Least Controversial, Reasonably Priced AC Upgrades


Hello Everyone

At last, the light is appearing at the end of my house renovation tunnel, and -- fingers crossed -- I may actually be listening to music in my new living room before 2005.

Having spent every last penny on marriage, family, Subzero refrigerators etc, I am trying for the first time to upgrade the wiring a bit and protect the equipment against surges.

Despite my enthusiasm for this site and a pretty decent system, I remain firmly in the dark ages on power conditioners, high end power cords, outlets, surge protectors etc.

The place where we are we are moving in the country apparently has frequent power outages, especially in winter when falling branches down the lines.

I have read many heated debates about power conditioners etc with some of you saying that they actually WORSEN the sound, that I would like to start with a simple:

dedicated line?
Albert Porters wall outlets?
a chunky power strip inside my new 6' component rack on casters?
a surge protector (Monster Cable?) to protect all of the above in my newly flaky electical district?

Again, simple, effective, not wildly expensive please.

The idea is to have a moveable rack of equipment on casters that I can wheel from the corner of the room to my listening chair for easy access, which will be tethered to the wall by one power cord only and with long interconnects to the amp which will be located by the speakers.

The rest of the spaghetti mess will stay neatly inside the rack, concealed by a ventilated door.

Thank you in advance for all ideas and suggestions.
cwlondon

Showing 2 responses by zorpman

Some high value added additions that should cost you very little if you have a electrician already on site:

Install a whole-house surge protector at the main service (breaker) panel-Square D, or Cuttler-Hammer are always available on Ebay for zilch. Will protect again 99% of dangerous power surges.

Install a 240v subpanel 30 amp+ as close to your stereo as possible-wire to a twist-lock 240v 30 amp outlet-If you wire for 240v you can use 12 gage wire rather than 10 ga. but check your local code.

Install a 240/120 boost/buck transformer of at least double the amperage/wattage that your system will draw- these transformers are also available on Ebay. You could also install a Compact line conditioner that bucks the 240v to 120 and has its won 10 120v outlets-economical and very high quality. Available on Ebay from time to time.

This system will give you high quality, relatively safe power at a minimum price and will be upgradable if you decide to do lunatic fringe stuff. BTW you can sell the surge protector to the wife as a way to save that high price fridge.
Transformers are usually 96-98% efficient-this means that they convert 2-4% of their rated current to heat. Most units are designed to heat to 115C (@250F)maximum. Heat is generated regardless of load. It is a good idea to place a HD switch (disconnect switches work well)in the circuit beforethe transformer so that the current can be cut when the unit will not be needed.