Hi everyone. I just recently became interested in the virtual boy after not playing it for years. I played it a bit around the release and thought it was awesome so I went ahead and ordered one on eBay, but the only issue is that it only comes with the battery pack and I would like to have the actual power supply instead of having to waste a bunch of batteries.

So my question is – Has anyone ever tried using the Japanese Power tap with a North American console using a North American SNES power adapter. I been searching around and getting conflicting information all over the place so I’d like to make sure before ordering one. Thanks.

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The Japanese Adapter Tap is only an interface between the VB and a power supply. Any power supply should work as long as it provides 9 to 13 volts DC. I myself have been using a ZX Spectrum power supply with the tap since day one of getting my VB and have never had any problems. I’m not an expert on this, however.

I’m sure the voltage would be fine. I’m just wondering what type of adapter will actually fit. I’ve heard a Genesis model 1 power adapter may connect. Can anyone confirm that?

IIRC, the Super Famicom can use the same power supply as the model 1 Genesis, so assuming that this power bridge uses the SF power supply, then the Genesis power brick would work fine. Additionally, this means that the SNES adapter will not work because it uses a different connector.

The JP tap will work just fine w/ any VB, but you’ll need a compatible power supply for that connector (and same polarity). I’m not sure of which types specifically will work besides a JP VB power supply.

The US tap has the same weird connector as the US SNES, but the JP tap has the more common standard barrel, but I don’t know the exact size.

DogP

Thanks for the responses. Can anyone confirm if the genesis power adapter will work?

I’m not sure if its safe to use a Japanese VB power tap with a US power supply of some sort or even a Japanese power supply, because I once saw on a Famicom auction that the seller warned “do not keep a Famicom plugged in for more than 2 (I think he said 2) hours in an US socket due to voltage difference”

however I’m no expert (however I did keep a Japanese Playstation plugged in more than 2 hours and it didn’t fry)

gunpeiyokoifan wrote:
I’m not sure if its safe to use a Japanese VB power tap with a US power supply of some sort or even a Japanese power supply, because I once saw on a Famicom auction that the seller warned “do not keep a Famicom plugged in for more than 2 (I think he said 2) hours in an US socket due to voltage difference”

Like I said before, the tap is really just an interface, and I use a third-party power supply. Have a look at the world map; I don’t live anywhere near Japan 🙂

That eBay seller has no idea what he’s talking about. The standard Famicom power supply outputs 10V at 850 mAh. The Genesis outputs 9V at something like 1300 mAh. It’s actually LESS voltage meaning, if anything, the Genesis power supply is less harmful for the system than the actual PSU (assuming the Famicom works).

The VB uses 6 AA batteries, right? That means ideally, it uses nine volts of electricity (1.5*6). I am 95% sure that you won’t run into any issues using the Genny PSU with your Virtual Boy.

I just thought I would let you guys know the outcome of the Japanese tap. It arrived in the mail today and I tested it out with my Virtual Boy using what was labeled as a universal NES/SNES/Sega MDL II power adapter. (I think it’s actually for a model 1 because it does not fit my model II genesis) I used the Sega connector on the power tap and it worked perfectly with minimal explosions, fire and flying shrapnel. (just kidding it worked great) 😛