Sorry to open up such an old thread, but there did not seem to be a newer, better alternative, and I do not want to start a new one since this seems appropriate.
I have 3 working 1970s vintage receivers and I would like to replace the cables along with a thorough cleaning, DeOxit, etc.
I am not an electrician but I know that grounding is mysterious and that there is art and voodoo involved as well as science. I would like to use a good modern 3-prong plug because in my ignorant mind it seems like grounding the chassis is the right thing to do, but that seems to be problematic because of grounding, hum, etc. So, my first question is: Should I simply use a 2-prong polarized plug and forget the ground? Or is there some component that I can insert to allow the good and stop the bad? And if, in the future, the ground wire is connected and I plugged it into a 2-prong extension cord via an adapter plug, has a danger been created?
The larger question is about the "death caps" because replacing them seems to be the thing to do while I am in there. I have all the schematics and only the Pioneer shows a cap in the circuit between the power main and the transformer. I have not taken them down and opened them up, so perhaps they will actually have them in reality even though they were not shown on the diagrams.
I am planning to order some replacements from justradios and if they provide some advantage I would be willing to add them even if they aren't in there now. As I understand it, "XY" means that it can go either way, so if I add one is it better between hot and neutral or between neutral and ground?
Thank you very much in advance for a dumbed-down simple answer and/or easy-to-follow instructions.
PS - Sherwood S-7300, Sansui AU-5500, Pioneer SX-450, Kenwood KR-1400