Power Conditioner Questions

[MediaJones]

Whats going on TB?

So me and my guitarist have been doing some recording and writing while my drummer is in France, and we have been recently experiencing a lot of excess noise, amps working poorly etc that we are pretty sure is arising from the lack of "clean" power in our space (Crackling, popping, white noise... Great vintage amps sounding like complete crap). The space was recently remodeled, but the remodelers really screwed everything up in terms of how well the electricity is wired. We assumed that we would need power conditioners to try and remedy this, the question being, which conditioner would increase the level of the electricity so that all instruments would have a higher level of electricity to feed from while also limiting surges.

Do conditioners perform both of these functions, and if so, which ones should I look into? (We have a lot of instruments that are amplified)

 

[trevcda]

You're looking for a voltage regulator. I use one of these in most of my instrument racks:

http://www.furmansound.com/product.php?div=01&id=AR-1215

Much different than a "power conditioner" although I'm sure it also has that circuitry as well.

I would also get the questionable wiring in that space fixed before other more serious/costly issues surface.

 

[MediaJones]

I would also get the questionable wiring in that space fixed before other more serious/costly issues surface.

What issues are we talking about? I am currently trying to get the guys to move to a new place, but we have almost all our gear and studio there. I would be devastated if something serious happened to any of it- could you elaborate?

 

[trevcda]

To be honest there are others much more qualified to speak on the specifics. On the serious side problems like reversed ground and neutral pose a personal safety issue. I can only imagine that vintage gear with out a chassis ground would compound the problem. On the costly side- if you're experiencing brown outs (or over-voltages) this could damage gear. While most gear is designed to operate within certain voltage ranges, drastic swings either way can damage your equipment. In your case, your vintage gear (and I'm thinking pure analog tube circuits) may just exhibit poor performance such as what your experiencing. Other digital gear may not fair so well. If it's an issue and your gear is worth it, I would seriously consider getting a third party in there to trouble shoot and correct or at least define the issues at hand so that you can go after your remodlers to correct it. Check your remodel permits to find out who the electrical sub-contractor was so you don't call them to diagnose the problem.

 

[billfitzmaurice]

which conditioner would increase the level of the electricity so that all instruments would have a higher level of electricity to feed from while also limiting surges.

Power conditioners can't fix bad wiring, and decent gear has all the 'conditioning' it needs built in already. Bad wiring is also a safety issue, so the prudent move is to get it fixed.

 

[MediaJones]

On the costly side- if you're experiencing brown outs (or over-voltages) this could damage gear. While most gear is designed to operate within certain voltage ranges, drastic swings either way can damage your equipment.

Wouldn't this be a function of a voltage regulator? Or is this strictly a function of a power conditioner? Do I need both for a temporary solution?

Almost all of the vintage amps have ground switches on the back, is that suffice for the personal safety issues?

I will see what I can do about repairing the electricity of course, but unfortunately, this was done as a favor to encourage an investment in a business which has taken a turn for the worst- because of the poor performance on their half of the deal (which includes the remodel and multiple other business related breaches), one band member is already in a lawsuit with the company... So this could take a while and will probably require legal action (tis so very complicated)... Continually, this business is screwed financially (after the remodel I can understand why!), so it looks like they may have to declare bankruptcy to avoid their debts, including the one they owe to us... So forcing a re-remodel may not be feasible.

As you can see, I am stuck between a rock and a hard spot. Looks like a move to a new space is in our best interest... Will a voltage regulator/power conditioner work for the time being until we get things figured out?

 

[ttyR2]

Go get yourself one of those outlet testers from Home Depot, check all the outlets, and fix (or have fixed) any that aren't wired right. The go through and trip the breakers and map out how much load each circuit breaker has. Going off of that, you should get a decent idea of how good or bad the electrical system is. You can also invest in a Kill-A-Watt to check voltages while equipment is in use to look for voltage sags or surges. Trying to use UPS units, surge supressors, and the like to cover up for a bad electrical system can't end well. Someone will plug in to a wall outlet directly by accident and blow something up.

I'd be finding out specifics before I'd write the place off.

 

[countrybassist]

pm Georgestrings about this

 

[Vakmere]

Whats going on TB?

So me and my guitarist have been doing some recording and writing while my drummer is in France, and we have been recently experiencing a lot of excess noise, amps working poorly etc that we are pretty sure is arising from the lack of "clean" power in our space (Crackling, popping, white noise... Great vintage amps sounding like complete crap). The space was recently remodeled, but the remodelers really screwed everything up in terms of how well the electricity is wired. We assumed that we would need power conditioners to try and remedy this, the question being, which conditioner would increase the level of the electricity so that all instruments would have a higher level of electricity to feed from while also limiting surges.

Do conditioners perform both of these functions, and if so, which ones should I look into? (We have a lot of instruments that are amplified)

I do electrical work.
Clean power? You get what you get from the street, (PECO) in my case. Odds are you are getting 125/240v single phase into the building.
This is checked at the service panel with a volt meter. HOW do you believe the remodelers screwed up? Thats the first question. Next is how many recepticals are on the same breaker, are the breakers sized properly and is the panel earth grounded? Without being there or tracing the wire run I would recommend you spend the money and time with a reputable licensed electrician and have him give you his findings. A power conditioner will be of no use if all other wiring is not landed to code. Being winter time, dry air and static charges in a room with low humidity and lots of rugs will produce some unwanted electrical fields however I would not bank on this being your problem. Remodelers generally remodel and are not electricians. They will swear they did everything right. You don't know what they did in the walls and ceilings. If your gear worked satisfactorily before the remodel and works properly elsewhere then the above mentioned advice would be the way to go.