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Old 11-17-2013, 03:04 PM
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prepress prepress is offline
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Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: Brooklyn, by way of Nashville
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Quote:
Originally Posted by CGabriel View Post
Well, without being there and sitting down with you I don't see a way to make specific suggestions by using your existing cables. So, let me make some general suggestions.

You have a complex system with many components including audio and video. In such a system, there are many cables to interconnect and power everything. Then you end up with the tangled mess that you have in the back of the system. This is also one of my personal pet peeves about entertainment systems. The ultimate and best solution is to build a false wall or custom cabinetry that allows access to the rear so that all of the cabling is hidden.

The racks you have are a very open type that allows you to see through. If you acquired a different entertainment cabinet with a baseboard, you could achieve much of the same effect that you would get with a false wall setup.

Most power cords are about 6-8 feet long whiich is usually too long when you have a central power distributor. This means that there is a lot of excess wire that drops to the floor and can potentially interfer with the signal cables. Try to first organize your equipment so as to minimize the lengths of interconnects to each component. Then if possible arrange the components that are vertically stacked by the location of the power inlet. This means to pay attention to which side the power inlet in located. Arrange the componenets with the inlet on the left together vertically and vice-versa right sides. This allows you to run the power cabling vertically up the rack on a single side of the rack. Then these cords can be bundled together with velcro straps. (You should never bundle power cord AND signal cables together but it is allowable with power cords. BTW, never wrap power cords around a rack column or support if made of metal. This will induce harmful currents in the rack.)

With the components arranged, then you could have custom power power cords built to specific lengths so that the cords do not hang down to the floor. Usually it is best to use power cords that are not too thick, stiff or oddly shaped (flat) because this makes it difficult to route the cables where you want them to go. This creates a more orderly appearance and can improve performance by minimizing potential interference issues. This is what we do in PRO installations where the number of components and cabling is very complex.

Very sorry I couln't help you with more specific advice.

Let's see if the guys here have any good suggestions.

cg
One of the advantages of the Sanus Euro racks is the cable management openings at the rear of each shelf. I haven't taken full advantage of those, in part because my IC lengths don't accommodate that in a few cases. I do use them to help offset the extra-long (in my current setup) speaker cables, and maybe I could reroute a power cord or two once shorter speaker cables are in place.

And though it's the least problematic in terms of clutter, for the power conditioners I have contacted Shunyata for help on ballpark pricing for 5m and 1m (15A) Venom HCs, as well as a 3m and a 1m Venom 3. Since my system doesn't pull much power (around 5.5A when watching DVDs) 12AWG is plenty, so I have the option of keeping things as is or going for at least a 1m version of something to connect the two Furmans. The 2m Jewel AC there now must go!

But before I replace every power cord with a shorter one I should work things through more carefully first. Holiday season is coming and I've already spent extra on plane tickets, so money might be an issue short-term. For now the only obvious move is replacing the speaker cables with shorter runs. I haven't had much chance to do detailed analysis because it's been so hectic. I worked OT every day but one for the last 2 weeks, plus a full day yesterday. Combined with necessary time for lesson preparations (I'm a Sunday school teacher at my church), there's been little time to concoct any serious plans of action. My first thought is to simply bundle ICs and then power cords with velcro strips to see how that looks first. That may tell me where to go next.
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