How to remove ground pin on power cable

I can think of 101 ways by which a chassis can become live.

millercarbon’s post should result in his account being terminated.
His advice could be L E T H A L !!

@nemesis18 - do you have the sub plugged into a different circuit? Is it on the other leg of the power service?

Are you sure you need it plugged into a different circuit?
See https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/should-subwoofer-be-plugged-into-same-circuit/post?highlight=breaker&postid=1843996#1843996 - A/C circuits can supply several multiples of rated breaker capacity for brief instances ala musical peaks. If your system is properly configured so the sub frequencies are not in the mains, they do not require the power.

DBA? Then use an isolation transformer. The life you save maybe your own!!!

Mickeyb, if the panel and meter are grounded to two ground rods (NEC code currently, I believe) what is the additional grounding to the water line?? I’m curious.

From some posts here, apparently many homes continue to be grounded via the water line. Haven't done that here for ages, almost all of the plumbing is PEX, and even on older homes (like mine), enough modern repairs have been made with plastic that it has interrupted that ground path in many instances. Every new home I've been on for over twenty has been grounded to an 8' ground rod at the panel, and for quite a few years now, two 8' ground rods.
L.

I do have to say it is fishy as hell for a manufacturer to use a 3 pin IEC connector, with a working ground and say it's removable.  As I understand it, to not require a ground pin you need the powered section to be double isolated.

I have a Hsu sub which has a 2 pin IEC connector. There is literally no ground pin there, and I can therefore use 2 or 3 pin IEC cables. That's the correct way to do this.

PS Audio has made power cords with removable ground pins in the past.  Not sure if they currently make them.  Sounds like the best bet is to get an electrician out to solve the wiring problem.

if your sub has a floating ground (i doubt it) then why did the manufacturer put it there in the first place. Do not remove it and do not break the earth pin from the AC connector.

Since the use of a cheater plug apparently eliminates a ground loop issue, AC safety ground is presumably connected within the sub.

On another note, I wonder if the manufacturer’s ok about defeating the AC safety ground was put in writing, e.g. in an email, or if it was stated verbally. Usually a company will avoid making statements that would create even the slightest risk of a lawsuit.

And on another note as well, given that this is a sub its housing is presumably non-conductive, which would reduce the risk of defeating the safety ground connection compared to doing so with a component having a metallic enclosure. However some subs have metallic heatsinks on the rear, and all of them have screws, connectors, etc., which conceivably could become electrified with 120 volts in the event of an internal fault, perhaps one that is eventually induced by the vibration that occurs within a sub coupled with a manufacturing flaw. And in addition to creating a safety hazard such a fault could potentially damage the rest of the system, depending on how safety ground and circuit ground are interconnected within the sub. The purpose of the safety ground, of course, being to cause the circuit breaker in the electrical panel to trip in the event of such an occurrence.

Regards,
-- Al

Just continue to use the cheater plug and don't mutilate an expensive cable.  If you want to get crazy, get one of Synergistic Research's "Quantum Tunneled" cheater plugs.

Panel grounded to incoming water supply. Meter bank to ground rods. A little clarification. 

My house and every house I build is grounded to the incoming water supply. Everything is copper. The panel and meter is also grounded with not 1 but 2 separate grounds rods 6’ apart staked into the ground. I’ve never heard of a homes electric not being grounded. Then again, this is Chicago and building codes are very strict. 

I'm not sure if any subject has had more incorrect advice given about it than electricity. And I'm not even knowledgeable enough to recognize most of it. Thanks, Jim. 

Hi,
if your sub has a floating ground (i doubt it) then why did the manufacturer put it there in the first place. Do not remove it and do not break the earth pin from the AC connector. You can try a different wall outlet for the sub.

Rule One:
Don't argue proper wiring with Jea48.
Bob

That’s the biggest blunder I’ve ever seen you make here, Miller. There’s a big difference between the neutral (grounded) conductor, and the ground wire, the later being solely as a safety measure in the event of an equipment malfunction.If the OP’s piece came with a three-prong cord, it was for a reason. (it’s the chassis ground, not the neutral wire)
Nothing is grounded to the plumbing any longer, hasn't been for decades. The plumbing is all plastic in most modern homes.

Hey Jim!

All the voltage in the 120V AC used in home audio returns to ground via circuit and chassis ground. The two wires coming in, one is hot the other is ground. So even with just two wires your component is grounded.

This is the way all components were made for many years. Decades. Millions of homes in the USA are to this day still wired this way. Its both electrically and historically ignorant to try and say it is unsafe to disconnect a ground.

Sad to say that is the reality, millions of electrically historically ignorant people crowd the forums, so many they drown out the few who actually know what they’re talking about. Their irrational fraidy cat fear combines with their ignorance and that’s how you get the know it all whose name we won’t mention who told me I would kill myself and burn down my neighborhood if I tried to look inside my amp. Lethal even when unplugged.

Yeah. Right. Just like its unsafe to not have two grounds.

Which like I said, ignorance and irrational fear abounds. Now you know we have two grounds, the utility ground everything has plus the redundant earth ground they made us add. But that’s not enough. Nothing is ever enough when you’re irrational fear mongering. Now we need to also ground everything to the plumbing. Three grounds!

There always comes a point in every discussion of electricity where the common sense ends and Nervous Nancy and the Technobabbler’s take over. This is it. The end of the common sense. And now, without further ado, performing twenty five shows a day for endless nights only, our encore presentation of Nervous Nancy and the Technobabblers!

The Ebtech Hum-X is another safe and effective solution.

What Erik said.

Yeah. In know. But when he's right, he's right. Not that I would recommend electrical tape. Not when there's heat shrink. And if you're gonna use tape at all at least make it fo.Q tape.

Still and all, credible. 

If your going to remove the end might as well replace it.  They make male plugs with removable ground pins.  They just unscrew.  If it doesn't fix what ails ya, screw it back in.   

Disassemble the sub side connector and remove the green/center wire from the end.  I'd wrap it in black tape and reassemble it. This will preserve the value and let you reverse it.

I suggest the sub side because if the cable is shielded, you'll want to preserve the ground at the wall side.

Take a pair of pliers and break off the ground pin on the male end.