Grounding boxes - The real deal

[Clive]

How does RFI and /or leakage currents audibly manifest itself in our systems?

I suppose it all depends on the frequencies involved. Certain cables eg older Nordost were wonderful aerials, the resulting sound was lean with a sparkly topend.

[Cyrus]

The performance of this equipment must be measurable (or immeasurable) in the correct environment.

[Leeken]

So has anyone tried any of the multiple versions of these boxes yet and Decided there’s no difference or even its worse?

[DSJR]

I'll just stick to my clip-on ferrites. There's a measurable reduction in rf through the cables when using them, they're very cheap and I 'thought' they made a slight audible difference, so still use them (the more you use the less the 'difference' one imagines). Some gear is very 'clean' up at those frequencies anyway (supply rejection and so on) so all this guff makes little to no difference at all and I've never found they make the sound 'worse' in the stereo's I've owned and used.

[Beobloke]

How does RFI and /or leakage currents audibly manifest itself in our systems?

If you’re using good quality equipment with properly designed power supplies and filtering, then it should have no audible effect at all!

[Joe]

I remember when noise in hifi systems really was noise; turntable rumble, cable hum, phono amps picking up radio signals, none of this namby-pamby 'inaudible noise' nonsense.

[Marco]

If you’re using good quality equipment with properly designed power supplies and filtering, then it should have no audible effect at all!

That's the theory, but unfortunately, IME, it doesn't often bear out in practice...

That's why (in my system and that of many others, featuring equipment with "properly designed power supplies"), a shielded mains lead, built for hi-fi purposes (doesn't need to be fancy, something from Belden would do for around £40) outperforms a basic 'kettle lead', and moreover, why installing a dedicated radial spur for a hi-fi system, depending on the area you live in and how badly the mains is polluted (particularly with DC from nearby industrial works, etc), and how many active SMPS units you have, switching away and generating noise, especially in household appliances, can make a *massive" difference!

No thoughts on post #200?

Marco.

[Marco]

I remember when noise in hifi systems really was noise; turntable rumble, cable hum, phono amps picking up radio signals, none of this namby-pamby 'inaudible noise' nonsense.

Ha - too true, but at least in those days the mains wasn't as polluted as it is now, from the cumulative use of all the cheap SMPS units everything electrical you buy now has, and with all the bloody mobile phones around, there's also more RFI than ever!

Marco.

[Pharos]

"The prejudice I was referring to was in relation to the propensity of staunch objectivists to arrogantly dismiss everything that doesn't fit with their scientific belief system"

What actually is gong on, is a corruption of the scientific method to provide comfort to the espouser; they are not usually entirely objective, and mask their lack of intellectual rigour with a stance of arrogant aggression.

In my time with Auntie, this was a cultural norm, the body language expressing contempt for anyone less qualified, as though they must implicitly be inferior in all they thought and did.

[Stratmangler]

Ha - too true, but at least in those days the mains wasn't as polluted as it is now, from the cumulative use of all the cheap SMPS units everything electrical you buy now has, and with all the bloody mobile phones around, there's also more RFI than ever!

Marco.

Weirdly enough it's the SMPS units that generate more RFI than the mobile phones.
RFI simply stands for radio frequency interference, and it isn't necessarily air borne.
All the SMPS units switch at radio frequencies.