Metropoulos Forum

I'm wrapping up the assembly of my 45 after cleaning old solder joints and finishing the board, but I'm confused on how to install the power cable exactly. To remove the IEC do I need to just sever the cable where it meets, or pry it off with some pliers? Or is there another way? I don't want to mess up my cable so I thought I'd ask first.

And for stripping the wire, is there a specific tool for this? My wire stripper isn't nearly big enough to do the job. Maybe I can peel it back like a banana


I sound like a little school girl but these Marshalls look so cool on the inside!!!!

Just cut it off clean.

I usually carefully slit it with a razor blade, pull it open like a banana to the length exposed I need, and then trim it carefully.


Seems to work fine.

Thanks Mike, you and Will have been really cool about helping me, even if my questions are dumb.

Nah, your questions aren't dumb.

One thing you can do is take your power cable, and cut the IEC off, just lop it off.

Then, take a sharp knife, and find out exactly where you want to take the outer black
jacket off. Roll that around the blade of your knife. Roll it not too hard but not too soft
so that the knife digs in, and cuts a bit, but not so that it cuts all the way through the
jacket. You'll feel that you're in a little way. When that time comes, grab the cable in
each hand so that the cut point that you've been working on is between your hands, and
give the cable a real flex, like you're breaking a stick in half in your hands. Rotate it, and
bend it back again, like you're snapping a stick. If you've cut enough, the bending motion
will break the insulation on one side or the other and you can work it from there.

Thanks guys, had to dig my rusty razor blade out of the crevasses of my garage...

It is a bitch to get the cable through the strain, but at least you know it's not going anywhere once it's in.

Yes sometimes the cable is a bit fat for the strain relief.

I have found that if you can compress the strain relief with a pair of pliers while inserting the relief into the hole in the chassis, then pull the cord from the interior side, the relief will often times slide into the hole.

I swear if i ever build another amp I'm cutting a hole for an IEC.

Heheheh, yeah those really are nice aren't they. Sometimes it's a bitch to cut the hole but it sure makes it more portable to have the IEC cord and connector.

I bought a nice shielded 14 gauge IEC cord from Mouser after reading about the $300 power cord that someone was pushing at another forum.
Didn't really notice any change but it makes me feel good.
Besides it was less than $25.

300 buck power cord.

Good lord. There's another born every minute.

Mike are you a member at The Amp Garage?

It was a well known guitar amp builder that recommended the Hi Fi power cord too.
Me thinks there was some kick back involved.
I watched a demo video of the power cord.
First of all, you aren't going to hear the subtle nuances they were talking about through a compressed video clip and second of all, I swear there was some fancy editing that made the whole demo seem bogus to me.

Yep, there is a audiofool born everyday.

i am but I don't post there much. As far as learnign about amps, I much prefer it here.

Plus I have zero interest in building a dumble clone, or building a T-wreck clone.

I wouldn't doubt creative editing. i see it a lot with 'product demos'
I don't like that.

I get beat up a bit because mine are low brow when I do them, but you can be damn sure, that's what the piece of gear sounded like in my room on that day.