Removing the ground on PC?

My Wadia 302 has a tendency to cause hum in some set ups - I just cut the ground prong off a PC to cure it. Don't need the add on 'cheater plug' and you get a much more secure connection.

FWIW, it came with a standard 3 prong plug and the manual sez nothing about what to do if you hear a hum.

I'm very surprised and bothered by the sheer number of people who disconnect/remove the earth from their PC to solve a hum or noise issue. That earth connection is there for a very good reason - to stop people dying from mains voltage shocks in the event of a component failure.

There are times when the quickest and cheapest solution to a problem is not the smartest, and this is one of them.

Quite frankly, in this day and age of modern high end gear, I'd take an amp/source component straight back to the dealer for a refund if it 'hummed', or have my house wiring checked out, not start stuffing around with mains voltages and risk a live chassis.

Carl109: I agree wholeheartedly. What further amazes me is that audiofiles will go to great lengths and expense to add 'tweaks' to their systems (most of which are meaningless) propose theories that audio equipment and music are too complex for even the most modern scientific instruments to measure, attempt to discuss subatomic particles and the philosophical aspects of current flow, but when there is a ground loop hum, what happens - "let's chop off the ground - look ma no more hum, ain't it grand".

Musicnoise/Carl109, A question..........

I have a source connected to a power conditioner with PC and an IC to the pre-amp. I have the Pre-amp PC going to the same power conditioner and its IC to an amp. I have the Amps connected to a difference power source. The Power conditioner, the pre-amp, and the amps all have their grounds intact.

Are you saying that having the ground prong from the source PC defeated that I have created a potential source for electrocution?

If yes, please explain. I don't understand. I do understand why the power conditioner should have a ground, and the amps have a ground, so just address the issue of the source ground defeat.

Thanks......

That depends on whether your interconnect is connecting the chassis of the source to the chassis of the preamp. If the interconnect is connecting the chasses then no, you still have all chasses grounded. However, if that is true, that then I would consider leaving your ground intact on the power cord from the source to the power conditioner and lifting the connection of the shield pin on one end of your interconnect. That is likely the connection that is causing the ground loop problem.