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Quick Grounding question...

7/15/2000 2:18 AM
Ryan	Quick Grounding question... Just wondering... I've been using a multiple star grounding method for some time now, every stage has its own star point starting from the input stage all the way on the right side to the power supply on the far left. The idea is for none of the higher signal level grounds to flow through the lower. However, I've always just bolted the ground right to the chassis (all my jacks are isolated if it matters) using the chassis as my main ground return, SHOULD I be connecting all these grounds to a single wire, THEN the end of that wire be bolted to the chassis? The reason I question using the chassis as my return is: my output transformer is almost above the input stage on the far right, so don't the end bells conduct stray magnetic feilds from the OT to ground through the chassis, thus feeding stray magnetic garbage into (around / across) my input stage ground? Doesn't the chassis also pick up and conduct stray RF through itself into ground? Wew, lotsa detail there, incase you missed my question -would it be better (for future amps) to use a single wire to connect all my star points to ground instead of using the chassis as my main return -would it make make a great enough difference to justify converting all my previous amps? If anyone can answer this, I'd really appreciate it. Thanks! -Ryan

7/15/2000 2:18 AM

Ryan

Quick Grounding question...

Just wondering...
I've been using a multiple star grounding method for some time now, every stage has its own star point starting from the input stage all the way on the right side to the power supply on the far left. The idea is for none of the higher signal level grounds to flow through the lower. However, I've always just bolted the ground right to the chassis (all my jacks are isolated if it matters) using the chassis as my main ground return, SHOULD I be connecting all these grounds to a single wire, THEN the end of that wire be bolted to the chassis? The reason I question using the chassis as my return is: my output transformer is almost above the input stage on the far right, so don't the end bells conduct stray magnetic feilds from the OT to ground through the chassis, thus feeding stray magnetic garbage into (around / across) my input stage ground? Doesn't the chassis also pick up and conduct stray RF through itself into ground?
Wew, lotsa detail there, incase you missed my question

-would it be better (for future amps) to use a single wire to connect all my star points to ground instead of using the chassis as my main return
-would it make make a great enough difference to justify converting all my previous amps?

If anyone can answer this, I'd really appreciate it.
Thanks!
-Ryan

Replies:

J Epstein If you have a noise problem using t... -- 7/16/2000 12:19 AM
SeanF I just follow Randall Aiken's guide... -- 7/16/2000 3:58 AM