Have you heard about polarity of Power Cable?

[tiger0691]

Have you heard about polarity of Power Cable?
Setting of Polarity has too sections.
One is perfect earthing and the other one is to find the polarity of Power cable.
From Power Amp, Pre Amp, Source.........
if earth is open or polarity is wrong, the sound would be sharp and unnatural.

Without spending money, Polarity setting brings much difference to our system.


This is how I set the polarity of Power Cable.

Bring a multi tester.
Set on A/C Voltage check.
and check the leaking voltage between cabinet and earth.


Testing Obeject - PCM 1794 DAC with non-earth(2 pins) power cable
http://postfiles4.naver.net/20140611_19/tiger0691_1402484039473Nnuhg_JPEG/1.jpg?type=w3



Wrong Polarity, It shows cabinet-earth : 40V leaking

Wright Polarity showing cabinet-earth : 2-3V leaking

If you set the polarity like this from source-preamp-power amp.......
It brings new world to your system.



Cheer!

Chang

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

Do you still see current leakage from your DAC if you have nothing else but the power cable attached?

I not an electrician and can't explain what is going on here, but I have the feeling it shouldn't be!

But I have had to run separate earth myself, to avoid voltage on cabinets and buzz from TT, but that was all 3-pin equipment.

 

[tiger0691]

Do you still see current leakage from your DAC if you have nothing else but the power cable attached?

I not an electrician and can't explain what is going on here, but I have the feeling it shouldn't be!

But I have had to run separate earth myself, to avoid voltage on cabinets and buzz from TT, but that was all 3-pin equipment.

It is only to check the polarity.
After finishing the polarity testing, the earth is to connect.
With earthing, there would be no leakage on the cabinet.
As I mentioned, perfect earthing is the prior condition.

 

[Sawyer]

As I mentioned, perfect earthing is the prior condition.

So does this mean it does not apply to equipment that comes with 2 pin mains connectors?

 

[tiger0691]

So does this mean it does not apply to equipment that comes with 2 pin mains connectors?

After finishing the polarity setting,
We are to use 3 pins cable for earthing.

Or we can go for one point earthing.
If power amp's leaking voltage 50V, Pre amp 25V, Dac or CD Player are 15V,
We can use 3 pins with Power amp, others with 2 pins only since earthing would be done through inter cable. All the leaking current will go out through the final earthing(Power amp's earthing)


One of my friend let his system go thinking that pairing was not good though other people recommend for very good matching.
After he understood the polarity setting, he got the same system again and came to know that polarity setting along with earthing brings total difference.

Cheer!

 

[Fantastic]

To understand this you need to know how the mains is wired. Two wires carry the power, the "Line" wire and the "Neutral" wire.The third is the "Earth" the large pin on a 3 pin plug.
Two pin plugs are NOT connected to "Earth". So it is safer to connect the metal chassis of the electrical equipment to "Earth" using a separate wire for units powered with a two wire power cable. Just to keep you safe if there is a short inside your gadget. Of course if this gadget is directly connected to another one which has a 3 wire power cable then usually it would automatically be "Earthed" also !

The "Earth" is the connection that goes to "ground" at your house or building.
The "Line cable " actually has the mains voltage ( 230 V ). Neutral is just what it says ( zero volts) and is the current path BACK to the power station.
While "Neutral and Earth" are both at Zero volts they are NOT the same. "Neutral" is terminated at the power station, while" Earth" is terminated at the 'ground' located in your building. This would usually go to a metal pipe buried in the ground in a "specified way".

In your gadget, the transformer has a winding with two primary terminals. One goes closer to the transformer ( or motor!) core and the other is far away from the core. These two wires are connected to your mains Line and Neutral.
Now if the mains "Line" terminal ( which is at 230 V! ) connects the transformer's primary wire which is 'near the core' it will have higher leakage current to the core ( and hence the chassis ) than if it was connected to the "Neutral" wire ( which is at zero volts). This shows up as a voltage when measured between chassis and 'Earth" or ground on which the person who is testing is standing. Note that all connections have leakage currents. It just needs to be below certain levels to be safe.



