Circuit breaker - which to choose

[Speedskater]

I'd be interested to know what failure mode would cause a defective breaker to have an effect on the sound of a Hifi.

I would think that anything that causes the contact points to form a high resistance joint could be an audible problem.

 

[audio_tony]

I would think that anything that causes the contact points to form a high resistance joint could be an audible problem.

The failure mode you're describing would typically lead to the breaker tripping due to heat.

I have seen some older types spark when reset with a fault still present, I guess this could cause some carbon build up on the contacts, however it would have to be reset in this condition many times, and if someone is stupid enough to repeatedly reset a breaker when it immediately arcs / flashes over and trips, well...

Most of the modern ones (past 15 years or so here in the UK) seem to trip immediately with no discernible flash over, but of course that will also depend on the load present at the time.

In summary, the contact points would have to be very high resistance before any voltage drop occurred when powering a typical HiFi system drawing 1 to 2 amps. And even then, it's highly unlikely it would be audible, as the breaker should trip if a lot of heat is generated due to high contact resistance.

 

[antcollinet]

(it won't latch on the on position).

Well, that'll effect the sound.