We have an Xbox 360 from the US and need to find a converter for both voltage and the plug here in Switzerland. Any ideas where we can purchase the correct convertor so we don't blow it up? Thanks for any help.

you need a step-down transformer and this will have a US plug socket for you to use. Is the power supply for a 360 inside or outside the box?

It is outside the box. It is a separate device from the console.

so in theory you could source a spare power supply cable/adaptor and have a "better" solution

Go to Eschenmoser at the Stauffacher stop and walk to the top floor.
They sell a 200W US -> Swiss transformer that can handle the
XBox 360 (which uses about 160 Watts). I think it was about 60 Francs
or something. Unfortunately they don't sell any beefier transformers
(those you have to order from electronics stores in the states), but the 200W one is perfect for an X-Box.

We have tried to get another power source and they say we need to buy a whole new xbox here to get the power supply. We have checked on ebay as well. Is the Eschenmoser at the Stauffacher stop in Biel? Thanks for all the info. It helps because we don't speak German or French.

My bad, I thought you were in Zurich. I'm sure your local Eschenmoser (eschenmoser.ch) can get you the 200W transformer because the one in Zurich did - they can always ship between stores if needed. The one I'm
talkin about has the standard US wall plug on one end and a swiss cable coming out the other.

My question is, what type of TV/monitor and video cable are you going to use? I was dismayed to learn european component video uses RGB isntead of YUV color space which makes for some fun times even though the
resolution is the same.

Hi there,

I'm running an English 360 here, by gouging out the "notch" that Microsoft saw fit to put there to force people to either buy a new connecting cable (essentially a kettle lead) or add more obstructions from the wall socket to the device by using a transformer... A decent enough solution for UK boxes, sorry its entirely unhelpful for your US one tho...

As for the video issue, there is no TV here yet (due to swiss tv generally being a bit rubbish), so im using the VGA cable to jack straight into a monitor...

I will most probably be using component when a tv gets round to being bought, so does anyone know any adapters or something or will i not need it (i thought UK component output is RGB already anyway isnt it)

My question is, what type of TV/monitor and video cable are you going to use? I was dismayed to learn european component video uses RGB isntead of YUV color space which makes for some fun times even though the
resolution is the same.Today 12:41I am not sure - we will plug it into the tv here in the apartment. We haven't gotten that far. We just want to make sure not to blow it up. Thank you for the link to Eschenmoser. There is one in Bern so we will check it out.

I am currently looking for a solution myself. If I am doing my calculations correctly, the US Xbox 360 draws 5 amps, at 120V, that is 600W. The output is 203W, but I would be concerned that a 200W input is not enough. I have checked with local gamer stores, no luck ordering powersupplies, but I am considering getting a 3rd party from Ebay.

As for connection to the TV, I hope I can get connection cables here, if the US ones don't have the same component setup.

I'm looking at a 32" lcd that supports HD with 720P resolution.

If you have your setup working, let me know the how/what/where of getting it all, I'm in Basel, thanks.

1. Get an HDTV with component inputs. (R-G-B wires)
2. Get a powerful voltage converter. I bought one last year from www.profitronic.ch (if you can't find the product online, give them a call)

I got a 1000w beast for my BUNN coffee maker.

I have a 500 watt transformer for my US xbox 360 and its working fine.
I currently have it hooked up to a PC monitor with the VGA cable.

I bought the transformer back in the US from this place http://www.world-import.com/all-transformers.htm

They supposedly do international shipping. I ordered several transformers from them and so far they are all working fine.

One of the reasons I didnt bring my Xbox 360 nor my Wii, its the PAL and NSTC systems. Unless your TV supports both you are out of luck because no games that you buy locally (in Switzerland or Europe including UK) will work. Besides, even if you buy a 200w might still crash the xbox 360.
I think you will be better of sellign it.

I went to Eschenmoser, but they only had 100 watt transformers and they didn't say anything to us about other stores that might have it. I am a bit confused since the store said "Eschenmoser" but most of it looked like Fust instead and all the workers were wearing Fust shirts. I think they do not carry this anymore.

The owner of Fust bought Eschenmoser last year and has since integrated its infrastructure into Fust.

Maybe Microsoft can sell you a 230V power supply?

Back to the subject, as you might have known by now the service here sucks in regards to electronics, I know way more than any of the guys at Fust, Interdiscount etc.
But if you go to the US and go to Best Buy the geeky kid there will tell you how to buy where to buy and everything (I miss it so much )
About your problem unless you have a TV that also accepts PAL and not only NSTC. You might be out of luck on that one.
I will say, sell it, just so everyone knows! They are selling and xbox360 :bundle with HALO 3 at Jelmoly on the basement, for 549. This xbox360 has HDMI interfaces and its 200 CHF cheaper (AND NO! its not the green and gold one, but it is a special edition) I bet so microsoft can say its shareholderds, look we sold this many more xboxes because of Halo 3.
But it is still a bargain!

Ok, I am no techie, but I am still confused on what to do if I want to use an xbox 360 from the US in Switzerland...
The power supply is external, but from what I read it is difficult to obtain a new power supply that 1) has the correct voltage & 2) matches the plug configuration? And does one need a special configuration for the TV in order for the xbox to work? Sorry to be a bit slow on this one, but with the move to Zurich, I want to make sure that my son has at least one thing that works when he gets here!
Any input is appreciated!

The standard power supply that comes with the US 360 cannot be plugged into the wall. (I was unable to find a microsoft EU power supply).

As mentioned above by lob, the easiest thing to do is to buy a "step-down transformer", which plugs into the wall in switzerland, and converts the electricity into the correct US voltage (110v). Then you plug the xbox into this transformer instead of directly into the wall. btw, the small travel adapters dont work because they cant handle enough power on a continuous basis.

My transformer looks like this:
http://www.world-import.com/images/TC100-200B.jpg

The 360 will need a model that can handle at least 200 watts (I got a 500w step up & step down model).

For a tv, if you're bringing your US tv, then no worries. if you buy one here, just make sure it has inputs that match your 360 cable (I use the HD component cables with a samsung lcd i bought here, and it looks great). if the tv is a HD monitor (ie most flat panel tvs and other newer tvs) you can use the component or hdmi cables and not worry about the ntsc/pal stuff!

Only other thing to watch is that when you buy games here, you find a store that sells the US version of the game.

Thank you so much. If I bring a TV from the US, I assume I can use the same power converter for it also. And then we'd only use that TV for the xbox. Will that work?

that'd work great and is probably your easiest and cheapest solution. just make sure you get a transformer with enough watts. if its a small tv 500 watt is likely enough, but if its bigger or you want to be sure, go for 750w or more.