Seriously cheap DIY switched outlet/outlets.

For those needing switched outlet/outlets, here is about as cheap a way to go as I know. You will need the following:

1. 40A relay from All Electronics Corporation. ($2.50 plus shipping) The relay is 1" x 1" x 1-1/8" plus flanges so it is pretty small.
2. Three threaded romex clamps. (($0.50 each)
3. One 2-gang three hole electrical box. ($3.50)
4. Blank plate to cover 2-gang box. ($0.60)
5. Four wire spades for connecting wires to relay. (less than $1.00/4 in bulk)
6. Old 12 gauge extension or 12gauge wire. (free in my case)
7. Male and or female 120 volt plugs. ($2.50/ea.)
8. 120 volt 2-prong plug off of an old device. (free)

I spent less than $15.00 for the whole thing. I used a piece of an old 12 gauge extension cord since I have a bunch of old cord that are no longer OSHA approved due to some cuts in the exterior insulation. An old cord off of a toaster or vacuum would work fine for the control wire. You can also place one of these on a power strip for multiple outlets. I have a couple made that way. Proceedure:

1. Cut length of 12gauge cord that you want.
2. Thread clamps in to the openings of the 2-gang box.
3. Run 12 gauge wire straight through the 2-gang box.
4. Cut exterior insulation so that you can get to a 3" long area of black wire.
5. Cut black wire and crimp spade connectors onto both ends of black wire.
6. Run control cord through the back of the box through romex clamp.
7. Crimp spade connectors onto control wire ends.
8. Plug control spades onto control side of relay.
9. Plug spades from 12 gauge power cord on to power side of relay.
10. Place blank cover on 2-gang box.
11. Tighten all romex clamps.
12. Install male and or female 120 volt plugs onto ends of 12 gauge cord.

That is all there is to it. You can plug the control into the 120 volt switched outlet on your AVR or prepro. You can then plug a power strip into this cord and all outlets on the power strip will be switched. You can make more and plug the control into the power strip for additional amps so that each amp is on a dedicated circuit if you want and all of them will be switched by the AVR/ prepro. I power four pro amps this way. My amps have soft start and I never have any popping problems when switched on or off. Here are a few pics.

Relay
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Romex clamp
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Finished cord
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The smaller cord is the 120 volt control cord. The larger cord is the power cord. My equipment is remotely located so I do not have to worry about using pretty looking cords, so orange is fine with me. Anybody can build one of these and they are very cheap to make.

I bought three of these relays for at $2.50 each plus $5.00 shipping so the more that you buy the cheaper they get each. I paid $12.50 delivered for three.

I have built several switched outlets, but the nice thing about these is the cheap $2.50 relay and the small size.

That's a good route if you are building your room, but can be hard to install in an existing room. In my case my HT is on the 2nd floor and my equipment is located on the first floor. Even if you built your room, you might have a problem if you did not install enough switches. I have four 20 amp dedicated circuits. When I built this room I never would have thought that I would need/want four dedicated circuits. For those of us that have our equipment located in another room it could be hard to implement. Also you still have to remember to turn off multiple switches if you have multiple circuits. I used to have my system set up so that you used a separate RF remote to turn off a pro amp. Sounds simple but the pro amp got left on many times. Even I forgot to turn it off a few times. I don't know about your kids, but mine would not get everything turned off and I would have several amps left on. With the relay switches in place they just have to hit the off button on the remote and all audio equipment is turned off.

Even if I could implement your method it would cost 3 to 4 times more in my case. As long as you have a scrap cord for control power you can build one of these for less than $18.00. I can't buy the 60 feet of 12/2 with ground romex that I would need for than price.

Same here. I want my system to be easy to use. My kids use the HT all the time. I just want to make sure that everything is off when finished. Since I have four pro amps and my equipment is located in a mechanical area on another floor from the HT it would be a big waste of electricity if left on. That is why I installed the relays. You press amp and power on the remote and power is cut off to everything. Only the projector and AVR are left with stand-by power.

No, you are not missing anything. This is a great way to turn a pro amp on and off also it is so cheap. If you have more than one pro amp to turn on then plug a power strip into the cord and plug a second control (or more) into the power strip. I am currently powering four pro amps and a HT amp with these.

Look at the picture of the relay. I took it close up so that the numbers could be read. Here is a link for it. www.allelectronics.com/index.php?page=search&search_query=40+amp+relay&x=0&y=0
Yes you can get a 12 volt coil relay and use a 12v trigger. My cheap AVR that I use as a pre pro does not have a 12 volt trigger, but it does have a switched outlet. That is why I went this route. Plus this will work for most anyone.

I have three Nady and one Behringer amp and all of them have delayed power on. I do not have any thumps when powering up or down.

Sounds like you already have your equipment on a shared circuit. Adding an amp might make it worse as in trip the breaker. Is there any way to add another circuit?