If there really is actual current leakage to the case, there should be no trouble measuring it against the ground wire, as kacir suggested. The Reader itself is providing the load, so the power supply will work just fine, we're just looking to read the voltage (if there is any) that makes it to the case.

[yvanleterrible]

Anywhich way, this is a total nono! It has to be reported to Sony. Their engineers go through great pains to make their products safe. It would help everyone for you to do so.

[Dave Berk]

If we're going to report to sony, maybe we should first take a poll to see how widespread is the phenomena, and whether it is only felt by 230v users. I don't know how to create a poll here, but probably everyone else does . Another problem, if it is something that can only be experienced by people using 230v outlets, then sony may be justified in saying but we never sold you any units, we only sell the reader in the states........

[RWood]

Your poll is set up simple dave. Time for all of us to vote.

[NatCh]

This only needs to be reported if it is an actual current leakage issue, if it's just a vibration from charging resonances, then it's not nearly as big a deal as it would be if it's an actual exposed voltage.

[diabloNL]

Originally Posted by NatCh

If there really is actual current leakage to the case, there should be no trouble measuring it against the ground wire, as kacir suggested. The Reader itself is providing the load, so the power supply will work just fine, we're just looking to read the voltage (if there is any) that makes it to the case.

He's talking about the 5.2Volts. How do you want to measure that if the Reader is attached?

[NatCh]

Originally Posted by diabloNL

He's talking about the 5.2Volts. How do you want to measure that if the Reader is attached?

As I see it, the operative question is: "is this particular Reader allowing current to reach the case when it's charging." ('cause if it's just a physical vibration, but no juice, then it's not a shock hazard )

In order to find out if there is electric potential on the case, the steps I'd follow are pretty much what kacir suggested, specifically:

1) get/buy/borrow a multimeter (I've already got one, so that's easy )

2) turn on the meter and set it to read DC voltage

3) plug the Reader into its wall charger, and the charger into the wall

4) place the negative lead from the meter in contact with a wall outlet's ground connection (make sure it's the ground and not one of the other ones! )

5) while holding the ground contact, touch the positive lead from the meter to the Reader's case (try several spots, just to be thorough)

If the meter's display shows a steady voltage at any point, then you know there's electricity leaking to the Reader's case. If it doesn't, then you can be pretty confident that there's not, and you're just dealing with a vibration (most likely a resonance vibration), so probably not anything to worry about.

[diabloNL]

Originally Posted by NatCh

2) turn on the meter and set it to read DC voltage

You should put the meter on AC because one thing is for sure. The tingle we feel is 100% alternating current. I know how a 50Hz tingle feels when I touch it.

But it won't say too much because you could measure 60Volts that collaps as soon as you touch the housing. Do you know what, I will pick up my meter and measure it.

[diabloNL]

Okay, here is the story. I measured it and between the housing and ground in the wallsocket is: 0.5-0.9VAC and 0VDC. I think it's just some noise coming from inside the power supply somewhere. Maybe some people with 110VAC can feel it as well if they are real sensitive. But with 230VAC you will feel it probably better. Cheap switched power supplies are known for putting some noise on the DC side also known in that world as "ripple voltage". So it's probably cheap. :P

[NatCh]

.5-.9 VAC & 0 VDC sounds like meter noise to me too, diabloNL.

I think that suggests pretty strongly that it's just a vibration, rather than any sort of electrical leakage. It probably shows up more markedly on the 230 VAC @ 50 Hz because of both the higher voltage, and the lower cycles -- that is, I also expect it's happening with 110 @ 6 Hz too, but as you say, it's just enough less pronounced that no one notices.

Whatever the deal actually is, it's good news that there's no electrical leakage.