Most equipment is designed and made such that with a 3 wire mains cord the connections are correct and Neutral goes closest to the transformer core.The Earth line is connected to the chassis.
With a two wire system ( in a music system) it is safer to connect the mains the correct way. Some two way plugs abroad have a 'wider' terminal for the Neutral and you cannot turn it around. In India it isn't that way. So you might benefit to check it out as described in the earlier post.
Connecting the wrong way will lift up the system ( electrically) to an arbitrary voltage ( determined by several factors) and could affect the performance of the system.

Good that this has been pointed out. Apart from any sonic benefits, it is also a very safe thing to do ! Remember that slight buzz or tingling you feel when you "lightly" touch your system ? Something in the chain is not at ground potential ! Find it and reverse the mains lead ! To find the offending gadget you need to disconnect EVERYTHING and test each gadget separately. Usually 3 wired systems don't have this problem. Unless someone at the factory goofed !

Edit: I might add that today many systems have a built in SMPS and no transformer. Here the output side of the SMPS is isolated from the incoming power. However there is sometimes a small capacitor connecting it to the chassis which can give you a 'tingle'. With a three wired system it will not happen and also with systems where at least one item in the chain is "Earthed". Touch your 'unconnected' TV at the Input terminals and you will see what I mean. Cheers

 

[koushik]

Post deleted.

 

[Fantastic]

I just saw your 'correction'. Yes, voltage is only between two points though what I said should be explained.
Here the 'reference point' I am taking is the "building's electrical Ground" at the post outside the structure. The Earth line you see is connected to this via a cable. With significant leakage anywhere in the building ( leaking water heater for example ) the Earth will no longer be at zero volts wrt to the Ground outside.
So "Ideally" Neutral and Earth ( inside the building ) should be at zero volts wrt to the "Ideal" Ground outside the building.

Trust the reference is clear now.
Cheers.

 

[Sawyer]

With a two wire system ( in a music system) it is safer to connect the mains the correct way. Some two way plugs abroad have a 'wider' terminal for the Neutral and you cannot turn it around. In India it isn't that way. So you might benefit to check it out as described in the earlier post.
Connecting the wrong way will lift up the system ( electrically) to an arbitrary voltage ( determined by several factors) and could affect the performance of the system.

Good that this has been pointed out. Apart from any sonic benefits, it is also a very safe thing to do ! Remember that slight buzz or tingling you feel when you "lightly" touch your system ? Something in the chain is not at ground potential ! Find it and reverse the mains lead !

Quite clear, thanks. So for a two wire system, the way to find the correct way in India is to try both, see if there is any sound improvement, or the tingle you refer to, and select the way to insert it into the mains based on that.
What if there is no sound change either way, but the tingling is there both ways?! I think that is a common experience as far as I am concerned!

 

[Shivam]

Jonathan Scull from Stereophile had written about it many years back in the section titled 'Fine Tunes'.

Try searching for it on the stereophile website. It is a good collection of tweaks.

 

[tiger0691]

I just saw your 'correction'. Yes, voltage is only between two points though what I said should be explained.
Here the 'reference point' I am taking is the "building's electrical Ground" at the post outside the structure. The Earth line you see is connected to this via a cable. With significant leakage anywhere in the building ( leaking water heater for example ) the Earth will no longer be at zero volts wrt to the Ground outside.
So "Ideally" Neutral and Earth ( inside the building ) should be at zero volts wrt to the "Ideal" Ground outside the building.

Trust the reference is clear now.
Cheers.

Dear Fantastic

Thank you for your wonderful explanation.
Proper earthing is the basic for the safety and better sound.
Then, what about the polarity?
In case of opposite connection(live and neutral), we may get worse sound quality. Every amp or device has its own polarity.

Cheers!

 

[Fantastic]

What if there is no sound change either way, but the tingling is there both ways?

Yes that is a possible situation. To be most accurate you can connect the chassis to one terminal of a multimeter ( digital voltmeter) and the other terminal is grounded or held in your hand while you are standing on the ground without any footwear. You will read some low voltage on the meter ( set to AC volts). Turn the plug around and see what it reads now. The lower voltage of the two would be the right way round.

 

[Fantastic]

De

Every amp or device has its own polarity.

