Another cheater plug thread

When I was an early teen; someone told me a metal cutting carbon arc could be created, using a pencil and 120V cheater wire. I tried it with a power cord, alligator clips, #2 pencil and a crosscut file. I was sitting on concrete block, with the file resting on another block. Neutral of the cord on the file, I proceeded to try to strike an arc. Nothing was happening, so- I picked up the file with my left hand, forgetting that I had the hot alligator clip resting on the top of my right hand(brain fart). The shock contracted and paralyzed all the muscles of my upper body. I instinctively jumped up and back, interrupting the circuit. Muscles that I didn't know I had, ached for a couple days, BUT- I'm not dead. That was over five decades ago, and I've never been the completion of a circuit since(working with electricity, almost daily, for the past 40 years). I remember it as a lesson in Situational Awareness.

After having followed the expert comments on these threads, but without wading much further into the murky swamp of perceived risks and high-consequence/low-probability events (where I misspent way too much of my life), just an added thought or two:

Even in the presence of a rattlesnake, risk of being struck is very, very small. That said, if I knew that one was in my back yard, I probably wouldn't let neighbors or friends back there.

When I had a recent insurance claim on some of my audio equipment, the adjuster asked detailed questions concerning circuitry and connections. Not sure I would have wanted to try and explain how low-risk a cheater plug actually was.

If you've got a $15K system, family and friends in one's home, and ANY identified risk that's easily solved, why not: a) as advised, just spring for a couple of hundred extra bucks that will make the issue go away and might even improve your SQ; and b) then JUST FORGGEDDABOUTIT?

Elizabeth, Plane crashing or bus driving into your home does not depend on you and is therefore not worth discussing. Driving without seat-belts or good brakes is dangerous no matter how small chance of accident is. Similarly, leaving one metal cabinet (that was designed to be grounded) floating while next one is grounded is dangerous. Being irresponsible with proper grounding is not very smart, IMHO, but recommending it to others is much worse.

Something not mentioned is the sonic issues related to lifting a ground.

The problem is a ground loop, you lift the ground and no more hum. This is caused by the fact that some part of the signal chain (amp, preamp) is improperly wired.

For example if the chassis and circuit ground are the same thing, that unit will be prone to ground loop issues. Now to pass UL and CE (in fact any electrical code worldwide) the chassis has to be grounded. The issue is how to deal with the circuit ground if the chassis is grounded, and not have a ground loop.

The solution is simple but you would be utterly amazed at how many companies have not sorted this out! All that is needed is the circuit ground 'float' within the chassis, with all ground points like RCA connectors and the like isolated from the chassis. Then a moderate resistance is used between the chassis and circuit ground. This floats the circuit ground at chassis potential (electrical ground).

The added benefit is that now the chassis shields the circuit without injecting noise, something that results in better sound due to 'blacker backgrounds'.

So, IMO/IME its worth it to get equipment with bugs like this fixed! If done, you never worry about grounds again, and you don't have to mess with exotic (kooky) grounding schemes like a rod in the garden or some messed up stuff that is a recipe for trouble.

I know that may draw some criticism but honestly, get the equipment fixed and you will find out what I am talking about.