oldmako 15 Posted November 24, 2018 Share Posted November 24, 2018 (edited) Greetings and thank you in advance for any advice you may offer me. I have a pair of Phase Linear 400's and a 4000 preamp. The amps are in great shape physically, zero scratches, good lights and meters. Just gorgeous. I have not used them for years but I'd like to relight that candle. But this time, I want to use fuses inline to the speakers. The last time I used them, I had an issue with a volume spike which caused one of them to fry a pair of woofer voice coils. According to the local "stereo repair guy" (who actually does seem to know what he's talking about and has a thriving repair business) my condo's electrics were more the issue than anything. The wall which contained the power outlets went through the bathroom circuit and was constantly acting up. The speakers would make a pop sound when anyone went in and turned ON or OFF (especially OFF) either the light or fan in the bathroom, the speakers would hum when the fan was on, etc. Its been years but I remember various other electrical gremlins on that side of the condo, the wall plugs were intermittent, etc. It was his belief that the electrics were the issue and not the amp. He called it a DC transient spike or something that went right through the amp. So, I'd like to fuse protect the speakers but I don't quite know how. A few questions... 1. Is it a simple inline, automotive style fuse holder with a glass fuse? 2. Does it need to be soldered to the wire? 3. Fuse amperage? 4. One fuse for each speaker, attached to the + wire? 5. Anything else that I'm missing? I've got a big man cave over my garage and I'd like to get it thumping. I'm going to use a pair of Klipsch CF-3's and perhaps some Klipsch KLF-30's or KLF-20's. I have a few other options as well. ANY help appreciated. OM Edited November 24, 2018 by oldmako clarity and additional info 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sk1Bum 9,859 Posted November 24, 2018 Share Posted November 24, 2018 Hello oldmako, and welcome to thecarversite.com. We're glad you're hear. There is a lot of information here, much technical know how, and a pretty good bunch of folks that are happy to help. We have at least a couple of guys that love and work on Phase Linear gear. I'm sure one of them (or more) will chime in on how to address your issues. While I am by no means a tech, I would think you should address your electrical issues. They can adversely affect whatever you route you decide to pursue. Once you progress past Inbound status you'll get the permissions you need to upload some pics of your gear in the Members Systems area. We all like pics of all kinds of audio gear. So kick your shoes off, turn up the music, and welcome aboard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldmako 15 Posted November 24, 2018 Author Share Posted November 24, 2018 Many thanks for the prompt reply and welcome. I addressed the electrical issue by moving! ? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sk1Bum 9,859 Posted November 24, 2018 Share Posted November 24, 2018 12 minutes ago, oldmako said: I addressed the electrical issue by moving! ? That certainly works! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kingman 662 Posted November 24, 2018 Share Posted November 24, 2018 Welcome to the forum! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BluesMan57 1,306 Posted November 24, 2018 Share Posted November 24, 2018 Welcome to the forum Sir...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Community Admin AndrewJohn 8,140 Posted November 24, 2018 Community Admin Share Posted November 24, 2018 Welcome to TheCarverSite! Yours is a very interesting question. I'm interested in the answer too. I know someone here knows. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kve777 6,657 Posted November 24, 2018 Share Posted November 24, 2018 Welcome. Since you are dealing with an AC signal, you can one fuse either Pos or Neg side, but most people choose Pos. To calculate fuse size, take the power (in watts), say 200, and divide by the speaker impedance (say 8 ohms), then find the square root of the result. 200/8=25, √25=5, so in that case I'd use a 5A fast blow fuse. You can use either ATC or ACG type fuses and in line holders. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlie 16,429 Posted November 24, 2018 Share Posted November 24, 2018 Welcome to Carversite! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Raven 455 Posted November 24, 2018 Share Posted November 24, 2018 Welcome to the site! Lots of great people here who can help you out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RodH 4,820 Posted November 24, 2018 Share Posted November 24, 2018 Welcome! Try this for a starting point. 'Draw' a line from your speaker impedance across to the max power and find the fuse size. FWIW, I use 3A fast-blow in my Amazing Silvers. 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Community Admin AndrewJohn 8,140 Posted November 24, 2018 Community Admin Share Posted November 24, 2018 26 minutes ago, Rod H said: Welcome! Try this for a starting point. 'Draw' a line from your speaker impedance across to the max power and find the fuse size. FWIW, I use 3A fast-blow in my Amazing Silvers. Very cool, chart, Rod. Thank you. BTW, what was the source of that? I'm curious. I think I've seen it before? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dennis47 850 Posted November 24, 2018 Share Posted November 24, 2018 WELCOME aboard oldmako! Are your Phase Linear amps and preamp Series I or Series II? