How many components can be plugged into same wall socket? (1 Viewer)

[Kevin. W]

1. Currently I have a Monster HTS1000 Powercentre, too which my AMP, DVD, Reciever and TV are all plugged in. Am I placing myself in the situation of overloading the one socket?
2. On another note, since I am using my AMP to power my speakers would it be okay to place my DVD on top of the reciever? I'm out of space in my entertainment unit. Time to find a rack.
Kevin
[Edited last by Kevin. W on September 03, 2001 at 03:12 PM]

 

[HughScot]

Is this a trick question? I would not place anything near, much less on top of, an amp. They get hot and need ventilation. I'd be real careful about loading up the socket. You might want to check with an electrician and see what the max is for the socket. If necessary have a separate line with its own breaker switch run into the room and dedicate it to your equipment.

 

[Bill Kane]

Kevin,
1. If your place has a 20amp circuit breaker, in general, you are fine with the TV/amp/DVD (even CD and VCR) all plugged into the Monster1000.
2. No, don't put ANYTHING atop the receiver: that's why it has heat vent grills. Many makers recommend 4 inches of air (cooling space) around the AVR.
Special considerations apply if you have a high-current audiophile separate amplifier or monoblocks, such as timed switching or some recommended for plug-alone into the wall socket instead of a surge protector.
Determine what else is on the circuit you use for the Monster by pulling the circuit breaker to see what goes dark. You should avoid using electronics on a house circuit that feeds motor-driven appliances such as a frig or washers. Some living room lamps/ceiling light are ok on the electronics circuit.
Just as a tweak, I replaced my wall duplex outlet with a hospital grade ($15) but Industrial Grade ($8) is fine, to provide a tighter plug/prong grip; not that we will be pulling the surge protector's plug every day.
Now if you live in a real old house with 15-amp fuses in the panel, you'll hv to be more meticulous re the above....
this is my genl advice; others may offer the volts/amps/watts formula to calc. your circuit draw!
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[Rick Radford]

This is a question I've just become concerned about with equipment due to arrive any day.
I have a Sutton Designs ZX5000/6 outlet surge protector with cable and satellite modules. It is plugged into one wall outlet. Link Removed
The surge protector directly powers my DVD and VCR. There are 2 power strips in the armoire that also plug into the surge protector (leaving me 2 outlets available on the SP).
One of the armoire outlets (13A max) powers the TV. The other outlet powers the Onkyo 989 (11A) and hopefully can power the Samson700 due in tomorrow.
Is this setup ok? Or am I trying to do too much out of that one 13A strip (with Onk and Samson)?
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--RR

 

[Bill Kane]

Jeez, I'd be leery of plugging TWO amps actually into one outlet at the Surge Protector via a power strip. For 100% SP protection, I believe one needs to plug directly to the SP, one outlet per device to accommodate the MOV range, especially if you had to make a replacement claim.
Email your SP yourself to ask if extension power strrips are advisable.
So you cant run the TV and AVR plugs straight to the SP handily? or are you just using the furniture power strips because they are there?
Is the Sampson going for a sub that cud be plugged at another outlet in yr room? I did this and used a small ($35) computer surge protector I had to defend my sub amp.
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[Rick P.]

As others have suggested, a dedicated circuit or two would be best. That said, I have ALL of my stuff plugged into a power center on a single 15 A breaker. This includes:
Denon AVR-3300 receiver (105 WPC * 5, if you believe the specs)
NAD 3155 integrated amp (55 WPC - an excellent amp that walks all over the Denon!)
Yorkville AP-3000 amp (750 WPC - a monster!)
Behringer Feedback Destroyer Pro EQ
Toshiba SD-2109 DVD player
Luxman CD player
Toshiba TP61H95 RPTV
Satellite receiver (Starchoice)
JVC S-VHS VCR
+ probably a couple other things that I'm forgetting.
The only time I've ever blown the breaker was when I inadvertantly plugged a vacuum cleaner into the same circuit with the stereo cranked up. I don't watch movies at reference levels but I suspect that Saving Private Ryan (Beach landing), U571 or other bass-heavy movies at reference levels would be too much for one circuit to handle. The Yorkville amp by itself will tax a 15 A circuit if driven hard enough, but I value my hearing too much to do that.
As for placing stuff on top of your equipment, I wouldn't unless you are powering ALL of your channels externally and it doesn't have a class-A or A/AB output stage.
Hope this helps,
Rick
[Edited last by Rick P. on September 03, 2001 at 06:47 PM]
[Edited last by Rick P. on September 03, 2001 at 06:50 PM]

 

[Kevin. W]

Thanks all for the feedback. I just found out how much I need a rack. I have a TV stand which I put my Reciever, DVD and AMP into. Hooked everything up and started a movie(Lethal Weapon 4). About 15mins in the AMP shut down. Tried it again this time with the glass doors open but the same thing happened. Figure it must be heating up in there as earlier in the day I tested the system(SPR DTS beach scene) with the AMP sitting on a table and everything was fine. Bummer. Didn't want too spend anymore.
Kevin

 

[Rick Radford]

>>Email your SP yourself to ask if extension power strrips are advisable>are you just using the furniture power strips because they are there?

 

[Rick Radford]

Rick P, sounds like you're running a lot of gear off that one circuit. Which means I'm likely ok.

