How do you calculate power draw?

[RoadKill666]

My living room only has one outlet and with the amount of stuff I plan on adding to the living room, how do I know if my outlet can handle it or if I need to get another one installed and ran to the breaker on a separate line?

The plan is for that one (2 sockets) outlet to handle
1 large screen tv
3 gaming consoles
1 receiver
1 amplifier
two 300 watt towers
two 500 watt subwoofers
an 11 plug power conditioner
mini NUC pc
3 controller docs to charge 6 controllers
2 docs to charge 2 headsets

My plan was to have everything going into the power conditioner and then that going into the wall but I think it's too much power for one outlet. I know it's not cheap to get an electrician to come in and drop more power but with how much I'm gonna spend on everything it should be worth it right?

 

[Verdinut]

My living room only has one outlet and with the amount of stuff I plan on adding to the living room, how do I know if my outlet can handle it or if I need to get another one installed and ran to the breaker on a separate line?

The plan is for that one (2 sockets) outlet to handle
1 large screen tv
3 gaming consoles
1 receiver
1 amplifier
two 300 watt towers
two 500 watt subwoofers
an 11 plug power conditioner
mini NUC pc
3 controller docs to charge 6 controllers
2 docs to charge 2 headsets

My plan was to have everything going into the power conditioner and then that going into the wall but I think it's too much power for one outlet. I know it's not cheap to get an electrician to come in and drop more power but with how much I'm gonna spend on everything it should be worth it right?

If your TV set is a plasma one and you only have a 15 amp circuit, there's a very strong possibility that the breaker will often trip with the equipment connected to it. That type of set draws a lot of current, a minimum close to 4 amperes.

If not, then everything would depend on the type of amps driving your towers and subs (Class AB or D), your listening distance from your speakers and how loud you like to listen to music and movie soundtracks. Why don't you try using the equipment, and preferably measure the line voltage while operating it. It's possible that you will be able to operate the whole system, but should the voltage appreciably drop with loud SPL, then you will need to have an additional circuit installed.

 

[lovinthehd]

Why do you have a power "conditioner"? The speakers don't use power quite the way you think when it comes to their max ratings and your subwoofers likely have their own separate draw/amps in any case. I run for stuff off an outlet than you in any case without issue. I'm not trying to set spl records either...

 

[highfigh]

My living room only has one outlet and with the amount of stuff I plan on adding to the living room, how do I know if my outlet can handle it or if I need to get another one installed and ran to the breaker on a separate line?

The plan is for that one (2 sockets) outlet to handle
1 large screen tv
3 gaming consoles
1 receiver
1 amplifier
two 300 watt towers
two 500 watt subwoofers
an 11 plug power conditioner
mini NUC pc
3 controller docs to charge 6 controllers
2 docs to charge 2 headsets

My plan was to have everything going into the power conditioner and then that going into the wall but I think it's too much power for one outlet. I know it's not cheap to get an electrician to come in and drop more power but with how much I'm gonna spend on everything it should be worth it right?

Look at the sticker near the power cords on the equipment that uses power- the speakers and anything with a wall wart power supply are immaterial. That means, add the power shown for:

TV
Gaming consoles
Receiver
Amplifier
Subwoofers
Mini PC

You aren't likely to use all three gaming consoles at the same time, so pick the one with the highest consumption. Once you get the total Wattage consumed, subtract it from 1500 (a safe estimate for the de-rated 1800|W equivalent maximum for a 15A circuit.

If it doesn't exceed 1500W, you should be fine and need to realize that it's not an average spec, it's the maximum, so you aren't going to open the breaker under normal operation.

 

[viorelc]

Actual power draw is measured, and it might be the most realistic way to assess your needs. Max power is estimated, by adding the max powers of the devices you tend to have on at any given time. The speakers’ power ratings matter only if it is about the consumption from the power outlet (110/220V ac), not about the audio signal from the amplifiers. Specs of the actual devices might mention both.

