Dedicated power circuits

Hello @gphill , Here is what I know or think I know.

Receptacles: Use an audiophile grade outlet.  I used PS Audio, reasonable and grip great.  I hear mixed reviews about the expensive outlets; some like them some do not.

Wire: 10 gauge.  The electrician will tell you 12 is fine for 20 amp outlet.  Use 10. Sounds better.( I have been told by someone I believe).

Breaker:  I went standard here, but did use some silver conductive grease when installing.

I think dedicated circuits are very worthwhile, and you are correct; one for the amp and one for the front end / digital.

My final advice:  Run three.  do it now while easy.  You never know...monoblock amps, other stuff.  Ask me how I know this!

Thanks for all the responses. The Torus all in one looks interesting but at 18k it ain’t happening. Because of local code I’m going to have to use tamper resistant outlets which I will replace after the job is finished. Any special wire from the breaker box to the outlets? Any special breakers?

@gphill Wrote:

 Any special wire from the breaker box to the outlets? 

For dedicated audio lines I would go with Type MC Galvanized Steel Metal Clad Cable 10 AWG. It has better EMI and EF shielding versus aluminum armor. FWIW, I have four dedicated lines for audio, one for each monoblock amp, one for analog and one for digital. 😎

Here is a good article on the subject. See below:

Mike

https://docs.google.com/viewerng/viewer?url=https://wirexpress.com/wp-content/uploads/MidAtlantic-White-Paper.pdf

Cutler Hammer is now Eaton, whose products are available everywhere. Use hospital grade outlets for your audio. These outlets have a tighter grip on the prongs of the power cord which is much more effective preventing noise from entering than whatever gimmick those $500 receptacles claim.

If you have a Federal or anything with a stab-lock breaker you 100% need to get rid of them!

CH, Siemens and Square D all make solid equipment.  I have a couple of notes for you:

• I prefer the whole house surge protectors that sit on the panel like a breaker.  They have less wiring and therefore better chances of working with faster surges.
• All whole house surge protectors and the NEC recommend that you use individual surge protectors on sensitive electronics IN ADDITION to the whole house units.
• Remember your home outlets must be tamper resistant too. Several boutique, cryo, blah blah outlets are not.
• Use Furman surge protectors with SMP/LiFT to protect your gear.
• Use a hospital grade Ethernet isolator to protect your network.