Kevin, I'm curious. What amp are you running?
BTW, I sent my SP mfg a note with a request about my setup. I'll try to remember to post here what they have to say.
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--RR

 

[Trevor Schell]

I have my subs installed on a seperate circuit/
The DVD,TV, DSS, LD player ETC..On another.
Then have the Denon 5800 installed on a seperate dedicated circuit plus the Parasound HCA 2205 installed on yet another dedicated circuit.
I did not want to take any chances and want my equipment to perform to their best potential.
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Trevor..

Link Removed Sonically Enhanced
*Outdated new pictures
due to recent upgrades!
**Equipment list current

 

[Rob Roth]

On this subject you'll get some people who believe that as long as everything 'turns on' the power supply is adequate. Don't believe them. It is true that better equipment typically has better internal power supplies which provide a reservoir of power. But peak passages will quickly exhaust amplifier power reserves and mechanical activity will increase source components' usage. It is very possible to have diminished performance from many components prior to outright failure. Thus amps will clip and output more distortion before breakers blow.
I've recently installed two dedicated 20 amp circuits and have noticed benefits from gretaer AC supplies and from isolation from other household appliances.

 

[DaleB]

"How many components can be plugged into same wall socket? "
Reminds me of the old joke, how many people can you fit in a Volkswagon? or.. How many fishermen does it take to change a light bulb? (3, one to change it, one to tell about the one they missed and one to describe how big the bulb was.)
Anyway, I digress. Energy management is a major factor in 'power distribution'. So if you only operate 'half' your equipment when listening to music, versus, other equipment when you watch movies, you could calculate how much current you are using for each listening mode. In many cases there may be enough reserve to adequately use a 15 amp line.
Where there is not enough, then split the equipment accordingly across two circuits. I believe you were saying that in essence. Often, just putting the video display, or a power amp on a separate circuit is sufficient.

 

[JohnFR]

I have an ungodly number of things connected to a single 15A circuit at the momement, including my tv, Outlaw receiver, dvd, cd, Directivo, Velo CT80, computer, monitor, 2 75W lights, paper shredder, numberous ac transformers for my printer, scanner, dsl modem, and pc speakers, cell phone charger, and my wife's little waterfall rock, or whatever you call it. Of course, I usually don't run everything at once. I only blew the breaker once when I plugged in a space heater last winter.
That being said, I'm adding an amp, so clearly I need more power. I'm having an electrician come in 2 weeks to run a dedicated 20A circuit back to the box for my HT components. As much as anything, I want to get my HT off the same circuit as the computer.
JR

 

[Jeremy Hegna]

Is there any formula available to figure this out guys?
Which numbers in the receiver's, DVD player's, TV's specs do you need to figure this out?
Interesting thread. I haven't blown my breakers yet, but I'm thinking about adding a seperate amp and this has me a little concerned.
Jeremy

 

[Brian OK]

I would not exceed 1800W total max load per circuit. Add up your manufacturer listed (average) power consumption (electricity consumption) specifications and factor in some variation. Max most likely will never be reached.
FWIW, this is a grossly general rule. But into a 15 amp circuit I would not push the 1800 guideline.
I have 2 dedicated 15 amp circuits, running 12AWG lines:
1) Pass&Seymour 5262A duplex outlet for Yamaha DSP A-1 plugged in directly (500W). Other plug for Pioneer DV414 CDP, and a Panny RV80 DVD player (both non factors they are so minimal) through a VansEvers Model 83 Power Conditioner.
2) Another 5262A duplex for Toshiba 43" RPTV (180W)(through a Monster HTS 2000 conditioner. The other plug for Def Tech 15" powered sub(325W).
Plenty of headroom here.
Everyone has different situations to deal with regarding circuits and outlets. Just don't overload to the point of creating tripping/shutdown.
BOK
[Edited last by Brian OK on September 04, 2001 at 11:36 PM]

 

[AlvinS]

Add up the input wattage of all the devices and then divide by the input voltage. 1800 watts would be 15 amps at 120 volts. I would keep this down to around 1400 watts for a 15 amp dedicated curcuit. Hope this helps.

 

[Kevin. W]

Rick,
I am running the new Rotel RMB-1066. I believe it replaced the RB-976MkII. I picked this AMP for a couple of reasons. Price and power. It is 6x60 and can be configured down to 5,4,3 channel by bridging. I am specifically going to run it at 3x150W to power my fronts. If all works out then I'll pickup another down the road to power the rears.
Kevin

 

[Jeremy Hegna]

Alvin and Brian,
Thanks. That's valuable info.
Jeremy

 

[Rick P.]

"I'm having an electrician come in 2 weeks to run a dedicated 20A circuit back to the box for my HT components. "
John
I'd suggest a pair of 15 amp circuits over a single 20-amp circuit. Your electrician's installation cost for this won't be much (if any) more and it will leave you with more flexibility for the future.
The exception to this would be if you have a very large amp drawing more than 12 A (1440 watts). The NEC requires that new circuits be loaded to no more than 80% of their capacity (the 80% rule). If a single piece of equipment is going to draw > 12 A, your electrician should install a 20 A circuit.
Hope this helps,
Rick
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[Edited last by Rick P. on September 05, 2001 at 10:21 PM]