Again , ideally speaking , all devices have only one way the power lines are connected. Line and Neutral are only meant to be connected one way by design.
If for any reason it 'sounds better' connected the other way round , you will be introducing higher leakage mains current into the equipment and possibly other equipment that may not be grounded. Could lead to hum loops at times. But always make sure that at least one piece of equipment is connected to Earth or has a 3 wire power connection.

 

[tiger0691]

Again , ideally speaking , all devices have only one way the power lines are connected. Line and Neutral are only meant to be connected one way by design.
If for any reason it 'sounds better' connected the other way round , you will be introducing higher leakage mains current into the equipment and possibly other equipment that may not be grounded. Could lead to hum loops at times. But always make sure that at least one piece of equipment is connected to Earth or has a 3 wire power connection.

Though the devices are connected with 2 pins power cable (No earthing).
Of of three devices (Power + Pre + Source), one(Power) must be connected with 3 pins power cable. Then all are connected with earth through inter cables.
Leaking current will go out through one point(power amp) to earth.

 

[Sawyer]

Yes that is a possible situation. To be most accurate you can connect the chassis to one terminal of a multimeter ( digital voltmeter) and the other terminal is grounded or held in your hand while you are standing on the ground without any footwear. You will read some low voltage on the meter ( set to AC volts). Turn the plug around and see what it reads now. The lower voltage of the two would be the right way round.

Very nice. The lower voltage one would give the better sound too, at least in theory?

 

[Fantastic]

The lower voltage one would give the better sound too, at least in theory?

This is all for 'audio'. We could perceive anything !
We have VERY powerful suggestive minds !

Just enjoy it the ' way we like it ' !

 

[cyber_cat]

tiger0691, had read about it earlier on the net but never got to try it out.

Your post this made me try it out, and music seems to be smoother on my studio monitors, with layers of music.

Cheers

 

[tiger0691]

tiger0691, had read about it earlier on the net but never got to try it out.

Your post this made me try it out, and music seems to be smoother on my studio monitors, with layers of music.

Cheers

Good News!

Could you explain little more.

Cheers!

Chang

 

[pushkarDighe]

HI All,

This is with reference to the following statement made by Fantastic:
Good that this has been pointed out. Apart from any sonic benefits, it is also a very safe thing to do ! Remember that slight buzz or tingling you feel when you "lightly" touch your system ?

Since the time I have purchased Sony Bravia TV and Sony Blu-Ray player all my interconnected AV equipment are giving that tingling sensation when I touch their metallic parts. The only way to break the chain is to connect the Blu-Ray player to my amp via optical cable. But that is not going to solve the issue. I do not have any 3 pin equipment all are 2 pin.
So what is the solution? Can I connect a wire to metallic part of the Blu-Ray player and connect the other end of the wire to the Ground Pin? I am using Belkin power strip, and it has all 3 pin holes. I can put a dummy 3 pin plug whose ground is connected to couple of my equipment.

I am bit worried about this leak current. It is so less that my electrician could not measure it against the ground so he says it is not an issue but I cannot digest that. Any electrical leak is a disaster waiting to happen.

Any suggestions on this would be highly appreciated

Thank you,
pushkarDighe

 

[tiger0691]

HI All,

This is with reference to the following statement made by Fantastic:
Good that this has been pointed out. Apart from any sonic benefits, it is also a very safe thing to do ! Remember that slight buzz or tingling you feel when you "lightly" touch your system ?

Since the time I have purchased Sony Bravia TV and Sony Blu-Ray player all my interconnected AV equipment are giving that tingling sensation when I touch their metallic parts. The only way to break the chain is to connect the Blu-Ray player to my amp via optical cable. But that is not going to solve the issue. I do not have any 3 pin equipment all are 2 pin.
So what is the solution? Can I connect a wire to metallic part of the Blu-Ray player and connect the other end of the wire to the Ground Pin? I am using Belkin power strip, and it has all 3 pin holes. I can put a dummy 3 pin plug whose ground is connected to couple of my equipment.

I am bit worried about this leak current. It is so less that my electrician could not measure it against the ground so he says it is not an issue but I cannot digest that. Any electrical leak is a disaster waiting to happen.

Any suggestions on this would be highly appreciated

Thank you,
pushkarDighe

There should no leak in your system.
It is related to safety and A/V quality.
Read the polarity check which I mentioned above please.