The 13 amp system has been around for some 60 years. If there were a better compromise, why would SA be adopting it now? They don't exactly have ties to the UK.
Too many problems with Schuko. Like the lack of polarization. It would be a retrograde step to adopt it here. Or elsewhere.
In article , J. P. Gilliver (John) writes
Schuko/Euro doesn't have polarity.
Except some variants of it do. As pointed out a few times in this thread.
If you are going to have varieties of mains connectors in the same house, there's nothing to stop you using something other than 13 amp in the UK either - where you want a smaller plug or whatever. Although if fed from a final circuit ring, it would need to be protected by an FCU. I use IEC connectors at the Hi-Fi - simply because 13 amp take up too much room. But I realise not many will be willing to go to the expense of replacing factory fitted 13 amp plugs.
In article , Dave Plowman (News) writes
The IEC C13 socket strips used in 19" racks, coupled with cutting 13A plugs off cables and fitting IEC C14 plugs, make for a neat setup that is much better quality than some of the s***ty multiplug solutions available.
It also has the advantage that if you need to take an item away, it's easy to power it with a common-as-muck BS1363 13A to IEC C13 "kettle" lead.
My Technics separates hi-fi system which I bought in the 1980s has an intriguing combination of a 2-pin figure-of-eight socket (as used on cassette recorders) as the main input to the amplifier. It then has a C13 socket as output to the next item, which has C14 input and C13 output, and so on for all the equipment which is daisy-chained. However the cassette deck uses a low-voltage power supply with a small three-pin socket of the form that is used for connecting LEDs and power switch from the case of a PC to its motherboard. This is a pain: I wanted to copy some cassettes onto my PC, but I had to get the amplifier down from the loft as well simply to power the cassette deck!
It also has a low-voltage control bus that uses daisy-chained 3.5mm stereo plugs so putting the needle down on the record deck cues the cassette deck to start recording (assuming the record button is pressed first) and routes the audio signal through the amplifier to it. Likewise pressing a station button on the tuner or pressing the play button on the cassette deck sets the amplifier to that input.
Wiring it all up after I moved house was "interesting" and involved noting down where all the leads were connected and the order of the daisy-chaining of the control bus so I could replicate it afterwards.
Yup. That's what I have.
Quite a bit of my gear uses IEC main input chassis plugs anyway.
None of the Schuko/French/Belgian/combined Europlug are polarised.
(Don't mix up the inability to reverse the plug in the socket on French/Belgium plugs with the circuit preserving live and neutral polarisation - there's no defined live and neutral pin, and on a double socket or 2-way adaptor, you will almost always find the two sockets are hard-wired the opposite way around. Furthermore, those connectors are used in areas where there is no neutral - neither main conductor is near earth potential.)
Yes, but you're changing the parameters of the argument. I've worked in Middle East states that use BS1363 plugs, where there are similar polarity and potential uncertainties.
In article , "Dave Plowman (News)" writes
I like them. I retrofit them often to domestic things - the workshop vacuum cleaner/dust extractor, for example, and various mains radios and so on. I invested in a rectangular Q-max punch back in the 1980s (when they didn't require a mortgage!), and it still works pretty well. It is smaller, but three carefully-aimed bites will do an IEC socket opening neatly.
I'm also looking at getting new back panels laser cut for the various AM8/12, etc. amps, hiding in dusty corners of the house. One other good feature is the ready availability of filtered inlets, and bail-locks for when you really must.
They're also ideal for travelling. For years I've had a couple of 13A four-way patresses with short IEC tails fitted. You just grab whichever IEC to local power cable is necessary, and if you don't have one, the local equivalent of Best Buy or John Lewis usually stocks them for PCs. (I've got a good collection now). But even these are slowly becoming redundant...
... if you carefully remove the web in the middle of a Telefunken connector with a sharp knife, the receptacles will fit into a mains-powered shaver. Very handy.
