If you are not supplying enough power to your amp, that means the amp won't put out as much power.
This could lead to underpowering your cabs, therefore blowing them
And no power at all instantly fries them
Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
Join free Log in
Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.
Does low AC power kill amps?
- Thread starter MuzikMan
- Start date
And no power at all instantly fries them
billfitzmaurice
Commercial User
- Sep 15, 2004
- 16,860
- 278
- 76
- Disclosures
- Owner, Bill Fitzmaurice Loudspeaker Design
The right way to do it is with an auxiliary two to four breaker box in the garage, fed with a 220v line from the master box in the house.
May as well add a spool of wire and new outlets, switches, fixtures to that as well unless this place is unfinished and you can actually see what's in the walls. Old cloth wrapped wire, rodent chewed insulation, brittle plastic on old outlets, etc. Stuff that's actually in good shape could be re-used.
This faulty wiring isn't just a Bubba Homeowner's trick either. I played a fairly new cafe in a very nice newer building that used a gas pipe for the common home run.
Yup - all the white wires were attached to a ground clamp on the black gas pipe and then where the gas pipe sky'd out again near the distribution panel another ground clamp attached the common rail to it with a single #8AWG wire running back into the D-box.
We kept getting brown-outs and I went back to investigate on a day when I met the owner for a look-see.
Sad part was that this was all recently just signed off within the past 60 days by a City of Temecula licensed building inspector.
I don't trust anybody or any circuit until I at least run my GFCI tester and make sure that all the correct LEDs are lit.
It's that object on the board in the top left corner:::
This is a very inexpensive way to make sure you at least don't get the KISS-O-DEATH.
I suggest that everybody put one in a vacant spot on their power strip at least.
Yup - all the white wires were attached to a ground clamp on the black gas pipe and then where the gas pipe sky'd out again near the distribution panel another ground clamp attached the common rail to it with a single #8AWG wire running back into the D-box.
We kept getting brown-outs and I went back to investigate on a day when I met the owner for a look-see.
Sad part was that this was all recently just signed off within the past 60 days by a City of Temecula licensed building inspector.
I don't trust anybody or any circuit until I at least run my GFCI tester and make sure that all the correct LEDs are lit.
It's that object on the board in the top left corner:::
This is a very inexpensive way to make sure you at least don't get the KISS-O-DEATH.
I suggest that everybody put one in a vacant spot on their power strip at least.
billfitzmaurice
Commercial User
- Sep 15, 2004
- 16,860
- 278
- 76
- Disclosures
- Owner, Bill Fitzmaurice Loudspeaker Design
I once worked at a hotel where thirty rooms were fed by a grand total of ten 15 amp circuits. Ten rooms shared five of the circuits, the other twenty shared the remaining five. Oh, and all of the black wires were connected to neutral, all of the white to hot. And yes, this was installed by a licensed electrician.
It's hard to deal with such ignorance, right?
I was a biomedical engineer at a large LA hospital and all my wiring knowledge came from attaining to and engineering US/Federal Hospital Accreditation Standards that are far and exceeding the regular household wiring.
But good theory still needs the experience of knowing what's morally right, technically legal and just plain wrong.
Many people don't even know that a bathroom is supposed to be on it's own dedicated circuit.
Same's true of each and every motor in a house: dishwashers, disposals, trash compactors, microwaves, refrigerators and freezers are to NEVER share a circuit with any other appliances, wall receptacles or lighting. I see this rule broken all the time.
Even multiple bathrooms are to be on different sides (A or B) of the 240 legs.
People who don't know these things maim, burn and destroy more people, homes and buildings that one will even know.
Always test your supply for every gig and barn you play and never assume things are right.
That should be Rule #1.
I was a biomedical engineer at a large LA hospital and all my wiring knowledge came from attaining to and engineering US/Federal Hospital Accreditation Standards that are far and exceeding the regular household wiring.
But good theory still needs the experience of knowing what's morally right, technically legal and just plain wrong.
Many people don't even know that a bathroom is supposed to be on it's own dedicated circuit.
Same's true of each and every motor in a house: dishwashers, disposals, trash compactors, microwaves, refrigerators and freezers are to NEVER share a circuit with any other appliances, wall receptacles or lighting. I see this rule broken all the time.
Even multiple bathrooms are to be on different sides (A or B) of the 240 legs.
