From Brian Willoughby Sent Tue, Jun 12th 2018, 02:20
From Brian Willoughby Sent Tue, Jun 12th 2018, 02:20
If two outlets share the same neutral wire, no matter how heavy the = gauge, you=E2=80=99re probably more likely to suffer from ground loop = issues. Although many simple ground loops can be solved by plugging everything = into the same power strip, the moderate to difficult ground loop issues = cannot be solved that way. The moderate ground loops require that you = place the heavy current drawing equipment first on the power strip, = closest to the source of power, and then each lower current draw comes = next in the chain. If you have two plugs sharing the same neutral wire, = then you won=E2=80=99t be able to control the order of the equipment = from largest to smallest current draw. The difficult ground loop issues = require converting all equipment to fully balanced audio interfaces. One of the reasons that ground loops occur is that no wire has zero = resistance. The more current that flows through a wire, the greater the = voltage difference at each end. When two pieces of gear see different = voltages on their power lines, and then you also connect audio cables = that short to ground, there is a loop that allows these voltage = differences to mix in with the audio. Thus, sharing the neutral means = that twice the current will flow on that neutral, and thus the voltage = will be twice as high between one power cord and the next. You=E2=80=99ve = succeeded in making your ground loop twice as bad. Separating the neutral wires, like separating the hot wires, will allow = less current to flow in each individual wire, and thus less voltage will = be produced. Sometimes you have no choice in the wiring. But if you=E2=80=99re going = to run wire that you select yourself, then you should select the same = gauge for all conductors and not share the load on any of them. Yes, = they all connect to the same place in the breaker box, but you=E2=80=99ll = get better performance if you run quality wires the full length and not = take an short cuts. For safety reasons, you should make sure that the Ground has just as = good a gauge and connection as the Hot and Neutral. The reason is that = when there is a fault, all the current needs to flow down the Ground = wire to the circuit breaker so that it will detect the fault and shut = off the power before you are killed. If the Ground wire cannot handle = the same load as the Hot or Neutral, then it=E2=80=99s that much more = likely that you will be electrocuted. There are others who have = explained this better than I have, but I wanted to throw in that warning = all the same. Brian On Jun 11, 2018, at 6:48 AM, DJ Maytag <xxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxx.xxx> wrote: > Not sure if =E2=80=9Cone socket=E2=80=9D really matters, as both = sockets are connected to one wire going back to the panel. >=20 > That said, I=E2=80=99m planning my next setup to be powered with a = heavy gauge wire running from the panel, likely a 10-3 (10 AWG wires, = with 3 conductor and a ground). That will provide two circuits to the = studio (sharing a common, heavy neutral), which may well be WAY more = than what is needed. That will provide a theoretical max of 24 amps of = power, assuming 15A circuits & outlets (20A outlets and breakers could = be installed if using 10 AWG wiring). >=20 > If 20A surge suppressors/voltage regulators were rather plentiful, = I=E2=80=99d go that route. >=20 >=20 > On Mon, Jun 11, 2018 at 8:19 AM henrique matias <xxxx.xxxxx@xxxxx.xxx> = wrote: >> did you try using 1 power extension with multiple plugs and plugging = all of them together, therefore ending up on the same socket/ground ? >>=20 >> funny enough we were just talking last days about using DI for synths = and peeps were saying dome DIs will save us from ground loops. >>=20 >> on my room my solution was to plug everything on the same power = filter which them in turn is plugged into 1 socket. >>=20 >>=20 >> On 11 June 2018 at 14:13, Sxnths <xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxx> wrote: >>> Hello, >>>=20 >>> I moved temporarily my studio to my gf apartment and I can't tell if = she worked some black magic or I am being stupid.. I am faced with a = rather simple ground loop issue that I can't solve. It seems to be = between a Macbeth M5 and an Andromeda A6. They both go into a RME = Babyface. I see the hum showing up on the input(s) mixer (even when the = speakers are off or unplugged). >>>=20 >>> One configuration causing the buzz is having the macbeth on input 3 = (simple 1/4") and the Andromeda on inputs 1/2 in stereo (those are = balanced XLR inputs but I believe the Andromeda main outputs are = unbalanced ... not sure if I do something wrong here already). The buzz = occurs as soon as the andromeda is plugged in and the power cable = connected (it doesn't have to be on). The buzz is coming on the input 3 = (the macbeth).=20 >>>=20 >>> I tried to switched and have the macbeth on the balanced inputs and = sure enough ... buzz occurring on input 3 again (the andromeda's input = this time).=20 >>>=20 >>> I tried moving plugs around, connecting to other outlets, close by, = far, etc etc. With no luck. >>>=20 >>> I guess I have multiple questions at this point:=20 >>> - am I doing something wrong with the balanced cable? Does it needs = to have a special wiring to go from balanced to unbalanced?=20 >>> - can there be some missing isolation or connection inside the = synthesizers causing the buzz? Any way to test for that?=20 >>> - is there any device that can help with this? Can the power strips = be a culprit?=20 >>>=20 >>> Thank you in advance for the help >>=20