2. misc-audio
  3. 182877-120426

Dedicated power circuits

I’m having some electrical work done including a whole house

generator, surge suppressor, and a new panel box. I am also going to have two dedicated power lines run for my stereo. I’ve read a lot on here about how this is a really nice upgrade and would greatly appreciate any advice to help me along on my project. Right now the plan is two 20 amp circuits with 10 gauge wire. One for my amp and one for my preamp and sources. My equipment is a McIntosh MC 452, a C47 right now but a C22 in the future, Rega P8, Rose hifi 150b,  McIntosh MR 74 tuner and Aerial 7t speakers. I’m also replacing my panel box with a new one. It’s a brand from a company that’s out of business and the quality and safety is suspect plus there are no new breakers available.

 

So starting with the breakers, then the wire and finally the receptacles what should I be looking for? The electrician that just left here is planning on the new panel being a Cutler Hammer brand. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

128x128gphill

Showing 3 responses by tonywinga

tonywinga's avatar
tonywinga
844 posts
 

I have Pass Labs mono amps.  Combined they pull 740 Watts at idle.  Nice little heaters.  Until I exceed the Class A bias current that wattage is constant.  I think they are Class A up to around 80 Watts if memory serves.  
My preamps and DAC use tubes so their wattage is a little higher than a typical SS setup.  The line stage and phono stage preamps pull 140 Watts each, for example. 

tonywinga's avatar
tonywinga
844 posts
 

I have two dedicated circuits using MC 12 AWG.  Each branch is less than 40 feet long.  One feeds the front end and one the mono amps.  Originally, I had the two breakers side by side, ie. separate legs.  Somewhere in these forums I read that it is better to have the dedicated circuits on the same leg.  So I moved one breaker one space apart from the other which puts both circuits on the same leg.  I think the stereo sounds better.  Could I discern the difference in an A/B?  I’m not sure.  

The two mono amps are pulling 740W, the front end is pulling up to 500W if everything is turned on.  That’s 10 amps on one leg.  (Same as running a microwave oven).  I have a little voltmeter plugged into one of the dedicated outlets.  It shows 120V right now and did not change when I turned everything on.  (It does not show tenths of a volt.). Right now it is cold and all three heat pumps are running.  I normally see 122V.

That’s right, I just turned my stereo on at 6AM.  I’ll listen to some morning music until the weather warms up outside.  Retired living yeah!

tonywinga's avatar
tonywinga
844 posts
 

When I ran my MC cable I used metal boxes for the outlets so that the MC cable jacket is attached to the metal outlet box and the metal case of the breaker box.  I believe the metal casing of the breaker box is grounded.  I did not know that the MC cable was twisted but I am glad to know that it is.

Our neighborhood has underground utilities and I share a transformer with one neighbor.  Our house is 23 years old.  I brought home an AQ Niagara 5000 Power Conditioner from my local store (140 miles away) to try out.  I did not take it back. Whatever magic is inside of it, it makes the sound better.  Not sure if it has an Isolation transformer.  The addition of good power cords improved the blackness of the sound as well.

I have a vacuum tube preamp and I hear no noise with my ear to the tweeters.  My phono preamp generates a little tube rush noise that can be heard close to the tweeters; but that is to be expected with 66 dB of gain.  (Moving Coil preamp)

 

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