People who don't know these things maim, burn and destroy more people, homes and buildings that one will even know.
Always test your supply for every gig and barn you play and never assume things are right.
That should be Rule #1.
billfitzmaurice said:I once worked at a hotel where thirty rooms were fed by a grand total of ten 15 amp circuits. Ten rooms shared five of the circuits, the other twenty shared the remaining five. Oh, and all of the black wires were connected to neutral, all of the white to hot. And yes, this was installed by a licensed electrician.
At least he was consistent. Did he at least bother to connect the ground? By that I of course mean did he strip enough off the neutral wire and connect it to the ground screw too? After all it's all the same at the panel...
/sarcasm
billfitzmaurice
Commercial User
- Sep 15, 2004
- 16,860
- 278
- 76
- Disclosures
- Owner, Bill Fitzmaurice Loudspeaker Design
It was a 2 wire system. But he did at least use ground drain wire cable, so I was able to convert it to 3 wire with no difficulty. Oh, and the rooms had AC on these circuits too. They literally had a person stationed at the panel to flip the breakers back on in the morning when dueling hairdryers fought over the available current.
I once had a job putting ceiling fans in an old rental house, couldn't find the ground wire. Pulled an outlet out of the wall and discovered someone had changed out the old 2 prong outlets so modern 3 prong stuff would "plug in" but that's all they did. Old 2 wire stuff in the wall and nothing grounded anywhere, including the bathroom. Told her if she didn't get an electrician out there, I'd be getting the inspector out there, then I got the hell out if there.
Worse than that is finding a house that a licensed electrician just installed GFCI in for $80 each and it's an old 'mud-in-place' two wire system and there ain't no ground in the system.
Fire trucks were idling at the curb so that when he left they could go in to put out the fires or give CPR to the occupants. They follow him around town.
billfitzmaurice
Commercial User
- Sep 15, 2004
- 16,860
- 278
- 76
- Disclosures
- Owner, Bill Fitzmaurice Loudspeaker Design
They were residents of Vermont, which we in New Hampshire regard as our idiot neighbors to the west.New Hampshire?
Hi - I'm Larry and this is my brother Darryl and my other brother Darryl.
While it's not code approved it can be done, the only caveat is being damn sure which wire is hot and which is not. I don't recommend it, but if the system is 2 wire and adding new cable isn't an option it's better than nothing.
In total violation of The Lindberg Law, the brothers crossed state lines constantly. They weren't allowed to own screwdrivers or other sharp-pointy objects in Vermont, so they worked their trade in New Hampshire.
Here some old stuff gets grandfathered in, waterpipe grounds are still cool but you can't just run around changing outlets letting people think stuff's grounded when it's not, highly illegal. I run into stuff like that I either run away or have a buddy with a liscence come bid it, show me what needs doing and come back and check my work.
Yup. I've seen it several times. I suspect the majority of older (pre 1960) houses in America with 3 prong outlets have no ground.
Fortunately, in California, a home inspection is now mandatory when buying/selling a home. One of the first things I've seen inspectors do upon inspection is test the outlets.
Yeah - I sold a house and had one of those clowns come out and demand that an empty J-box have a cover on it.
There weren't any wires either coming or going to it and it was being used as a bird house by one of my kids.
He wouldn't pass the inspection until I threw the baby birds out and put a cover on it.
Fer crying out loud - it was nailed to a tree as a third grade biology experiment for school.
Licensed doofusses are a dime a dozen. And they are all CalState licensed too.
Vermont ain't got nutthin' on California! And I live here
Sounds like a typical government employee, automatons. Maybe should've reported him to the enviropolice and let 'em duke it out.
RThey're AFofL/CIO Electrical Worker's Union. and like the teacher's union here - no body messes with them or their qualifications
They cover each other's assets all the time - ask Arnie.
Well, after talking to the drummer about our situation he suggested that we run two extension cables to two different circuits in the house. I suggested that we get some kind of meter to check the voltages while we administer this plan. He understands that I am not willing to risk life and limb to play in a band (almost but not quite). 
He seems to be well aware of the risks he is taking in general. He says that money is an obsticle. I hope for his sake he gets it fixed before something really bad happens.
He seems to be well aware of the risks he is taking in general. He says that money is an obsticle. I hope for his sake he gets it fixed before something really bad happens.
