Can You Run 1 Power Outlet Off Another?

[Old No7]

Asking because I don't know what's best...

 

I didn't have this issue before with just 1 board (kinda nice problem to have); but now with 3 boards, Mojo pedals, a mixer, a Tascam console, plus 2 each monitors & powered speakers, I'm running 2 Furman 6-outlet SS-6Bs to power all my gear.

 

* Can I run one Furman off the other, or is that not advisable?

 

One is positioned well behind all the pedals & stand for the mixer, and is not easy to reach, and I'm wondering if it's risky to plug that into the open outlet on the other that's much easier to get to.

 

Old No7

[Docbop]

I've done that in a pinch but not something I would to do all the time.  My bigger concern is that's a lot of gear drawing power and I prefer to run it off two circuits or at least to two wall plugs hoping they are on different circuits.    Plus drawing power generates heat so daisy chain power boxes the one going to the wall outlet is going to heat up.    

 

I'd buy a couple long heavy duty extension cords like for construction work.  Then you can run to two outlets.  Think through which gear is drawing more like amps than lower draw keyboards and how you want to configure then.  Like keys on one and amps on other so if amp blow a box circuit breaker the keys will stay up and not need to reboot.   Or balance amps and keys.    So lots to think about on the way to buy a couple heavy duty extension cords (and many a cord spool to wind them up with.)   

[DJkeys]

I run everything you see off one wall jack with three other power strips connected.  Been doing it for 25 years without any type of problem.  I can turn everything on (except the computer, of course) with a single switch on the top left Furman.  

 

dj

[miden]

Not sure how it would run in the US, but I imagine it would be similar to Oz...you can safely do that as long as the continuous amperage load does not exceed 10-amps (that's standard domestic in Oz, I'd reckon it would be similar in the US....It's the current draw at turn on that will determine it....There would be setups that, at turn-on, actually draw higher than ten amps, however in actual running those devices would , in total, draw maybe 4-5 amps, well under the limit. So in that case you'd simply turn on one by one.

 

It's what I did back in the day of passive speaker F.O.H. systems with a rack of power amps. Just turn em on one by one...especially when the venue does not run 3-phase. If they did that you can turn everything on at once

 

I'd be REALLY surprised if all that gear you pictured runs much more than about 4 amps total in continuous current draw. You can check by looking at the power specs where that info is available, and then just add them all up....a lot of the electronic gear probably runs 300mA to 750mA (milliamps - 1000 to an amp)

[Reezekeys]

The only issue I see is if everything you plug into both Furmans exceeds the rated current for that box, which I note is 15 amps. If you wanted to be safe you could add the current draw of all your gear plugged into both boxes (or add the wattage and divide by the line voltage) to get a total, then make sure you have a safety margin - e.g. your total watts used is not more than 1400. For many PPAs with class-D amps, current draw can vary a lot so they often publish average figures for wattage or current draw.

 

OK, found a pic of the plate attached to the bottom of these guys - you should be fine.

[zephonic]

6 hours ago, Docbop said:

 My bigger concern is that's a lot of gear drawing power and I prefer to run it off two circuits or at least to two wall plugs hoping they are on different circuits. 

 

I'm not exactly an expert but I was told having it on two circuits can (or will) create ground loops, thus hum. Better to have everything coming from one source, provided you do not exceed max amperage of the socket/circuit/powerstrip.

 

[TJ Cornish]

Short version - if you’re not tripping breakers, it’s fine. Most gear draws much less current than the nameplate - that’s a worst case number. This is especially true for amplifiers and powered speakers.

 

Ground loops are everywhere - even if you have gear plugged into the same circuit. They only become a problem when there is a large voltage differential between grounds which causes current to flow through the shielding of audio gear. This is more likely to be a concern when you are using multiple circuits, or especially when you are using circuits that are fed from different panels in a building, but multiple circuits are not bad, and in any venue of any size, almost a given that parts of the audio system will be on different circuits.

 

Noise resulting from ground loop currents is solved by using balanced cables and DIs which have ground lift modes.

[Old No7]

Thanks all for your feedback.

 

I'll leave the 2 Furmans on separate outlets, but as it turns out, they're on the same house circuit.

 

Maybe it was a "stupid" question, but I figured I'd be "smart enough" to ask about it.

 

Old No7