CD players sold in Japan can work in US with no problem?


I found Marantz CD players sold in Japan and US have a slightly different specs on power and frequency.
For Japan models, it says 100V~ and 50/60Hz. 
For US models, it says 120V~  and 60Hz.
So, those sold in Japan can work in US without any problem? Or, vice versa?
I would think so, but just want to make sure whether the 20V difference would make any difference.
ihcho

Showing 1 response by sleepwalker65

Geoff: Modern switch-mode power supplies are often auto-ranging as far as input voltage is concerned. You would need to check the labels to be certain. 

As Al wisely pointed out, the power supply in the CD player is likely a linear power supply, and designed to operate within specific tolerances for the target market. Most audio gear is made with different transformers for different markets. Depending on regulatory requirements in electrical codes, they may have specific requirements for switching the hot -and- neutral wires, fusing and depending on mains voltage and sometimes frequency differences in some parts of the world, the primary windings and magnetic circuit in the core of the power transformer will be rated for different voltages and frequencies. Over-powering a linear power supply causes rectifiers, ballast resistors and regulation circuit power transistors to run hotter than they were intended to. This heat leads to premature failure and possible catastrophic failure or 🔥 fire 🔥 hazards. Then, there is also the issue of filtering capacitors running over voltage tolerance, and over-heating and bursting or catching fire. This is because in analog electronics, some power supplies are crudely regulated, counting on line voltage to stay relatively close to design and working the filter capacitors very hard without voltage regulation. These cautions explain the real value of power conditioners that mitigate input voltage variance to our expensive gear.