Double Pole 100a Henley Block for my hi-fi

[ban-all-sheds]

there are a number of different wattgates available ranging in price fro £15 to £150!!!!

The differences in price reflect the different amounts of snake-oil used in their manufacture.

Snake-oil is very expensive.

They are rated at 10a upwards

But not upwards as far as 80A, and not upwards as far as the 40A your circuit will be fused at.

and designed to take different size flex cables.

Precisely.

But you aren't using flex, you're using twin & earth, which is not designed to be used with plugs and sockets.

And I repeat - is the plug designed to clamp flat twin & earth, or have you had to use the plugs without clamping the cable?

Mine are 6mm.

According to the manufacturer, none of their plugs are designed to take conductors that size, so you are contravening their installation instructions by using it.

It sounds better to my ears even though the equipment is only drawing a small current??

It's a well known effect. People spend ridiculous sums on products made with snake-oil and for their own self-esteem they have to convince themselves that it was worth it.

If you want to waste your money that's entirely down to you, and you'll have given people here a laugh, but what none of us will find amusing is the possible dangers from you not doing things properly.

And anyway - if you believe that plugs like that are worthwhile you must believe that getting rid of plugs altogether, and hard-wiring the supply into your equipment would be even better.

 

[me01]

It sounds better to my ears even though the equipment is only drawing a small current??

It's a well known effect. People spend ridiculous sums on products made with snake-oil and for their own self-esteem they have to convince themselves that it was worth it.

If you want to waste your money that's entirely down to you, and you'll have given people here a laugh, but what none of us will find amusing is the possible dangers from you not doing things properly.

And anyway - if you believe that plugs like that are worthwhile you must believe that getting rid of plugs altogether, and hard-wiring the supply into your equipment would be even better.[/quote]

I think Flameport's suggestion, with a SWA from the CU, is probably the better option, so far. Interference (and volts drop problems??) are then minimised.

I am not sure if a voltage drop of max 100mv or so, makes that much difference. After all, if so much expense is going into providing an "extension cable" then, it is assumed that the equipment runing off it, is of some value. In that case the equipment should have some safgeuarding electronic circuitry to allow for variations in input volts of a few mV.

As this is not a hi-fi forum, we can ignore all the mumbo jumbo about interference harmonics, earth hum loops, etc. etc., and just manage the electrical supply part.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

I think Flameport's suggestion, with a SWA from the CU, is probably the better option, so far. Interference (and volts drop problems??) are then minimised.

SWA is a tad unwieldy. I would have thought that if you wanted screened cable then BS8436 would be a better bet?

I am not sure if a voltage drop of max 100mv or so, makes that much difference.

You ought to be absolutely sure.

Explain how it could possibly make any difference at all given that the supply voltage can vary from 216V to 253V, at any time, even during the space of one music track.

After all, if so much expense is going into providing an "extension cable" then, it is assumed that the equipment runing off it, is of some value. In that case the equipment should have some safgeuarding electronic circuitry to allow for variations in input volts of a few mV.

If it did not then the phrases "not of merchantable quality", and "not fit for purpose" would spring to mind....

 

[me01]

I am not sure if a voltage drop of max 100mv or so, makes that much difference.

You ought to be absolutely sure.

Explain how it could possibly make any difference at all given that the supply voltage can vary from 216V to 253V, at any time, even during the space of one music track.

I should have phrased, "I am not sure if a voltage drop of max 100mv or so, makes that much difference." as a question. I was trying to make the same point, that a drop of a few mV is nothing compared to the normal variance of several volts. Unless I have access to the specifications of the equipment in question I cannot know, with 100% certainty, if variation of a few mV can have any effect on it.

 

[bernardgreen]

There were the Silver Rock signature knobs. If you bought these and replaced the bakelite knobs on you equipment the sound was ( according to the sales people ) greatly improved. They seem to have been discontinued ( maybe all suitable beech trees have been cut down due to the massive demand for these knobs ).

