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[SugarMedia]

On a side note, I was reading some threads on a forum about power conditioners. What a wide range of oppinions about different models and views. Some saying they are a waste of money others saying they would never live without one. Monster products seem to really get some peoples blood boiling.
What do you guys think?(or gals) Thx

This just in:

http://tinyurl.com/85lsk
http://tinyurl.com/crhz8

 

[DTB300]

On a side note, I was reading some threads on a forum about power conditioners.

The concensus of most discussion is that a Power Regenerator is the best way to get clean power that you may need. But these can be very costly.

For surge protection a lot of people talk very highly of Brick Wall units as they are not MOV based. Zero Surge is the same as Brick Wall and little less costly.

For Power Conditioning, I have heard a lot of positives about BPT and Blue Circle. Some people talk about all these units "limiting" the current available to a Power Amp, so say it does not matter.

So which is right and the best thing to do?????? I do not think there is a concise "do this" answer to all of this. Ah yes, the ever increasing confusion in the world of Audio. What to do, what to do...

If you think you have "very dirty power" or an issue with power in your home, get a qualified electrician in to check it out. Find out what may be wrong to start with and go from there.

Dan

 

[Reverb2009]

On a side note, I was reading some threads on a forum about power conditioners. What a wide range of oppinions about different models and views. Some saying they are a waste of money others saying they would never live without one. Monster products seem to really get some peoples blood boiling.
What do you guys think?(or gals) Thx

Power conditioning is becoming more and more popular as people give into it. It’s hard to convince some one that power makes a difference. These people are typically the ones that call cables snake oil and refuse to give it a try, just to find out for them selves.

My feeling is power conditioning is a necessary evil. Meaning they can have a small negative effect on the sound but the positives usually out way the negatives. I do have a monster unit and yes it does work but with so many other solutions out there its over priced for what you get. Any more monster is way over priced, wile other company’s are advancing there technologies monster stays the same, your paying more for the name then you are quality.

Power conditioning comes in all shapes and sizes; you have Conditioners, Regenerators, Stabilizers, ETC. My recommendation for a bright system would be try PS Audio. Monster power conditioners offer 25Db of noise reduction Ps Audio’s offers 40Db, and their power plants (Power regenerators) offer 70Db!

Lots of choices out there don’t be afraid to buy different brands and see which one works best for you.

 

[Sky Saw]

The effect that I have noticed from power conditioning would fall in the domain of greater transparency (less hash to the sound), but I doubt that power conditioning will make a big difference to the issue that you initially describe.

If you have ruled out room treatments and speaker placement, then I suggest that the biggest bang for your buck in making a real difference in the smoothness of your system will be the following:
1) source - MLs show every flaw in digital playback in big, bold writing.
2) preamp - when I replaced an old NAIM preamp for my current Copland, I was astounded at the way that highs were being mangled by my preamp. At best, a new amp will only highlight issues around a crappy pre, and at worst, a crappy pre will make you buy a sub-optimal amp that compensates (not that your current pre is crappy, but it might be the biggest contributor to your issue).
3) amp - when you know what preamp and speakers you want, it is much easier to get the amp that works best with them.
4) Cables. Touchy subject around here, so I leave no other comment .

To me, it would be a tossup between the source or the preamp as the guilty party. Find a dealer that will loan you equipment, and do some sleuthing - what could be more fun than that?

 

[jjcarr]

Cat 5 speaker wire test, better power strip, then electronics.

Yeah, the main reason I suggested the CAT 5 first is because it's really cheap. Don't know for sure that it's the problem, but it can't hurt. BTW, I assume you aren't using any of the surround modes on the Rotel for music, they can screw with the sound pretty severely.

 

[Jeff Zaret]

cadethoerk,
I will add a bit but most of what has been said is great advice.

First of all, I am one of the few who has a Rotel amp. I do like it very much and to see/hear a noticeable improvement in sound would cost about 3 times more than what the amp costs. Having said that, I do have their biggest 2 channel amp so I do not want for power even with CLSiiZ's! It originally did appear to be bright but I have made a few changes along the way that have helped.

Power conditioners are not a bad idea. A lot of it depends on where you live and how noisey and supceptable your "toys" are to spikes and dips in power. I have also heard that you should not put an amp in to a power conditioner and there may be some truth to that because there are some models out there have specific recepticals for amps. You can take that with a grain of salt.

Another thing to try in changing the stock power cord with an after market cord. I would look for one that is at least 14awg. There are many variations on this so do some research and ask questions. There is also the DIY route which I have done with success.

The other tweak you can try is interconnects. These will make some difference and again it all depends on everything else in the "chain". Think of different interconnects as tone controls. Some will exhibit more brightness and more clarity within the midrange while giving you lots of bass energy, etc, with many variations.

The biggest change in my system was when I changed from a SS preamp to tube preamp. The birghtness was gone and stuff that I thought was just kinda there in the reccordings came through loud and clear.

Just some thoughts

Jeff