Hi!
Does anyone know where to get a spare DC plug?
I need it for my Steadicam Pilot.

Regards Hakan

I went on eBay and ordered an old Sony AC adapter for $5 and snipped it off (with ample cord attached).

The yellow Sony 12V plug is used in many of their products' adapters.

I went on eBay and ordered an old Sony AC adapter for $5 and snipped it off (with ample cord attached).

The yellow Sony 12V plug is used in many of their products' adapters.

Can anyone confirm that using the adapter from the DSR11 DVCAM-deck with the EX1 will work and won't break anything?

/ola

I tried that very thing and it worked fine.

I like the brick from that adapter much better than the thing that came with the camera, just the fact that the cord comes in one end and out the other.

I tried that very thing and it worked fine.

I like the brick from that adapter much better than the thing that came with the camera, just the fact that the cord comes in one end and out the other.

Great! Thanks!

I went on eBay and ordered an old Sony AC adapter for $5 and snipped it off (with ample cord attached).

The yellow Sony 12V plug is used in many of their products' adapters.

Thanks, could you please be more specific...
What model should i search for?

Regards Hakan

I think there are a lot of models out there - Sony makes a lot of things. Mine was from some sort of Playstation. Model number ZA12001GN. Remember - I am only cutting the plug off of this.

I just went on eBay and searched for "sony 12V" and then looked at the pictures of what came up.

I believe Sony color codes their coaxial power cables, and I saw a yellow one that looked right, and the cord attached seemed nice and thick, so I bought it. Since it was only $5 I wasn't concerned about getting it wrong.

The alternative, to buy a specific adapter, like the one for the DSR-11, would cost $100-200 new from Sony.

If you intend to use the power supply attached, you should be careful about voltage/amperage ratings. But if you only intend to use the Sony yellow plug, there are a lot of options.

The ac adapter for the EX1 USB Card reader also works well.

Radio shack sells a plug end that fits Part # 273-1707 but you will have to make-up your own cable-retrofit, or use one of their cables and adapt.

According to Vortex Media's "Mastering the Ex-1" Any 12v power source will work. I don't know how far I would trust this but check your manual too. I guess the yellow plug is some type of standard 12v plug or something ?!

Thought I'd resurrect this thread with a mod I did on my EX1's power supply. I originally cut off the original coaxial power plug and installed a 4-pin XLR on the end of the cord. However, I got tired of having that little "pigtail" hanging off the box all the time so I put the XLR on the box itself. Then I made up some new power cables using mic cable with the yellow-tipped coaxial connector on one end and 4-pin male XLR's on the other. The one thing I didn't get perfect was the size of the hole as I didn't have an exact match for the diameter of the XLR body....got mine too big but it's still solid. Plus, I'll probably replace the screws with rivets.

Nice Mod Dave!!

Nice work Dave!
Where did you find the screws to take this apart?

I guess they must be under the label on the bottom. Did you just take the label off?

Thanks
Robert C. Fisher

I have to give Steve Cahill all the credit for this mod. I took his idea seen here:

Sony Charger for the EX1 (http://web.mac.com/stevecahill/Steve_Cahills_Blog/Blog/Entries/2008/1/21_Sony_Charger_for_the_EX1_Autopsy.html)

I copied his mod originally using the same "pigtail" XLR4 attached to the charger unit. However, I got tired of the cord dangling off of the box so I simply put the socket on the box itself. No loss of functionality but be careful of the internal electronics. If you do the same mod, move the XLR over to the right about 3 or 4mm and you'll have no problems.

Thanks for the info. I got some of the parts today so I will end up doing this soon.

Cheers
Robert C. Fisher

Well I tried to edit my entry but it wouldn't work.

Thanks to Dave and Steve Cahill for the good info

Cheers
Robert C. Fisher

To drill the hole to an exact size try a step drill:

IRWIN Unibit Unibit Step Drill Sets (http://www.irwin.com/irwin/consumer/jhtml/detail.jhtml?prodId=IrwinProd100146)

John

That's a pretty cool tool, John. How do you determine the actual sizes that each of the "steps" is making? Or, how do you determine which one to buy given those odd size numbers they list there?

That's a pretty cool tool, John. How do you determine the actual sizes that each of the "steps" is making? Or, how do you determine which one to buy given those odd size numbers they list there?
Argghh - just lost my whole post. Took more than 15 minutes to compose so they logged me out and everything disappeared. Here goes again.


The step drill package has the information on it. I do electronics projects often enough so I bought a 7/8" Step Drill for Metal. 7/8" being the largest hole it will make. Mine is a Greenlee 34403, but Irwin is pretty good too.
GREENLEE TEXTRON 34403 "KWIK STEPPER" MULTI-HOLE STEP BIT 7/8" (http://www.acehardwareoutlet.com/(suwgoxf1rv1gqrb3wl420x45)/ProductDetails.aspx?SKU=998015730) (Ace has the maximum size hole description listed incorrectly by the way. Maximum is 7/8").

I bought it at either Home Depot or Lowes for around $40 USD. I would suggest you buy one locally instead of mail ordering it so you can look at the package first.

It makes the following size holes (which for me seem to work for all my projects):

3/16" (5mm)
1/4" (6mm)
5/16" (8mm)
3/8" (10mm)
7/16" (11mm)
1/2" (13mm)
9/16" (14mm)
5/8" (16mm)
11/16" (18mm)
3/4" (19mm)
13/16" (21mm)
7/8" (22mm)

It will cut through the following materials:
Steel, Copper, Brass, Aluminum, Wood, Plastic, Laminate

The double flutes make it cut through material very easily. A small round file will work if the hole is a little too tight for the part.

The sizes are not printed on the step drill bit itself (at least not on the Greenlee anyway), but either way the best way to drill down to the correct size hole is to wrap a piece of masking tape around the bit at the correct step for the hole you want, then drill down until the masking tape reaches the part you are drilling. Then stop. I use that method for holes that I drill to a limited depth using regular drill bits too.

John