15A Circuits vs 20A Circuits for studio power.

I ended up running 15A circuits, but I split the lights to their own circuit and split the outlets to two circuits.  I ended up using 12ga cable for the main trunk and outlets and 14ga for the remote outlets. 

Even with 3 racks full of gear, a mixer, computer and wall of guitar amps, I never had an issue.  

If at all possible, use 20AMP circuits with 12 gauge BX wire! The clean AC power is worth it!

Personally I’d go 12 wire 20amp outlets all on 1 breaker. Then wire up all lighting on a 15 amp breaker 14 wire. When the panel is wired insist the electrician keep anything with a motor (fridge, a/c, air handlers, etc) on a different leg than leg your studio outlets are on.

12Ga, 20A - all the way. If you're doing this from scratch, the minimal cost is soooo worth it. To get it right without having to tear walls and mains panels apart is priceless. I'd suggest a sub panel for the studio. The SurgeX 420 is pricey but worth it.

^^THIS. 100% correct

Yeah, the idea of putting the studio on it's own circuit is so that I can add a surge protection device/power conditioner if needed down the line. My current home is 70 years old, and there are pieces of gear that just don't work in there due to the old wiring. Those pieces work fine other places. SMH.

A quick note to all of you. I'm a commercial electrical estimator. It's my muggle job. So, I have a good understanding of all of this. I'm building a kit house and trying to get some things done like this dedicated circuit. Sometimes its hard to modify these kit homes. I put in a couple of requests due to my knowledge and needs. My studio is not as robust as some of yours and probably never will be, but I wanted to weigh how hard I should push for this 20A circuit. The BX cable is also a good idea. The panel for the house is actually right below what will be my control room. So this shouldn't cost too much extra. In fact I could probably put together what I think it would cost easily. Anyway, pushing forward with the 20A circuit, which should be plenty.

Thanks Dr. Bill!

Thanks Mark. It will be a little bit. I'm about to go into limbo for a few months, but hopefully I'll be in there by the end of the year. I have the panels I need for the small room. Then I'll have to make or buy some panels for the big multipurpose room. A little bit at a time.

I'm sure my project manger hates me.  I've sent these request over on professional looking marked up drawings.  Did I mention I estimate huge commercial jobs.  LOL.

The computer start-up surge is by far the largest demand in most systems. A console startup is similar, or a room that’s fully cycled by the breaker rather than individual power switches. My whole control room is off one 15A. Most things draw a tiny fraction of startup surge the rest of the time, exception being class A gear, which I sometimes run a lot of.

My system has a main switch but gear is then individually switched on via switched mains sockets on a large star earthed distro board, so my whole rig isn't "on" from the get go.

Only my computer and small Mackie tracking monitor desk come on at start up and then I switch on gear as and when I need it.

So, I had a conversation with my builder and they were able to give me (2) 15A dedicated circuits for my studio room. It was the best they could do, and I imagine will be great for what I'm doing. Thank you to everyone who chimed in on this. I appreciated everyone's input and hearing your experiences.

That’s what I did when I built my room. Two circuits of outlets, third circuit for lights. No issues. Audio gear doesn’t really pull that much current.