However this write up is still on the internet

http://www.bostonaudiosociety.org/past_pres_msg/2006/06-11_pres_msg.htm

2. Disclaimer: This item bears no endorsement, explicit or implied: Referenceaudiomods.com offers the Silver Rock Signature Knob for your volume control. "They are custom made with beech wood and bronze where the bronze is used as the insert to mount to the stem of the volume pot. The beech wood is coated several times with C37 lacquer for best sound as pointed out by Dieter Ennemoser. How can this make a difference??? Well, hearing is believing as we always say. The sound becomes much more open and free flowing with a nice improvement in resolution. Dynamics are better and overall naturalness is improved. Here is a test for all you Silver Rock owners. Try removing the bakelite knobs and listen. You will be shocked by this! The signature knobs will have an even greater effect really amazing! The point here is the micro vibrations created by the volume pots and knobs find their way into the delicate signal path and cause degradation (Bad vibrations equal bad sound). With the signature knobs micro vibrations from the C37 concept of wood, bronze and the lacquer itself compensate for the volume pots and provide (Good Vibrations) our ear/brain combination like to hear way better sound!!" Price $485. (ed. note: That's for the KNOB. The Volume Control is $6820.)

 

[Retseldrib]

well thanks again for the answer to my original question.

I seemed to have caused a number of people considerable distress.

To put your minds at ease:
Everything I have done so far has been recognized as safe by a qualified electrician. He is coming around later this week which is why I asked the question about the Henley Block on here. On reflection I should have waited to see him.

The 6mm t&e cables going into my equipment have been stripped of their outer white/grey plastic covering. The neutral, live and earth wires have been interwoven by hand and then cased in a flexible plastic hose. The wattgates that I have bought are second hand and cost me next to nothing and grip my cables perfectly.

I have swapped most of my hi-fi equipment and cables for pro audio gear which cost me very little second hand and made lots of money and also got the same sonic results.

I have not spent loads of money at all for the benefit of the posters who are concerned for my self esteem

I do have an applied maths hons degree, so the bull**** of hifi plus having oversized cables for my own hifi system is not lost on me. However, I have put dedicated spurs in two previous houses now for little money and my system sounds better because of it????

I was determined not to get into a debate about this but my will power went

 

[londonboy]

The 6mm t&e cables going into my equipment have been stripped of their outer white/grey plastic covering. The neutral, live and earth wires have been interwoven by hand and then cased in a flexible plastic hose. The wattgates that I have bought are second hand and cost me next to nothing and grip my cables perfectly.

6mm twin and earth shouldnt be used for plugs, its for fixed wiring. Bend it too many times and it'll break the cores inside.
... Sorry if i just made things even worse lol

 

[ban-all-sheds]

Plus how good is the piece of "flexible plastic hose"?

What voltage is it rated at?

How securely is it fixed?

Is the cpc sleeved, or left bare?

Does it provide adequate mechanical protection?

Lester - you might think that what you've done looks OK, but basically you've taken a cable not designed to be used how you have, and have modified it in a way that might not be OK in an attempt to overcome its limitations and force it into incorrect use.

You can get 6mm² flex - if you must use cable that size then at least use the right type....

 

[gman76]

My Logitech Z5500's sound great

Err - no they don't!

 

[securespark]

PILC

Who are you calling a PILC?

 

[Retseldrib]

Plus how good is the piece of "flexible plastic hose"?

What voltage is it rated at?

How securely is it fixed?

Is the cpc sleeved, or left bare?

Does it provide adequate mechanical protection?

Lester - you might think that what you've done looks OK, but basically you've taken a cable not designed to be used how you have, and have modified it in a way that might not be OK in an attempt to overcome its limitations and force it into incorrect use.

You can get 6mm² flex - if you must use cable that size then at least use the right type....

i have had it checked over without going into detail but thanks for the advice. I now know that 6mm flex can be bought as well as 10 and 16mm so it would have been a much easier route to go down.

the current being drawn from my system (9 psu in total) is pretty small - no more than 10 amps TOP. The larger cables throughout system must compensate for voltage drops / increases, provides less resistance and gives the system a better sound????????????? ofcourse it does work fine without all this but sounds worse imo.

