System Ground - AudioArts Engineering R-5 Owner's Manual

R-5 / Jan 97
The first step is to ground the console.

SYSTEM GROUND

While console power supply common, audio common, and the
mainframe chassis are connected together at the R-5 mainframe, they
are not connected to electrical ground and the chassis of the power
supply. Safety requirements dictate that a positive connection from the
console mainframe to electrical ground be made in the completed
installation; audio requirements also dictate this same connection—
use the two grounding lugs on the connector surface area of the
mainframe (underneath the hinged meterbridge) to establish your system
ground (see left AUD VU meter area on drawing on page 1-1).
The system ground serves two important purposes:
(1) Provides a zero signal reference point for the entire audio system;
(2) Assures safety from electrical shock.
There exist two terms that one encounters in a discussion of ground:
(A) EARTH GROUND, which is usually a heavy copper rod driven
into the soil adjacent to the building (around 6 feet down) or
a connection to the copper water pipes leading into the
building. Either is acceptable (unless, of course, the water
pipes are plastic).
(B) THE POWER COMPANY EARTH CONDUCTOR that enters the
building at the power line breaker box; this conductor should
be (and is often by code) tied to the above-mentioned earth
ground at one point.
GROUND.
TIE THE CONSOLE GROUND LUG TERMINALS TO THE SYSTEM
EARTH GROUND. TIE EVERY PIECE OF EQUIPMENT IN THE ENTIRE
AUDIO SYSTEM TO THE CONSOLE'S GROUND LUG TERMINALS. If the
system earth ground point is inaccessible, tie the console ground
terminals to the power company earth conductor at the main breaker box
(see drawing "Typical Grounding Scheme" on page 1-4).
Each piece of equipment should be connected by its own ground wire
(usually the round third pin on the AC cord). This means that every AC
outlet must have a separate conductor run to the console ground lug
terminals; the outlets cannot be daisy-chained as is normally encountered
in commercial and residential AC systems. Any equipment not supplied
with 3-wire AC cables must have individual ground wires (16 gauge or
larger) connected to their chassis grounds and then run to the console
ground lug terminals.
F S
IRST TEPS
This point is the SYSTEM EARTH
/ B I
ASIC NFO
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