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RodH 4,820 Posted November 24, 2018 Share Posted November 24, 2018 @AndrewJohn. It’s on the web, Zumbini had posted it a couple times in the past. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldmako 15 Posted November 24, 2018 Author Share Posted November 24, 2018 4 hours ago, Dennis47 said: WELCOME aboard oldmako! Are your Phase Linear amps and preamp Series I or Series II? My amps are Series 1. I am unsure of the PreAmp. Many thanks for all the info. I will research ATC and AGC fuses and holders. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian_at_HHH 2,609 Posted November 24, 2018 Share Posted November 24, 2018 Welcome oldmako! I can't offer you any good tech advice, though there are many here who can and will help, but it is great to see someone rocking a set of Phase Linear gear, joining. ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blues Pwr 765 Posted November 24, 2018 Share Posted November 24, 2018 Welcome to the site, glad you found us, enjoy. Tell us about the rest of your system. We love Carver but most all of us if not all, have other brands of equipment in their systems. What types of music and bands and or artists do you enjoy listening to ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldmako 15 Posted November 25, 2018 Author Share Posted November 25, 2018 (edited) Wow, that's a wide open question and one that might take a bit of effort! I was a stereo junkie in High School when I couldn't afford squat so I am a bit of a sucker for old stuff. Hence the Phase gear. Main living area - Pioneer SX-9100 silverface , wood case, immaculate. Squeezebox Touch Marantz CD player Klipsch KLF-30's Black Man Cave - Sansui G-5700 Klipsch CF-3 cherry front and Advents rear. Mostly iTunes and a computer for source. But an older Sony CD player there as well. This is where I manage the tunes for the Squeezebox. Close to 1 TB of material. This is where I plan to resurrect the Phase 400's. Main surround - BIG old Denon AVR (?) Not sure of the number and out of the country right now...7.1 and huge. Klipsch KLF - 20 fronts Black. Klipsch Heresey rears. Walnut. Klipsch 13 inch sub. Klipsch CF-7 center Black. Secondary surround - Panasonic SA XR 55 Klipsch Forte Walnut Klipsch Academy center Bedroom 1- Fisher 500C serviced to perfect by the local tube guy. Wood case included. Immaculate. $35 bucks on Craigslist! Klipsch Forte II's Black. Bedroom 2- Marantz 2240 receiver Klipsch Heresey, walnut. Bedroom 3- Panasonic SA-ER 55 HT receiver. Perfectly silent sound. Amazing. $50 on eBay. Klipsch Heresey Birch In storage Kenwood 7100 and 8100 amps, tuner Teac RTR Klipsch 15 inch sub Klipsch CF-7 center Marantz digital tuner Phase Linear 4000 preamp - Serviced about 5 years ago by the number 2 or 3 (??) guy from PL in SEA. Can't remember his name, but I have the receipt. Other misc stuff. Short on time right now so that's just a sketch. I'm sure I left some out. Old rock, blues, roots, jazz, classical, cuban jazz, bluegrass, alt rock....most anything but rap, crap and kiddy (popular) music. Edited November 25, 2018 by oldmako 1 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sk1Bum 9,859 Posted November 25, 2018 Share Posted November 25, 2018 Not to jump to any conclusions or anything, but do you like Klipsch speakers? or is your name Paul W. Klipsch? 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldmako 15 Posted November 25, 2018 Author Share Posted November 25, 2018 (edited) Needless to say I am a fan. My brother turned me on to them and I started watching CList. I scored all of them there locally and only paid a "reasonable" price for two pair. All the others were stolen. I left out the Klipsch and Magnaplaners (etc) that bought and that I've already sold! There was a window about ten years ago when older SS gear was going for next to nothing. Now all of a sudden, its in demand and flies off the shelves. Still looking for a nice pair of Cornwalls or LaScalas. Edited November 26, 2018 by oldmako 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sk1Bum 9,859 Posted November 26, 2018 Share Posted November 26, 2018 19 minutes ago, oldmako said: Needless to say I am a fan. My brother turned me on to them and I started watching CList. I scored all of them there locally and only paid a "reasonable" price for two pair. All the others were stolen. I left out the Klipsch that bought and that I've already sold! Still looking for a nice pair of Cornwalls. There are many Klipsch fans here! I have a Klipsch RC-3 for my HT center channel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonzoro 909 Posted November 26, 2018 Share Posted November 26, 2018 Do the White Oak Audio upgrades to your amps with the DC Protection board and you won't need the fuses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldmako 15 Posted November 26, 2018 Author Share Posted November 26, 2018 (edited) OK! Now we're talking. My repair guy mentioned something about a mod to the amps, but knew little. Can you please elaborate about this upgrade? Where do I get it, how much, how hard to install etc ??? I see "Capacitor Assembly", "Backplane Kit" and "Backplane Wire Kit". Which ones do I need? Any info appreciated. I will google it now. Edited November 26, 2018 by oldmako Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrummerJuice 1,278 Posted November 27, 2018 Share Posted November 27, 2018 I had heard that some manufacturers used in-line light bulbs as protection for speakers. Has anyone heard of that? I thought they would look cool with some Edison bulbs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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