--- In xl7@yahoogroups.com, Wesley D <Serfiss@y...> wrote:
[snip]
> Ground hum sucks. not to mention, they say somewhere between 1 in
5 or 1 in 10 outlets is wired improperly. apparently black, which is
usually ground, on a normal US outlet is hot, white is neutral, and
green is ground. so naturally people can get confused.
[snip]
Here in the US, full service hardware stores usually have a little
Circuit Tester you plug into the 3-prong outlet to tell you how the
outlet is wired (or miswired). Anyone who has any e-music gear worth
protecting should spend the money to get one. I think they are under
$5.00.
It won't get rid of your hum, but it will tell you if the circuit is
wired correctly.
Mine is from Gardner Bender, Inc. Milwaukee WI 53209. Using 3 lights
(2 amber, 1 red), it shows the following conditions:
--open ground
--open neutral
--open hot
--hot/ground reverse
--hot/neuttral reverse
--correct
Mine is yellow; evidently they are now red. Looks like list is now
$5.49.
http://www.gardnerbender.com/fr_testers.html
If you want one, try a hardware store.
Hope this helps.
PS: If you attempt to rewire an outlet (or convert froma two prong
socket to a three prong socket), please make sure the circuit is off
first!!! (The tester is also good for that--much handier than
carting around a light or powering up your rig.)