About Time!! Dedicated 20 amp line this week!

tophatjohnny

Here's a year later (man does time fly or what?) and I have an appointment set up with a reputable electrician to do this: http://www.msbtech.com/support/wiring.php?Page=supportHome

Now if between now and then anyone of my real brothers and advisers here (you know who you are..ya better!! ) see any problem in the prescribed recipe..feel free to to chime in ..please do!!

I was going to purchase a high end power cable in our for sale section and in the middle of deciding on that, I called a dealer of that brand "S"?? and the rep asked me if I had a dedicated 20amp line running to my amp and components and I said "No". He said, "then don't buy that or any power cable util you have a dedicated 20amp line running to your gear and led me to the link I shared.
My electrician read the link and is doing it to the letter except he is going with 10ga MC in place of Romex. I got a great deal on a pair of duplex hospital grade outlets that will work for now but already know I am upgrading those in the near future.

So all this because of the stand up members here have taken me (somewhat) under their wings and and everything they have told me to do to improve my overall sound was real deal advice and without them I'd probably be one of the doubting thomass's (like how I snuck that one in there)? owning crap gear and basic cables! Thanks guys and you made a believer out of me and had me cracking up along the way! (Can it get any better?)

So, I told a local friend who is a member here, when he asked me why I was doing the dedicated 20amp line...(stunned that he asked me) but I just replied.."just giving my gear an early Christmas present" and left it at that!

I will report back as to my take on any improvements I may hear after the job is done and wonder..is there a burn in period with this kind of an upgrade too?? Hope all are well.

THJ

rpf65

Ran a few 20A dedicated plugs a while back myself. Used romex and spec grade plugs, about $8 each. Stopped a cd in the middle of the song from the house wire, and plugged everything into the new plugs. I heard a very noticable difference. Truth is I couldn't believe it either. Burn in time about 1 second.

tophatjohnny

rpf65 wrote: »

Ran a few 20A dedicated plugs a while back myself. Used romex and spec grade plugs, about $8 each. Stopped a cd in the middle of the song from the house wire, and plugged everything into the new plugs. I heard a very noticable difference. Truth is I couldn't believe it either. Burn in time about 1 second.

Thanks for chiming it done! g in. I am looking forward to getting it done, that's for sure!

BlueFox

I have three for the stereo, and one for the HT. Each one made a positive improvement. However, I wouldn't let not having a dedicated line stop me from buying a good power cord.

tophatjohnny

BlueFox wrote: »

I have three for the stereo, and one for the HT. Each one made a positive improvement. However, I wouldn't let not having a dedicated line stop me from buying a good power cord.

Thanks, and I won't. I have quality power cords on my list of things to own in the very near future and will be looking for a nice matching set..for a not so crazy price (if that's at all possible??

And I plan on a dedicated line for my living room system as well. My 2 channel set up gets the gift of 20 amp love first! (that's where I do 99.9% of my real listening)

MrBuhl

Amen - congrats - I did that myself this year after many years of wanting to! Glad that I did!

Joey_V

congrats man... that's a good move

tophatjohnny

A couple of points I may not have mentioned. The cost of a project like this is not much at all but still varries from job to job. I could have a do it yourself type person do the job and that might save a few dollars...I just wanted the peace of mind having a pro do my project. One that would take interest enough to read the link I shared in my OP and do it to the letter. I had talked to a ccouple of electricians that had their own ideas of how it should be done and I told them thanks and I will let ya know when I decide to do the job. A nice way of saying "see ya" and this Saturday the project will be done. Even if there is no such improvement..still nice knowing it's done and done right. I'll report back after the job is done.

tonyb

Any updates on this pal ? Thought you were in the asap mode.

tophatjohnny

Ya didn't read my last entry!! Waiting on my guy right now!! 1PM is start time and I'm ready to roll. Helping with whatever I can do!

tophatjohnny

Ok, the project is done. Peace of mind for sure. The little rig I have was already pretty tough sounding before, but the dedicated line gives it a new signature for sure, and real glad I did it. If you see the link in the OP ..that was done to the letter with the exception of the outlets which I am using Hubell 8300R Hospital grade units. When I do my living room system (maybe in the next 2 weeks) I think I'll have my guy swap the Hubell's and put them in my living room and try the FIN's with my 2 channel set up that was just done (he said that would be an easy swap). I'll check into what better choices I can go with but the Hubell 8300R's are very nice. They sure provide a tight grip and so far I am impressed with the sound change. More Authority ! If you haven;t done this...do it! Thanks to all that told me to. For real!