I use one outlet for all my main audio-video space. That’s an 85” OLED Sony TV, Denon AVR-2200W, 2 powered 12” subs and a Technics turntable, all of them being on at various times, and using reference level when watching some movies. I also have some other gadgets in the same outlet, but their power consumption is of little significance. This is just an example, your equipment and their use may vary.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[RoadKill666]

Why do you have a power "conditioner"? The speakers don't use power quite the way you think when it comes to their max ratings and your subwoofers likely have their own separate draw/amps in any case. I run for stuff off an outlet than you in any case without issue. I'm not trying to set spl records either...

I've had one for my living room for a long time so when I decided to make the jump to a much much bigger and more powerful living room set up, I was going to get rid of my 7 sockets and get an 11 socket conditioner just for safety and peace of mind. I understand I could just get a surge protector but felt this was a better option for such expensive items.

 

[lovinthehd]

I've had one for my living room for a long time so when I decided to make the jump to a much much bigger and more powerful living room set up, I was going to get rid of my 7 sockets and get an 11 socket conditioner just for safety and peace of mind. I understand I could just get a surge protector but felt this was a better option for such expensive items.

How does a conditioner help at all? You live in a third world country with some seriously bad ac lines or something? Might want to review some of these

Power conditioner, Yes or No?

I often post: In that 'power conditioner' is an undefined term. It could mean almost any combination of the following. a) Noise filter - a low-pass EMI/RFI filter. b) Surge protector - although it's better to have surge protection at the home's service entrance...

forums.audioholics.com

Audioquest Niagara 1200 Review (Power Conditioner/Surge Protector)

This is a review and detailed measurements of the audioquest Niagara 1200 Power Conditioner/Filter and Surge Protector together with their NRG-Z3 AC power cords. They are on kind loan from a member. The Niagara 1200 costs US $1,000 and the power cords costs US $200 in 1 meter length and $280...

www.audiosciencereview.com

AudioQuest PowerQuest 3 Power Conditioner & Surge Protector Review

This is a review and detailed measurements of the AudioQuest PowerQuest 3 Power Conditioner, Non-Sacrificial Surge Protector and Power Strip. It was purchased new and kindly drop shipped to me by a member. It costs US $300 from Amazon including Prime shipping. OK, power strips don't have to...

www.audiosciencereview.com

 

[mtrycrafts]

My living room only has one outlet and with the amount of stuff I plan on adding to the living room, how do I know if my outlet can handle it or if I need to get another one installed and ran to the breaker on a separate line?

The plan is for that one (2 sockets) outlet to handle
1 large screen tv
3 gaming consoles
1 receiver
1 amplifier
two 300 watt towers
two 500 watt subwoofers
an 11 plug power conditioner
mini NUC pc
3 controller docs to charge 6 controllers
2 docs to charge 2 headsets

My plan was to have everything going into the power conditioner and then that going into the wall but I think it's too much power for one outlet. I know it's not cheap to get an electrician to come in and drop more power but with how much I'm gonna spend on everything it should be worth it right?

One easy way is to get the Kill-A-Watt meter and actually measure the total as you keep adding more to that outlet.
How can you have only 1 outlet? Very Old house? What size is the breaker for that outlet?

 

[lovinthehd]

One outlet can still provide quite a bit of juice...I'm stuck with one for a fairly large system. Depends on total draw at a given time, which would likely be within the limits of a single outlet at a given time unless trying to set spl records or something....

 

[Eppie]

What highfigh said above. ↑
Those are maximums and regular use will be below that. If you are using a power conditioner as opposed to a simple surge protector, add that into the mix as well. I have a plasma TV (uses considerably more than LCD), AVR, 3 game consoles, cable box, phono, DVD player, VCR and subwoofer all on one circuit without issues. Not all components are on at the same time so typical use is a lot less than the estimated maximum. Worste case scenario run the system loud for a while and see if the outlet or the plug on the power conditioning gets hot. If they heat up without tripping the breaker then you are close to the rated 15 amps and should consider adding a circuit, but I doubt that will be the case.