Vintage Asylum

• re: "that amp could kill you" - mhardy6647 05:47:41 10/29/04 (1)
  In Reply to: Eico HF-81 and the Death cap posted by dbailey on October 28, 2004 at 08:25:06:

  I just read CometCKO's intelligent and worthwhile post, and figured I'd follow it up with a stupid and pointless one :-) Disclaimer: offered for humorous intent only.

  I wonder if there's some allure to an amplifier that, with a single, minor part failure, could become lethal? Sort of like eating fugu... you know, just that little tingle to the lips; just a touch of tetrodotoxin.

  I think I'll go hop in the tub and fire up the old "AllAmerican Five" transformerless, hot chassis table radio.

  
  all the best,
  mrh
  
  

  ---

  • Re: re: "that amp could kill you" - Kal Rubinson 08:05:04 10/29/04 (0)
    In Reply to: re: "that amp could kill you" posted by mhardy6647 on October 29, 2004 at 05:47:41:

    This is a common arrangement on Eicos, afaik. I had one of their HF12s in my lab on a high shelf and, I assume because the chassis was hot, it was the only piece of consumer equipment that wasn't stolen over a span of more than a decade. Oh, yes, the power cord connection to the outlet was hidden........

    Kal
    
    

    ---
• I replaced it with one of these in my HF-81 - CometCKO 20:58:39 10/28/04 (1)
  In Reply to: Eico HF-81 and the Death cap posted by dbailey on October 28, 2004 at 08:25:06:

  This one is UL-approved, so-called class "Y" capacitor for this purpose, and self-healing. It's a simple swap & cheap insurance.

  http://www.mouser.com/index.cfm?handler=displayproduct&lstdispproductid=207383&e_categoryid=498&e_pcodeid=75016

  It's a good idea to replace the power cord with one that is polarized at the same time. The cap should be connected to the neutral leg of the power cord.

  You can test it (and your socket wiring) to be sure that it's wired correctly: the neutral terminal in your wall socket should be at zero potential vs. true ground. The neutral side of the plug will be the fat prong on a polarized plug, and should have the ribbed conductor attached if using standard AC wire. I bought mine at Home Depot as part of a heavy-duty extension cord for just a few bucks, cut off the female end and installed it in place of the 40-year old stock cord, using a larger strain relief.

  Note that without a polarized plug, you have a 50% chance of plugging it in with the "hot" wire from your wall socket connected to the floating ground... It'll work fine, but if the suppression cap fails then it can kill you. You're much safer with a polarized plug! In combination with replacing the cap it's about as safe as it can be without going to a 3-wire (and circuit) modification.

  
  Hope this helps!

  Frank
  
  

  ---

  • Re: I replaced it with one of these in my HF-81 - dbailey 05:12:51 10/29/04 (0)
    In Reply to: I replaced it with one of these in my HF-81 posted by CometCKO on October 28, 2004 at 20:58:39:

    Thanks for the detaile reply. I will heed your advice.

    Dave
    
    
    

    ---
• Sometimes - Billoradio@aol.com 11:17:47 10/28/04 (0)
  In Reply to: Eico HF-81 and the Death cap posted by dbailey on October 28, 2004 at 08:25:06:

  If the cap shorts it can throw 120 volts to the chassis. If their is no high current path to short out to the other side of the line, then you have an energised hunk of metal looking for you to be a path to ground.

  Bill
  
  

  ---

This post is made possible by the generous support of people like you and our sponsors:

Signature Sound

[ Signature Sound Lounge ]

---

[ Top of Page ] [ Contact Us ] [ Support/Wish List ] [ Copyright © 2025, Audio Asylum, all rights reserved ]

---

[ General ] [ Speakers ] [ Tubes ] [ Vinyl ] [ Digital ] [ Hi-Rez ] [ Video Asylum ] [ Cables ] [ Tweaks/DIY ] [ Music ] [ Films ]

---