Go with a couple of dedicated lines and use good receptacles,the better they are the better the sound.
Then plug your power amp(s)into one line and the rest into the other.
I also like a third line for just the digital stuff.
This will improve your sound.
Next improve your power cords to all gear.
Keep them from the same company or DIY but use connectors and wire from the same manufacturer, and don't scrimp.
Then try a power conditioner,for the front end gear,one that isolates digital from analog as a starting point.
Then try some upgraded fuses, which should be the icing on the cake,but, after all the power upgrades are done before it. You should now be able to hear what they bring to the party.
When you've gotten the power taken care of you can then audition wires,because now you'll hear the differences between them when all the noise has been cleaned up.
In fact you'll be able to hear your system for the first time, and you may not feel the need to replace anything again.
Then go for a power conditioner for your front end gear |
Yes you should.This will make it easier to judge differences in power cords. |
I replaced one set of receptacles in the 15 amp Furman with a spare Shunyata RZ1(?).
It was a bit of a squeeze wire wise,but the recptacle the Shunyata replaced was really quite shabby.
I use this Furman in my HT set up and I have the 5 channel ower amp plugged into the Shunyata receptacle along with the processor.
If I was seroious with the HT system I would replace all the receptacles in the Furman.
The 20 amp Furman version had more robust receptacles,but I still replaced one of those with an FIM at one time.
If there's no warranty,replacing the recptacles in power conditioner and the IEC with better ones,is worthwhile and not hard to do,just make sure you make a diagram or take a picture of how everything is wired up.
I'm not a klutz but I'm no EE either,if you're careful there's a lot of little things you can do to improve gear that is of good design but cheap parts were used to cut costs.
Call me a Furutech fan boy, but all the connectors I've sourced from them,as expensive as they are, haven't failed to impress me with their build, and reliability.
Sounding better than the stock parts they replace is pretty much a given. |
I replaced one set of receptacles in the 15 amp Furman with a spare Shunyata RZ1(?).
It was a bit of a squeeze wire wise,but the recptacle the Shunyata replaced was really quite shabby.
I use this Furman in my HT set up and I have the 5 channel power amp plugged into the Shunyata receptacle along with the processor.
If I was more serious with the HT system I would replace all the receptacles in the Furman.
The 20 amp Furman version had more robust receptacles,but I still replaced one of those with an FIM at one time.
If there's no warranty,replacing the recptacles in power conditioner and the IEC with better ones,is worthwhile and not hard to do,just make sure you make a diagram or take a picture of how everything is wired up.
I'm not a klutz but I'm no EE either,if you're careful there's a lot of little things you can do to improve gear that is of good design replacing cheap parts that were used to cut costs.
Call me a Furutech fan boy, but all the connectors I've sourced from them,as expensive as they are, haven't failed to impress me with their build, and reliability.
Sounding better than the stock parts they replace is pretty much a given. |
Something I like about a dedicated line is that it is a continuous run from the panel to where you plug your gear into it.
There are no cuts and tie ins to other wall plugs, at least in the dedicated lines that I run.
I also like to attach the dedicated ground wire to the main ground wire directly instead of inside the panel to the ground strip where all the other ground wires are connected.
Would this be considered a less dirty dedicated line?
Also,I am now upgrading to 10/2 romex and 30 amp breakers,yes it's overkill,but not dangerous is it?
I ran this way once before when I had solid state amps and liked the sound, so I'm trying it again with tube amps. |
Thanks folks.
Much appreciated.
My receptacles are 20 amp,the romex is 10/2,so I will only install 20 amp breaker. |
I'm somewhat confused(easily),can I safely use a 30 amp breaker if I wire the ground to the proper ground strip in the panel,even if my receptacles are 20 amp?
Most of us have gear that use 15 amp power cords which we plug into 20 amp receptacles on dedicated 20 amp line. |
Ptss,I would tend to agree with your theory,because I did run the lines with 30 amp breakers when I had some solid state amps and to my ears it sounded better.
The amps I have now are old tube units, but they've had some updates and mods,so I was wondering if the 30 amp fuses would ring the last bit of performance out of them.
I too felt that 30 amp breakers just opened the floodgates a bit more when needed.
But since I used to bypass fuses until I got into the HiFi and AMR's,I think I'll not walk on the wild side with 30 amp fuses.
One's luck can only last so long. |
The dedicated lines are in.
I used 10 guage Romex again, and prefer the sound of it compared to 12 gage,so if you are contemplating dedicated lines,20 amp breakers and 10 gage is a nice combo. |
I've been having some fun revisiting the first DIY power cord that I ever made back when I had Quad 63 in 87.
It was 14 romex solid core.
On a whim I thought I'd revisit that concept so I made up a couple of power cords for my Acoustat servo amps.
This time I used 6ft per side of 10 Romex that I used for my two dedicated lines.The recptacles were Furutech as is the duplex(GTR G).
I don't know if the signal likes the continuity of the cables or the unison of the Furteck plugs, but the sound is much better than I anticipated.
So much so, that I have moved my more costly power cords to an analog only system.
The difference?
More clarity,speed,as if the amps were given a super charger.
The old Acoustat amps seem to need a direct link to the power,the less I place between them and the panel ,the better.
The ultimate would be two dedicated lines, one for each amp direct from the panel with only the female IEC's going into the amps.
Not code, but,the less complicated I've made with the power connection to my amps, the better the sound has been.
All amps are not the same, especially these old relics of mine.
I've owned some pretty decent solid state amps that never performed until they were given pricey upscale power cords.
They need them to tame some of the noise gathered along the way, and a quality power conditioner was the icing on the cake.
The complete opposite to what I am experiencing now.
My tip for those who are going down the dedicated line road is to make up an inexpensive PC using the same wire and give it a try.
Even the cheapest Furuteck receptacles will accept #10 solid core Romex. |