Both my Android and all the family's various Apple portable products have a Telefunken socket hidden behind the 13A adaptor plate of their chargers. As does my Canon camera charger and the one for the Metz flashgun. With a USB adaptor for the 'phone, that's pretty much everything covered*. One only has to leave the UK plates behind and just take a few of the chargers themselves. Our tests have shown iPad and Samsung USB chargers happily interoperate for tablets (although annoyingly, both brands are rather inefficient on 110V, with only just enough voltage to charge stuff quite slowly).
For the last 20 years, everything* of mine that's garden or DIY related has had the 3pin plug chopped off to be replaced by a 2pin duraplug, all my extension leads# have a 2pin trailing socket.
Previously various manufacturers seemed to manage to be compatible with duraplugs, I recently noticed B&Q no longer stock them, so I bought a supaplug instead, unfortunately it refused to mate with a duraplug socket, it seems the duraplugs have also been dropped by RS, so I tracked down a box of 10 duraplug/sockets on eBay ... should be enough to see me out!
For the AM8/12, you might find it easier to fit a Neutric PowerCon. It's a direct replacement for the LNE. And a Speakon for the 5 pin XLR. ;-) Those connectors both have round cutouts so easier to make than ones for an IEC.
I rather dislike IEC when it comes to fitting line connectors - they must be one of the most fiddly to do. Powercons are simple.
In article , "Dave Plowman (News)" writes
Speakon yes (replacing a Jones socket actually!), but IEC mains is a requirement. If I ever decide to sell them on (unlikely) the IEC will be a selling point rather than something consumers won't be familiar with - not saying it isn't good, mind.
I have the right punches, but I'll be getting them properly cut out for quality of finish. Although there is plenty of space in an AM8/12 case, it's not in the right places for the back panel to be a simple swap over. As I have enough of the necessary adaptor cables for the original connectors, it's one job that's gone on the round tuit list.
Yup I hate them too, but have had one on the mower lead for years and it hasn't failed yet, which surprises me somewhat.
Getting confused with my BBC numbers. Is the AM8/12 the HH used normally with the 3/5a?
In article , "Dave Plowman (News)" writes
Yes. I think you're getting muddled with the AM8/15 and AM8/16: the active crossover amps of the LS3/7 and LS5/8 systems respectively.
Some of the later AM8/16 had four-pole Speakons (I think - they were based on Quad 405s and Chord, and there were several variants of each, IIRC). The AM8/15s I have use 5-pin XLRs (going to be Speakons if I ever get round to it).
Which I've never seen as a problem, unless you skimp by using single-pole switches. OK, I suppose you have to be careful when working on equipment where the fuse has gone, but then you should be careful when working on live equipment anyway.
Sorry for the delay in replying. There may be another delay as tomorrow I change ISP and may either end up without a connection and/or need to find and link my news agent to a new server.
Anyhow - yes, I've checked. The cable is Reslo and all the connectors, including the extension, appear to be Reslo ie similar but not quite XLR with a screw on collar. All the cabling has been done to high standards and the owner is reluctant to have an XLR male/female spliced in which is the obvious solution so he retains existing functionality and gains access to XLR mics.
So is there any other way of getting from a male Reslo to a male XLR to then plug into an XLR mic? Any UK suppliers of the necessary bits (well all I need is a Reslo female). Google brings up
In article , AnthonyL writes
Sadly, unless you can magically find a female connector, probably not.
It might be worth keeping an eye on eBay - Reslo mics use to come up fairly often (with quite creative descriptions usually - it's amazing how many mics the Beatles and the BBC actually used). You sometimes see the cables separately.
Your quickest and simplest solution is the one already mentioned: to insert a pair of XLRs. Otherwise use a different mic.
These days, there are so many to choose from, and even the ones on PC headphones and mobile 'phones are pretty good quality. Unhless you're after a specific effect, something like the old SM58s (Shure) will do just fine for most hospital radio applications, and they're cheap and robust. There are plenty of good copies too.
Not sure I follow this - I still need to attach to the Reslo connector whatever mic I use don't I?
The mic will be relatively inaccessible once installed and 100' away from where the recording device will be positioned.
Alternatively we just buy 100' of mic cable - what is the cheapest acceptable quality? Mono recording only.
Not only the obvious but best solution. What reason does he have for using a different one?
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