Do you know a company that may sell used cable, flex or twin 7 earth. Thanks Lester

 

[holmslaw]

..

 

[bernardgreen]

There is also concern that normal electrical supply cables are not manufactured using oxygen free copper. Once considered essential for loudspeaker cables because

there are [in the copper] no islands of free oxygen radicals interfereing with the wave fronts of sound travelling through the cable

Different propagation speeds through different areas of a conductor is recognised as a source of distortion in electronic signal processing.

Printed circuit tracks on glass smooth PCB do have better propogation than track on standard fibre glass where the underside of the copper is rippled as it follow the rough surface of the glass fibre. The wave front traveling in the flat top surface of the copper reached the end before the wave front travelling along the rippled and there for longer under surface of the copper. The inductances of the curves also adds delay to the propogation along the rippled surface.

This difference in propagation only starts to become significant at frequencies above 100 Megaherz.

If the equipment is well designed then the power supply will remove all disturbances arriving via the mains and provide clean stable supply to the audio processing equipment.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

The larger cables throughout system must compensate for voltage drops / increases, provides less resistance and gives the system a better sound?????????????

That just isn't possible.

Do the sums - the difference in impedance with a larger cable is so small that the difference in voltage drop is several orders of magnitude less than the normal supply variation. Any manufacturer who makes equipment with a PSU which can tolerate the potential 37V variation in the supply voltage has ipso facto made a piece of equipment which will not change its behaviour if you use a thicker cable so that it gets a few more mV than it would have got with the default cable.

There is no scientific basis whatsoever for believing that it will.

There have never been any proper double-blind tests done to demonstrate that it does.

No measurements of distortion, frequency response, noise or any other characteristics have ever shown that it does.

The snake-oil manufacturers of course dismiss all of the above, and point to people like you for their "proof"

ofcourse it does work fine without all this but sounds worse imo.

See the above.

I'm sure you do believe it, but every Sunday 100's of millions of people around the world gather together to reaffirm their belief that a cosmic Jewish zombie can make them live forever if they symbolically eat his flesh and telepathically tell him they accept him as their master, so he can remove an evil force from their soul that is present in humanity because a rib-woman was convinced by a talking snake to eat from a magical tree.

Doesn't make it real though....

Do you know a company that may sell used cable, flex or twin 7 earth. Thanks Lester

Try FeePay.

Edited to correct a formatting mistake

 

[Retseldrib]

The larger cables throughout system must compensate for voltage drops / increases, provides less resistance and gives the system a better sound?????????????

That just isn't possible.

Do the sums - the difference in impedance with a larger cable is so small that the difference in voltage drop is several orders of magnitude less than the normal supply variation. Any manufacturer who makes equipment with a PSU which can tolerate the potential 37V variation in the supply voltage has ipso facto made a piece of equipment which will not change its behaviour if you use a thicker cable so that it gets a few more mV than it would have got with the default cable.

There is no scientific basis whatsoever for believing that it will.

There have never been any proper double-blind tests done to demonstrate that it does.

No measurements of distortion, frequency response, noise or any other characteristics have ever shown that it does.

The snake-oil manufacturers of course dismiss all of the above, and point to people like you for their "proof"

ofcourse it does work fine without all this but sounds worse imo.

See the above.

I'm sure you do believe it, but every Sunday 100's of millions of people around the world gather together to reaffirm their belief that a cosmic Jewish zombie can make them live forever if they symbolically eat his flesh and telepathically tell him they accept him as their master, so he can remove an evil force from their soul that is present in humanity because a rib-woman was convinced by a talking snake to eat from a magical tree.

Doesn't make it real though....

Do you know a company that may sell used cable, flex or twin 7 earth. Thanks Lester

Try FeePay.

ok