Joey_V

Awesome man!!

txcoastal1

I'm fixing to have to do the same thing so I can run Matt's Thresholds. Also thinking about adding a SurgeX panel in front of the receptacles. My space is on the same wall as my garage....keeping all this from the wife is getting more difficult as she has no clue until all this stuff shows up

tophatjohnny

For a different change in outlets (as I misspelled in a previous post in this thread, FIM is what I am looking to use in place of the Hubel 8300R, as the FIM's are blue and if you don't know me.....Man I love the Blues!!


Also looking at the PS Audio brand
, but the the FIM's have that Blues thang attached!!

tonyb

Cool man, glad you saw some real world improvements.

tophatjohnny

tonyb wrote: »

Cool man, glad you saw some real world improvements.

Thanks Tony, and I just popped for a pair of the FIM 880's, so those will replace the Hubell outlets next Sat. Will just use the Hubells in my living room set up. Again..so glad I did the one for my main rig and can't believe it took me so long to do it!

tophatjohnny

Goodness. Listening to Al DiMola Kiss My Axe and it's like hearing it for the first time will all components straight into the wall. Unbelievable.

polrbehr

Where would you say your biggest overall sonic improvement occurred?

I know when I did the simple addition of aftermarket power cables, I heard an
improvement in imaging and just a more intense depth of quiet, if that makes any sense? This project you just had done is something I can do myself, and it seems like it would at least merit further investigation on my part... maybe after the holidays?

deronb1

While i can see the benefits of a dedicated line, why go 20 amps? Nothing except a Phase Linear powering large 2 or 3 ohm speakers would come close to drawing 20 amps and that would be for very short bursts. 99% of amplifier capacitors wont hold that much current in reserve.

F1nut

why go 20 amps?

Because you can. I use a 30 amp breaker.

Nothing except a Phase Linear powering large 2 or 3 ohm speakers would come close to drawing 20 amps and that would be for very short bursts.

There are plenty of large amps with max draw ratings approaching 20 amps, I own one.

BlueFox

When I had a single 20 amp line for my stereo I tripped it a few times, and then I got two more to fix that issue. My HT has a single 20 amp line, and I have to be careful with the volume. For example, I can easily trip it with the opening scene of Interstellar.

tophatjohnny

polrbehr wrote: »

Where would you say your biggest overall sonic improvement occurred?

I know when I did the simple addition of aftermarket power cables, I heard an
improvement in imaging and just a more intense depth of quiet, if that makes any sense? This project you just had done is something I can do myself, and it seems like it would at least merit further investigation on my part... maybe after the holidays?

I can't believe I waited as long as I did. The biggest improvement was the moment I turned on the system and thought I just upgraded everything in it?? Hard to explain for a novice like me but I have had more than my share (well never can get enough) of listening to the rig before the change and now it's like a whole new baby. More detail, more bass, better sound stage. I can see someone that has a real basic style receiver and small speakers not getting any huge benefits from adding a dedicated 20 amp line, but like I mentioned in one of my earlier replies, I am doing this once again this Sat afternoon to my living room system. Just a basic Acurus 5x25 amp with a simple Onkyo receiver with all my Polks (yes I still own Polk Audio gear) RT200i's FX300 sides and a small Polk center with a svs cylinder style sub (20-39PCi) which together provide a decent HT but nothing great for music. Still I think the dedicated line will be an improvement there as well. So glad I am getting it done ..and just a seek after the first one. Yes, it works, and is a great move..thanks to all that steered me in this direction. Sorry it took so Darn long to getter done!

tonyb

Glad your liking the results. When you start entering a different playing field with your system, these things you never previously thought about come into play and make real world improvements. Rock on

tophatjohnny

tonyb wrote: »

Glad your liking the results. When you start entering a different playing field with your system, these things you never previously thought about come into play and make real world improvements. Rock on

Thanks Tony. Different playing field?? The only change I'd consider may be the Cambridge Audio 851N network player and am already in the midst of snagging a FIM 883-20 power center that happens to have a crazy power cord already included, but the playing field as she sits is just so pleasing I doubt this old man will do much more besides adding a real deal NAS storage device and a crazy nice router to allow the existing Stream Magic 6 do what it's meant to do! Thanks again and if you had some other ideas of improving the Tophat playing field..please do tell!

