Are you saying that the authorities are wrong to require RCD's in modern electrical installations and they are pointless?  I said earlier - I have no problem with an opinion that you can use equipment without RCD's as a choice

My problem is with people making statements about electrical safety devices and how they work when those statements are not correct.

We are watching the Ally McBeal DVD's at the moment.  Your above statement troubles me.  I need to take a moment

Clamping refers to protection from big spikes.  It is protecting your equipment from High voltage spikes on the incoming supply.  RCD's protect small people from tiny (50ma or less) currents crossing their heart muscle.  They are not equivalents.  At all. 

Please give it a rest, Richard. Do you even know what a clamp does?

My problem is with you banging on and on about RCDs ad infinitum to the detriment of any valuable discourse. I am not saying that RCDs are pointless - where have I even implied that? I am beginning to think that you are on a point-scoring mission here and I refuse to feed you any longer. We have answered the o/p over and over again. He can make up his own mind about buying a regenerator. I note that you have not proffered any evidence of a regenerator causing harm.

Wonky - if you are confused then we haven't done our jobs properly. I'd invite you over to actually hear a regenerator in action so that you can determine whether it's for you or not, but I know you're far away. The offer is there anyway. If you possibly can, try to beg, borrow or otherwise obtain one to try in your own system, is my advice.

Thanks, and do let us know.

Martin

You are selective.  I am not banging on about RCD's .  The original question - the whole purpose of this thread - was

"One thing that is niggling me is the safety aspect of potentially masking the double pole RCD in the distribution board from a fault by running things through the regen unit."

AND

"Does anybody know for certain?"

Your reply was

"I can't understand the issue or the problem. The earth continues through the regenerator and protects all its equipment. The RCD will trip if there is a differential in the circuit and again will protect the equipment."

The first sentence I don't dispute appears to be true.  The 2nd sentence is true but doesn't answer the question.  The third sentence is almost certainly untrue - in context - (and misses the point - which was not to protect the equipment, but to protect lives from electrocution and fire risk).  Kevin is about to test and establish that this weekend.  The subsequent discussion has been derailed by trying to tell the OP he asked the wrong question.

Once again - the question was not "do you consider RCD protection to be unimportant, and something you are happy to forego to obtain the benefits you perceive from using regenerated mains".  It was, and I make no apologies for repeating it

"One thing that is niggling me is the safety aspect of potentially masking the double pole RCD in the distribution board from a fault by running things through the regen unit."

If you get the answer to that question correct - then the distinction between our TT installation and your TN-C S earth is irrelevant.  However, your answer was (almost certainly) incorrect, and the discussion drifted to whether it matters that you have RCD protection for HiFi, and whether anybody has died yet as a result of not having RCD protection on a mains regenerator.  This ignores this item



This is the main power switch for the house .  It is, and by EDF rules has to be, connected to the EDF supply and meter as the first and only point of entry to the house.  All subsequent "tableau" are downstream of this device.  Unlike your UK equivalent Martin, it is not just a switch.  Not just a manually operated circuit breaker.  It is a 500ma RCD - compulsory by law in France because of the TT installation.  It will not trip anywhere near early enough to protect from electrocution risk - 500ma is way too much.  It's purpose is to ensure that even a fairly low current leak to earth will trip the power - even with as much as 100 ohm impedance on the earth connection.  The issue is to ensure that earthing the chassis of electrical equipment (like a class I amplifier) WILL cut the power in the event of a live connection to the equipment case

In your house, with less than 1 ohm earth impedance - a fuse or miniature circuit breaker does that
In our houses - we need an RCD to work

But I repeat - all I have done is to respond to the original question in the OP - and your incorrect response to it.  I have not gratuitously "banged on about RCD's".  They are not important to you.  Fine.  I have no issue with that.  You are free to make your own choices.  Please do not give incorrect responses to questions about safety.  Especially when they are qualified by "does anyone know for certain".  The tone of your response implied you did.

Martin.  Thank you.  I don't want to run an endless nitpicking debate.  In large part we can all wait for Kevin to report back his test.  My concern is that ambiguous statements are not left ambiguous.

As such

In isolation, as a stand-alone statement

"The RCD will trip if there is a differential in the circuit and again will protect the equipment."

is not untrue.  It is a description of how an RCD works.  If the current on one leg of the circuit physically connected to it is different from the current on the other leg, by enough, then it will cut the power - which would protect any equipment connected to the circuit which has the RCD in it.  ie it would protect the regen unit itself (although that clearly wasn't what was being asked)

But that statement was made directly in response to a question

"One thing that is niggling me is the safety aspect of potentially masking the double pole RCD in the distribution board from a fault by running things through the regen unit."

I think it is fair to interpret that question as "if I have a fault on a piece of equipment attached to the regen unit, will the RCD on the distribution board still protect me"

And the answer to that question is "No.  It will not.  The regen unit isolates the 2 circuits from each other physically, and an RCD can only protect a differential in the circuit to which it is physically connected"

That was why I said the 3rd statement was untrue.  I am happy to acknowledge that in isolation, out of the context in which it was made, it is "true".  In the context of a reply to Kevins question it was incorrect.

Shall we wait for the weekend and Kevin to report back?

Read more: theaudiostandard.net/thread/2673/mains-regeneration-question?page=3#ixzz4Q51Bszwp

Where is that bottle of Gin that I mentioned a few days ago? We are in the exact same position we were a few months ago, reading this thread is like Chinese torture, yet I find myself still here! I must have been a bad person in another life.

It has been thoroughly test d to n the U.K., to the CE regs, but it has not been tested in my house with a different earth system.

I am sure it will be fine, but this test should also close the discussion in this thread.

BPS is another kettle of fish.
If the regenerator makes a suitable difference, then I may start to look at a BPS, with all of the safety features installed.
I had recently read about variable quality of the Airlink units, which kind of put me off - for now.