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The bat-handle on/off switch on my Thor 3000 power supply was a casualty of a recent move. The switch is the lower one on the PS in the pic. Since the company has been defunct for at least ten years, I need to find a new one worthy of this magnificent beast. I have been unable to find one priced at more than $15.00 anywhere on the internet, and so I am suffering from audiophile anxiety that I have failed to find one that won't undo all the good done to the AC power before it gets there.
BTW, the photo is not mine - I had to get one from Google because mine is in the shop where the techs are waiting for me to suggest one for the repair.
Everything is going to the dogs
Follow Ups:
http://www.ckswitches.com/media/1391/ttoggle.pdf
Many types, gold contacts, find what you need than go to their main site and you can check stock at major electrical parts distributors. If you only need one, you can probably just request a sample.
If it were mine, I'd pull the broken switch out, and see what markings exist on the housing and then try and match that up with the offerings at Mouser or Digikey. At minimum the voltage and current rating (amps) should be clearly marked, assuming it's a UL listed switch. You can easily go with a switch with a higher a current rating (never lower), but keep in mind that as the amp capacity goes up so does the amount of force required to flip the toggle. If you want to keep the "feel" of the original switch, do your best to match the electrical specs of the busted one.
You should sleep tight with this one if it fits!
"The Borg is the ultimate user. They're unlike any threat your Federation has ever faced."
- Q, 2365
Duster's solution would be the best sounding. If you must have a switch I would consider finding the highest (over) rated switch with silver contacts that you can find that will fit. Michael Percy doesn't appear to have his "superb" Tocos silver contact switches any longer. He may have an opinion. Take a valium. A high quality over rated switch with silver contacts will not ruin your sound,IMO. Could likely be better??
"The Borg is the ultimate user. They're unlike any threat your Federation has ever faced."
- Q, 2365
There is no benefit of having a power switch unless you regularly power-off the power supply. If you are seeking optimized performance, I would simply bypass the on/off switch with a good piece of wire or a simple solder joint. Other than a rarely listened to audio device, I keep my gear powered-on 24/7 for better audio performance, without warm-up, and arguably less wear-and-tear on the audio gear over their useful lifetimes due to repeated on/off cycles.
Duster, That'show I have been using it for the last 5 years or so - always on. I have had most of the system in storage for several months while remodeling the space and thought I should take the down time to have a few things fixed. I brought up by Depression-obsessed parents who relentlessly drilled us kids to turn off things that are not being used. I'm trying to "walk the talk" with my own family now.
Also, I am not convinced by the argument that tube life is not shortened by staying on all the time. I have owned this preamp since new in 1999. The system was engineered with a goal of allowing up to 10,000 hours. The (relatively) cheap Gold Lion factory tubes lasted until 2016 when I replaced them with some obscenely expensive NOS tubes including a quad matched to within +/- .5%. They were glorious while they lasted - one of the quad developed a slight buzz after only a year while leaving it on all the time.
Everything is going to the dogs
I am one who would advise against the "always on" practice for tube gear, but I endorse it for solid state. If you can manage to wire up your tube gear such that the filament voltage is supplied at least 30 seconds ahead of B+, then there is no significant shock to the tube when you start it up from cold, and tube life is extended compared to the "always on" mode. For power tubes, of course, you want a longer interval of time between the application of filament voltage followed by B+ voltage. Preferably a power tube should feel warm to the touch before you apply B+.
Apart from wearing out the tubes if they are always working, there is also the lesser danger of losing bias because of component failure in the circuit, which can in turn lead to rapid destruction of valuable tubes. Something that would not happen if you are always in the room when the equipment is powered up.
I agree. If I had not assumed (my bad) it was a power supply for a solid state phono setup, I would not have suggested that the device be kept powered-on 24/7. I'll be more careful next time.
bcowen, Thanks for the tip about Mouser. I already struck out at Digikey, but the link that Tweaker456 posted looks like it will probably do no harm.
Everything is going to the dogs
Here's more toggle switches to ponder:
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