Yes, I think it's thick too. When I became an audiophile a decade ago I bought a 500 watt power amp, and I received a 18 awg cable with it.
But someone said in another forum that you need thicker cables for tube amps. I have never owned a tube amp so I don't know.
I wouldn't give the OP such a hard time.
Perfectly understandable. The story, as you tell it, does point to your power cord. You are right to have doubts and worry. But none of us here can figure out a way in which your cord could have been at fault, unless (maybe) it was wired wrong.
The only thing any one has to consider is the PS wattage at 120v. #14 wire is good for 15A. @120v. Should a power cord engineer know anything about the current capacity of wire?
The fact that you posted a bunch of unrelated specs for his amp says you don't have a clue about your situation.
You still (or anyone else reading the first bunch of posts) hasn't bothered (or dared) to comment on the theory of power interruptions from a loose cord. How many of us have read all the WARNINGS about turning a tube amp off and then right back on again with hot heaters. Conventional wisdom is the let the tubes heaters cool down before applying power again. How is an intermittent power cord connection at the plug, or amp connector, or a loose connection in the plug from a manufacturing error.... any different from hot switching a tube amp? Who hasn't read all the scary warnings about not doing that?
Its all dependent on the cable and how its wired..assuming a hot chassis<<and this might not be the case!
I wasn't going to comment and these are only thoughts, If the chassis was wired hot it would ground through the rest of the system, what will it do to the equipment connected to it?
However the power tx should not energise and the chassis would become hot then its all down to protection of the equipment. There is no fuse in the Gnd its not allowed..so current control is at the supply end of the system
(I don't know the fault current allowed in the states)
20/20 will know more..about max closed loop A and disconnection times.
And 20/20 has a point about intermittent connection.
Regards
M. Gregg
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To be honest, I cannot believe that you wrote that, and supplied a power cable for evaluation.
I do not wish to be rude, but if you understand so little about the basics of current flow, then in my view you should not be supplying any electrical items to anyone.
Actually, to Sweden, the flat rate is about $18. But still... In this end of the World, that's less than what many people spend on coffee drinks in a day.
I am using this plug.
That actually looks like a very nice plug. Personally, I'm not a believer in power cables, myrtlewood speaker cable stands, and the like. But a good low-resistance connection is usually preferred over a crappy connection.
Dude. Just ask for your cable back so you can verify the claims of the reviewer. It only costs you about 90 seconds to send the email. If he doesn't respond, you're out $100. If you don't get your cable back, you're still out $100. If you do get your cable back, then at least you've recovered the parts cost and can measure to see if the cable is wired correctly.
If the reviewer insists that you pay the $600 for the tubes, tell him that you have consulted with experts in the field and firmly believe that there is no way your cable could have damaged his amp. Have a nice day. What's he going to do? Go after you through INTERPOL for $600 worth of bogus damages? Not likely.
File this case in the Live & Learn category and move on.
~Tom
I have been using balanced power for years, and been a student of electrical engineering, but I quit when they started talking about amplifiers, now I regret it. I have forgotten a lot of it.
The bitter truth is, you have to stay away from electricity. Here is the topic you must read carefully instead: http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/tubes-valves/30172-safety-practices-general-ultra-high-voltage.html
Also, before doing business in US you shoud consider reading Bill Bryson's book "Notes from a Big Country" (Bryson, 1998) where he mentioned that:
More than 400,000 people in the United States were injured by chairs, sofas and sofabeds. What are we to make of this? Does it tell us something trenchant about the design of modern furniture or merely that Americans are exceptionally careless sitters? What is certain is that the problem is worsening. The number of chair, sofa and sofabed injuries showed an increase of 30,000 over the previous year, which is quite a worrying trend even for those of us who are frankly fearless with regard to soft furnishings. (Bryson, 1999, p.20).
More than 400,000 people in the United States were injured by chairs, sofas and sofabeds. What are we to make of this? Does it tell us something trenchant about the design of modern furniture or merely that Americans are exceptionally careless sitters? What is certain is that the problem is worsening. The number of chair, sofa and sofabed injuries showed an increase of 30,000 over the previous year, which is quite a worrying trend even for those of us who are frankly fearless with regard to soft furnishings. (Bryson, 1999, p.20).
Safety is what you learn first when studying electrical engineering. I know all those things.
I even designed the cable to be pet safe with extra protection around it.
Did you design also a booklet that describes all possible and impossible cases of improper usage of your cable? Without such booklet and corresponding license agreement it will be hard to prove that your cable is "pet safe". Cable niche is very competitive field. And very dangerous. May be less dangerous than illegal drug sale, but still dangerous.
I did not say that. I said, if you go to this niche you have to understand how dangerous it is. And at least obtain safety certificates from corresponding agencies. The safest one is for medical usage, so called "Hospital Grade". If you have such certificate, booklet with appropriate warnings, and corresponding agreement that your clients sign, they would have hard time to blame something on you. However, they may have very good lawyers, though...
Hospital-Grade Certification Requirements | Interpower Corporation
Hospital-Grade Certification Requirements | Interpower Corporation
I'm using CE safety certified power wiring and hospital grade plugs. This is safer than other audiophile cables with exotic silver conductors that are home made with weak insulation. I use high quality industrial stuff to avoid anyone blaming me. I'm in this hobby in the long-term and don't want any lawsuits in the future, I cannot afford it.
Should I let the customers sign an agreement that I'm not to blame if something goes wrong with their gear? Or could I just have some text on a website?
Should I let the customers sign an agreement that I'm not to blame if something goes wrong with their gear? Or could I just have some text on a website?
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