House Amperage vs Stereo Amperage


I just read that standard house current is only 15 amps. If one buys an amp with a 30 amp draw, will it simply use 15 amps, leaving the buyer with a hole in his wallet for all the extra hardware he paid for or-

Is the transformer able to hold extra power and use it on demand? (would that be part of the dynamic headroom or is that stored in the caps? Ahhhh!)
doc777

Showing 1 response by rex

One thing to keep in mind:

A 15A branch circuit is designed to provide somewhere in the neighborhood* of 15A under steady load. Circuit breakers are thermal devices - if the load on the circuit increases above the max capability for a significant length of time the circuit will heat up and the breaker will trip.

The breaker will allow instantaneous loads of much higher than its nominal capacity to flow through. Thermal circuit breakers are relatively slow to react, so an amp can draw a large amount of current when necessary without causing a breaker trip. Only when the overload is prolonged will the breaker trip.

Therefore, most power amps made for home use will do fine on a 15A circuit. If more is required, special circuits and power cords will be mandated by the manufacturer (e.g. Levinson No. 33 monoblock).

* The actual current available is dependent on several factors, including temperature/humidity, age of the circuit breakers, condition and size of wiring, utility power output, etc.