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Dedicated Line - Things to consider

Hey all,

So…as far as building my system is concerned, I’m pretty much in a good spot for now with the components and cables. I can say I’m satisfied with the sound. But, as we all know, system building isn’t an action that can ever be completed, it’s a state we’re constantly in.

Right now I have few finishing touches left. 
1. Run a dedicated line 
2. Improve room acoustics

Wanted to solicit some thoughts on running a dedicated line. 
First of all, is it a worthy addition? What are the deciding factors? I realize all the appliances in the house 💩 into the power line, and I use a power conditioner for the source components. Amp is plugged directly into the wall. 
Here’s what I have in mind if I’m to go ahead and run a dedicated line - 14 awg solid copper wiring - any particular brand? 20A or 15A circuit? Is it worth running one for the amp and one for source components? Or is using one duplex outlet on a dedicated line sufficient to cover amp and source components? 

Would appreciate any thoughts based on experience and lessons learned…what would you do differently if you were to do it again? What improvements should I be expecting?

 

Thanks in advance for sharing your thoughts!

128x128audphile1
carlsbad's avatar
carlsbad
1,551 posts
 

10 or 12 awg.  While running it, 2 lines is about the same price as one and it will also give you access to 240V if you find a 240V amp you like (I did).  20A is the wire size but 15 amp breaker is fine.  I know, that sounds a bit confusing.  It is the wire size that is important.  --Jerry

immatthewj
2,230 posts
 

I am pretty sure that most everyone will say to run a minimum of 12 awg with 20A breakers.

There does seem to be disagreement on whether gear on multiple circuits induces RF or not. I won’t even venture into this territory given my knowledge deficit on that subject and the fact that I am still running my gear on three dedicated circuits.

I am actually intending to acquire a strip that I can live with to experiment with so I can try to compare multiple circuits vs one circuit, but I just haven’t pulled the trigger yet.

You could always run two or more circuits with 12-2 and start with using all of the circuits and then experiment with the other breaker(s) tripped and see if you can ascertain an audible difference that you prefer (that is what I am intending to do), because the work of running the other circuit(s) won’t be crazy extra, just the cost of the extra Romex.

immatthewj
2,230 posts
 

. . . as I have recently been redoing my circuits I have been paying attention to these dedicate circuit question threads, and there have been a whole lot of them over the last month or so.  I am not sure how the search function works on this site, but if you can do a successful search on the subject a whole lot of discussion & varying points of view should come up.  So much so that having some popcorn on hand would be a good idea. 

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