Newsgroups: rec.audio.tech
Subject: Re: 220 power sounds better
References: <[email protected]>   <[email protected]> <[email protected]> <[email protected]> 
"mc"  writes:

> "Bret Ludwig"  wrote in message 
> news:[email protected]...
> >
> > Richard Crowley wrote:
> >> "Bret Ludwig" wrote ...
> >> > In my houses the 220 feed has always been quieter.
> >>
> >> If you can hear power/mains conducted noise, then you
> >> need to repair your equipment. This is not normal.
> >> It has nothing to do with the power/mains voltage.
> >
> > You can't recognize it as powerline noise per se, but the noise floor
> > is perceptibly quieter, on equipment that measures well within all
> > accepted standards. There is a slight but perceptible improvement in
> > dynamics and clarity.
> 
> How are you switching the same piece of equipment back and forth between the 
> two voltages?
> 
> If you're flipping the switch on the power input of the amplifier, setting 
> it for European 240V mains, please note that it is not wired for balanced 
> power.  It is wired and fused for unbalanced (live-neutral-ground) power 
> just like our 120V.  It may be quite dangerous to run on balanced American 
> 220V power because it is not designed to withstand a 120-volt potential 
> between ground and "neutral."  Something may fry!  (Even with the amplifier 
> turned off, something may fry, because Live is switched and Neutral, which 
> you have connected to phase 2 live, is probably not switched.)

What you said might hold for some old equipment made for some countries 
or not. It is true that most of Europe is wired and fused for unbalanced 
(live-neutral-ground) 230V AC power, just like 120V AC in USA. 
Most of equipment in European markets are nowadays wired with 
a plug that can be plugged to wall on two ways, thus interchaning 
live and neutral. And there are even European countries where the normal 
mains outlet has both power pins live (230V between then), for example 
Norway and Netherlands uses at some locations three phase feeds to 
house where there is 230V between phases and around 120V from live 
to ground potential (not designed to be loaded). 

So equipment for European wide markets should be designed to handle 
those different situations. So with properly designed equipment 
that 240V balanced mains from USA outlet should not be a major 
problem to modern European equipment. 

More information can be found at
http://www.epanorama.net/links/wire_mains.html#europe

-- 
Tomi Engdahl (http://www.iki.fi/then/)
Take a look at my electronics web links and documents at 
http://www.epanorama.net/