2 prong power cable

@theo

I never thought I would see an equipment manufacturer something so clearly life threatening as a removable ground pin, but I guess money trumps all.

There is a huge misconception that grounding through AV cables is an acceptable replacement for the safety ground pin (the middle, round pin) in IEC plugs. It’s not. The ground must be able to carry 100% of the current from the hot without overheating. That’s usually 15 or 20 Amps, implying 14 or 12 gauge wiring. Bill Whitlock, of Jensen Transformers and Perfect Power wrote about this several years ago, and is quoted also in Wikipedia regarding cheater plugs.

It would be impossible for a device that requires a ground pin (Almost everything with a metal chassis that is not fed by a wall wart) to be UL listed with such a dangerous features. You can use a grouned IEC cable with a 2 pin IEC receptacle but not the other way around, for good reason!  The rare processor/preamp that doesn't have 3 pin IEC sockets are double insulated, and should be marked as such.

Should a fire, and or death occur as a result of this equipment Audio Asylum, PS Audio and Pangea (they also make a removable ground IEC cable) are all potentially liable, as is anyone who recommends their use.

Best,


Erik

Jea48 8-5-2016 10:41pm edt

The 2 blade male plug is polarized.

Assuming the OP lives in the US or Canada. His profile Country is n/a.

Thanks Jim. Prior to submitting my earlier post I had found this photo of what is apparently the power cord on the OP's Marantz integrated amp. It’s hard to tell for sure from the photo, but it looked to me as if it is likely to be non-polarized.

Under current USA regulations is polarization a requirement for some or all consumer electronics having two-prong power plugs? And if the answer is "some," do you happen to know what factors determine whether it is or is not required in a particular case?

Best regards,
-- Al

Thanks Jim. Note 9 seems pretty generic, so I wouldn't consider it to be definitive (as I'm sure you wouldn't either).  The OP seems to post here fairly regularly of late, so I’m sure she’ll let us know.

Best regards,
-- Al

Since I can't post a picture I'll try to describe it the best I can.

The power receptacle on the Marantz has 2 straight blades of the same size (which is smaller than the blades of an old extension cord from the 1960's or earlier).

The PC end that plugs into the Marantz has 2 female openings of the same size. The letter "N" is over the left side's opening and the letter "L" is over the right side's opening. It also has "10A 125V` SM" stamped on it.

The opposite end has 2 blades, 1 narrow, 1 wide. So I'm gathering from Note #9 in the Important Safety instructions that the wide blade makes the PC a polarized plug and is safe.

The writing along the PC says "(UL) SVT  E159216  VW-1  300V 60 degrees C  2x18AWG."  I'm no electrician so not quite sure what all that means. So how would an upgraded cord that has 3 openings for 3 blades be safe to use with the 2 bladed Marantz?  What happens to the wiring that is supposed to go with that missing 3rd blade? Seems to me their product is not meant for upgraded PC's.  Sigh...