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Ungrounded power cord: Will I die?

I'm always reading about the dangers of lifting ground from a power cord, especially in manufacturer manuals. Does this only apply to lifting ground from a grounded cord or just using an ungrounded cord, period? There are tons of devices in our homes that use ungrounded power cords (think wall wart). How is it possible that my house has not erupted into a ball of flames yet?

Anyway, I have a 2-prong power cord with a 3-prong IEC female end that came with my Luxman amp. I am getting the outboard power supply for my Calyx 24/192 DAC, but it requires an additional power cord. The Luxman cord sounds pretty good so I want to use that instead of spending another $500 to buy another one, which is +150% of the power supply itself!

What say ye?
eugene81
stanwal's avatar
stanwal
3,147 posts
 
If it is such a danger then why are PS Audio power cables made with a ground plug that can be unscrewed? I have been floating mine of years [30?] when it would help. Just exactly what does the "ground lift" switch on equipment do? I had always supposed it lifted the ground; how is this different from floating it? A tempest in a tea pot.
kijanki's avatar
kijanki
4,432 posts
 
Stanwal - I don't know about PS Audio but suspect that they design their units such way that it doesn't need grounding (class II) but ground is still provided to reduce noise pickup. I suspect that it is the same principle with ground lift - otherwise it would be illegal to manufacture such thing. Every user guide has at least one page on safety precautions. You can also call PS Audio and ask them.
stringreen's avatar
stringreen
6,492 posts
 
Eventually
inna
7,577 posts
 
Hahahaha! You didn't get the OP's question, did you?
He asked what he SHOULD do to die in this manner!
eugene81 OP
270 posts
 
Inna, not sure how you interpreted my post that way, but I am definitely not asking for advice on how to get electrocuted!

I think I'll take my chances on using the Luxman cord with the DAC. I will probably upgrade in the next year or two anyway. I'll just put a piece of masking tape on it that says "TOUCH CASE WITH INSULATED SCREW DRIVER BEFORE HANDLING!!!" in big letters. How about that?

In my apartment circa 2005 ALL outlets were groundless and needed cheater plugs. Is this illegal? (California) If not, why would that be allowed if potentially lethal from everyday use? My guess is the worst that would happen is getting "zapped" as aforementioned (never knew that used to happen... crazy), but nothing life-threatening.
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