Q: I’m lucky enough to be building a studio from scratch in an outbuilding behind my house. Should I run 220-volt power for everything? Would it be better?
A: Congratulations on your new studio! We addressed this one a while ago, but here’s a synopsis:
220-volt power is by nature balanced, so it can provide benefits such as reduced ground loops, more power for high-demand applications, etc. The problem is, virtually none of the gear you will use in your studio will run off of 220 volts. And, as soon as you break out the 220-volt line to unbalanced 110-volt lines, you lose all of those benefits.
So, the short answer is, no, there would be no benefit to running your studio at 220 volts.
Of course, there are many things to consider with regard to studio wiring — far more than we can get into here. If you have special circumstances, definitely consult a qualified electrician or studio wiring expert.