I just picked up some Dolby 361 units that must be of european origin or
something. The require AC cords that have an oval head instead the
standard IEC type.

The oval is roughly 26mm wide and 14 mm tall
The hot/neutral pins are 15 mm apart with the ground centered a couple
mm below. I shaved down an IEC for a quick, successful test, but
obviously I can't have them live like that.

Does this sound familiar to anyone? If so....

What are they called?
Where can I get these with US style AC plugs or just the heads to make
my own?

Digikey or Mouser have nothing like it.

Thanks in advance.

In article ,
Tom Garneau wrote:

I just picked up some Dolby 361 units that must be of european origin or
something. The require AC cords that have an oval head instead the
standard IEC type.

The oval is roughly 26mm wide and 14 mm tall
The hot/neutral pins are 15 mm apart with the ground centered a couple
mm below. I shaved down an IEC for a quick, successful test, but
obviously I can't have them live like that.

Does this sound familiar to anyone? If so....

Those do sound familiar, especially if the hot, neutral, and ground
pins are round rather than spade-shaped.

Cords of this sort were used on some HP test gear, years ago, and
on some European electronics as well.

What are they called?
Where can I get these with US style AC plugs or just the heads to make
my own?

Take a look at http://www.volexpowercords.com/searc...h.cgi?match=40
and see if it's what you need.

Now, a cautionary note. There are two versions of this cord/plug.
They are physically identical, and differ only in the assignment of
the neutral and hot wires.

One version is as mandated by the (European?) CSA organization, and is
represented by Volex 17280. The other is the variety used by HP, and
is represented by Volex 17952. If you buy the latter, it comes with a
warning that it should be used only as a replacement cord for
equipment needing it, and should not be used for new designs.

You should check your Dolby gear's wiring, and see which of the two
pins on the socket is connected to the power switch or fuse. Use the
Volex cord which wires this pin to the line/hot prong on its plug.
This will ensure that the fuse/switch actually interrupt the mains
voltage rather than the neutral.

Digikey or Mouser have nothing like it.

Mouser does carry both Volex cords... the Mouser part numbers are the
Volex number with a 686- prefix.

I just went though this exercise a couple of weeks ago, to get a
couple of flea-market HP test-equipment bargains up and running.

--
Dave Platt AE6EO
Hosting the Jade Warrior home page: http://www.radagast.org/jade-warrior
I do _not_ wish to receive unsolicited commercial email, and I will
boycott any company which has the gall to send me such ads!

Tom Garneau wrote:
I just picked up some Dolby 361 units that must be of european origin or
something. The require AC cords that have an oval head instead the
standard IEC type.

The oval is roughly 26mm wide and 14 mm tall
The hot/neutral pins are 15 mm apart with the ground centered a couple
mm below. I shaved down an IEC for a quick, successful test, but
obviously I can't have them live like that.

Does this sound familiar to anyone? If so....

What are they called?
Where can I get these with US style AC plugs or just the heads to make
my own?

Digikey or Mouser have nothing like it.

Thanks in advance.

Tom,

This sounds familiar to me. These are most probably Swiss
power cords. However, I wouldn't call the shape oval, rather
flat hexagonal ;-)

Although Switzerland lies in the heart of Europe it does not
belong to the EC. So, while most european countries have
agreed on one type of plug (German type Schuko plug), the
Swiss have still their own standards... and of course the UK
is different as well in many respects ;-)

You might find a supplier by googling *Swiss AC power cord*.

Cheers,

Franco

Tom Garneau wrote:
I just picked up some Dolby 361 units that must be of european origin or
something. The require AC cords that have an oval head instead the
standard IEC type.

The oval is roughly 26mm wide and 14 mm tall
The hot/neutral pins are 15 mm apart with the ground centered a couple
mm below. I shaved down an IEC for a quick, successful test, but
obviously I can't have them live like that.

Are these round pins? If so, this was a standard cord that lots of people
(including Hewlett-Packard and some vacuum cleaner companies) used. Volex
makes replacement cords.
--scott

--
"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."

I would call the manufacture, and ask them to send me the AC cords. I am
sure that the originals are not too expensive and will be worth the cost,
including the transport.

--

Jerry G.
=====

"Tom Garneau" wrote in message
et...
I just picked up some Dolby 361 units that must be of european origin or
something. The require AC cords that have an oval head instead the
standard IEC type.

The oval is roughly 26mm wide and 14 mm tall
The hot/neutral pins are 15 mm apart with the ground centered a couple
mm below. I shaved down an IEC for a quick, successful test, but
obviously I can't have them live like that.

Does this sound familiar to anyone? If so....

What are they called?
Where can I get these with US style AC plugs or just the heads to make
my own?

Digikey or Mouser have nothing like it.

Thanks in advance.