Speedskater

F1nut wrote: »

why go 20 amps?

Because you can. I use a 30 amp breaker.

In the US, NEC rules do not permit using 15 or 20 Amp receptacles on a 30 Amp circuit.

deronb1

BlueFox wrote: »

When I had a single 20 amp line for my stereo I tripped it a few times, and then I got two more to fix that issue. My HT has a single 20 amp line, and I have to be careful with the volume. For example, I can easily trip it with the opening scene of Interstellar.

I am not surprised if you plugged everything into one recepticle. The monoblocks draw 5 amps ea themselves. You could have gone with seperate 15 amp recepticles and been fine as well.

Not trolling, but just another thing that people seem to drink the kool aid

tonyb

tophatjohnny wrote: »

tonyb wrote: »

Glad your liking the results. When you start entering a different playing field with your system, these things you never previously thought about come into play and make real world improvements. Rock on

Thanks Tony. Different playing field?? The only change I'd consider may be the Cambridge Audio 851N network player and am already in the midst of snagging a FIM 883-20 power center that happens to have a crazy power cord already included, but the playing field as she sits is just so pleasing I doubt this old man will do much more besides adding a real deal NAS storage device and a crazy nice router to allow the existing Stream Magic 6 do what it's meant to do! Thanks again and if you had some other ideas of improving the Tophat playing field..please do tell!

Oh....your on a different playing field pal. Take a look back when you first started and what sits in your system now.

Point is, as your gear improves so does audible improvements from things that otherwise may have gone unnoticed.

polrbehr

tophatjohnny wrote: »

I can't believe I waited as long as I did. The biggest improvement was the moment I turned on the system and thought I just upgraded everything in it?? Hard to explain for a novice like me but I have had more than my share (well never can get enough) of listening to the rig before the change and now it's like a whole new baby. More detail, more bass, better sound stage. I can see someone that has a real basic style receiver and small speakers not getting any huge benefits from adding a dedicated 20 amp line, but like I mentioned in one of my earlier replies, I am doing this once again this Sat afternoon to my living room system. Just a basic Acurus 5x25 amp with a simple Onkyo receiver with all my Polks (yes I still own Polk Audio gear) RT200i's FX300 sides and a small Polk center with a svs cylinder style sub (20-39PCi) which together provide a decent HT but nothing great for music. Still I think the dedicated line will be an improvement there as well. So glad I am getting it done ..and just a seek after the first one. Yes, it works, and is a great move..thanks to all that steered me in this direction. Sorry it took so Darn long to getter done!

I said much the same thing after I added new PCs where I could (and modding some gear with IECs on the pieces I couldn't! LOL). Thanks for the nudge into new territory,
this is something I seriously have to plan for going forward. I am lucky in that running the appropriate wiring will be fairly easy, as my 2 ch rig is in the finished basement, with ready access to the sub-panel.

jeremymarcinko

A4L has the ps audio soloist conditioning receptacle (made for ethereal)
http://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/etheso1/ethereal-eso-1-in-wall-power-conditioner-surge-outlet-ps-audio-soloist/1.html

tophatjohnny

A nice comparison I am able to do and just a minute ago did it for my oldest son was to plug my rig into the old outlets the way they were before and had him sit down and listen to a test song (used a Donald Fagen number) then gave him a taste of the new system, volume both times at 65 and he was amazed. Now he's not a huge listener, but has better ears (not so damaged as mine) so he now is a believer. Again, the people that have mediocre gear and run of the mill power amps may not notice a difference?? All I know is I do and now I hate to leave the house again here in a minute to do some grunt work. Will make coming back all the more worthwhile! Rocking on and I hear ya Tony....this rig is a huge step up from when I first embarked on the journey. Glad I listened to the pros and didn't get sucked in by the Neigh Sayers group!!

F1nut

Speedskater wrote: »

F1nut wrote: »

why go 20 amps?

Because you can. I use a 30 amp breaker.

In the US, NEC rules do not permit using 15 or 20 Amp receptacles on a 30 Amp circuit.

Very true and when I sell this house I'll drop a 20 amp breaker in. However, since my amp's max draw exceeds the 20% margin of a 20 amp breaker, a 30 amp breaker is what I will continue to use.