Rack mounting and air space

[imjustdave]

I'm rack mounting my equipment in a 15U rack.   I hate looking at the mess of wires and its always hard to manage when gear goes and comes.  I just racked the XPA-7 and I must say it is easier to move around and overall will have less damage in 5 years then not having it mounted, I highly recommend it I can already see the advantages....   and this is day 1 

So the Rack will be slide into a cabinet " wife doesn't want to see the gear"  I know why hide the pretty gear,  anyways I'm in the planning and designed stage right now.  

How much space do I need between gear? Amp and pre pro is the biggest question, right now,    I'm used to computers in a datacenter where they leave no space, 
I'm thinking of having no gaps, but I could maybe afford 1/2 a U worth of space, but future needs might be impacted.

Currently the amp is at the bottom, Next will be the pre pro then I think I will have the 1 u DVD then  sat box, with xbox on top..  

Thanks everyone.

[Gary Cook]

Is the room air conditioned? Whereabouts are you located, hot summers and/or central heating in winter?
Is the rack open on all 4 sides? If so, 50 mm above the XPA-7 minimum. What's the pre/pro? If UMC-1 / UMC-200 then 25 mm is OK.
If it's an enclosed rack (3 sides or all 4 sides) then you will need fans regardless of spacing.



Cheers
Gary

[geebo]

I'd leave at least 1RU (approx 45mm) between items like amps and preamps and anything that has vents in the top. I have 2RU free above each of my XPA-1Ls. As Gary said, this is if you have adequate ventilation. A 15RU rack can fill up very quickly.

[Priapulus]

I have been monitoring my room temperatures (I live in ~~ cold ~~ Canada). My smart room thermostat is set to 21 degrees celsius. At 6 pm, I turn on my gear (see sig below). By 11 pm the gear has thrown off enough heat to warm my apartment to 24 degrees, ~no furnace~, in a Canadian winter. And the gear is not set loud.

So I'd say the gear throws off a lot of heat, especially the amplifiers. I put my amps on the bottom rack for weight stability, and because its open below them for ventilation. I also have a 1RU gap above the amplifiers. I don't worry about gaps above/below processors, DACs or preamps; they don't generate a lot of heat. However, if you see any ventilation grills on any gear, don't block it. In a music/ht environs, I'd reject any solution that involves fans.

Sincerely

/b

p.s. It's true that computer equipment is crammed together on racks. They are also designed with multiple fans to force the heat out of them and live in heavily air conditioned rooms.

[bebopbro]

As someone said previously, leave 1 rack space above and below each amp.   I follow this rule with the tube mic pres in my home studio.   These units probably do not get as hot as a solid state amp, due to the much lower output.   You can buy a vented rack panel to fill-in the open space if you're concerned about the appearance of the gap.

[imjustdave]

Ok so the rack itself doesn’t have sides, top or bottom but it will be installed in a wood cabinet with a few inches around it, + the space the rack provides between it and the gear. I am thinking about having some sort of fan below the rack pushing up into the bottom, and exiting out the top of the cabinet. Going to use the toe kick area as an air inlet and then at the top out the back have air move out. The home does have AC so max temp year round is going to be 70-71 ish.



I know a U of space is small and maybe I just need to bite the bullet and give it a U above, giving up the space is more of a hit then the way it looks.



IF I decide to really push the HT or music I can always open the cabinet, it’s just the wife that doesn’t want to see this monstrosity in the living area guess she is old fashion myself I would love to see it, but if I can get the gear and not see it I’m happy and she is happy.


XMC-1 is the pre pro that is going above this, figure I would keep the emo gear at the bottom.