A

avholics

Enthusiast
Hi,
I've been browsing through a lot of threads, but didn't come across anything similar to what I was look for. So I figure I start a new thread to ask these, hopefully, basic power and circuit questions.

I live in a recently developed house. Unfortunately, the builder DO NOT allow any customization. Yeah, if I make this a deal breaker, then we have no house. The next person in line will get the house. Just like...in N. CA back in the hay days.

So now it's four years later. I think that I need additional circuit line in the area that I want to set up my system? Fortunately the circuit break is not too far from that HT area. So running/fishing the new wire should not be too difficult. May be able to do this myself :eek:

So here's the questions:
  1. How do I know what the max allowable amp I can have on the main breaker? I see there are 3 slot avail/open on the main break. Does this mean that I can add 3 addition breaker without having to worry if I have exceed the max capacity? Is there someway to determine this without having to call an electrician?
  2. The current circuit that distribute the power in the HT area is 15A circuit. Is it as simple as replacing the breaker to upgrade to a 20A? Or am I just full of it to ask this kind of question?
  3. How can I find out if the line in my house fluctuate so much that warrant a regulator? I know I should have it protect against surge like lightening, but we rarely see things of this nature here.
  4. I just bought an Emotiva MPS-1 AMP 300Wx3/200Wx3. The seller tell me to run this unit straight from the wall as the amp has its own power regulator that would adjust and handle spikes. Does this sound right?
  5. What would be the minimum AMP require just to run the small HT (Processor, TV, Set Top Box, AMP, 600W Active Sub, Lighting, Ceiling Fan)? Would the current 15amp suffice?

Thanks for any insight.
 
A

alphamajor

Audioholic Intern
From the sounds of it, you are relatively unfamiliar with house wiring, circuit panels and the like. Most of us are so don't feel bad. This being the case, I for one would highly recommend that you hire an electrician if you are going to be running new wire. As far as changing the circuit breaker in the panel to a 20A, it likely isn't that simple. The wire running to the oulets has to be rated for that current as well. Odds are the wire that currently exists is only rated for the standard 15A.

Regarding some sort of power regeneration/filtration, it really depends on a lot of issues. Being that you live in a relatively new area, I would imagine the power isn't too bad. However, if you've ever noticed noise or 'pops' coming from the speakers when something like your refridgerator kicks in, then it might not be a bad idea.

At a bare minimum you should have some sort of surge protection. This will help (not guarantee) protect from lightning strikes as well as other large surges that may occur. Lightning is not the only cause of power line surges. There are also power lines being knocked down, clumsy power company workers and so on.

Finally, to determine how much power all your equipment is pulling, just add up all their power ratings and divide by 120, that will give you the MAXIMUM current it would pull. For instance, your 600W sub would pull 5 amps at max power. However, it is highly unlikely that the sub amplifier will every pull that much power. If it were, the sub would probably be distorting and clipping. It really doesn't take much power to make speakers get loud. You can run a surprising amount of equipment off of a single 15A circuit because of this. On the other hand, things like a vacuum cleaner really do pull close to what they specify, like 10-12A.

Of course, to be extremely conservative, just go by the max power ratings on everything, that way you have a lot of extra room for safety.
 
highfihoney

highfihoney

Audioholic Samurai
alphamajor said:
From the sounds of it, you are relatively unfamiliar with house wiring, circuit panels and the like. Most of us are so don't feel bad. This being the case, I for one would highly recommend that you hire an electrician if you are going to be running new wire. As far as changing the circuit breaker in the panel to a 20A, it likely isn't that simple. The wire running to the oulets has to be rated for that current as well. Odds are the wire that currently exists is only rated for the standard 15A.
I agree 100%,i work for a large commercial contracting company & i cant count the times ive seen people try this kinda stuff,bad idea,there comes a time to step back & let pro's do what they are trained to do & unless you know exactly what your doing DIY electricial work should be avoided,this is not something you can be talked through.

Think of the worst case senario,your house burns down due to faulty work, more than likely you'll have one he!! of a time with your insurance company paying a claim, do you really think it wise to rick an investment as large as your home to save a few hundred bucks?

Having dedicated lines installed is cheaper than most people think,do yourself & your family a favor & call some electrical contractors & get some estimates.
 
Alex2507

Alex2507

Audioholic Slumlord
I agree 200%. We're talking about music and money here. Hardly anything worth risking lives over. Your 15 amp set up is safe. What you were talking about doing could get people killed. Fires can go from house to house also.
 

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